Does a Clear Coat Cover Most Imperfections Guitar Painting

1. Hello everyone and thanks in advance for any replies to my post. Here is the deal.

   I'm about to build a T style guitar. I want to paint it with automotive paint that I can get from autozone. I don't want to clear coat the guitar and want a satin type finish. Here are the questions I have

   First: Do I need to sand the color in between coats? If so wet or dry sand?

   Second: Do I understand that I need to wetsand after the final coat. Using 1500 and then 2000... Is that correct?

   Any other info would be appreciated.

   I don't really like shinny guitars and like the relic look. That's why I don't want to do a clear coat. I saw a tele that didn't have a pickguard and you could see the neck pickup routes. Mine will not have a neck pickup. I'm going wire it esquire style with a fixed cap in the second and third position. the first position will of course be wired to the volume... no tone....
   thanks a lot again guys. I learn so much from these forums.

3. In my somewhat limited experience you should be fine without the final clear coats. I would probably not sand between coats myself unless I had created some flaw, sag or run. Then I would be inclined to really let the coat cure for a few weeks before any final buffing/polishing. Hopefully someone with greater knowledge can assist you more confidently. Most of all don't forget to take pics for us all to enjoy as you go along. A lot of great feedback can be had if people can get a look at the work in progress! Good luck and enjoy!

4. I agree with Cig. Several layers of light coats with recommended dry time in between. Let it cure thoroughly before polishing out the final coat. Good luck, and show us your progress.

5. i also don't like shiny guitars, so when I repainted a couple of my Strats, I didn't do a clear coat. I LOVE the sort of satin finish and feel the guitars have.

   BUT, the paint does chip and scratch off fairly easily without he clear-coat protection. I am not anal about stuff like that, and actually think it looks cool....but it would drive some people crazy.

6. Don't bother with and color sanding or polishing, seeing you want no shine. If you sand it and polish it, the color will shine.

7. ok thanks a lot guys. the body should be arriving in the mail soon and I will post pix of everything. I'm going to have to wait a little while on the neck but seeing as I need to let the body cure for a long time that should be no problem. thanks for the help

8. Why not just spray your color and do a satin clear coat? In my experience it's hard to do a good job of painting it and the polishing knocks out a lot of the imperfections. I would do color sand it smooth and then do a few of sayin clear. Otherwise it will likely look pretty amateurish - but that could likely be my lack of skill causing that.

   Lots of good information here - but it's using nitrocellulose lacquer.

   http://www.reranch.com/101.htm

9. 

   Mr. Lumbergh needs you to go ahead and come in on Sunday, too.

   Make sure you seal the body before painting. I wouldn't apply auto paint directly to wood.

10. Definitely agree with that - the reranch site is very helpful

11. Did this semi relic for my Son..no clear, but 4 coats of Krylon..dries fast, and is readily available at most hardware stores , even home depot and lowes.

    

12. More stuff to consider, +1 on use of the correct sealer. Stay away from automotive primers and wood.

    Use the AutoZone duplicolor in quart cans, it is already diluted and is professional grade stuff.

    Last of all for satin look, put a few coats of paint on, sand it smooth and fine without going thru, then one coat, two max and be done. That will leave it with a satin finish.

13. 

    Chont Most Honored Senior Member

    Heed this advice. I did an amateur refinish and though I'm happy with the end result, underestimating the importance and skipping this step was the cause of much frustration. Nothing more aggravating than applying a coat of paint or clear and seeing grain peak through then sanding, applying another coat with renewed confidence only to have grain peak through... Rinse repeat. Good luck.

14. 

    mapleglo Senior Stratmaster Silver Member

    Joined:

    Oct 25, 2015

    Location:

    phoenix

    It really depends on what kind of finish you want to end up with. If the body you have is bare wood, you'll likely need to seal it, especially if it's an open grain wood such as ash. Maple has a much tighter grain, you might be able to get away without a sealer - but that too depends on what kind of paint you're going to use. You mention automotive paint, but not the type. Lacquer would cover maple fine, but not ash. Poly would also be ok on bare maple, but again, not so much with ash.

    To me, clear coat is pretty much necessary. If you want a satin finish, that's fine - just don't wet sand the clear beyond 1000 or 1500 grit, and don't polish it. It'll leave you with a nice satin finish, but protect the color. Without a clear coat, the raw paint will chip - but again, if that's what you're looking for...

    Lately, I've been using epoxy resin to seal my wood bodies. Let it dry overnight, perhaps a second or third coat of the resin, and sand smooth to maybe 400 grit. That leaves me with a perfectly flat surface on which to apply either the color or clear (if I leave it natural). The prep work is the most important part, if you're looking for a professional looking finish.

    I wouldn't sand between color coats, except perhaps in between the second to last and last coat, but that too depends on what kind of paint you're using, and what you want to end up with.

    http://www.reranch.com
    this is a great resource, but they talk about gloss finishes a lot.

Does a Clear Coat Cover Most Imperfections Guitar Painting

Source: https://www.strat-talk.com/threads/painting-a-guitar-with-no-clear-coat.377023/

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