Painting a headstock black - finish question.

[RockStarNick]

Hey guys. I'm going to be painting the face of a headstock black very soon.

The face has been sanded smooth, and will be precisely taped off.

All my guitars have Polyurethane finishes, so I figured I'd stick to the same for this headstock. I've purchased some Minwax Clear Gloss Spray Polyurethane (A friend of mine used it to put a gloss coat on some satin Fender headstocks, and had great results!)

My question is: What type of black paint should I use for the undercoat? I know that I should use satin/matte finish, but what kind would work well? Regular old matte finish black spray paint?

[Chris Scott]

Satin or matte will be fine, as obviously the topcoat is what will give the final gloss.

The only thing I'd advise is to always check for compatibility first, but you knew that...

[RockStarNick]

Satin or matte will be fine, as obviously the topcoat is what will give the final gloss.

The only thing I'd advise is to always check for compatibility first, but you knew that...

I did... but I wouldn't mind getting reminded... ;)

I'm hoping that flat black enamel would work ok?

[OlAndrew]

I wouldn't use enamel for an undercoat for anything, especially if it comes out of a spray can. Almost any other paint's solvent/vehicle will cause it problems like peeling or bubbling.

What are you trying to accomplish with the undercoat? Filling grain, sealing the surface, or providing a 'color' undercoat (ie a dark primer under black, or a light primer under white or yellow)?

For sealing, I'd probably use shellac, or just many coats of the final material.

If the latter, lots of thin coats, at first. Just barely cover and let it dry hard, then another, and then wet-sand. (you do know to wet sand with a very light oil? Keeps the wood from swelling, warping or cracking like it can with water) Patience.

Others may have other advice, and that's a good thing.

[RockStarNick]

I wouldn't use enamel for an undercoat for anything, especially if it comes out of a spray can. Almost any other paint's solvent/vehicle will cause it problems like peeling or bubbling.

What are you trying to accomplish with the undercoat? Filling grain, sealing the surface, or providing a 'color' undercoat (ie a dark primer under black, or a light primer under white or yellow)?

For sealing, I'd probably use shellac, or just many coats of the final material.

If the latter, lots of thin coats, at first. Just barely cover and let it dry hard, then another, and then wet-sand. (you do know to wet sand with a very light oil? Keeps the wood from swelling, warping or cracking like it can with water) Patience.

Others may have other advice, and that's a good thing.

I'm hoping to have the face of the headstock be gloss black. I figured it would be a two step process: some sort of coat of flat black, then a coat of clear gloss.

Is there anything readily available, in a spray can, that can do a decent coat of flat black, and will work well with a spray polyurethane on top of it?

[OlAndrew]

I guess I don't understand why you're going with a two layer finish on a simple solid color.

That's done on some cars, to increase the finish durablilty, among other things, but there's no need for that on a guitar.

You might want a clear coat over a metallic, like a gold Les Paul, 'cause the 'gold' is really finely divided bronze dust, and will turn greenish over time if not protected from the air.

For black, I'd use a gloss paint...check auto parts stores. Thin coat, dry, thin coat, sand a bit, repeat til done. That'll give you a finish you can use for a mirror, done right. There's no 'easy' way to do a quality finishing job.

[RockStarNick]

Thanks for all the info Andrew. Yes, I'm totally prepared to do lots of thin coats, and lots of wet sanding when necessary to get that mirror like finish.

I guess I totally forgot to mention that I'm doing a logo on the headstock.

I'm buddies with a sign/decal maker. He makes me these killer logos on super thin, self adhesive chrome mylar film. I usually stick them right on the maple, and then do 10 coats of wipe on polyurethane, making sure to sand when necessary. When it's all polished up, it looks like a chrome logo under a smooth coat of glass - a la modern Fender USA Delxue guitars.

I'm hoping to achieve the same results with this new guitar, except I want the chrome-logo on the black headstock. So I was thinking flat black finish, then apply logo, then apply clear coat?

http://gallery.me.com/nickpierro/100159/DSCN1009/web.jpg?ver=12744576450001

[OlAndrew]

OK, that makes sense, now.

I'd say, use the same brand and type of paint for both the color and the clear. That way, you're sure of compatibility. Mixing brands can cause some very weird results, because every company's formulation is different.

you can easily wind up with something that never cures hard, or peels or wrinkles, sometimes after several months.

Large auto parts stores are a good place to find paint stuff.

[Chris Scott]

...he's right, and def stay away from enamels for basecoat, especially spraybomb stuff - lots of weird thinners and reducers methinks:Devil.

[Sweetfinger]

Sometimes I use an auto product made for interior compartments called "Black-Cote" which is a 1 part air cure polyurethane gloss black. It builds fast and thins with naphtha. I spray 2 part poly clear over that. Sometimes I'll color the headstock black with a sharpie first if I'm using a weakly tinted black instead of the Black-Cote(like black colorant added to a clear).

[Lonesomedave]

what type oil & brand are you guys using to wet sand?