Drop Fill- Stew Mac vid

[vintage66]

Has anyone seen the new video from Stew Mac on drop fillling? He does it with superglue on an acoustic. Is this something that someone with no experience should attempt? He has some blue dye that matches the color.

I have a nice Hamer that has dings in the front and the back of the neck. Of course the razorblade trick wont work because neither is a flat surface. It scares me how scratched up the surface of the guitar is before he sands it and polishes it to a gloss. I don't have a cheap guitar to practice on unfortunately. I was unclear how he scraped the razorblade on a piece of iron and exactly what the purpose of that is.

How do the pro's handle curved surfaces like an arched top or the back of the neck as far as leveling it? I don't think I'm going to try it on the Hamer at least until I've tried it a few times on something else-suggestions for practicing? I'm mostly interested in the back of the neck since those I can feel and looks aren't quite as critical.

Video below.

 

[vintage66]

Here it is

 

[skeeterbuck]

Has anyone seen the new video from Stew Mac on drop fillling? He does it with superglue on an acoustic. Is this something that someone with no experience should attempt? He has some blue dye that matches the color.

I have a nice Hamer that has dings in the front and the back of the neck. Of course the razorblade trick wont work because neither is a flat surface. It scares me how scratched up the surface of the guitar is before he sands it and polishes it to a gloss. I don't have a cheap guitar to practice on unfortunately. I was unclear how he scraped the razorblade on a piece of iron and exactly what the purpose of that is.

How do the pro's handle curved surfaces like an arched top or the back of the neck as far as leveling it? I don't think I'm going to try it on the Hamer at least until I've tried it a few times on something else-suggestions for practicing? I'm mostly interested in the back of the neck since those I can feel and looks aren't quite as critical.

Video below.

It makes a burr on the razor edge that makes it better for use as a scraper.

Also, you can do the back of the neck. Follow the contour of the neck width going in the direction of one fretboard edge towards to other edge (think 90 degrees to the length of the neck or across the grain of the wood) The only areas that this won't work would be on an compound curve. Hope this helps.

P.S. Don't practice on a good guitar, instead use a beater or even an old piece of furniture. Good luck!

 

[vintage66]

Thanks for the info. I'll have to try to dig up something to practice on. I had no idea you could scuff up something that bad and have it come out looking good as new by sanding it. Guess I should have taken auto body class.

 

[m-m-m]

You've got to know somebody with a beater strat, bass, or acoustic ... Tell 'em that you'll set it up for free (I'm assuming that since your watching stumac videos that you can do basic setups), and let them know that your plan is to get some practice dropfillIng dings in the finish. Offer to pay for the new strings even.

 

[walterw]

great video, but notice we didn't get a close-up of the finished work.

 

[vintage66]

Thanks m-m-m, I can do setups but I'm not a pro. It's an interesting idea if I can find anybody that likes to gamble. I'd feel bad if I botched it though.

 

[vintage66]

great video, but notice we didn't get a close-up of the finished work.

Yeah, no closeup-but are you saying it's harder than it looks and even a pro might not get great results? That's kind of what I was asking-Dan makes it look easy, but I'm sure there's a learning curve.

 

[57special]

First off, was that a lacquer or poly finish? If the latter then super glue might be the way to go. If the former, I wouldn't use it. Over time, the two different materials move differently and the repair looks obvious. Actually, I'm not crazy about the results drop filling lacquer with lacquer. I can usually see a very slight witness line, unless a slight mist coat is done after the process detailed in the video.And waiting is a must!

 

[walterw]

Definitely poly on that import beater acoustic.

 

[vintage66]

Not sure what they use on Hamer USA Studios-not nitro, but it seems like I've read it's not standard poly either.

 

[SamBooka]

Isnt fingernail polish nitro?

 

[Rich Rice]

OP, You can get some stair handrail for dirt cheap, spray some finish on it, ding it up, and practice fixing your curved surfaces all you want. There is definitely a learning curve, but once you know what to do, it isn't real bad. Some repairs are easy, some are not- no matter your level of experience. It helps to mess with something that doesn't matter- you can learn to do it pretty quickly if you are "handy".

 

[blong]

It's not hard at all. I get perfect results almost every time. Occasionally I get a client that has left a ding in a body for quite a bit of time and some dirt and grime get in where I can't clean it out, so it has a very slight witness line on the edge if you look real closely in good lighting, but you really gotta look.

The secret is the micromesh finishing paper/pads. I use the pads. You can order the kit from Stewmac for about $20 or so. They last a long time. You get a whole set of about 10 pads. Just go up in grit when you are done with sandpaper and add some water to the micromesh pad. It works very well and is easier than you think.

You gotta have some good polish afterwards, as well, but it is just to clean up a little. I use Meguiars #7 and #9. They work great.

Bob

 

[vintage66]

Okay, I'll have to get some railing and some micromesh and try it out. Just got a Stew Mac catalog in the mail today-maybe it's a sign.