Doing Things Wrong

Red-on-Red Burst

I smoothed down the brushed poly on this body and was dissatisfied with the result. The shape, with binding and German carve, is rather complex to sand, and the brushed-on finish required an excessive amount of sanding. The foam brush made no difference. Another bad idea from talk_ass, which is an endless spring of bad ideas. I will never again try to brush on a finish - there is no reason, I have excellent spray facilities.

So I made a mix of equal parts stain and poly, masked off the binding, and shot the sides opaque red, feathering into the center, where the grain is still visible. When this is dry, I'll do the same around the front.


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Cutting nut slots ( the slot for the nut, not the slots in the nut for the strings ) has always been a pain in the ass. I've done it with the table saw, with the fret slotting jig, and freehand with a file, and it is always more adventure than I like. There has to be a better way, and this contraption is it. ( The gray clamp is not part of the jig, it is just there to keep the router from tipping off. )