How To Level and Polish Sand A Guitar Body

[@alexjara8982]

The tip to avoid over sanding sharp spots is so good. Thanks for sharing!

[@HighlineGuitars]

You bet!

[@DJBuglip]

Man, that steel wool on the edges trick is spectacular. Thanks as usual, Chris.

[@HighlineGuitars]

Glad you like it!

[@dalgguitars]

Good video, thanks. I think the magnifier advice is really good. I'll try that next time.

[@short6691]

I bought the 3M sanding assortment you recommended and love it! Amazon was out of the assorted grit sampler kit, but I found it on EBay at a slightly lower price. It arrived in good shape 4 days later. Very pleased. Many thanks for the recommendation!

[@AdrianDecaux]

Thanks for all your tips Chris, watching you build and create such an amazing instruments has inspired me to build my own guitar, I'm in the process of slowly buying tools and stuff to start building my own instrument and for sure in the future I'll buy plans from you. Thanks for all you give us!

[@HighlineGuitars]

And thanks for the kind words. I hope your first build will be a stunning success. If not, build another. And another!

[@apadierna]

Super useful as always. I start tomorrow with the level sanding and buffing finish. I will try to do my best following ith this lesson of the master

[@HighlineGuitars]

Good luck!

[@meadish]

Thank you so much for sharing your knowledge!

[@jpmosher6508]

Hope you will do a video of sanding a carved top. Learning a lot!!! Thanks.

[@HighlineGuitars]

kzbin.info/www/bejne/bGTQoYh5gtyYerc

[@fluidalchemist68]

Thank you so much, you're the best.

[@MrMhitchmough]

Very helpful, thanks

[@yankeepeters2270]

Thanks for the how and indeed, why of this process.

[@greggott2833]

Excellent presentation as always and impeccable timing for me. I'm building yet another guitar from kit parts, etc., and my finishing results have only been OK...not to my satisfaction. Thank you very much!

[@Okla_Soft]

Great episode

[@trichinosis333]

Usually those points & edges are the first places to get damaged in normal use, so leave as much finish on there as possible!

[@vanstry]

Good post.

[@griffisguitars2921]

Information gold!!! Thank you!

[@HighlineGuitars]

Glad it was helpful!

[@fat-hand]

Amazing and helpful process (as always!). I was suffering from orange peel anxiety, but you made me relax when you created it on purpose for this video, then showed how you solved it. It makes me feel I can get good results while I improve spraying skills. Thank you. You mentioned for beginners to spray/build additional coats to minimize risk of sanding through the finish (spraying Crystalac Brite Tone based on your excellent results in other videos). Questions: 1) Do you level sand between all or any number of coats? 2) Do you prefer this dry polish sanding w/3M hook and loop over wet sanding as you have demonstrated in other videos before the buffing step?

[@HighlineGuitars]

I prefer dry sanding, although I won’t say it’s better.

[@JordanKL1]

What are you thoughts on an alternative process where you level sand and then give the guitar one final application of clear finish that is applied thin but wet such that it flows out well and doesn't go on with much orange peel. After that skipping straight to the highest grits before polishing to elimenate the tedious process of getting all the previous grit scratches out. Long story short - 600 grit - clearcoat - 2000 grit and then polish.

[@HighlineGuitars]

It doesn't save any time or improve the outcome. If I level before the last coat, I have to start at 600 and work up to 1000 grit otherwise the last coat won't fill the scratches. After the last coat has cured, I might be able to start the final level at 1000 grit, but in the end, I haven't really accomplished anything. I prefer spraying all of my clear coats and leveling once they have cured.

[@JordanKL1]

@@HighlineGuitars I see, thanks for the reply. I've found on larger furniture pieces, it's much more time effective for me to orbital sand the clear and then try get the best possible finish rather than level sanding and polishing. It doesn't come out looking quite like a mirror but it's a good medium for me.

[@davidclink2032]

I got with an auto body expert who said you can get too many coats. Theory was the farther you get from base the less durability you can have because the material needs a proximity to the metal/wood for best adhesion. That may be more important on car bodies than guitar bodies. I don't know for sure. Any thoughts on this? 20 coats too much etc?

[@HighlineGuitars]

It depends on what you're spraying and how you spray it. My 1st rule of thumb is to spray just enough coats to allow for safe level sanding without sanding through. My 2nd is to keep spraying coats until you get a perfect coat.

[@wbaglivio]

Thank you Chris! Any differences for doing a carved top? Just replace the block with an eraser? Anything else to look out for?

[@HighlineGuitars]

That's all I do.

[@Zues42208]

So im one of the guys who didn't notice some scratches before i did the buff and polish. Any tricks to getting out those scratches besides going back to square one?

[@HighlineGuitars]

Try an electric or pneumatic polisher with a foam pad and some liquid scratch remover. You’ll have to experiment to find which pad and which level of scratch remover to use.

[@subdrums]

Great tips! Do you have any concerns with cross contamination between grits? If so what measures do you take? I feel like I'm over concerned with cross contamination at times.

[@HighlineGuitars]

It’s not a problem with these high tech abrasives.

[@venko3211]

Please how stop single coil pickup huming sound sir

[@HighlineGuitars]

Make sure the wiring is correct and grounded properly. Also, line the control cavities with grounded copper foil. That's all you can do.

[@murpsman]

Conductive shielding paint from Stewmac. www.stewmac.com/electronics/shielding/conductive-shielding-paint.html

[@venko3211]

@@murpsman yes. But some guitars In built using dummy coil to arrest the humming.you have any idea sir

[@frankmusiol6871]

Hi, besser ist es aber das 3M nass zu benutzen. So mache ich das👍

[@HighlineGuitars]

Nassschleifen ist bei Oberflächen auf Wasserbasis eine schlechte Idee.

[@frankmusiol6871]

@@HighlineGuitars Funktioniert aber einwandfrei, unsere Lackierer machen es auch bei den Autos und da sind die Lacke auch wasserbasieren. Probiere es mal, geht viel einfacher👍

[@HighlineGuitars]

@@frankmusiol6871 Nassschleifen ist alte Schule. Es funktioniert nicht mit den von mir verwendeten Waterbourne-Produkten. Trockenschleifen mit High-Tech-Schleifmitteln ist viel einfacher, schneller und liefert bessere Ergebnisse.

[@frankmusiol6871]

@@HighlineGuitars ok, danle👍

[@murpsman]

I'm surprised that you have the neck installed at this stage of finish work.

[@HighlineGuitars]

I'm surprised that you're surprised.

[@jimsuber6784]

I'm not surprised that you are surprised, Richard. He could've just ignored the statement. It was obviously an interrogative. It's probably just his workflow. I've been building for over 35 years. You can do it either way. I attach after finishing. He's a good builder. I do note a frequent change in products. So apparently 3m free cut gold is now out of favor. It's confusing when he speaks of a product as though he's been using for years when looking back will show otherwise. I watch him because he does come up with some interesting ideas. As I said, he's pretty good.

[@HighlineGuitars]

@@jimsuber6784 I am not the type of person who sticks with the same old tried and true products. If something new and better comes along, I will switch in a heartbeat. I realize a lot of guys can’t or don’t want to adopt new ideas, but I have to. It’s in my DNA.

[@jimsuber6784]

@@HighlineGuitars Cool. I don't know anyone in business who is allergic to new ideas. Building is not my business. It's my method of relaxation and has been for a long long time. Playing is my passion. Coding is my business.

[@jimsuber6784]

Hookit Kit = Currently unavailable at Amazon. It's a Covid thing. LOL