How NOT To Fix A Paint Chip On A Guitar - Lesson Learned

Today I attempt to #repair a paint chip on my #Epiphone #LesPaul... things did NOT go to plan, but I got away with it ;-)
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[@Brykk]

Multiple super thin layers is the way to go. Very thin layer, leave it to dry, thin layer, dry…….over and over until its filled in. Ive done this exact same thing with nail varnish for 3 decades and it almost always works. It rarely a restoration level repair, but it usually does extremely well.

[@__Anton__]

First time I chipped the finish on my Strat, I was devastated. Never repaired it, collected a few more battle scars, and accepted it as a working guitar. 38 years later, it’s still my favourite. I wouldn’t buy a relic, but happy with natural wear.

[@johnmac8084]

Great playing today John, you rock! As others have said, I think your first coat was too thick.

[@GeordieGuitarGuy]

Best advice with those touch up pens and pots is to not bother and leave it alone. Thick poly finishes only a very careful drop fill is worth doing.

[@TheTimeProphet]

Back in 1991 before I got my strap locks. My Aria Pro II fell over and caught the side of the bed. Luckily it was on the back. I fixed the chip with a permanent ink marker, and now to this day I couldn't tell you where the chip is LOL.

[@guitarbobification]

I was certain that the comment section would be filled with suggestions. I was not disappointed LOL! I know from having built many guitars and being a supplier in the guitar building industry that even the best finish folks have a bad day. All the best mate!

[@benallmark9671]

The whole idea in my mind is to just touch it up a bit so your eye doesn’t pick it up. Sure you’ll see if you’re looking for it but otherwise ya won’t. Great stuff John !

[@davidjames7778]

My daughter had some nail varnish that matched my maroon colour and fixed a little chip on my guitar. For white I would have gone for car paint.

[@laurencehastings7473]

Good solo. The problem you caused youself was putting on too much nail varnish initially. The varnish cures with air contact so you need many thin coats NOT one thick one, Basically the underlying varnish couldn't cure because the top surface cured and no air could get to what was under it. Thin coat. Let it dry and cure, apply the next coat. This problem is predominently on thick poly finishes where the chip is deep. Nitro finishes are much thinner and hence easier to repair with compatible materials. You won't read this. You never do but someone else might.

[@JRobsonGuitar]

"You won't read this. You never do..." A little confrontational, perhaps? You make a good point about my error in applying the varnish though.

[@bigbasil1908]

@@JRobsonGuitar With a little practice you could have perfectly painted toe nails 😛

[@johnnyrandom100]

maybee lotof different layers of the nailvarnish letting it dry between coats may have worked? But how long?

[@mrskint55]

I have used superglue and car touch up paint to great success. However it is a tedious job,you can’t rush .keep on rocking John

[@jimbo1959]

What steps do you take? I've got a few small chips in my Les Paul.( on the bottom inside edge ).

[@mrskint55]

@@jimbo1959 You have to do it in stages until you reach the level that you require. It’s tedious but successful when you get it right. If in doubt,I would get someone to do it for you.

[@zazoomatt]

Love my 2020 Les Paul Custom exactly as yours is ! Thanks JR

[@GRBAquatics]

Very Cool, Thankyou. Managed to use this Nail Polish method on a couple of guitars recently, borrowing the missus's Nail Polish. A Blue and a Red guitars. Luckily for me the Nail polish worked perfectly with a near perfect colour match making the repair very difficult to see. Thanks for the 'back-up' method too. Nice Work Cheers

[@micklawrence2630]

Love the intro John ….. all turned out right in the end 👍🏼

[@Xaltar_]

As said by others here, you really need to take your time building up super thin layers. The moment you splash it on thick you run into issues with it not curing all the way through and shrinking as it dries etc. For an actual chipout like this I tend to mix up some superglue and salt or bicarbonate of soda and fill the hole first, then sand smooth and finish with paint, or nail varnish for a cheap and dirty quick repair. You can do it with just the nail polish but you really need to build up the layers and have long cure times to make sure it's fully dry between layers. Otherwise you end up with the fresh polish softening/reliquefying the older coats. More expensive/high end nail polish tends to dry harder and be more durable, the cheap stuff often remains ever so slightly tacky even when dry.

[@gusdogbrownlab435]

How about car touch up paint. You can build that up and then flatten it with some wet and dry. It dries quick and is pretty tough. Nice solo again JR

[@bigbasil1908]

I tried that with my back hofner shorty that had a chip out of it. Months later the touch up paint is still feeling a bit soft and rubbery. So I need to take some of that paint off and go over it with some super glue and then and and polish it. For some reason the acrylic car paint retains a plastic rubbery feel to it. I guess they always coat the car paint with lacquer which gives the hard finish on cars.

[@kingstumble]

As others have said multiple thin layers is the way to go if you want the best finish. Carefully rub down each layer with an abrasive of your choice. I have found Micro-Mesh to be the best--you can get a kit with 2" x 2" soft touch pads in about 10 different grades for not a lot of money(and good for polishing frets too.)

[@Stratboy999]

Dropfilling was the way to do this properly. It is time consuming though.

[@kkzooi]

you could have made it white with the touchup pen and then fill it up with super glue. seems to work pretty well

[@HarryStoneDotCom]

This. Build the superglue up just proud of the finish and let it fully cure. Scrape back nearly level with a razor blade with some tape either side as a depth stop. Then level sand with a small block through the grits and then with wet and dry. Finally buff it out. You could make that scar practically invisible so long as the colour match is good. There would probably be tiny witness lines around the fill because this is a poly finish, but nothing you’d see in most light. I would definitely have used superglue on this guitar. Nail varnish can be okay, especially for nitro finishes because it often has nitrocellulose in it, but so many don’t dry hard enough (so it doesn’t easily chip on nails). You also need to let it dry for a long time. Better to build up layers of actual nitro (Northwest Guitars sell little pots specifically for this), but it takes weeks to do it properly because of the drying time. You can get an invisible result though because nitro melts back into itself. Everyone has different views about whether to build up lots of thin layers or to let the nitro dry (or rather the solvents evaporate) a bit on some plastic or in a jar until it’s thicker and apply that. Either way, once applied, you need to let it dry for a couple of weeks or more to make sure it doesn’t shrink back below the surface and create a dish. Once dry sand and buff as before.

[@johnjonesToffeeman]

Well you made a right pills of that lad. Nail varnish works on little chips but it is hard to get the exact match

[@markpell8979]

John, please use masking tape.

[@jimbo1959]

I was thinking the same thing throughout the video!

[@nellayema2455]

Good try. Good on you for showing us how it went. A lot of YT repair folks use GlueBoost. Also, they use a razor blade with Scotch Tape wrapped around each end of the blade to scrape the excess height away.

[@dasschaf2476]

This is the way. Do the colour-coat as thin as possible, scrape with a razor blade (probably taking nothing off), lightly sand, then a drop or two of lacquer. Scrape again and sand flat. Polish out for an invisible repair.

[@dw7704]

I’ve never repaired chips and stuff, i’ve learned to live it, but i have an Ibanez Soundgear i have considered fixing one on.

[@tonytee4280]

Always the way. Find a fix that works one time and the next time it doesn't. Don't think I'd have even attempted it on a white guitar - so braver man than me.

[@Bizman62]

One reason why you have had success with nail varnish before is that many if not most nail varnishes are nitrocellulose which melts the old finish and blends in. That may have happened with the Fender. Looking at the thickness of the white finish on the Epiphone makes me think it's some 2k (chemiclly hardened) poly which doesn't melt. As others have said, painting the bottom white and filling with super glue or lacquer might work, or some filler to level and a thin layer of paint, or... Some might even scrape and sand the edges of the crack for a smoother transition. In any case leveling the fixed area flush with the surrounding and some polishing should make it almost invisible.

[@jimmyjames2022]

Thanks for demonstrating some pitfalls of chip repair on a polyurethane finish. Good job fixing it precisely in such an awkward location between the multi-ply binding and cover. My shakey hands are jealous. Seems strange how a ding got in such a tight spot yet miss the binding and the cover completely. Drive by chiseling?

[@Reeldin58]

Hi John, I'm still loving that guitar. I'll still need a little help from the lottery to make you an off if you decide to part with it but maybe not all six numbers for this one. Last week I won a free lucky dip so I am working up to it.

[@zubeystinzen540]

Some nail varnish needs UV light to harden them, now you've got a white base coat on you can bring the level up with super glue then spot sand it with strips of wet n dry with your finger applying the pressure as you pull the strips of paper through, i did a black ovation with a chunk missing right on the edge & now you can't tell it was there 👍 10:36

[@andrewcookson2086]

best laugh ive had all day john !! your local nail technician would have sorted that chip out quick sticks LOL !

[@bigbasil1908]

Iv'e got a black chinese hofner shorty that i bought second hand that had a chip out of the bottom of the guitar near the strap knob thing, and there was actually a piece of wood chipped out of it that the previous owner seems to have glued back in. I found some black acrylic car touch up paint over the park. So I gave it a few coats over a few days and months later the paint still seems to feel a bit soft and rubbery. I may end up just slicing off the excess paint with a thick razor blade or stanley blade, and dropping some super glue over it. Then I can just sand it flat and polish it with finer wet and dry paper. I guess car paint isn't exactly hard, but the lacquer put over it is.

[@Davey-Boyd]

My guess John is you added to much. Probably better with numerous very thin coats and let it dry in-between. Saying that I would put it down to "character" and left it there. Lovely guitar though!

[@pyratoothNL]

My biggest worry was when you went at it with the sandpaper. On a recent build I got scratches very easily on a black poly finish while sanding out a neck pocket just by accidentally touching the surface as I was putting the paper to one side. I'd have been worried you're be taking off the finish around the repair with the sandpaper. But the idea was a good one a think. Maybe TipEx would have worked to. Does that stuff still even exist? 🤔

[@adamsan7494]

I like the honesty how you show everything John. Personally the chip wouldn't have bothered me. Nothing worse than an okay ish repair in my humble opinion. 🙂

[@johnwylde8232]

Always a difficult repair when white and a small area. Did ok tho. Well done.

[@bohmao]

How about fine surface filler? Sand it level and finish off with the nail varnish. Oh, and use masking tape on the surrounding areas to avoid scratching the original paintwork. Alternatively, instead of nail polish use car touch up paint and use T Cut for the final polish.

[@andyt5559]

thin layers and let each drybefore applying the next!

[@billyrocca9029]

you just went for a massive blob! Never was going to work!!!! whatever brand or stuff you use mate. small layers with enough time to dry is the only rule!

[@calbrockocat8728]

If it's not in sight, a touch of paint and let dry overnight. If you're brave, then apply a drop or 2 of lacquer into the hole, filling it. Allow to cure for as long as the instructions on the bottle or jar say. Good luck!

[@stevewelsh8560]

looks like a dent instead of a chip now, but from far away at least it won't be seen, and it's on the back anyway, put ya belly over it, job done.

[@RajanSagoo]

Did you use a mod as a sanding block?! 😂 what mod was that? I hope it wasn’t a DNA! 😅 Subbed for that! 👍

[@JRobsonGuitar]

Yup... An E-Leaf that refuses to charge any more 😁👍

[@RajanSagoo]

@@JRobsonGuitar haha, well it’s good you found another use for it! 😆

[@marktayler1252]

have you tried gluboost good for small chip repair

[@JRobsonGuitar]

No, but I will next time 👍

[@NancyDavis-xn4we]

Sweet Child of a guitar solo . What about a bit of chewing gum. just kidding.

[@cptntwang]

Just do nothing. It’s called natural relicing.

[@leepshin]

I would've used a car touch up pen after all is car paint not what guitar manufacturers use?

[@andrewreynolds2647]

Too much nail varnish in one go, thin layers is the way you do it takes longer but ensures the nail varnish is completely dry. 😂 school boy error. 👍

[@JRobsonGuitar]

Yep... Guilty. I'm a plank & I demonstrated as much to the world. Pointless denying it 😳