How to make grain filler - Building DC Guitars - Episode 24 - Staining, grainfilling and lacquering

[@bloozaholic]

I bought this guitar and it is so playable and sounds incredible. A long time ago I owned a Les Paul Special dc with P90s which I sold on in 1971 and have regretted ever since. Always on the look out for a similar dc I stumbled across these videos and was intrigued. On discovering it was for sale it was a no brainer. It is a fabulous guitar and I love playing it.

[@ADFinlayson]

Thanks mate, glad you're getting on well with it.!

[@jatna77]

It is so relaxing to watch you work. I hope you continue to upload guitar building videos. Thank you!

[@ADFinlayson]

Thanks man, lots of builds in the queue so I will be filming more

[@richardsargent113]

Nice guitar. Thanks for the lesson.

[@ADFinlayson]

My pleasure, thanks for watching

[@stevesoldwedel]

I have so many Bonne Maman jars that I've come to use them in my shop, too. Nice to see them in yours.

[@ADFinlayson]

I like my guitars like I like my Victoria Sponge

[@raulplaysbass4865]

Hey there! Nice work mate. You had me at the beer sip and I hit “Like” and Subscribed! Getting ready to apply grain filler to a custom Ash P-Bass of mine and came across your video. Thanks for the tips and looking forward to seeing more of your videos. Cheers!!

[@ADFinlayson]

You're welcome mate, thanks for the sub.

[@TomPetersonRefuseReuse]

Just subbed, I've been wanting to look into grain sealer lately, awesome work!

[@richardpurves6660]

This looks intensely satisfying to do.

[@guitarsofold100]

Just a tip!! When you unscrew the top off a tube of any product!!! the conical tip inside the top cover is to puncher the foil!

[@jugheadjones5458]

I came here at your suggestion for learning how you make grain filler from your recent (Nov 2023) purple guitar. Beautiful finish. I have a couple of questions about the filler. Was that boiled linseed oil? Did you use a gloss lacquer? After you wiped it with burlap did you do any sanding? What brand of dyes did you use? Finish How many coats of clear did you spray? Do you always hold the spray gun that close to the work? Do you use any different filler formula for heavy grain wood like mahogany? Is beer required to get proper grain filling? Thanks. Great video!

[@ADFinlayson]

Thanks for watching, yes beer absolutely required for a good result. Yes it was pumice + boiled linseed plus any old alcohol based dye, as long as it will mix with linseed oil. No I wiped off the excess with the burlap, didn't do any sanding apart from a bit of denibbing after a few coats, very light scuff sanding with 320. I can't remember how many coats I sprayed. I normally go 10-13 depending on how much I've thinned the paint, which will depend on how arm it is, if it's particularly warm then I will thin the paint more to mitigate orange peel so do a couple more coats.

[@jugheadjones5458]

@@ADFinlayson thanks for answering. One more question. You said a little sanding for denibbing after a few coats . You mean clear coat? Only one coat of filler though? I’ll get extra 🍺!

[@ADFinlayson]

@@jugheadjones5458yes denib clear coat

[@jugheadjones5458]

@@ADFinlayson thank you. I’ve learned a lot.

[@piospisspot]

When filling grain I apply the stain first then seal it. I then buy a neutral grain filler but tint it with powder artist pigment. I remove excess with Hessian cloth and repeat until the grain is completely full. I then apply the top coats. This is usually working with shellac or cellulose. The grain filler can be abrasive so you have to be careful not to rub too hard or you'll go through the sealer..

[@ADFinlayson]

kind of makes sense not to use sealer then, that way you can't go through it.

[@JohnClothier]

That was really interesting! Ive only just come across grain filling so good to see how to make my own. Thanks for sharing

[@ADFinlayson]

Thanks John, glad you found it helpful

[@hobiecat901]

Nice Job, AD

[@heut4384]

Do you have a Finished video? I'd like to see the final.

[@ADFinlayson]

Sorry I don't but I do have pics of it on my instagram instagram.com/p/CR93WAEMC6F/?img_index=1

[@flyawayhorses]

I'm working with Okume, which is an African Mahogany (so it claims to be.) I thought the idea was to use grain filler before applying stain, which I did. Should I do a grain fill again after staining? Thanks in advance.

[@ADFinlayson]

Do what works for you. If the grain is filled and the stain has taken properly then go with it.

[@RonMack07]

Nice work

[@ADFinlayson]

Thank you mate, appreciated

[@hkguitar1984]

New Subscriber, yes to grain filler, maybe try a Dog Hair Finish (black guitar with silver/white grain fill). Question, towards the end when you are applying the lacquer, in the view where you can see your Spray Gun's pattern, is it optimum to have such a narrow pattern the way yours is shooting in this video? Also, have you ever tried WudTone finishes and if so what are your thoughts about it. Lastly, I have a 4A Quilt Maple Cap I'm getting ready to refinish, so I am in ultra research mode, so far I feel most comfortable following your's and Big Ds processes. Great work Sir, you've really got a great eye and the skill set to do what you do oh so well.

[@ADFinlayson]

Thanks for watching. I’ve changed up quite a few things now, if you’ve seen any of my newer videos, I’m in a new workshop with a dedicated booth so my processes are different. I’ve also changed my spray equipment and lacquer. No experience if wudtone though, sorry. Ash

[@hkguitar1984]

@@ADFinlayson Much appreciated Sir. Glad to hear about the new shop. I am working my way through all of your videos. Again, Thank You.

[@cops1987]

Hi, Very nice well done! I’m working on a bare walnut veneer and I would like to fill up the pores and grains in dark brown colour. Can I stain and fill the grains in the same time? I mean, I’m planning to stain the wood with oil base stain from Osmo, can I use the same stain (which is oil base) to mix the pumice powder and use it to fill the grains and colour/stain the wood in the same time? If it’s wrong, how this should be done ? Thanks so much buddy!

[@ADFinlayson]

I see no reason why you couldn't. If you're doing an oil based finish there is no reason why you can't stain it, then wet sand a heavy first coat of oil to make a dusty slurry which will also fill the grain. You can also put an alcohol/oil based stain into your oil finish to tint it. Whatever you do, you should do a test piece first and figure out what works for you. Here's the tester I did before I finished these guitars: instagram.com/p/CAqesVZnT2V/?

[@cops1987]

All right thanks buddy, I will do as you suggested including some test ! Thanks a lot

[@stringtheoryx]

It would have been nice to know more about the materials and process: Type of stain, how that was locked down and prevented from migrating when the top layers were applied. Type of final finish (I'm assuming it was nitro). The main problem that I've had with stains is that they smear and migrate when the next layer is applied, so perhaps there are materials and tricks that you could show us.

[@ADFinlayson]

I thought I said in the video, the dye I used at the started was waterbased, crimson stunning stain. The red grain filler was made from an alcohol dye, none of the filler should react with the water based colour, yes the top coat was cellulose

[@kharkovguitars]

Здравствуйте. Подскажите, можно ли использовать 2k полиуретановый лак для финишной отделки?

[@furyiiiplate]

Beauty.

[@ADFinlayson]

Thank you mate

[@allanarnoldi7727]

Hi Friend, first I have to say nice job. But could you tell me what kind of oil to use? I'm from Brazil and translating some things doesn't match in Portuguese.

[@ADFinlayson]

Thanks Alan, the oil I used in the filler is boiled Linseed oil. It is quite common, you should be able to find it where you are. Cheers Ash

[@allanarnoldi7727]

@@ADFinlayson Thanks a lot, I'll be repainting/refinishing my gibson les paul in next months. Cheers!

[@ADFinlayson]

@@allanarnoldi7727 good luck!

[@rickhickman2730]

Where can I go to see this completed?

[@ADFinlayson]

This is a fairly old build that I sold a few years ago but there are still pics of it on my instagram profile: instagram.com/p/CR93WAEMC6F/

[@michaelpence68]

I like to use burlap or pototoe bags to take of grain filler from minwax

[@ADFinlayson]

since doing this video, I tried using a folded over open weave dish cloth, also works really well!

[@jonmatthews4254]

What grade pumice powder is it you use please? It seems to be "mesh" grades. Or what is the pumice you used? Thanks.

[@ADFinlayson]

This was 2 years ago so I can't remember where I got it from, but the options I remember were course, fine or extra fine and this was in the middle.

[@paulbriggs3072]

The trouble with pumice is that it blackens and muddies the stain. Colloidal silica makes a much cleaner looking translucent filler which is finer for filling pores. It's essentially colorless. Also, really only one coat need be applied and that's the filler coat. You really don't need an initial stain before that.

[@ADFinlayson]

Well darkening the grain was the plan with this one, if I wanted a clear filler I would probably just use Aquacoat

[@joem6859]

This is imho, the hardest part of a guitar project. So difficult to get the color stain you want, add the filler, and not oversand the filler back and break thru the original stain.

[@ADFinlayson]

One of the jobs I like having done more than I like doing

[@MyPronounsISwhom]

I've been doing some research and have mainly been following videos on KZbin but just today I was surfing the web and was reading the procedure via a blog or something this guy had. Anyway I have a question, the dude on the website said that if you want like a solid less porous touch to your mahogany guitar to put the wood filler first to get that texture and then to stain it and then to locker it. Would you recommend against that or do you think either way is fine cuz I noticed you did the wood filler second and I don't think it's a bad idea but I just wanted to know the pros and cons of either procedure if you do know that answer. Thanks and sweet video actually watch the whole thing with rewinding to recap

[@ADFinlayson]

Well if you grainfill first, there is a chance that the stain will not take to the wood as evenly afterwards, particularly with this recipe I'm using because it has lacquer in it so it works as a sealer as well as a filler. ultimately, whichever method you choose you need to get the surface as level as possible and enough lacquer to fill whatever is left of the pours and build a layer on top of the surface that can be levelled off without burning through. There are many ways to achieve this though, you could just grainfill with Timbermate and spray a red shaver over it, or colour your timbermate and spray a shader. A lot of these fillers though like timbermate or aquacoat all shrink quite a bit and need several applications to fill where as this method only needed one application

[@ChrisFranklyn]

There is something perfect about a mahogany stained red like that. I had NO IDEA to do the filling after the staining. I think I'd have been terrified of pulling all the stain out trying to remove the filler. Thanks for documenting this!

[@ADFinlayson]

I think it depends what filler you're using but yeah the rationale was water based stain to not react with the oil based filler and potentially wipe it away. I obviously wasn't thorough enough with the filler though because I had a lot of visible grain after a second coat of lacquer, so I denibbed tonight and did a second round of grain filler. Will give it another few coats tomorrow weather permitting :)

[@ChrisFranklyn]

@@ADFinlayson Ah, right! Now the oil stain makes sense. Perhaps I just need to hear things about 20 times before it sinks in but that's the first explanation that actually makes sense.

[@ADFinlayson]

To be fair, I’d switch off when I’m talking to, my mrs does 😆

[@APSTTGTO]

I think the Beer was the perfect touch

[@ADFinlayson]

Always

[@albertomulas2818]

Can you please post the link for that type of stains? thanks

[@ADFinlayson]

amzn.to/2FuCNEA

[@albertomulas2818]

@@ADFinlayson thanks :D

[@ADFinlayson]

Thank me by subscribing

[@user-cq3oh8eq3n]

What brand stain? Did I miss that?

[@ADFinlayson]

I think it might have been crimson, can’t remember though. It was a while ago!

[@MsRich118]

can i ask what type of wood stain you used sir?

[@ADFinlayson]

Crimson water based dye to stain the wood and some chestnut alcohol based dye in the grainfiller.

[@MsRich118]

Thanks man, do you remember which brand of dye the crimson is?

[@ADFinlayson]

@@MsRich118 Crimson guitars...

[@MsRich118]

@@ADFinlayson ahh yeah🤣 thanks dude lol

[@RonMack07]

What’s the green oil?

[@ADFinlayson]

Linseed

[@michaelpence68]

What’s the white powder is it drywall ?

[@ADFinlayson]

Pumice powder, you can buy it in block form or bags of already ground. The pumice is what sit's in the grain to level the surface.

[@robwillox7033]

No sealer before staining?

[@ADFinlayson]

in this case, the grain filler is doing some staining, so no. This is similar to how Gibson do a lot of their grain-fill/staining.

[@TheFahekew]

What is that paint?

[@ADFinlayson]

Cellulose

[@CitizenNumberOne]

Widen the fan on your sprayer

[@ADFinlayson]

Thanks for the tip, this video is a few years old and I've changed up my processes a fair bit since then

[@LGNYR]

Did you do any sanding sealer after the grain fill? Or just straight to lacquer (nitro)? Also did you do anything more than the burlap after the grain filler? Or that was sufficient to get it all off.

[@ADFinlayson]

No and no, grainfiller then straight to lacquer

[@LGNYR]

@@ADFinlayson excellent thank you. The end result looks incredible!

[@charliemcgrain]

We need to see the guitar finished with its hardware on. But thanks.

[@ADFinlayson]

You will see it if you scroll down through my Instagram profile

[@markteed3356]

good lord get your self a drill press !!!!

[@ADFinlayson]

This video is 4 years old. I have a drill press

[@gregsage8664]

By the time he finishes this mix he'll have enough for 5 gutars

[@ADFinlayson]

it doesn't go as far as you think

[@nowherebrain]

how to make grain filler(since this is what you searched for probably) is @8:52

[@Tanko3691]

You need to hone your spraying technique mate, you are way too close.

[@heavey123456]

I am sorry man but the paint job is Awfull

[@ADFinlayson]

The end result was pretty excellent. instagram.com/p/CJWuvPZMdBD/?

[@heavey123456]

@@ADFinlayson Glad you like it

[@brunocejas]

@@ADFinlayson Quedó tremenda, no le des bola a los salames.