Removing Deep Scratches from Guitar Clearcoat!

Join me as I attempt to remove these crazy deep scratches from the 'Do not pawn' Dean Exotica Acoustic.

[@arose460]

I aint gonna lie, I liked the do not pawn on it lol. I'm an odd one

[@Johnnysmithy24]

I wanna scratch my guitar

[@ADZ1LL4]

Punk rock af 🦴

[@5urg3x]

Kinda reminds me of Woody Guthrie's "This Machine Kills Fascists" :O

[@holstorrsceadus1990]

Yeah, It's a nice touch

[@Kinimod22]

@@Johnnysmithy24 i have a K scratched into my V not that deep but its ok

[@ronaldmoore4490]

Thanks for this video. My son's grandpa gave him his old Fender. The things seen some heavy millage and been around the world a few times. We were changing out the bridge and thanks to your video were able to remove some nasty scratches. It brought a tear to the old man's eyes when he saw it restored to its former glory.

[@ForsytheVideo]

That's amazing. Nice job!

[@VerbFPV]

Thats rad.

[@MajorUpgrade]

Dude that guitar turned out awesome! Nice rescue! Dang man, I'm so sorry to hear about Grant. I always enjoyed watching him create things, and the enthusiasm he brought to every project he was involved in. Cheers to you, and to the all of the true artists and creative minds out there. May you and your family stay safe during this uncertain time, and may the notes flow freely from your guitar.

[@ForsytheVideo]

Thank you so much! I hope you and yours are safe as well.

[@martin-1965]

That... is awesome workmanship mate. I mean... I never knew such things were possible and I'm in my 50s lol. You've given me hop about restoring my 50 year old Ibanez Musician which I got as a present from my old man as a teenager (second hand at the time - not that old lol). Anyway... thanks bro, learned something new today and have subscribed 👍

[@ForsytheVideo]

You can do it! Thank you and nice to meet you.

[@txc123]

Damn man you should of sanded the whole back! That top popped out even more with that sanding. Awesome job man!

[@ForsytheVideo]

I buffed the whole thing at least, haha. Thanks for watching!

[@tristanseifer7884]

“Now I can pawn with impunity.” 🙃 I wanted to find some reassurance that the scratch my son accidentally put in his Martin could be fixed. It’s not as deep as your “do not pawn” was, so your video definitely gave me hope! Thanks! Your ending the video with a mention of Grant was really touching.

[@ForsytheVideo]

Thank you Tristan and best of luck with your Martin!

[@Bluefrenzy78]

Great job! Excellent price and can't tell at all it was every vandalized. I just saw an ad for a guitar with a ridiculous amount of graffiti scratched in the back and no where as good a price.

[@ForsytheVideo]

It does pay to know the good folks at the local pawn shops! Thanks for watching.

[@funkypat5349]

Hey! I'm glad you made this video, I wanted to see how you did it! Turned out great! Looking forward to more creativity.

[@ForsytheVideo]

Thank you Pat!

[@WalleyeGuy4]

I'm glad I found this video because my Bass's clear was scratched by a loose wire hanging out of the armrest of a chair.

[@rustydomino]

that was a really heartfelt tribute to Grant Imahara at the end.

[@ronhenry2025]

Nice repair! I need to rescue an Ibanez someone purposely gouged the front of and the fill method ( CA and/or Polyurathane ) just aren't working. So I was wondering if this was possible. Thanks for the tutorial! As for Grant I think everyone loved him, even those that say they didn't. He had a bad headache for a few days and he succumb to an aneurysm. Massive surprise as I think he was the most fit one on the teams. We didn't need to lose another good one. I say this to everyone... if something don't feel right for a day that's possibly normal, but 2 days? Go to the ER.

[@martinwilliams9098]

50 bucks and a few hours work is a bargain great job 👏

[@ForsytheVideo]

Thank you!

[@hni7458]

Good on ya mate. I never understood the hideous Townshend approach to guitars - arguably guitars possess souls. The Aquacoat filler of yours is great, and I've used it to completely hide small nail dings into an otherwise prestine - and indeed semi-vintage - french polished Panhuyzen classical after tip from Rob O'Brien.

[@Feverm00n]

“Now I can pawn with impunity!” cracked me up. You really did amazing work! It looks amazing at the end! Tho I must admit I liked the weirdness of the DO NOT PAWN on there.

[@ForsytheVideo]

I kind of did too but I figured this was a good chance to show folks what can be done to repair even deep scratches. I ended up selling it for four times what I paid. :)

[@Feverm00n]

@@ForsytheVideo Well, that alone certainly justifies de-weirding it! And yeah it was really amazing to see what’s possible and how stuff like that gets repaired.

[@Greenmantislives]

Pawn with impunity! Love it bro, good work.

[@ForsytheVideo]

Thank you!

[@user-ib8uj1ic7d]

I found that comment pretty funny as well.

[@bryankenney6770]

Nice job, makes me not as worried about getting minor scratches off mine. RIP Grant!

[@adamulias2315]

Really excellent work man! Thanks for the video and the positivity. RESPECT!!! 👊😊

[@fullwaverecked]

Now you can gouge "OK TO PAWN" on the front...

[@ForsytheVideo]

hahaha, yessss

[@fullwaverecked]

@@ForsytheVideo I already had it tattooed on my forehead.

[@fullwaverecked]

@@ForsytheVideo I miss spoke. Acually, "Do not pawn" is my tramp stamp.

[@fullwaverecked]

@@ForsytheVideo BTW, I dig your videos. Life is an adventure. Having a beer in SLC UT enjoying your work. Cheers! PS: I have an 81 bullet that plays me, if you know what I mean. If you have any info regarding the Fender '81 bullet deluxe, please let me know. The info available on the net is sparse, and far between. Any info would be greatly appreciated. I will close with this gem. What do you call a dear with no eyes? No idear. Ha!

[@ForsytheVideo]

@@fullwaverecked Nice one, haha. Unfortunately I can't help you out but I am working on an interesting Squier vid tonight and I will give you a shout out. I appreciate the support and you checking out my vids!

[@wildreptiles]

Dude, why is this the first ive heard about Grant's passing?! Such a good personality on the show! Ugh.... 2020, ya just keep dishing out the poop. Excellent refinish btw! Looks like new!

[@ForsytheVideo]

Thanks man, this year sucks butt for sure.

[@robjh22]

I think this is all amazing, especially your tribute to Grant.

[@ForsytheVideo]

Thank you!

[@FantasticF113]

Congrats on a great job. +1 for mentioning Grant, he is sadly missed 🙏

[@ForsytheVideo]

Indeed, thank you for checking it out.

[@moonchild4806]

Mythbusters was one of the main reasons I almost became an engineer. Grant will be missed.

[@ForsytheVideo]

Absolutely.

[@5urg3x]

I have an Ibanez AZ2402 and when I was adjusting an intonation screw my hand slipped and I accidentally scrapped the top coat with the screwdriver...It looks awful. I don't think I can fix it myself, I just do not have the patience or the steady hands for this kind of work, but I'm hoping I can at least find someone who can fix it for me :( BTW you did a phenomenal job, those scratches looked DEEP and you made it look basically brand new! No trace of them!!

[@ForsytheVideo]

Thanks! Maybe you can find a local body shop to try to fix it for you. back in the day I needed a guitar clear coated and asked a local shop if they could spray it for me the next time they did a car(they always make more clear up than they use). Surprisingly they said yes! You never know until you try. Good luck!

[@beerwolf8518]

Great job! That worked great! I have some guitars with some polish hazing and other scratches that I want to get polished to a nicer shine. Thats amazing that you were sble to get those deep cuts out!

[@richardbrucemusic]

Nice to see someone besides me treats a value guitar almost as much as a valuable guitar. To me, they're all works of art, even if they were made by machine and not by an artisan. And nice to hear you pay tribute to Grant. He was an artisan. He created one of my favorite "robots" - Geoff on The Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson.

[@brianandolina7091]

You have a list of materials that you use to get the scratches out. Looks absolutely amazing.

[@ForsytheVideo]

I thought I made it easy to see in the video, but basically just 800-3000 grit sandpaper and medium cut and fine cut meguiar's buffing/polishing compounds. You can get it all at your local auto parts store!

[@jeffwickermusic134]

Simply Amazing! 😎👍🎸 I am so sorry to hear about Grant, I am a fan!

[@harryfonseca1869]

Great job! Sorry for your loss.

[@HSTRTGMS]

WOW! GREAT job. Extremely underrated video.

[@ForsytheVideo]

Thanks!

[@rhamphorhynchusmetal2038]

Amazing work

[@ryanscutt8783]

I would totally leave that! That's awesome. I love my Dean acoustic. It's boring black. This blue is sexy.

[@michaelcolgan3182]

Nice to see I'm not alone

[@solarismoon3046]

I was going to say SUPERGLUE fills polyester and polyurethane finishes really well but when the hell did Grant Imahara die? He was truly was instrumental in the last few seasons of myth busters' ideas and tests - he was growing on me as a person and an engineer. I too am a craftsman and that just hurts hearing that he's dead. All this especially after one of my cats just died this last Friday! It all seems that when it rains it pours until it floods! Thank you for the video I wouldn't have known if not for this.

[@ForsytheVideo]

He passed yesterday from a brain aneurysm. It's truly sad, I wasn't prepared for the news, I read about it right in the middle of making this video.

[@pizzaface4079]

Looks good man, almost like it never was scratched.

[@ForsytheVideo]

The very bottom of the 'N' from Pawn is still there, it went through to the wood. It just looks like regular wear though so it doesn't bother me. I am thinking of taking it back to the same pawn shop and seeing what they'd give me, haha.

[@pizzaface4079]

@@ForsytheVideo haha that would be funny.

[@james6691]

You have a good heart. Best wishes.

[@nym053]

Haha I would seriously just leave 'DO NOT PAWN' if it was me. That's hilarious. And I like that sketchy text. Gives it some sort of visual caracter haha. But great job 😊

[@jackflash5659]

You did an outstanding job.

[@ForsytheVideo]

Thank you!

[@ferpetrucci]

Wow I didn’t know that was possible!! Great job 👏🏻 👏🏻

[@skyra1der]

Beautifully done!

[@jergervasi3331]

“DO NOT PAWN” was scratched by someone who likely lived with (or was) a person struggling with addiction or behavioral issues. They knew what would happen if the need for a fix arose. Great job on the paint, and in your words about Grant.

[@lucasvarela9632]

I wrote do not pawn if pawned call the police on my Marshall amp lol I still pawned it anyway. Haven’t pawned in years now lol rough times

[@clifford3113]

THANKS BROTHER , EXCELLENT JOB . APPRECIATE YOU

[@ForsytheVideo]

Thank you for watching!

[@oatnoid]

Beautiful job! $50 bucks It was a helluva deal. Rest In Peace Grant. Life is short. Be as happy as you can be for as long as you can. We'll have time enough to cry after we're dead.

[@ForsytheVideo]

True words my friend! And I have to trust you, because you're from the future.

[@oatnoid]

@@ForsytheVideo There's no fate but that which we make for ourselves. Well mostly:)

[@SunCoastFilms]

Damn that’s awesome man! Good job!

[@ForsytheVideo]

Thanks man!

[@wrongchordsrecords]

Incredible!

[@martinlewis2143]

Fantastic! Thanks! 🎸🎶

[@richardsyoutubechannel995]

Excellent job mate

[@mileshadley42]

Blue Eagle sticker!! You in Athens?

[@ronnienose8608]

Nicely done. When you're spraying, is it simply water?

[@ForsytheVideo]

Thank you sir! It is when I'm sanding, but when i'm cleaning it's ammonia free window cleaner.

[@solarismoon3046]

@@ForsytheVideo It's best to use dish soap heavily diluted for wet sanding. It lubricates but this is only suggested for areas where water won't get onto or into bare wood.

[@ForsytheVideo]

@@solarismoon3046 Thanks! I have used dishsoap and it doesn't make a big enough difference/improvement for me to use it. If I am going to be near bare wood I won't use water at all, either ammonia free windex or alcohol.

[@raymarsh4620]

I could never do this, but I hope that the guy I take my guitar to, to get the scratches out is this good..

[@Jonathan-jj9uj]

Excellent job!!!

[@superred13]

Wow dude that's fucking amazing thanks for posting I'm not afraid to buy a scratched up guitar anymore Should of put a list of materials in description would help buyers

[@MetalLanham]

Excellent!!!

[@ForsytheVideo]

Thank you!

[@marcusruhl5413]

Good job :)

[@ForsytheVideo]

Thanks!

[@SubduedFlamboyance]

Awesome job!

[@newera_1303]

It's sad but I bet there was a guy who kept pawning his guitar for drugs and got to the point where he thought that etching that into the guitar would not only be a constant reminder, but would also reduce the value of it to where he wouldnt be able to pawn it. I guess he slipped up.

[@ForsytheVideo]

We don't know the story, but I am sure pawn shops are full of stories like that, super sad.

[@tonyj8011]

Damn that was way darker than my theory!

[@patkloovay8505]

I liked this a lot - I renovate guitars and Impresses by the polishing technique, one very interesting finishing technique I use is to make a very thin scumble out of butchers block liquid polish the merest hint of pure danish oil in a thin wash of methalyated spirits (you call this summat different in the USA), then buff the f**k out of it on max speed, I kid you not it is a finish like mirror !! - try it guys....

[@SH1THAPPENSINC]

Hell yeah man! Great video thanks for sharing! 🤘😎🤘

[@ForsytheVideo]

Thanks so much!

[@catzndolz61]

Please list the steps in order and the products used. Thanks!

[@AssuredHomeInspect]

Great Job - Im looking for tips on repairing the back of my first guitar; a classical Yamaha G55-1 from the mid-70s.

[@ForsytheVideo]

Probably going to be a shellac finish, maybe nitro.

[@AssuredHomeInspect]

Thanks for the input!

[@lurklingX]

🤣 now i can pawn with impunity, there's nothing to stop me. hahaa! *gorgeous* though, really. nice little color on the thing. i didn't totally mind the sticker or the words, but it looks classy as hell now.

[@ForsytheVideo]

Thank you!

[@nikolanebulus7259]

Wow great job!! That axe looks so beautiful now! I gave a like for sure. Also just wanna say Jesus loves you all and God bless! Also my condolences to the Imahara family, he will be greatly missed.

[@ForsytheVideo]

Thank you and God bless!

[@Tugsu-bnn]

Should i go to guitar center or buy all those sanding papers

[@evegriffin7081]

You did an excellent job. Do you know where I can get these scratches off my guitar😭. I'm in New York. If possible I would prefer to go to long island or queens. Thanks.

[@ForsytheVideo]

I'm in Florida, so I have no idea unfortunately.

[@nickthe5th2]

Hi, how did you get the clear wood grain filler to match the exact blue color of the guitar? What's the trick?

[@TheRealKirkHammett]

That was a RIDICULOUS amount of medium cut polish. You didn't need near that amount. 😂

[@ForsytheVideo]

You'd be surprised.

[@richgray5762]

Be nice if you could list the materials used in order. Great video. thanks

[@ayushagrahari3775]

What is the cost?

[@ranman58635]

Thanks man. I think the filler is a good thing. 👍

[@proathome]

Good job! What was the clear filler you used? I have a small scratch I'd like to repair in my Yamaha Revstar, it's polyurethane clear coated.

[@ForsytheVideo]

I used the filler thinking I'd have to respray the back, turns out I didn't so the filler was sanded out, it really was not needed. But here it is, it's called Aquacote. www.amazon.com/Aqua-Coat-Cabinet-Filler-Environmentally/dp/B07HYFYTC6/ref=sr_1_1?crid=12XXXU5Z63X81&keywords=aqua%2Bcote&qid=1662959175&sprefix=aqua%2Bcute%2Caps%2C93&sr=8-1&th=1

[@karlvonpackal1402]

Try out Auotsol on your next fret polish, they come out like mirrors. Good vid, like the content.

[@ForsytheVideo]

I will, thanks!

[@christophercarty675]

Are you using windex for the wet sanding?

[@ForsytheVideo]

Just water.

[@onionheadguy7094]

An ex carved asshole into the front only American gibson sg. I'm a little scared to put a sander on it like that. Great video though this deserves way more views.

[@tikigodsrule2317]

What finish do you think was on this guitar poly or nitro? I think martin guitars uses a thin coat of nitro so it may not work as well. That makes me think this guitar was lower cost and had a thick plastic coating.

[@ForsytheVideo]

Definitely poly. You would not want to do this to nitro.

[@R1GAMBLER]

I would have left that message as is.

[@ForsytheVideo]

Then there would have been no video and I couldn't have sold it for 4 times what I paid for it!

[@mangofunky]

I was given a fender 84 tele and scratched on the back is 3 large words how can I fill and re polished the body or should I keep in its natural state it's a mij tele

[@briand563]

Nice guitar! That turned out great! I definitely would have bought that for 50 bucks, but I probably would just thrown a long bumper sticker on it 😆. That's a lot of work. im lazy . 🤣. Looks fantastic though👍

[@ForsytheVideo]

Haha, thanks!

[@ritoriveratv]

haha this vidro was great thank you

[@murpsman]

Where'd you get those small buffing wheels for your drill?

[@mixodorians12]

How much money did you spend on Polish etc? If I were to do it I would have to buy like 200 quids worth of stuff. You already had it all, not many do.

[@ForsytheVideo]

$12 from harbor freight for the pads and rough polish, $22 for fine grit polish from an auto store, another $10-15 for sand paper from the same auto store. Maybe $2 for Window cleaner. What is your comment meant to imply? Maybe not many have all that stuff but they can easily obtain it.

[@aureliomartinez2633]

I bought a guitar from guitar center someone wrote love in the front it's deep but not to the wood it's Alvarez acoustic guitar looks very agley I'm going to try your way

[@ForsytheVideo]

Never hurts to try!

[@joepops5186]

that electric sander dont fill your livingroom with dust?

[@ForsytheVideo]

It might if I was dry sanding.

[@JoeSzilagy]

EXCELLENT!

[@ForsytheVideo]

Thank you!

[@wendyalmightyvoice9584]

My black acoustic has scratches on the back as well do i wait for the polishes to dry before i sand or no?

[@ForsytheVideo]

You should sand until the scratches are gone, then polish.

[@sega62s]

How come you can clearly see the wood, and when you polished it, the wood becomes blue again????? impressive

[@ForsytheVideo]

You can't see the wood, the whiter color is the scraped finish. There was still enough finish beneath it to be polished and luckily whoever did the damage did not get through the finish completely.

[@sega62s]

@@ForsytheVideo So the marking that seemed white or wood color was not the body? that’s weird …..thx

[@ForsytheVideo]

@@sega62s Have you ever scratched a poly finish? It looks white dude

[@sega62s]

@@ForsytheVideo no I never, I have a question for you, My Gibson les paul has little scratches from guitar pick and usual wear, can I use a pad to buff it or just manually with some kind of product “ thx

[@unclexeres]

Pawn with imputiny....LOL I got one that was dropped and shattered the veneer on the back only. About 3/4 of the veneer is missing, Yamama. F335, got any ideas for a DYI? I paid $40 including RR hard case.

[@ForsytheVideo]

The actual wood veneer? How? I would have to see the damage before I could suggest anything. If you have Facebook feel free to join our guild and drop me a picture of it. facebook.com/groups/717233481726147

[@unclexeres]

@@ForsytheVideo I'll add a pic soon. Thanks 👍

[@HSTRTGMS]

Is it safe to take this same approach to most guitars, including those with nitro, particularly newer Gibson Historic acoustics with a fewer coats of nitro with kind of a flat finish that isn’t glossy like on the guitar in this video?

[@ForsytheVideo]

No, this vid is for ploy finishes which I believe I mention in the video. Nitro I would not do much more than either a heavy clean and respray or just a soft buff.

[@jeyprocketeer]

Is it applicable on natural gloss

[@legerdevinne]

Why would you pawn your do not pawn guitar 😂

[@josephramosreyes8050]

is it ok to usually clean acoustic guitar with wet clothes? thank you..

[@CardScapeGame]

The hell this is sorcery

[@minthantkoko5823]

Filling with what? aua?

[@Seagull425]

Easily tripled your money with that repair looks great

[@jimmydemetriou7847]

The person who marked this instrument had less respect for its value that the person that sold it

[@tonyj8011]

I had a weird theory about this, on why you'd even do that to a guitar in the first place. It would be interesting if someone scratched that into their guitar with the intentions of never selling it, and it possibly got stolen and pawned off? Because the irony is too great & I know any thief can come up with a quick cover story of "fell on hard times, need the money" Just a thought, I'm actually going to carve that quote into my guitar right now LOL I don't plan on ever getting rid of her no matter how broke I am.

[@blessingsara11]

What was that sprayed thing? Windex?

[@ForsytheVideo]

Windex or water, I usually use ammonia free windex when cleaning guitars.

[@davidhefner2010]

That's a lot of work. Beautiful job, though

[@GUSCRAWF0RD]

Got it there is no easy way to do this

[@ranman58635]

What about light scratches?

[@ForsytheVideo]

Just do this, but less

[@ranman58635]

@@ForsytheVideo ty

[@LanceJordan]

Nice work! Could have lived without the instrumental death metal 😁 but thanks!

[@baotruong8995]

That’s totally a different guitar. Haha. Just kidding. You did a great job.

[@phayzyre1052]

Nice work repairing that guitar and that was a nice tribute to Grant! Of course to each their own but people who deface musical instruments in such a manner should serve time in prison! Accidental damage is one thing, but for some asshole to key the words “do not pawn“ is an idiocy to the highest order.