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Whitch SW lacquer is best for guitars

GEM-LAC

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John Watkins
CNC Guitar Parts

Gem-Lac is a Gemini Coating's product...I no longer use their products because they seem to think that one can use an air dry vinyl sealer under their pre-cat systems....sure...and a year later the finish starts failing ...I had a discussion with the VP about it and walked away less than satisfied over the whole experience so I refuse to use their stuff any longer...

anyway, SW offers a traditional nitrocellulose lacquer and a pre-cat lacquer system....their air dry Hi-Bild system looks very comparable to Behlen's stringed instrument lacquer (at least on paper)...their pre-cat HI-Bild system has a lot higher solids % than the Behlen's does and I would think have a detrimental effect on the clarity and depth of the finish...on the flip side the pre-cat system builds dft (dry film thickness) quickly and is a pretty durable finish though I can't say how it would sound on an instrument...also, because it is a catalyzed system, the use of retarder doesn't affect the overall curing time nearly as badly as it can with an air dry system...

sorry, I can't answer your direct question about which is 'best'...

I can say though that you will most likely have problems finding a one gallon container of either system as most of their stores (at least in my area and from what I've heard certain other areas) only stock the 5 gallon units, which for a pre-cat system can be very wasteful as the shelf life is 6 months or less once catalyzed in the container....

Their Promor hi build is what I've used on other projects. I was just curious who was useing SW and which products. Was thinking about Cab acrylic ,any thoughts on That?

I haven't heard of the pro mar line though I have heard of of their CAB system but haven't tried it...sounds like its a more modern lacquer with plasticizers in it which will mean that while it is more flexible it is also probably softer...there was a debate a while back on the difference the hardness of various finishes had on the sound of an acoustic...