Official Luthiers Forum!

Does anyone get their lacquer from Sherwin Williams? I am thinking about get mine there- hoping to find a good waterbased lacquer. And I like the idea of getting stuff locally. So...

Any advice would be great.

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ELEVATE || Next Level Lutherie
http://elevatelutherie.com
&
http://ensorguitars.com

Not lacquer, and not water based but I use Sherwin Williams Fast Dry Oil Varnish.

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I didn't mean to say it, but I meant what I said.
http://www.brackettinstruments.com/

I use the nitro lacquer from SW . Vinyl sealer ( T67F3 ) Lacquer ( T 70CT 1 ) Byutle Acetate ( R6K18) Thinner K22

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John Hall
blues creek guitars
Authorized CF Martin Repair
Co President of ASIA
You Don't know what you don't know until you know it

I used SW furniture lacquer on my first three guitars, built in the early eighties.
All three crazed badly after 10 years or so. Don't know if the new products have been improved to prevent this.

Chris,

Target is having a sale right now on the EM6000 gal. (along with their other coatings as well) and delivered price after the 15% immediate discount + another 30% off at checkout, and free UPS ground shipping is $30.34. I know you said you'd like to get it locally, but this is one heck of a good deal.

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Bill Hodge


One does not simply, own enough guitars!

Maybe I should consider EM6000 that sounds like a pretty good deal. Having never used it, I have a couple of questions:

Do you need to use any sort of sealer? And how long does it take to cure?

_________________
ELEVATE || Next Level Lutherie
http://elevatelutherie.com
&
http://ensorguitars.com

Hi,
I started a thread about this a month ago. You can read what everyone had to say then:

viewtopic.php?f=10101&t=29639


I bought 3 gallons from SW, and am happy with it so far.

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Regards,
Phillip Patton

http://www.pattonblades.com

The bitterness of poor quality lingers long after the sweetness of low price has faded.

https://hoosierbladesmith.wordpress.com

the SW lacquer of 10 years ago can't be compared to todays . Also this is commercial lacquer that you will have to get in the industrial section of SW and not all stores carry it. This is a good product but you will need to cut it 10% thinner and 10% buytl acetate. Any lacquer from a can will need thinning and retarder for best results. Final thickness should be .006 to ,008. Most crazing is a result of thermal shock and that is something that will happen when a thermal shock occurs regardless of brand.
Most lacquers from home depot , Lowes will not be very good for guitars. The water finishes are getting better . The catalyzed varnishes are also getting better . I personally don't like the wood wrapped in plastic look . I am very traditional in my building style .

_________________
John Hall
blues creek guitars
Authorized CF Martin Repair
Co President of ASIA
You Don't know what you don't know until you know it

I've been using it with excellent results. I've used it with a 2# cut shellac base as a sealer, I've used it with Target's waterborne sealer, and I used it with no sealer at all. All 3 of the previously mentioned, have worked well for me but I wouldn't use it on oily woods without a good sealer. The latest which I am currently finishing, I have a 4# cut of shellac, followed by Target's Grain Filler, and then 5 coats of Target's Sealer. Then I sprayed 15 coats of EM6000 on the back and sides, along with 12 coats on the soundboard. I'll post some pics once the project is finished. It doesn't look like a wet gloss like nitro when cured and polished but it does shine beautifully enough to satisfy me and so far four, happy and smiling, new guitar owners.

Schedule:
Shellac 1 thin coat for a base seal and to "pop" the optical dimensions of the wood, let cure out a couple of hours.
Grain (pore) Filler if needed of your choice. However much it takes to satisfy your need. Let cure out 24 - 48 hours or longer then sand smooth (I like 400P - 600P - 800P but find 400 is good enough on certain woods {3M Gold is my preference})
Next day, 3 coats 2 hrs apart of the sealer (if waterborne) let cure over night then 2 coats 2 hrs apart the next day and again cure overnight. If there's a rough surface to the touch when dry, wipe over it with 000 steel or bronze wool and vacuum, or blow off with light air pressure.
Begin spraying the body the next day ( I do no more than 3 coats per day 2 hrs apart.) then cure over night. Try and repeat consecutive days till all the coats you want are applied. I dry sand lightly to level between each set of three coats 2 hours after the final coat for that day and vacuum (with a soft brush attachment) the surface, then wipe with a clean soft cotton cloth. Before applying the next set of coats on the next day, I blow off the surface with light air pressure.
After all the coats you want are applied, and you are satisfied with the results, I typically let it cure in an environment of no less than 60 degrees and as low humidity as possible (but not below 30%) for a minimum of 2 weeks, preferably 3 weeks time permitting, for final leveling and polishing. Early on I dry sand but I learned from Jeff Weiss at Target that it's OK to wet sand after it has cured a minimum of 150 hours with a mix of 50% Denatured Alcohol, and 50% purified or distilled water.

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Bill Hodge


One does not simply, own enough guitars!

John, (and everyone else) the SW varnish I use is a commercial/industrial product. My local store (Shelby NC) doesn't stock it, but will pick it up from the Charlotte NC store in a day or 2 when I call. I suspect any store could get the lacquer too.

_________________
I didn't mean to say it, but I meant what I said.
http://www.brackettinstruments.com/

Varnish and lacquer are different finishes . I like the SW product and the commercial stuff isn't what is in the regular stores . I haven't used the varnish but I have seen some of this and it is a pretty nice product.

_________________
John Hall
blues creek guitars
Authorized CF Martin Repair
Co President of ASIA
You Don't know what you don't know until you know it