Official Luthiers Forum!

There was some initial buzz about Poly Whey back in January. Haven't seem anymore cooemnts recently and was wondering how its working for anyone that has used it on a guitar.

Much appreciated!
Mark

I've got it on bubinga/lutz dred and so far I like it. We will need to work with it for several years to determine if it is a good long-term finish. I find that it is easier to apply then EM6000 which is what I was using previously. I will be using it on the next 3 that I have in line right now.

There are several other folks here who have used it as well.

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Steve Smith
"Music is what feelings sound like"

Steve,
How are you applying? Spray, brush, wipe on product? Any lessons learned on the process?
I've got two completed guitars to finish and am considering trying out Poly Whey....
Thanks for any info you can provide!
Mark

This is the thread that started it all here at the OLF:

http://www.luthiersforum.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=10101&t=38386&st=0&sk=t&sd=a&hilit=new+finish

Lot's of good information including the finishing schedule I used (around pg 3) and other folks experiences as well.

FYI, I sprayed the gloss furniture product thinned about 5 to 10% with distilled water. I used a Walcom EGO HVLP gun with 1.2mm tip at about 29psi.

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Steve Smith
"Music is what feelings sound like"

I'm on vacation now but plan to be in the shop by this weekend.

I have a Sapele/Sitka OM that I just finished filling with Z-Poxy & will seal with shellac then finish with Poly-Whey.

I've just got the hang of spraying nitro with my Fuji HVLP setup so this should be interesting.

Kevin Looker

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I'm not a luthier.
I'm just a guy who builds guitars in his basement.
It's better than playing golf.

Kevin,
Cool let us know how it goes....

Kevin, I think you'll be pleasantly surprised - the PolyWhey is easy to spray and builds quickly. I also think it sands easier than most other finishes I've tried but that just may be my imagination.

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Steve Smith
"Music is what feelings sound like"

I have been looking for a water based finish for both banjos and guitars and I think I've found it. Poly Whey. I bought a one pint can of it from Rockler. Comes in gloss, semi-gloss, and satin, but Rockler doesn't carry the gloss right now. Semi-gloss is shiny enough for my tastes.

I applied four coats in one day. Two with a brush and two with a cloth pad. No smells. Dried in two hours or less. I mean DRY and sandable. I like it.
I like the feel of the semi-gloss on a banjo neck. Should give the same good feel to a guitar neck..

I'm going to be trying it next week on a parlor guitar I'm building for my grandaughter.
My local Ace Hardware is carrying it, so I assume all Ace Hardware stores will get it.

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Gene

Politicians and diapers must be changed often, and for the same reason- Mark Twain

A local OLF'er, mkellyvrod, stopped by my shop and dropped off the remainder of a can he was using, just' cuz he's a nice guy and wanted to let me try it out.

He also took me out to lunch!

I don't have a report yet on it.

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Old growth, shmold growth!

I finally sprayed my first couple of coats of Poly Whey last night using my Fuji turbine unit, the little noisy one.

I've only sprayed nitro before this.

I thinned the Poly Whey with 10% distilled water. It's still thicker than nitro.

Overall I'm pretty happy at this point. I've got some orange peel but that's my fault. It builds a lot faster than nitro. Is there any sort of apples to apples comparison between the solids content of the two or are they such different types of product that this is not applicable? Being heavier, it appears that the Poly Whey will fill pores to some extent. After the first coat, my mediocre pore filling job was revealed. After the second coat, you can't see the pores. Only time will tell after the finish dries/cures and shrinks. One of the best parts for me is that I was able to spray in my basement as opposed to my unheated garage.

I'll keep you posted.

Kevin Looker

_________________
I'm not a luthier.
I'm just a guy who builds guitars in his basement.
It's better than playing golf.