fixin a finish scuff

[webberink]

Has anybody got any good advice.  My 98 D-09 has a couple of small scuffs in the finish in the rosewood on the side of the lower bout.  There is no scratch that you can feel or chip or anything like that, just a rub/scuff on the finnish.  How best do I polish it out?
Dave

[Bailey]

A little 3M fine polishing compound that you can buy at an auto parts store works great. I would just rub it out by hand if it isn't too bad. You can use what is left on you car, to fix scratched up CDs, and on other guitar scuffs!

If there is ever a deep scratch, you will want to level it first. You must know what the finish is before doing this though.

Hope that helps!

[webberink]

Bailey,
Thanks for the tip. Most helpfull
Dave

[djacoustics]

from what i have read Larrivee has been using a UV cured poly since '95. That means typical laquer touchups will not properly adhere if filling is required right? Anyone here used 3m products to fill & finish? if so has anyone found a reasonably priced (under $500) UV light to cure their work?

[jpmist]

from what i have read Larrivee has been using a UV cured poly since '95. That means typical laquer touchups will not properly adhere if filling is required right? Anyone here used 3m products to fill & finish? if so has anyone found a reasonably priced (under $500) UV light to cure their work?

You could check eBay for "dental curing lights", Kerr or Optilux is a good brand. I've dabbled with using clear dental sealant as  dent/finish repair, but adhesion is an issue, as well as wetting of the bare wood making it appear darker. And it leaves a faint edge impossible to blend or polish down perfectly.

[djacoustics]

Thanks!

thought i would seal the wood with a drp fill of ca glue b4 finishing with the dental product, but that would probably darken the repair also. Is there a product out there that could b airbrushed & feathered in to blend the finishes & make the repair less visable?

[jpmist]

Here's a good web site showing how he does it:

http://www.frets.com/fretspages/Luthier/HighTechDept/LightSpeed/LightCureFinish/lightcurefinish.html

He mentioned somewhere that a layer of "hide glue" over the bare wood would keep the UV dental sealant from discoloring the wood, but there's probably an art to that. Small flaws might not lend itself to that.

Great site for browsing around, learned a lot about how to make a bone nut and the razor blade leveling technique is pretty cool. . .

If it weren't for the fact that UV finishes are impermeable to solvents we'd have a shot at repairing them, but I haven't as yet heard of anything that will blend in with them.

Good luck!