To shine or not to shine??????

[Johnny M]

I polished a L-03R with great results and plan on doing my OM-03-12 sometime this winter.

Go for it, you won't regret it!

John

[Mr_LV19E]

Heres a couple pic's of the back I did last night, the one shows the reflection of the same guitar on my computer screen. It's raining outside now and I'm headed up north for the weekend but I'll take some better photos when it's done and I can get it out in the light.


It came out better than I expected but it was a lot of rubbing to get it there.

[G Man]

So you decided to go for it, good for you.  Looks great so far, really does bring out the depth in the wood.

[bluesman67]

It looks terrific!  How long did the back side take you to do?

[rbpicker]

Wow... looks GREAT !!!  Please post pics of the finished product when you are done.

RB

[Mr_LV19E]

It looks terrific!  How long did the back side take you to do?

Thanks bluesman, I spent about 3 or 4 hours on the back wetsanding then steel wool then rubbing scratch x over and over and over, lots of rubbing to get it the way I wanted. It was worth it, it's just time and elbow grease.

Wow... looks GREAT !!!  Please post pics of the finished product when you are done.

RB

Thanks RB, I'm going to work on it tomorrow, will post pic's when it's done.

[jeremy3220]

That does look great. Do you have the process you used typed out anywhere. I want to know things like, what direction did you sand in and how do you know when enough is enough without going through the finish?

I've thought of doing my OM-03MT but have worried about getting it even, especially around the bridge and what not.

[bjstrings]

If you get a hold of a cheap (US$15) rotary polisher, you get it done in about an hour or so.

[Mr_LV19E]

Okay, these pic's were taken in direct sunlight. Camera batteries went dead, I'm going to get some more daylight shade photo's later.Not sure my LV-19 has any more gloss.







And a couple in the shade

[Mr_LV19E]

That does look great. Do you have the process you used typed out anywhere. I want to know things like, what direction did you sand in and how do you know when enough is enough without going through the finish?

I've thought of doing my OM-03MT but have worried about getting it even, especially around the bridge and what not.

   Before I tell you any specifics I want you to know that if you polish the guitar to the extent I did it will show imperfections in the finish of the wood. Let me start by saying Larrivee does not put the time into finishing a satin 03 model guitar that they do on the glossed upper models, although the spruce top on my LV-19 has some dips and vallies in it that you can see only at an angle. The sides and the back are pretty smooth with the exception of sanding marks, the top is not a smooth perfectly flat piece of wood. As long as you understand this then lets move on.

Mask any areas you don't want to get polished IE where the neck meets the body, edge of fingerboard, bridge. Use the blue painters tape, I taped the top of the fingerboard also to prevent any splatter from getting on it. Oh and remove the end pin. I left the strings on until I was ready to do the top.

1. I used 2000 grit wet sandpaper to remove as many imperfections that I could. Time spent here will improve the overall look and save you time later. try to get all the sanding marks from the orbital sander they used and any heavy spots of the satin finish. You would have to sand a long time with 2000 grit sandpaper to go through the multipal coats of finish they put on. Sand with the grain. I used a wedge shaped shim to get in the tight areas.

2. When you think you have got it smooth use the 0000 steel wool with the grain and rub until smooth and shiny, keep turning the steel wool to fresh areas to prevent build up. If you see something that you missed with the sand paper either go back and wet sand it out or try to rub it out with the steel wool.

3. Use the Scratch X until you achieve the desired amount of shine you want. I went over it about 4 or 5 times with the Scratch X maybe more in some spots to make it look as even as possible. The back was done entirely by hand and it took about 3 hours. Doing the sides and top I used my variable speed orbital sander on the slowest speed with  a 5 inch velcro buffing pad to polish with the Scratch X, this made the job easier but took no less time. If you want just a little shine you can get that with a lot less work, every application of the Scratch X brings out more shine.
Now for those that are not familiar with polishing. Scratch X is a polishing compound albeit a very fine one, when you use a polishing compound it is not like applying wax, you don't wipe it on and then wipe it off. You work in small areas at a time and rub until the polish breaks down or dissappears and then move to another area, maybe a 6 to 8 square inch area at a time.

[G Man]

Looking good, real good.  Are you hoping the pickguard tanline will go away with time, or might you replace it later?

[Blue in VT]

 

WOWOWOW  that looks just like my 05mt from this distance....NICE WORK!!!

Blue

[joopie]

WOWOWOW  that looks just like my 05mt from this distance....NICE WORK!!!

Blue

i agree! very nice!

R.

[Mr_LV19E]

Looking good, real good.  Are you hoping the pickguard tanline will go away with time, or might you replace it later?

Yes I am, but I plan on cutting a piece of construction paper to fit the top with the area of the pickguard cut out. I'll pop that on while it's just hanging on the wall and hopefully in time it will even out. If it doesn't I will have to put a new guard on.

[jeremy3220]

Thanks for the instruction, I'm practicing on my A&L Ami right now. It's looking pretty good so far. I believe it has a pretty thin finish on it or at least no pore filler since you can see the texture of the grain.

[rbpicker]

LV19E... superb job.  It really looks great! 

BTW, have you noticed any difference in the sound?  Might seem like a strange question, but there are those who swear the satin finish imparts a different sound than that of a gloss finish.  I'm reserving my opinon, as it doesn't seem logical that it would make any difference... but then, stranger things have happened.

RB

[Mr_LV19E]

LV19E... superb job.  It really looks great! 

BTW, have you noticed any difference in the sound?  Might seem like a strange question, but there are those who swear the satin finish imparts a different sound than that of a gloss finish.  I'm reserving my opinion, as it doesn't seem logical that it would make any difference... but then, stranger things have happened.

RB

Thanks, I'm very happy with the results.
RB, the tonal qualities sound exactly the same to me but it may be a bit louder. When it was brand new it seemed tight and as I have  played it, which is a lot, it has gotten louder and has more sustain. So maybe the vibrations it was exposed to from hours of orbital polishing just opened it up more. I'm not sure why some people think the type of finish would make a difference unless it's because the satin looks like it is applied thinner but I don't think that is the case, they put multiple coats on wheather it is satin or gloss. There is actually some light orange peel on the top on either side of the fingerboard that you couldn't see until it was polished and that is caused by, in this case to heavy of an application.

[Mr_LV19E]

A before and after shot.



Added December 26 2008 no tan line

[JohnM2001]

Here's a picture of her naked. Indoors daytime no flash.

Is that the new OM-03 with sapele top?  I thought that the older OM-03MT did NOT have the abalone rosette, and that only the newer all sapele special edition OM-03ST has the ab ring?

[Mr_LV19E]

No it's Mahogany, it is a custom from Dave at GA. Member JWB bought one also, not sure how many were made but I only saw the two Dave had on his site.