Worn off lacquer finish

[Katrina Joyner]

I'm here because I want to repair and someday build instruments. For now I paint ukuleles with pictures for praise and profit. (So far all I've gotten is praise. LOL.)  

I have a vintage baritone ukulele. It's been played so much there's a huge bare wooden pocked spot from the player's pick and a worn area on the bottom of the backboard. My thought when I got it was to repair it and keep it that way. Seriously, I think that's all that's wrong with it.

The worn spot is huge, though. To get it back looking nice again I'd have to fill the holes, smooth it, then fill the spot. By huge I mean at least 6" square.  It's almost as if I might as well just paint or just give it an entirely new finish.

So I want to ask you guys, who know what the heck you're doing. I know your response will be most likely "not worth it" - but for me it's worth it because if nothing else I get skill points.

Which is better for it: painting a pretty picture or just giving it a new finish? Both I think are going to ruin it's vintage value, but the spots are so bad that might be a good thing.

I'll post pictures as soon as I find my phone.

[Katrina Joyner]

I'm so silly. Hubby says to simply put a pick guard on it.

[Chris Vallillo]

I'm not entirely sure, but looking at the pictures, isn't that a laminate top?  It appears to have worn through the top layer of laminate and and now is wearing into the second, darker layer.  If that is the case, there is little collectible value. Patching a worn spot that big will be a lot of work and almost certainly will be visible.   Do whatever makes you happy!

[Katrina Joyner]

Well, it's worth it to learn more of what I'm doing so there is that.  :-)

If I can get it nice looking and sounding decent enough I probably will give it away.