Headstock chip/ding finish

[Vincenzo Giacalone]

Hi, how can I repair this chip?

[Mike Kolb]

Looks like the tuner retaining nut was overtightened and caused the finish to separate from the wood?  If it's a lacquer finish, you can use some butyl cellosolve to get it to "lay down" again.  

There's lots of expert advice on how much to use, how to apply (spray, tooothpick-drops) etc.  A lot of it depends on the thickness & age of the lacquer and sometimes repetition is the key.

 If it's a poly finish, you may want to refinish the headstock or just leave the mark where it sits, following the old "badge of honor" theory.   It's not an uncommon problem and it seems like most players tend to just leave 'em alone. 

[Vincenzo Giacalone]

Hi, Thank's for reply

It  is a nitrocellulose finish 20 day old. I have made this damage with the hole reamer.

[Greg Mirken]

Is that bare wood, where a chip of finish is missing? Since there is color in the finish, your chance of getting a fill that looks less obvious than the original damage is slim. I would warn a customer that my repair would show, and advise leaving it as is.

[Vincenzo Giacalone]

Thank's for reply

Yes, that is the bare wood, but I can get the same color

[Thomas James]

Stew Mac amber super glue may not match, but can provide a quick 'patch' semi-blend repair.

[Paul Verticchio]

Hello Vincenzo.

Have you done guitar repair work before? If so, what is your skill level?

Ciao,

Paul

[Vincenzo Giacalone]

Hello Paul,

Yes, I have built and repaired  several guitar, but I'm no expert on the finish and in english

I have built this Thinline 72 and I have to hand it to the customer

Ciao

Vincenzo

[Paul Verticchio]

Thank you, Vincenzo.

Since it's a nitro finish, it will be an easy drop fill solution. As stated by others, matching the fill lacquer will be the toughest part.  That is a tough job for even the most experienced repair folks.

If that was MY personal instrument, the chips would not concern me and I'd leave it as is.

If you don't feel confident about a drop fill solution, you can always offer a "good will discount" to your customer

In all events, may you have the best of luck with this repair.

Paul

[David Collins]

I would say your course of action may be best determined by expectations of the client.

If it's a build for a friend, or a player you know who is looking for a player rather than a display piece, the discussing the circumstances and an appropriate discount could be the simplest solution. This could include options of leaving it as is, or doing some drop fills with it clearly disclosed that they will be visible at some level.

If the customer is expecting a perfect new guitar with no flaws whatsoever, strip the neck and refinish from scratch. There may or may not be a finish touchup god somewhere on the planet who could make these disappear entirely, but if this finish is mostly clear build with a few coats of amber toner, then I doubt even the best in the world could make it disappear completely. If you were to try and touch up these spots to be invisible, chances are you would spend a whole lot of time and frustration trying and failing before having to strip it all back anyway.

The simplest route to give acceptable results would be to at least strip back the face of the peghead, refinish that with a new decal, and hope you can match the amber tint suitably to the rest of the neck. If it were all clear lacquer I'd say drop fill, but with a layer of amber tint you're not going to achieve an invisible fill with this method.

[Vincenzo Giacalone]

Thanks for the replies. I think remove finish and re- finish the neck

[Kerry Krishna]

 Sounds way more radical than what I would do. I'd just strip the front, and redo that, Damn the witness lines. The new owner won't see or question them at all. But that's just me.

[Howard Klepper]

You can mask off the headstock face and just strip and refinish the face.  Mask about 1mm below the edge so the corner is not left bare.  There will be no witness lines, and a slight difference in color will not be noticed with the change at a 90 degree corner.

Lacquer built up in a tuner hole can easily be chipped with a reamer.  I've found that it is safer to use a tapered round file for cleaning that up, cutting with a left-handed (counter clockwise) twist, which on an American pattern file will be a downcut.