Sand-Throughs on Finished Binding Edge

[Philip Secrist]

I refinished the back on a one year old guitar (nitro finish) after repairing a crack. I had masked the top, neck, and sides right up to the back binding edge so I could spray the back. After spraying and curing the finish, I tried to smooth the transition on the binding edge from the new finish to the old (where the masking edge was left a little ridge) with 600 grit wet sandpaper and sanded through to the wood in a few places right on the binding edge. They are narrow sand-throughs (about an inch or two long in two or three areas. I wish now I had just left the binding edges alone!) What is the best method to repair these?

[Kerry Krishna]

 Can you post some pics for us please?

[Philip Secrist]

Here are a couple of pics.

[Roger Häggström]

In waiting for someone who really knows... puddles of 20 or 30 superglue from stewmac left to dry on the spots with no finish. After that scraping with a razor or a fine sharp file followed by fine sanding paper and polish after that. Stewmac have som nice videos about it.

[Glen H]

I would build nitro coats up with an airbrush and let cure a couple weeks.  Then level sand the overspray, staying completely off the corner. Buff.

[Greg Mirken]

At this point I would agree with Glen. Build nitro by airbrush, overlapping the original finish a little bit. Carefully sand [1200 grit, not 600] and buff. This is a tedious and tricky job at best.

One of the things you learn by experience is how not to turn a small job into a big one. The original crack repair could best have been left alone or marginally touched up. Refinishing the back, unless it was severe damage, was probably overkill. When you did mask to spray the back, you should have masked right up to the corner. Then a quick pass on the buffer would have knocked the ridge off the corner.

[Robbie Collins]

Did you use a hard, flat block of wood behind the sandpaper and keep it level? I glue it to the block rather than fold it around corners.