Tuner hole repair question

[Richard Barbera]

 

Hi,1st post here...!

 

I have been struggling w/ this for some time now, so  I hope to get your thoughts on this fix?

 

I presently have an '85 Gisbson ES-335 Dot Neck RI that came w /Grover Rotomatics installed. I refitted those w/ Gibson Modern style tuners (the bolt-on type), that was an easy retro-fit due to the already existing 3/8" Hdstk bores. When I did this change-out, I saw that a previous owner had really cranked down on the Grover's hex-nuts, leaving some fairly deep impressions on the hdstk face where the washer's mount. When I did the tuner exchange, the impressions were so big, that I had to use the larger Grover washers that came w/ guitar & Gibson's bolt-on nuts...to hide the Raccoon Eyes!

 

What I'd like to do is: Repair the indentations left behind by the washers & then the refit the guitar w/ Vintage-Style tuners w/ press-in bushings so I can then use vintage style tuners. If possible, I would like to fore-go redowelling the holes & use 'Conversion Bushings'. What would be the process to bring these indentations back up level, so I won't see any 'Raccoon Eyes, when press-in bushes are used w/ vintage tuners? I want the headstk to have that 'clean look' to it since it's in already great condtion...save for those rings. I have lacquering experience & I can add additional pics if needed? Ultimately, I'd like it to look like the Pic w/ the vintage tuners

 

Coincidentally, I purchased this 335 from Frank at Gryphon in '94...& it's a fablulous sounding Gibson.

 

[Richard Barbera]

Thx Again Rusty...

As suspect, I've been flooding-on the black on way too thick. It's the Italian in me...more is better, ya know! I'll give the 'dusting' approach a go & see how that works. Thing is, I've been a pro-painter for 40 years & in my time, I've have done my share of shooting nitro. But finishing guitars, esp in gloss black can be trying & a whole new game. I do have a little airbrush unit w/ 3 or 4 guns, so if it comes to that, I'll use it!

Funny thing is: my wife bought the airbrush rig to blow makeup/toner onto her face. Used it once and said 'forgetta bout it'! Subsequently, It went right out to my shop after that...

[Richard Barbera]

Took your advise Rusty about lightly misting on the color coats. The black went on much better than my previous attempts. Everything's looking up & I'm almost ready to spray the final coats of clear.

One thing though: I've got the area around crown inlay edges all colored-in w/ the black & no grey is visible. However, the inlayed Gibson logo is being stubborn & it's surrounding edges keep showing a bit of the fiber color. Not much, but not 100%.

So far, I've gone over the inlays about 5 or 6 times w/ the clear/color spraying combination & the gray looks like it might be slowly fading/disappearing. Not sure if I should be waiting hours/days between all these coats or not? When scrubbing down to the pearl, the steel wool does not have any drag to it at all & the following clear coat sprays on great, except for that little bit of 'grey shadowing' around the logo. Not sure if I should keep try hide it w/ more coats or...?

[Russell Vance]

That's where the black shader comes in - get it all flat and ready and then spray a lightly dyed black shader over the lot - the pearl will lose a little of its brightness , but not enough to be noticeable as it will be consistently darker and then spray on a final clear and buff. Remember, if it was easy, everyone would be doing it!

The shader is clear lacquer with a touch of black dye dye (Colortone/MEK or spirit based) mixed in. Just enough dye so when the mix is swilled around a glass jar the sides of the jar turn a gray colour (for those who want to see what a dye set will look like when sprayed as a coat this is the way to see it).

Rusty

[Richard Barbera]

An update for my 'little project' that I finished up. A big thanx to Rusty for his know-how and the info he provided me with to see this through. Although a little intimadating at first, It turned out to be more time consuming than degree of difficulty. But when doing anything for the 1st time...I seem to struggle. The greying aroung the Gibson logo was where all the difficulty lie & is barely visible, but not enough for me to fret over.

For final coat, I shot a lacquer w/ Amber tint added in, to warm the inlay up a bit. The tuner tips were then ambered-up w/ Woodcraft's Honey Amber Trans-Tints, so everything would match.
http://www.woodcraft.com/Product/2001718/2458/Honey-Amber--TransTin...

One last question: Would I have been better off, staining the fiber black first off?

Overall, I am very pleased & Thx again Rusty!

[IMG]http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v420/Rnbguitars/ES-335Hdstkfinal0...[/IMG]
[IMG]http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v420/Rnbguitars/ES-335hdstock007-...[/IMG]