Sneaky refinishing tip

[Mark Hammer]

I was given a vintage Dr. Q that was seriously scratched up.  I wanted to restore the paint job but obviously that's not something I can do from scratch (pardon the pun).  What I did was use a black fine tipped permanent marker (the same kind you'd use for drawing a resist pattern on a PC board) to fill in all the scratches.  
Of course all of that needs protection from scuffing, but normal lacquer will dissolve the ink.  So, I covered it in a couple of coats of matte lacquer, which doesn't make the ink run.  Now that it's dry, I'll stick a couple of light coats of glossy lacquer on to make it look a little more like stock.  I didn't take any scans of it pre-retouch, but I'm impressed with how much nicer it looks, and how impossible it is to tell where the scratches/retouches were located.

[RDV]

R U gonna leave it stock?

Boy those things only work when they want to, and with a wireless forget about it!

Regards

RDV

[Samuel]

I've heard that one of the big secrets of the production for Jurassic Park was that through their digital process certain parts of their color negatives were not dark enough to be opaque. The solution was a brown Sharpie marker. No shame in using Sharpies to fix pesky problems...

[petemoore]

cause you can 'mess' with it.
 sanding it, re-coating it, polishing it,
 I like the sanding filler laquer, it makes the scratches dissappear...teeny bit of fine sanding, a coat of sanding laquer, little more sanding, thin coat of Gloss...like glass again...well even if there are larger pitcracks the patina's too Kool anyway !!2

[Fret Wire]

The clear lacquer touch-up pens that Gibson sells work nice for stuff like that.

[Ansil]

most guitar shops have used the little sharpie trick for  years  although it won't work on guitars for a close up inspection if you know what you are doing.  but under average light conditions and when you are under the spell of a new guitar.  it doesn't matter, out goes the common sense and out comes the wallet.   hmmm kind of reminds you of what happens with a woman.  lol

[Mike Burgundy]

Sharpies (or over here: Eddings), superglue, stagetape (no Duct - the real heavy canvas stuff) a Leatherman and alligator clips. Everone on stage or off should have ample supply of this stuff

[Mike Nichting]

Yeah, I carry a small suitcase of tools and odds and ends with me to gigs. so that if anything goes wrong from a resolder to fixing a tremelo on a guitar, I have the tool for it. Everyone laughs untill they need something fixed and it never fails that they do.
If you laugh at my suitcase of tools and odds and ends and then need me to fix something, I charge a beer  :twisted:
If not it's free  

 Good tip Mark~!!!

Mike N.

[Ansil]

Yeah, I carry a small suitcase of tools and odds and ends with me to gigs. so that if anything goes wrong from a resolder to fixing a tremelo on a guitar, I have the tool for it. Everyone laughs untill they need something fixed and it never fails that they do.
If you laugh at my suitcase of tools and odds and ends and then need me to fix something, I charge a beer  :twisted:
If not it's free  

 Good tip Mark~!!!

Mike N.

haaaaaaaaaaa    good idea.   i used to caryy mulitple soldering irons then i found this little micro torch, and a butane ratshack soldering iron.  i also got some of that solder stuff in a tube, that you throw a flame too and it is done.  some seriously fun stuff here.  i redid a thick ass ground wire right on the tremelo claw, which usually requires at least a 40watt iron or bettter,  and did it with a lighter and this tube of freaky deaky solder.