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  #1  
Old 03-23-2017, 12:08 PM
SnowManSnow SnowManSnow is offline
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Default Anyone familiar with / used Royal-lac?

well, I'm beginning my 3rd build and at this point 2 things are a real sick in my craw:
1: getting the exact neck shape I want
2: (topic here) finishing

Finishing is one of those things that take a lot of practice to get right, (a lot of it) and I'm in that process, however I haven't yet decided on what finish I want to "major" in. I believe I want to try a french polish process and I've been researching a product called royal-lac applied in a french polish manner. From what I understand it is suppose to be a more durable finish than the traditional shellac finish.

so, i wanted to inquire here before i spent more time reading about it and invested any more resources that direction.

have you used the royal lac? what are your thoughts?

Thank you for any insight.
B.
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  #2  
Old 03-23-2017, 12:11 PM
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Pat Foster has used it:

http://www.acousticguitarforum.com/f....php?p=5258031
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Old 03-23-2017, 12:36 PM
Rodger Knox Rodger Knox is offline
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I have not used Royal Lac myself, but I have read quite a bit about it's use. It seems it works quite well for French polish, and is a little more durable than FP shellac. That's as much as I'll say without any personal experience with the product.
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Old 03-28-2017, 10:49 AM
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Hi Snowman ... I've French Polished with it ... here's the video/review

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B3F_QOwmPmo
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Old 03-28-2017, 12:13 PM
Halcyon/Tinker Halcyon/Tinker is offline
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How many labor hours go into that, David?

Is royal-lac your go-to finish now?
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Old 03-28-2017, 02:09 PM
thomasfelty thomasfelty is offline
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I'm using it with my guitars that I know are going to be played by flat pickers, It dries pretty hard and rubs out nicely. I prefer to french polish and I haven't figured out how to use the french polishing technique with Royal Lac. With Royal Lac I use a wipe on technique. It does a nice job just nor as relaxing to me as french polishing.
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Old 03-28-2017, 02:17 PM
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David Wren David Wren is offline
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Halcyon/Tinker View Post
How many labor hours go into that, David?

Is royal-lac your go-to finish now?
I used the same schedule I use for normal French Polishing ... i.e. two sessions the first day and one session per day after that ... a total of 11 sessions (a session for me takes around 45 minutes).

I'm pretty conservative when it comes to new finishes. The guitar I used the Royal Lac on was for a local customer who went through strings fairly quickly (presumeably acidic sweat). I was hoping since it was local, that I'd see the guitar periodically for setup, but it hasn't come back in, so I haven't been able to gauge its resistance to wear and sweat ... and until I see the instrument again, I probably won't use it as my go-to finish.
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Old 03-28-2017, 02:33 PM
Halcyon/Tinker Halcyon/Tinker is offline
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Fair enough, thanks!
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Old 03-28-2017, 03:38 PM
SnowManSnow SnowManSnow is offline
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Quote:
Originally Posted by David Wren View Post
Hi Snowman ... I've French Polished with it ... here's the video/review



https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B3F_QOwmPmo


David I actually found that vid early in my internet research I believe it is on the royal-lac page.
To my knowledge no one locally does this French polish type of finishing .... it would be amazing to see it done in person to begin to learn since I'm a tactile learner.
I guess that means I hit the books and scrap lengths of wood to learn...
Thank you for your input
I too would be interested how it has held up



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Old 03-28-2017, 05:34 PM
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Tim McKnight Tim McKnight is offline
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Well ... since you asked ... yes I've sprayed it and long story short, it was a disaster. It cost me four guitars, >$25K loss!!!! The finished looked awesome after a few weeks. However, a few months later the finish checked, cracked and spiderwebbed on all surfaces. There isn't a paint stripper on the planet that would remove it. The only positive comment that I can make is that my wood stove loved the stuff, four guitars worth to be exact.
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  #11  
Old 03-29-2017, 09:51 AM
Pat Foster Pat Foster is offline
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As rogthefrog mentioned, I've used it. I did a French polish with Royal Lac on one guitar, and a year out, it looks fine. The guitar is played almost daily. With the track record on this guitar, it may end up my go-to finish.

Pat
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  #12  
Old 03-29-2017, 11:15 PM
JamesO JamesO is offline
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Quote:
Originally Posted by SnowManSnow View Post
I guess that means I hit the books and scrap lengths of wood to learn...
Tom Bills has a fantastic French Polishing course online. Extremely thorough. As a former teacher, I really respect the care Tom puts into his courses.

I used the course to successfully french polish a guitar using Royal-Lac a year and a half ago, and it's held up well. I've also done a few test panels using the shellac Tom recommends in the course and prefer the look of it.

A friend of mine also used the experimental version Vijay formulated for spraying and had the same issues as Tim. People who've used the original version haven't had them. Word on the web is that Vijay has a new catalyzed version for spraying that's holding up well, but I don't have first hand experience with it.
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  #13  
Old 04-13-2017, 07:14 PM
SnowManSnow SnowManSnow is offline
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Default Anyone familiar with / used Royal-lac?

I have a noob question concerning this. I want to dye the top to a specific color... just a little vintage amber.
1 do I use the dye in a solution like a stain before the royal lac and after the seal lac? Or do I mix a small bit of royal lac WITH the dye?

Oh... also... how do I cover the wood fiber purlfing w clear so it doesn't absorb a tint?



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Last edited by SnowManSnow; 04-14-2017 at 05:02 AM.
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  #14  
Old 04-14-2017, 05:02 AM
SnowManSnow SnowManSnow is offline
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Quote:
Originally Posted by SnowManSnow View Post
I have a noob question concerning this. I want to dye the top to a specific color... just a little vintage amber.
1 do I use the dye in a solution like a stain before the royal lac and after the seal lac? Or do I mix a small bit of royal lac WITH the dye?

Oh... also... how do I cover the wood fiber purlfing w clear so it doesn't absorb a tint?



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  #15  
Old 05-20-2017, 05:37 PM
mercy mercy is offline
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Be warned, learning curve.
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