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Old 02-13-2018, 08:37 AM
Dogsnax Dogsnax is offline
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Default Nitrocellulose finish and formaldehyde

Hey folks....I recently acquired a Navarro Flamenco guitar and it's a winner - good build precision, fantastic flamenco tone - quick decay and well-balanced, lots of flamenco growl when pushed which means the set up is spot-on.

My question has to do with the nitrocellulose finish. My research has resulted in conflicting information. Some folks say the modern nitro finishes used by builders no longer contains formaldehyde. Others say some nitro contains formaldehyde but it eventually gasses off. What say the experts?!

Thanks in advance for any insights.
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Old 02-13-2018, 08:22 PM
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justonwo justonwo is offline
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Your best bet is to find out what brands people are using and then look up the MSDS (now called SDS) for that particular product. Potentially hazardous chemicals, like formaldehyde, are listed.
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Old 02-14-2018, 04:53 AM
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colins colins is offline
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Congrats on getting a nice guitar!

Juston’s approach is good. Material Safety Data Sheets are the go to for finding out about various compounds.

I would add that the age of the guitar will impact on your situation. Formaldehyde will gradually volatilise (gas off) just like a lot of other small organic chemicals such as solvents. If your guitar is not new, chances are any formaldehyde is long gone. If it is new and you have any concerns just leave the guitar out for a while in a well ventilated space. As an example, I received a really fine guitar last year that was literally fresh off the builder’s bench, finished just in time for me to pick it up. Not sure what the finish was but I noticed a faint organic smell from it each time I opened the case. So whenever I could I left the guitar out of the case (in a safe space!) and after a few weeks the smell had completely disappeared.

Col
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Old 02-14-2018, 07:18 AM
Dogsnax Dogsnax is offline
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Thanks Juston and Col...great recommendation regarding the MSDS sheet. I think the Navarro's communicate through Ron Hudson at Memorial Music (he manages the Navarro website). I'm going to assume the nitro finish does contain formaldehyde. I did hear from a very experienced luthier who stated that if the finish does contain formaldehyde, most of the gassing-off occurs during the curing process, with minimal molecules left thereafter, which will eventually gas off as well. My guitar is a 2017 and I don't get any of that organic smell. I'll try to give it as much out-of-the-case time as possible.


Thanks again!

Last edited by Dogsnax; 02-17-2018 at 06:50 AM.
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Old 02-14-2018, 09:53 AM
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justonwo justonwo is offline
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Quote:
Originally Posted by colins View Post
Congrats on getting a nice guitar!

Juston’s approach is good. Material Safety Data Sheets are the go to for finding out about various compounds.

I would add that the age of the guitar will impact on your situation. Formaldehyde will gradually volatilise (gas off) just like a lot of other small organic chemicals such as solvents. If your guitar is not new, chances are any formaldehyde is long gone. If it is new and you have any concerns just leave the guitar out for a while in a well ventilated space. As an example, I received a really fine guitar last year that was literally fresh off the builder’s bench, finished just in time for me to pick it up. Not sure what the finish was but I noticed a faint organic smell from it each time I opened the case. So whenever I could I left the guitar out of the case (in a safe space!) and after a few weeks the smell had completely disappeared.

Col
What are you some kind of chemical engineer??
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Old 02-15-2018, 04:38 AM
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colins colins is offline
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Quote:
Originally Posted by justonwo View Post
What are you some kind of chemical engineer??
Ain't it good we can use it in the real world!

Don't mind us Dogsnax, and glad we could help .
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Old 02-15-2018, 06:09 AM
stringjunky stringjunky is offline
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Quote:
Originally Posted by colins View Post
Ain't it good we can use it in the real world!

Don't mind us Dogsnax, and glad we could help .
It has a boiling point of -19c, so unless one lives around the poles it isn't going to hang around very long.
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