This is a question for those of you who have experience building or repairing guitars. A few years ago, I decided to buff out the satin finish on my 2013 Martin 000-15sm, because it had acquired some scratches and shiny spots that bothered me. In hindsight, I would never do that again. I had done months of research before doing this, and I had read every single thread that had been published on this and other forums on the topic.
I thought I knew enough to tackle this job, but I didn't. Long story short, I sanded way too much, and in one spot, on the back, through the finish. The buffing out worked out OK, but it never resulted in the shine I had hoped for (and seen in guitars of this model buffed out by others). On the back, where I had sanded through the finish in some places, I re-sprayed with 12 or so thin layers of semi-gloss, and the result was acceptable. If the whole guitar looked like that, I may not even be complaining.
The sides look decent, too. But I was never happy with how the top came out. When I polish it with a lot of effort, it looks really nice, for a few days, but then it slowly turns to a matte look again that just doesn't look great. It kind of has that "greasy" look that you would get on an old fashioned plaster cast after a few weeks of wearing it.
My question is: would it be worth considering to spray the top (and possibly, the whole guitar except for the neck, of course) with high gloss lacquer? It wouldn't have to be perfect by any means. The plan would be to lightly sand the top and apply several thin layers of high-gloss lacquer from a spray can, since I don't have the means and equipment to use more fancy methods. I have to make do with masking tape, rattle cans and hanging the guitar from the ceiling in my garage.
What say you wise men out there?
Below are a few photos that show the guitar in its present state.
