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#1
11-19-2017, 04:14 PM
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Finish repair - - - Seagull Excursion Walnut 12
I'm trying to keep my questions brief and specific:
I bought a damaged-in-shipment, otherwise new, guitar which needed a bit of top damage repaired, which is completed. It does leave me with a bit of new, bare, spruce at the extreme wide point of the lower bout, about a half-inch wide by three inches long, more or less. An a few neighboring cracks in the top. I found a Godin representative being interviewed at the 2013 NAMM show where he mentions a 'varnish' finish. Aha. Onto something. I've purchased some Minwax wipe-on varnish to get some finish onto the spliced in new wood. Would it be a valid idea to first coat the repair with shellac and lay the varnish atop the shellac? Or go straight to the varnish for the repaired area? I am not expecting invisible repairs, just neatness. Thanks, folks. 
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#2
11-20-2017, 04:10 PM
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"Varnish" covers quite a few different products, and the only thing similar about them is that they are called varnish. I believe the shellac is a good idea, but I'm not too sure about the Minwax being similar to the original finish.
__________________
Rodger Knox, PE 1917 Martin 0-28 1956 Gibson J-50 et al
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#3
11-20-2017, 04:21 PM
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agreed
Rodger, your advice makes perfect sense to me. For my purposes 'shellac' is shellac. As for varnish, I agree we're entering a wilderness. I suspect that the guitar was built with a UV-setting 'varnish'. I also suspect that such material bears little relationship to what comes out of a Minwax can. But it is across the lacquer/varnish divide. And there is little in consumer-land to try to use for such a finish touchup.
Interesting aside, to this discussion. The luthier who I visited to lead me through the repair process mentioned that he had need for some nitrocellulose lacquer and his usual source had none, so he went to another vendor and bought another manufacturer's lacquer. Problem was, the new stuff raised a mess when applied over the original. And that's lacquer-to-lacquer compatibility. I think some testing around the soundhole is in order for my little project before I commit any materials to the soundboard.
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#4
11-22-2017, 11:44 PM
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speedy reply from Godin to my query about finish
Here's the reply I got from Godin on the day after I sent my inquiry. Really nice customer care. I won't be forgetting the kindness:
Hi Peter, Your guitar has a nitro based french polish finish. We definitely don't recommend touch up jobs as they most ofter end up looking worst than the scratches! You could have the top sanded down and refinished by a luthier, but that's quite costly and it could alter the guitar's tone. It's therefore not recommended. Regards, Michel Bélanger Support Clients / Customer Support Guitares Godin / Godin Guitars
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#6
11-23-2017, 02:43 AM
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Finishing is a real skill,
Minwax is a poly urethane rub not a varnish. Nitro / French polish,not to sure godins exact formula, but you can thin nitro down with alcohol rather than with nitro thinners, when thinned with alcohol you can rub it into the surface and spirit away as yu would when French polishing Steve
__________________
Cole Clark Fat Lady Gretsch Electromatic Martin CEO7 Maton Messiah Taylor 814CE
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#7
11-23-2017, 05:23 PM
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You're suggesting that it may indeed be possible that they build up many (hundreds or so) layers of micro-thin nitro?
I'm genuinely asking, but I'll admit this seems wild to me. I've only sprayed urethanes and wiped/polished shellac so I'm very limited in my breadth of experience.
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