Idiot move of the day

[Dave Abrahamson]

In between coats of water based Colortone wipe on poly, I managed to drop a clamp right on the edge of a mahogany top. It hit on the worm gear, so it's a few serrated lines...maybe a 16th long.
Should I try and steam it out now? In between coats?.
It's my 1st attempt at building/assembling. It's a Stewmac baritone uke.
Thanks for any and all advice!

Dave

[redir]

Yeah try and steam it out. As they say S&#@ happens. Don't kill yourself over it.

[phavriluk]

It will never be easier to remove the dent than right now, not to imply that it will be easy, but there's no other time that makes more sense.

[Dave Abrahamson]

Thanks guys, soldering iron and wet cloth it is...hope it works.

[difalkner]

An iron and wet cloth may work better. Unless you have a really large tip for your soldering iron.

David

[MC5C]

If it doesn't work, no better time to strip back, fix, and refinish than before the finish is finished, so to speak. I think using heat and humidity to fix a dent with fresh uncured finish on it is optimistic, but worth trying. If I was doing it, that would be plan A, quickly followed by Plan B... Speaking as one who has stripped back and started again more often than not, sadly...

[packocrayons]

Originally Posted by difalkner

An iron and wet cloth may work better. Unless you have a really large tip for your soldering iron.

David

+1, I managed to make things worse with a soldering iron, the tip set-screw touched the top and marred the finish in a second spot.

An iron is flat and predictable

[Dave Abrahamson]

I'm also an old RC Flyer...I still.have a small iron with a handle for shrink wrap covering airplanes. I'll use that first....if I do anything at all.

[Quickstep192]

I’ve done it once or twice by putting a drop or two or three of water on the “wound” such that it forms a bubble of sorts that’s above the surface of the wood. I then touched the very hot soldering iron tip so that it touched the bubble, but not the wood. When the sputtering and spattering was done, the dent was gone.

[difalkner]

I made a short video a couple of years ago showing how I steam dents out of wood, not that anyone here needs instructions...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZD2_Wrs6YDM

David

[packocrayons]

Originally Posted by Dave Abrahamson

I'm also an old RC Flyer...I still.have a small iron with a handle for shrink wrap covering airplanes. I'll use that first....if I do anything at all.

Not to thread-jack but do you find the iron worth it? I need to reshrink some covering on a 2.5M glider that's becoming an autonomous first-person-view ship, hair dryer isn't hot enough.

A covering iron would be the best tool to pull dents, small enough, good temperature control and a good flat surface

[nikpearson]

Originally Posted by Dave Abrahamson

In between coats of water based Colortone wipe on poly, I managed to drop a clamp right on the edge of a mahogany top. It hit on the worm gear, so it's a few serrated lines...maybe a 16th long.
Should I try and steam it out now? In between coats?.
It's my 1st attempt at building/assembling. It's a Stewmac baritone uke.
Thanks for any and all advice!

Dave

You can often completely remove dents using a wet cotton cloth or kitchen roll and a standard clothes iron set at the higher end of the heat range. If the wood fibres are broken (cut) then the dent will at best only partly come out. If the fibres are haven’t been broken even large dents can be steamed out. You’ll know almost immediately if this is going to work. Place the wet/damp cloth over the dent and apply the hot iron; the tip is usually the most useful in these circumstances. After a few seconds check the dent then reapply.

Steaming out dents can damage the finish, but is often less destructive than you might imagine. Best to do it now before you complete the finish, that way you can strip the existing finish back if needed.

[Dave Abrahamson]

Originally Posted by packocrayons

Not to thread-jack but do you find the iron worth it? I need to reshrink some covering on a 2.5M glider that's becoming an autonomous first-person-view ship, hair dryer isn't hot enough.

A covering iron would be the best tool to pull dents, small enough, good temperature control and a good flat surface

The iron will reshrink the monocote well enough. Or look into a heat gun instead of the hair dryer. Nozzle heat exceeds 400 degrees on most.

[Dave Abrahamson]

Thank you so much for all the responses!
My hobby iron, a little water on the dent and a piece of damp t-shirt under the iron got it out in a few applications.

[Quickstep192]

Originally Posted by Dave Abrahamson

Thank you so much for all the responses!
My hobby iron, a little water on the dent and a piece of damp t-shirt under the iron got it out in a few applications.

Good to hear!

Now you can change this from “idiot move of the day” to “on the fly repair lesson of the day” 😎