Wounded Seagull

murman · #1 07-09-2018, 05:04 AM

In a foolish attempt to rub out a very small dent in my new Seagull guitar, I inadvertantly dug my thumbnail into the cedar top. Anything I did to try to make it better, made it worse after that.
Other than just "getting over it", does anyone have any suggestions on what could be done with the wound. Only thing worse is the beating up I am giving myself over it.

fazool · #2 07-09-2018, 06:25 AM

take a close up picture and post it if you want meaningful advice.

It is very likely that a simple drop fill could fix it completely

murman · #3 07-09-2018, 06:27 AM

Hmm...thought I did that. Will try again. Thanks.

fazool · #4 07-09-2018, 07:06 AM

sheesh that's quite a gash - I did the same once with my pinky fingernail on my cedar topped dread.

If that were mine, IO would first steam out the spot to uncompress the wood. Then lets the humidity level in that stabilize (because you articially expanded the wood). Then I would drop fill with CA. It will leave a dark spot but it can be smooth.

Search StewMac for drop fill video instructions.

charles Tauber · #5 07-09-2018, 08:31 AM

"Rubbing out" a small dent in a thin, satin finish is an inappropriate approach. That the result of that approach lead to it being worse is a good indication that you should not attempt any further fixing of it, particularly with a glue (CA) that has the potential to make things far worse.

Sorry, but in this case, my advice is to either leave it alone or take it to a someone with experience in repairing this sort of damage (e.g. a professional).

mirwa · #6 07-09-2018, 06:05 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by murman

In a foolish attempt to rub out a very small dent in my new Seagull guitar

That is a significant bit of damage, if your goal is to fix it yourself, then okay but.......... which means ignore everything I just said, its not as easy as it appears, a lot can go wrong, even for those that are experienced in doing said repairs.

So..

Lightly sand a dime sized area, use a butter knife and heat it over a flame and attach a wet rag to the damaged area, apply the butter knife to the wet rag to create steam.

Do this 2-3 times and let it dry a day, repeat the next day

What you have now is what you have, if its flush (I doubt), scuff sand and varnish. If its still indented then yes you can drip fill it with superglue, I personally prefer drip filling tops and backs with lacquer as its more flexible, only on Taylors and other Hard finishes will I use superglue.

This is a Taylor - Super glue repair

Steve

murman · #7 07-23-2018, 07:53 AM

After some steaming and very light sanding, I have got the dent on my S6 to where I can live with it. But although the dents are pretty much gone, there is a blotch or scuff where the satin finish was dulled from the work done. I tried a very small application of satin varnish, but that seemed to cause it to be slightly darker and make the wound area more noticeable. And, the area didn't have the smooth feel that it had without the varnish. So, I again carefully sanded it off.
As mentioned, I can put up with this small dull spot, but if anyone knows of a easy way to put a bit more shine there, I would appreciate. (I tried some Dunlop 65 polish).
BTW the pic makes it look worse than it actually is. From some angles and light, I can't even see it.

mirwa · #8 07-23-2018, 08:00 AM

For a first time that is not bad, the colour is still there which is the important and most difficult part to restore.

From here, I would consider getting a satin spray in a can and do a few light coats over an area of approx 3 inches, this will provide protection to the exposed wood and also create a blend area into the existing finish

Steve

murman · #9 07-23-2018, 08:07 AM

Thanks for the quick reply. I thought of spraying after I wasn't impressed with the varnish try.
Obviously, one would need to be very careful about covering the other areas so not to have any over spray. Is there a best way to do that?

mirwa · #10 07-23-2018, 08:13 AM

With a circle cutout.

When I touch up some areas on guitars, I cut a circle or an oval shape through some plastic or cardboard, scuff the surface of the Guitar and hold the circular cutout approx 1 inch of the surface, then spray over the surface of the circle, the circular edges feather the outer edges of the spray and give a nice transition.

Steve

murman · #11 07-23-2018, 07:47 PM

Krylon Satin Clear Finish or Varathane okay?

phavriluk · #12 07-23-2018, 09:30 PM

I had very good results blending in a top repair (I replaced a piece at the outer edge of the lower bout roughly one inch wide at the deepest part) on my new-but-damaged Sr eagull Walnut 12. using Minwax wipe-on satin. The repair has a sheen much like the rest of the top. Whether someone else with a similar problem would consider the repair acceptable I have no way of knowing.