Buffing

[playas]

Is buffing a new guitar really necessary after painting?

Are there any disadvantages to not doing it apart from not being as shiny?

Is it realistic to do it by hand and what gear is absolutely necessary to get by?

Any other relevant commentaries welcome.

[GuitarStv]

You want to lightly sand between layers primer and paint so that you knock off any bubbles that might have formed. No need to polish at that point though. If you don't do this sanding, when you do your final sanding/polishing you can get little parts where the primer will polish through (you want to avoid this). After clearcoating you want to move up to through very fine levels of sandpaper 800 - 1000 - 1200 - 1600 to try to get things as smooth as possible before the polishing.

As far as polishing, you can definitely do it by hand and it's not hard at all. I spent several hours hand rubbing Maguire's ultimate compound and then several more with ultimate compound just using soft rags on the clearcoat of a guitar that I painted and it came out with a decent mirror like gloss finish afterwards.

I pretty much just followed what this guy said to do and it worked great:

[playas]

Thanks a mill Stv

[ehdwuld]

alternately those polishing pads for your car
that big fuzzy waxing pad that sticks into a drill chuck
or the big two handed thing in to auto parts store
will turn hours into minutes or less

again be careful
do a bit check
and do a bit and check

[playas]

Thanks...any idea what the "big two handed thing" is called?

[ehdwuld]

buffer polisher

https://www.amazon.com/s?k=buffer+for+car+detailing&crid=37KOXZFQRDTSC&sprefix=buffer+%2Caps%2C208&ref=nb_sb_ss_ts-doa-p_3_7

[playas]

Cool, thanks

[GuitarStv]

Given how easy it was to do by hand, I'd be nervous about using a buffer polisher unless you're applying a huge amount of clearcoat. This is the case where going to fast (then burning through the clear and into the paint or primer) has really bad repercussions and is a big headache to fix - and going slow only costs you a couple hours.

[ArtieToo]

My wife got me one of these for X-mas a few years ago. Charge from the included power supply, or any USB port. Runs a long time on a charge with reasonably good torque. Nice tool.

https://www.lowes.com/pd/Dremel-Versa-Micro-USB-Lithium-Ion-2-5-in-Cordless-Power-Cleaner-with-Free-Power-Cleaner-Medium-Duty-Pad/1000422249?cm_mmc=shp-_-c-_-prd-_-tol-_-google-_-lia-_-129-_-rotaryandoscillatingtools-_-1000422249-_-0&placeholder=null&ds_rl=1286981&gclid=CjwKCAjwtdeFBhBAEiwAKOIy53pwNSaADUMIxZba-sttOMrEa57rb-KLnsauQLTBxM9tMGWEQz3l9xoCY_AQAvD_BwE&gclsrc=aw.ds

[Securb]

Depends on how well you spray my buddy did my Tele no buffing needed. He has been painting cars for 30 - years.

[orpheo]

Some paints will flow less cleanly. Some nitro's and acrylics for example will leave an orange peel no matter how cleanly you spray. Others, like duritan, will flow super nice into a hard fill and you'll only have to sand and polish just a little to get it really tight and neat. I kinda like doing the buffing part so I don't mind.

[playas]

I sent it off to be professionally done so I thought it would be buffed as part of the painting process...but it seems that is not the case.

I'm disappointed as it wasn't cheap, has taken longer than I was told it would and I hadn't counted on doing the buffing myself.

Not the end of the world, just one more job to add to the list for when I get it back.

[orpheo]

Buffing is fairly easy compared to finishing itself. Doing the layers right, the prepwork, is much more work and much more difficult. There is little that can go wrong with polishing.

[ICTGoober]

It usually takes me about 8 hours to fully buff out a nitro or acrylic lacquer paint job by hand. Of course - I try to keep it as smooth as possible when spraying. I don't want any fisheyes, any orange peel, and no runs. I let the finish cure at least 2 weeks for buffing - longer if I think it needs it (like in wintertime, or very humid weather). If you can smell the thinner evaporating off the body, let it dry longer in a warm room with a fan in it. Ideally, I shouldn't have to do any sanding to level the finish before buffing.

I use pieces of felt pad from an old cowboy hat cut into 2 inch squares. I start with red Meguiars paste to cut the surface. I work small sections of the body at a time, going slowly. Constant rapid buffing in the same spot will heat up the felt pad and the finish. It will get soft again if I don't stop and move. I wipe it only with 6 " squares of clean cotton cloth - usually an old worn out t-shirt which is very soft. Do not use any cotton/ poly blends or micro-fiber washcloths. Both will scratch the surface and never get shiny.

Next, I go to white Meguiars paste and continue to buff and wipe until it's almost a mirror shine. I keep a clean cotton cloth dipped in water to clean up between grits of compound. Finally, I use a liquid glazing compound that smells a lot like fruit oils. It's brown and watery, and beads up on the surface. It makes all the difference in the glow of the finish in the light.

To clean up, I then use a 1 inch chunk of foam and go over the guitar with BOSS guitar detailer. Lightly buff with another clean cotton cloth, and I'm done. I use a different piece of felt for the red and white Meguiars, and use a clean piece of cotton t-shirt each time. I don't wipe any used portion of the felt pad or cotton cloth over the finish because any paint removed in the buffing process can scratch the surface.

When it's all said and done - the guitar looks great, and I just had a good cardio workout. The next day my arm will be tired, the sign of a good job. Toss the felt pads and the cotton squares in the washing machine so they'll be clean the next time. They will get softer every time you use them and wash them.

[orpheo]

It usually takes me about 8 hours to fully buff out a nitro or acrylic lacquer paint job by hand. Of course - I try to keep it as smooth as possible when spraying. I don't want any fisheyes, any orange peel, and no runs. I let the finish cure at least 2 weeks for buffing - longer if I think it needs it (like in wintertime, or very humid weather). If you can smell the thinner evaporating off the body, let it dry longer in a warm room with a fan in it. Ideally, I shouldn't have to do any sanding to level the finish before buffing.

I use pieces of felt pad from an old cowboy hat cut into 2 inch squares. I start with red Meguiars paste to cut the surface. I work small sections of the body at a time, going slowly. Constant rapid buffing in the same spot will heat up the felt pad and the finish. It will get soft again if I don't stop and move. I wipe it only with 6 " squares of clean cotton cloth - usually an old worn out t-shirt which is very soft. Do not use any cotton/ poly blends or micro-fiber washcloths. Both will scratch the surface and never get shiny.

Next, I go to white Meguiars paste and continue to buff and wipe until it's almost a mirror shine. I keep a clean cotton cloth dipped in water to clean up between grits of compound. Finally, I use a liquid glazing compound that smells a lot like fruit oils. It's brown and watery, and beads up on the surface. It makes all the difference in the glow of the finish in the light.

To clean up, I then use a 1 inch chunk of foam and go over the guitar with BOSS guitar detailer. Lightly buff with another clean cotton cloth, and I'm done. I use a different piece of felt for the red and white Meguiars, and use a clean piece of cotton t-shirt each time. I don't wipe any used portion of the felt pad or cotton cloth over the finish because any paint removed in the buffing process can scratch the surface.

When it's all said and done - the guitar looks great, and I just had a good cardio workout. The next day my arm will be tired, the sign of a good job. Toss the felt pads and the cotton squares in the washing machine so they'll be clean the next time. They will get softer every time you use them and wash them.

It took me like 8 hours too, but I have cut it down to two. Unless I make a mistake and have to course-correct.

My process:

- kovax blue, orange, green and black. That way I level and burnish the finish. all dry-sanding, by the way. (grit 600, 1200, 2000, 3000)
- 3M Trizact 3000 WET on the machine.
- Rupes blue pad with Menzerna Heavy cut 400 or similar
- 3M green waffle pad with Menzerna heavy cut 400 or similar
- Rupes yellow pad with Menzerna heavy cut 400 or similar

No need to whipe down between each transition because the menzerna degrades as you use is; the fresh addition of menzerna is more coarse than the 'old'. Don't go fast, never go fast. just use the torque of the pad to buff.

I finalize the session with a swirl remover by Rupes or Menzerna or 3M and than I'm done. It takes me an hour to 90 minutes to sand as just as long to use the machine. Unfortuantely, the Rupes machine I use cost me like 400 euro's but it made my life so much easier. The pads aren't cheap either but they last 10-15 guitars, so I'm fine with that.