re-fin advice

[Mike Mandelas]

In a similar case after the chemical stripping i applied a ground named "Imprimitura minerale", bought by **** and after it i stained it with a golden brown stain bought by Hammerl. Prior the staining i applied a gelatin solution 5% in order to have an equal amount of stain everywhere. Then i started the oil varnishing, which took me several hands in order to achieve the proper depth. Between hands i made a light sanding, in order to smooth things out. After the final varnishing i watied for 4 weeks to have it dried and proceeded with a final coating varnish (also by Hammerl). The whole procedure took place during the hot Greek summer, so the drying time between hands was not significantly prolonged.
The final result was better than expected, since i had gathered the appropriate experience varnishing violins. Obviously this bass has not the perfect detail of a varnished La Scala or an Upton but it has a "character" and the sound IMHO has been improved considerably.
Now i'm planning my second venture in revarnishing, waiting for the proper weather conditions.
Mike

[Matthew Tucker]

Dings always look better darker than the main varnish colour, reason being that dings and scratches will usually accumulate dirt. It just looks "right". If you have to cover a scratch or ding you can spend hours trying to match the original and build up the level then cut back to try to achieve a perfect match. But unless you are very skillful you won't get it right. Look at the belt buckle damage on any old bass. Only when it is lighter than the surround does it look bad.