re-fin advice

[Adrian Levi]

Originally Posted by Ken Smith

In my book, if you can see the work, it has flaws. The more you see, the worse the job is. The more in looks like it 'grew' there, the better the job.

The first key to a good finish is the prep work. Finish or varnish will not cover up sanding scratches. It will amplify them. More mistakes are seen after the finish is on and cures than during or before the finishing process. Such is life..

I have noticed that many restorers seem to re finish their basses in darker brown colors ! Can this be to try and hide imperfections ?
Also does antiquing an instrument help hide imperfections ?

What does one do if an old instrument in need of a refin has so many dings on it that it is not possible or even desirable for that matter to fix them ?

[Ken Smith]

Originally Posted by Adrian Levi

I have noticed that many restorers seem to re finish their basses in darker brown colors ! Can this be to try and hide imperfections ?
Also does antiquing an instrument help hide imperfections ?

What does one do if an old instrument in need of a refin has so many dings on it that it is not possible or even desirable for that matter to fix them ?

Do not sand out dings. Only strip off the old finish and then apply the ground when startling to apply the finish. Chemically stripping the old finish is 100% better than sanding it off. Then you only have some light scraper marks to remove (hopefully) from lifting off the 'gunk' with something like a small paint scraper.

Do not 'try' to make the bass look new. Knocking down the gloss will help this. Also, some light antiquing tastefully done in the varnish will look better. Here is a bass of mine that was made from 2007-2008, just 2 years ago or so. http://www.kensmithbasses.com/doublebasses/lott/

You don't have to beat it with chains to help it look old. There is nothing worse than an old bass that looks new..

[Adrian Levi]

Originally Posted by Ken Smith

Do not sand out dings. Only strip off the old finish and then apply the ground when startling to apply the finish. Chemically stripping the old finish is 100% better than sanding it off. Then you only have some light scraper marks to remove (hopefully) from lifting off the 'gunk' with something like a small paint scraper.

Do not 'try' to make the bass look new. Knocking down the gloss will help this. Also, some light antiquing tastefully done in the varnish will look better. Here is a bass of mine that was made from 2007-2008, just 2 years ago or so. http://www.kensmithbasses.com/doublebasses/lott/

You don't have to beat it with chains to help it look old. There is nothing worse than an old bass that looks new..

More good advice thanks !
The old finish was removed by chemical stripper .
That bass finish looks very good on that 'Lott' !

[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.