Best lacquer for a Gibson touch-up?

[LtDave32]

Hey guys, I have a 2003 Gibson J-185 acoustic that suffered a mishap a few years back. It was sitting on a guitar stand in my music room, and a neighbor came over with his kid. While we were talking, the kid wandered over to the guitars, and he had a packet of taco sauce in his hand. He was squeezing it, and it popped and sprayed on the guitar (weird story, I know). He was too scared to tell me about it, so the hot sauce stayed on and burned into the finish. I didn't notice for a whole day, and the crap burned right through the nitro and spread underneath. It burned a little hole in the nitro and spread through onto the maple, and on to the spruce of the top. Horrible story, innit?

Question is, I'd like to refinish this. It really bugs me, people point it out and I'm tired of that. I'll never sell this guitar, so I'm not worried about the resale value/refinish issue. What's the best lacquer to use to touch this up, or am going to have to strip the entire finish and start over? I already know I'll have to sand the offending areas down to the wood and the stain off of both the spruce top and maple sides. My question is, what's the best lacquer to use that will assimilate into the original lacquer job?

Here's pics of the horror:

 

[bertzie]

This is why I will never have kids, or let kids near my nice things.

 

[kerrhill]

i'm not sure if they are the same factory finish, but I just did a neck repair on a '04 335. I used Deft Clear wood finish lacquer and it was absolutely invisible once cured, wet sanded and buffed. Melted into existing layers and looked perfect without needing to cover the whole project.

 

[LtDave32]

What prompted this thread was the discovery in the "Mohawk Lacquer" thread that one of the "biggest guitar builders in the US" was using the Mohawk product under a different name, and I'm worried that a touch-up might wrinkle, considering that the original lacquer job might not take to any respraying. I don't want to strip and respray the whole guitar, but I may have to. I can spray a lacquer job just fine, but I was hoping for an effective touch-up.

 

[Penny Dreadful]

We need names!

 

[LtDave32]

We need names!

Of what, the kid that did the deed?

Just a nine year old munchkin named Spencer that was scared to death to tell me what he did. If he had, I could have cleaned it up before the damage set in. His dad made sure he was never allowed in the room again.. Friggin' shame, ain't it? Here's a pic of the back of the same guitar, luckily the mishap didn't happen on the back, but the lower waist where it happened, and on the top is bad enough :

 

[Indyclone]

a 9 yr old with hot sauce? Wow, not very many 9 yr olds would go near hot sauce.

I can't say that I've ever heard of a food stain on a guitar... sucks because it's such a beautiful guitar. I hope you can get it back to looking how it should.

 

[LtDave32]

a 9 yr old with hot sauce? Wow, not very many 9 yr olds would go near hot sauce.

I can't say that I've ever heard of a food stain on a guitar... sucks because it's such a beautiful guitar. I hope you can get it back to looking how it should.

I think he was playing with the packet, not so much eating the sauce. "Del Scorcho" from Del Taco, to be exact.

 

[Ayrton]

Sue Del Taco!

I think if you have to remove the existing finish, then any quality lacquer will work as a refinish.

 

[Roman]

Deft actually melts quite nicely into Gibson finishes. The trouble you may encounter here is matching the yellowing.

There are two ways to go. Spray straight clear and live with the "clearness" of it till it yellows, or get out your airbrush and spray tinted lacquer...............keep in mind the tinted will yellow as well, so over time will be "yellower" than the surrounding area.

People say Deft is crap lacquer............what do you think Gibson's is? Crap lacquer. It is all in the skill of the user.

Real nitro hasn't been used by Gibson in a long time.

 

[LG2]

People say Deft is crap lacquer

Yea I agree It's not that bad I been using it for a wile and now more so after I used the last of MC Fads. Lows sells gallon cans.
I recommend using Deft sanding sealer "for new builds" first as Deft telegraphs the grain like crazy.

One negative is I think Deft takes longer to cure than most lacquers so wait two or three weeks before shipping a instrument in it's case for the guys that never used it before.
to repair I would not refinish all the guitar but focus on the repair first. you can alway redo the whole guitar if you blow it. Start with 220 to cut down the finish then move to 320, do not press hard but but sand lightly try to remove the lacquer taco staining. Stop when you get close to the raw wood then move to a wet sand of 600 and 800 if you get the stain out before cutting into the raw wood your good you will be able to build up the finish and rubout.

 

[TheVince325]

Of what, the kid that did the deed?

The kid was probably too scared to mention anything since you keep your rather large knife conveniently near your gorgeous guitar, just in case something like this were to happen

In all seriousness I'm sorry to hear about this unfortunate event, that things a beauty!

 

[LtDave32]

Thanks. I really hate it when I hear "Oh, what happened?!" when the stains on the lower waist and top are revealed. Plus, I'm tired of living with them. I'll get it sorted..

 

[Reverend D]

Man, back in the day, my dad (who unfortunately died when I was 12 back in '69) being a ex musician would have paid for my mistake. Then believe me, I would have paid dearly for my mistake with my butt.

Regards,

D.

 

[Beerdog80]

I gotta ask bro...whats up with the Rambo knife?

 

[diceman]

This is why I will never have kids, or let kids near my nice things.

Very helpful response.














That is also a poor excuse for not having kids. "See, if I never have kids or raise a family, I will never have to be concerned with having my guitars damaged!"

 

[LtDave32]

I gotta ask bro...whats up with the Rambo knife?

A friend had picked that up at Harbor Freight tools for something like 4 bucks, and gave it to me. The cabinet holds various patch cords and mics and such, and the doors wouldn't stay shut. The knife fit right between the knobs and served to keep the cabinet closed..

..This from a finish carpenter. I fix everyone else's shit but my own..

 

[LeftyRighty]

What about trying a burn in stick Dave? And I wonder if there is a way of removing the discoloration without sanding. Maybe some food grade H202?? Have you asked the good doctor his opinion? As for Deft, I agree about the quality of that product. I used it all the time back in the 80's. Good stuff.

Be the perpetrator a 9 year old or not, I would have fish hooked em for that.