Rattlecan finishes. What do you use?

[sectorix]

Hi,

I wanted to get some opinions and experiance of people here that use or used to use rattlecan lacquer/sealer or any other rattlecan finish on their guitars.

as a hobbist, I havent got in to the whole compressor-hvlp game yet, so I use poly cans from stewmac exclusively so far, but lately I have wondered about other brands and other types (like acrylic finish) that I keep seeing in home depot and similar places.

I figured this would be a great place to gather opinions of people who have tried/finished guitars using different rattlecan materials.

I guess some of the details per can which I am interested in are:

• do you a sealer for this can? if so, which one
• what kind of finish is this? (poly,acrylic,etc..)
• how long between coats
• how many coats
• how long to cure

Thanks!

Barry

 

[grohlstheman]

I use reranch occasionally. Their stuff is very good, and with the right technique I got some great results with it.

1. Unless the wood is really uneven or porous, you will not need a sealer.
2. This is a nitro finish as reranch only sells nitro
3. I did about two hours between the color coats. One hour between the primer coats
4. I did two very thick coats of primer. 3 coats of color on body. With metallics I always do two heavy plus one light dusting coat. Then I followed "Gator's spray can nitro finish..." thread for the clear.
5. In terms of curing, I say at LEAST one month for nitro after clearing...that being said I highly advise 1.5-2 Months for a solid finish. Then ya buff her up

 

[djrussell]

I personally use automotive acrylic paints and lacquer for my finishes. They always turn out good if I remain patient with them.

My schedule for acrylic works like this:
1. Apply 3 coats of primer (or spray putty for more porous woods), sand after an hour and apply more if needed (I usually apply 6 coats of primer), allow to dry for 2hrs
2. Sand primer till smooth
3. If necessary, fill in any inconsistencies with a compatible automotive blade putty. Sand when dry and re-apply primer
4. Apply 4-6 misting coats of colour, 2-3 minutes apart, allow to dry for 24hrs
5. Apply 3 misting coat of acrylic lacquer, 5 minute flash dry between coats then apply 1 heavy coat of lacquer and allow to dry for 24hrs (first day)
6. Apply 1 misting coat of acrylic lacquer, 5 minute flash dry between coats then apply 3 heavy coats of lacquer and allow to dry for 24hrs (subsequent days)
7. Repeat until 20 or more coats are applied (or 2 cans)
8. Allow to dry for 2 weeks, wetsand from 1500>2000

I find that with rattle cans its best to spray extra then not enough, especially the clear coat. Its so easy to burn through when wetsanding and I've never had that issue when using 2 cans. Acrylic can be quite soft too (much like nitro) and it gives it that extra bit of protection.

 

[emoney]

I've used Acrylic Lacquer and while I haven't been "un-pleased" with the finish, it just didn't
seem to work as easily as Nitro does. Plus, I'm not a thick-coater, type guy, and the acrylic
just seemed to be very thick, much like a poly guitar. That's just a personal preference,
and to each his own I believe, but I'm sticking with nitro going forward.

 

[straightblues]

I have had good luck lately shooting Krylon from rattle cans. Make sure you use products from 1 company so you don't have any compatibility issues. Make sure you paint a fairly thick coat because you seem to get a lot of orange peel that needs to be color sanded at the end. The issues I see with rattle can finishes is most people don't wet sand them to flatten (smooth) them out and finally polishing compound to shine them up. When you do, they come out great.

 

[djrussell]

I've used Acrylic Lacquer and while I haven't been "un-pleased" with the finish, it just didn't
seem to work as easily as Nitro does. Plus, I'm not a thick-coater, type guy, and the acrylic
just seemed to be very thick, much like a poly guitar. That's just a personal preference,
and to each his own I believe, but I'm sticking with nitro going forward.

I have to disagree, to me acrylic feels nothing like poly and is no where near as strong or thick. Even after using 2 cans to get a nice glossy finish, its still a thin finish. It wont take much to ding through the clear at all and in my experience takes a good 3-6 months for it to cure to a point where even scratches wont cut through. To me it shares more properties with nitro then poly for sure.

 

[sectorix]

I have to disagree, to me acrylic feels nothing like poly and is no where near as strong or thick. Even after using 2 cans to get a nice glossy finish, its still a thin finish. It wont take much to ding through the clear at all and in my experience takes a good 3-6 months for it to cure to a point where even scratches wont cut through. To me it shares more properties with nitro then poly for sure.

I wonder if there are recommended Poly rattlecans and what are the cure,finish process for it. have only done Nitro.

 

[nitrodave08]

here is my process for the refinish I did, http://www.mylespaul.com/forums/luthiers-corner/297879-tp2-new-color-top.html used all Stew-Mac stuff dye and clear. One word of advice, if you use a chemical stripper, make sure the tape is WELL down. I had a drip and had to throw on a clear coat on the sides.

 

[djrussell]

I wonder if there are recommended Poly rattlecans and what are the cure,finish process for it. have only done Nitro.

Ive only used poly once out of a rattlecan and it was a disaster. British Paints Poly. It crinkles very easily even if scuffing between coats. I'd never use it again. I found the Feast Watson Wipe-On Poly to be so much better though.

 

[Ripthorn]

You can also go the preval and something from a regular route. That way you don't have to "settle" on the products. Though if you are set on spray cans, I would say do NOT use deft. I have used the Behlens stuff and it worked well. I also like to use the Krylon crystal clear coat on necks, it has worked quite well on the two or three projects I did with it.

 

[Brewdude]

This was ReRanch Seafoam Green and tinted amber, I love the color selection and the paint seems to be pretty top quality as well, I just wish the spray nozzles were a little easier to use. I have no idea what they are called but a lot of cans I see at home depot etc. are a newer style that don't splatter as easily. All in all though I'd definitely recommend ReRanch if you are looking for a nitro finish.

 

[Sinster]

I used Valspar from Home Depot and think it's great. I also used Re-ranch as well.

Valspar

 

[scottop1972]

i used duplicolor for both the clear and color on a bass i recently did, and right now i am using the testors one coat lacquer for a project with the duplicolor clear coat.

 

[sectorix]

I used Valspar from Home Depot and think it's great. I also used Re-ranch as well.

Valspar

can you share more details?
did you use valspar for color or for lacquer too? whats your process and timing? what material is valspar ?

 

[w666]

What have you got against Deft? I've used it on a dozen instruments with great results.

You can also go the preval and something from a regular route. That way you don't have to "settle" on the products. Though if you are set on spray cans, I would say do NOT use deft. I have used the Behlens stuff and it worked well. I also like to use the Krylon crystal clear coat on necks, it has worked quite well on the two or three projects I did with it.

 

[Sinster]

can you share more details?
did you use valspar for color or for lacquer too? whats your process and timing? what material is valspar ?

I used Valspars Color Radiance Advance Color (Paint + Primer) for all of it including the faux binding.

After the prep of the guitar.
-Sprayed 2-4 coats for the faux binding
-Sanded 400 Grit wet sandpaper the high spots or screw ups.
-Let dry 48 hours
-Sprayed 2-4 coats for the top
-Let dry 48 hours
-Sanded with 400 grit
-Sprayed the 4 coats of clear
-Let dry 24 hours
-Sand 400 grit
-Spray 2 more coats of clear
-Let dry 72 hours
-Sanded and buffed
-Let it dry 72+

 

[TheX]

I use Reranch and Minwax. For dye I use Trans-Tint (love the orange).

 

[chupe442]

I used Valspar from Home Depot and think it's great. I also used Re-ranch as well.

Valspar

That is beautiful......

 

[pinefd]

What have you got against Deft? I've used it on a dozen instruments with great results.

I've used it as well. But I think the general consensus around here is that it never really seems to harden...or takes forever to do so.


Frank

 

[LtDave32]

What have you got against Deft? I've used it on a dozen instruments with great results.

I've used it as well. But I think the general consensus around here is that it never really seems to harden...or takes forever to do so.


Frank

That's what I've heard. So much that way, it's scared me off of ever using it.

But ol' Walt's a pretty good builder. If he's had good success with it, who am I to nay-say?