Refinishing questions

[rd2play]

I decided to refinish the top of one of my Classic LP's, having never done this before. I would like to recreate a vintage Burst look. I think I watched youtube and read online (including this site) for about 24 hours (not continuously ). That has managed to inform me and confuse me at the same time. Not too little information, rather too much... I see there are different approaches and they are not set in stone. I guess it's a matter of personal preference and experience, right?

Could somebody tell me if this sounds about right?

- strip
- sand 220
- pore filling
- sand again
- wood sealer (?)
- sand again (?)

And now
- dye
- sand
- dye
- sand
repeat above
- tru oil, or nitro, or lacquer

OR
- no dye, but several coats of nitro (using this schedule)

I love the For Dummies books where they literally tell you step by step how it goes. I wish somebody wrote one that deals with refinishing LP's...

Any help would be appreciated.

 

[nitrodave08]

I used chem stripper, sand, stain, clear. The clear coat with nitro is the hardest. I did a CobraBurst. Black stain sand so that the wood color would peek through just a hint, then stained the outside. I went with a teardrop shaped burst vs. a perimeter only.

http://www.mylespaul.com/forums/luthiers-corner/297879-tp2-new-color-top.html

 

[rd2play]

I used chem stripper, sand, stain, clear. The clear coat with nitro is the hardest. I did a CobraBurst. Black stain sand so that the wood color would peek through just a hint, then stained the outside. I went with a teardrop shaped burst vs. a perimeter only.

http://www.mylespaul.com/forums/luthiers-corner/297879-tp2-new-color-top.html

After sanding it looks like you went straight to staining. No filler, no sealer? Are there any advantages/disadvantages of doing that? How many coats of clear nitro did you do? Any sanding between or after? Probably not, but just checking.

What's the difference between dyeing and staining? I saw a youtube where it was explained what they are and how they differ. The guy showed that the dye is more transparent, allowing the wood to come through. I see though that many people stain their guitars, so staining is not that bad after all...? I know... many questions, but I'm trying to understand all my options.

 

[rd2play]

Well, I found this, where it says that water based dyes can "be reserved only for a wood that requires little or no filling. In the guitar world that limits wiping on dyes to maple".

I guess this answers my question; no filling needed for the top (unless there are some chips).