chip

[dan8185]

O.K, Last week, my 5 year old son was going insane, and happened to knock over my dkmg on its stand. It fell face first on the case and when I picked it up after swearing, I died a little inside, because there by the forearm contour, was a huge dent that knocked some wood out. Being the idiot i am, I wasnt thinking at the time, and desperately superglued the chips of wood back on. Im about 99 percent sure this was a mistake, because now, theres superglue on my guitar and I dont know what to do. I should also mention there are some light scratches on the surface of the guitar from where it hit the case and how do I get rid of them.

I ordered some things from StewMac, I bought some 3M Polishing paper, clearcoat, and red spray paint hoping I could fix it. It should arrive in a few days but in the meantime, I would like to know if I bought the right kind of supplies or not to repair it, if I can repair it, and how would I do it with what I have. I'm sort of dirt poor so I cant get it fixed by a repair man.

Some pics

http://i474.photobucket.com/albums/rr109/dan8185/DSCF6243.jpg

http://i474.photobucket.com/albums/rr109/dan8185/DSCF6221.jpg

http://i474.photobucket.com/albums/r...5/DSCF6222.jpg




I know this is a lot to ask for. But please try to help. I'm desperate.
-Dan

[Grandturk]

I thought scratches and dents made guitars worth more these days.

[Newc]

Well, the chip looks nasty, but the superglue has already done as much damage as it can do. You could try to sand it smooth, but I wouldn't bother with the paint or the scratches.

Chalk it up to experience. Either keep it in the case or tie the kid up until he's older.

[jrnic]

Actually, it doesn't look too bad. At least you didn't have to touch it up with a similar color because it never looks the same. I would use very fine grit sand paper and wet sand it but don't apply too much pressure as you might pull up the chips. Keep sanding it untill it gets smoother and you get rid of the superglue residue, then use polishing compound to bring the whole area back to a shine. It won't be perfect but it will look a lot better.

Hope this helps.

[missionguitars1]

I would use very fine grit sand paper and wet sand it but don't apply too much pressure as you might pull up the chips. Keep sanding it untill it gets smoother and you get rid of the superglue residue, then use polishing compound to bring the whole area back to a shine.

+1 - make sure to use a block (like a rubber eraser) behind your sandpaper, start with 400 to knock down the chips proud to the finish, and move to 600, 800, 1000, 1500 and 2000 in succession. Rubbing compound, then some polish (non-silicon, like 3M's finesse it, or meguier's scratch-x are awesome)...you'll be back in business in no time...

And for the record, I would have used CA/Super Glue as well, it works great as a clear drop-fill on poly finishes...

[JetFixxxer]

+1 - make sure to use a block (like a rubber eraser) behind your sandpaper, start with 400 to knock down the chips proud to the finish, and move to 600, 800, 1000, 1500 and 2000 in succession. Rubbing compound, then some polish (non-silicon, like 3M's finesse it, or meguier's scratch-x are awesome)...you'll be back in business in no time...

And for the record, I would have used CA/Super Glue as well, it works great as a clear drop-fill on poly finishes...

+1

http://www.hobbylinc.com/prods/rgc_hot.htm

[Spivonious]

It was bound to be dented sooner or later. I'd polish it up and add it to one of the many stories the guitar has.

[Bengal65]

Yeah, I would drop fill that chipped area with CA Superglue until it is just above the existing surface before any sanding is done. The chips need to be secured very well. Once the superglue has set, sand as described above.
I would not bother with the StewMac paint on this guitar. The Stewmac product is Nitro, which is OK over Poly, but takes awhile to cure. Being a "burst" you would have a tough time matching the existing density. You can get real close in shading a burst repair with an airbrush as I have done it many times. But, of course you need the equipment to do this.
This one does not look bad. Some superglue, sanding and buffing should do.

[DonP]

I would take these guys' advise. Don't use nitro over poly.

If you really want to have it perfect again, take a 3-4 hour drive East like I did to Dan Erlewine. In my case, it was a Les Paul Premium Plus that got a ding in the face that I had him drop fill with Nitro.

In your case, it might double the price of the guitar.

Count your blessings that the headstock wasn't snapped off and for now on keep your axes in their cases.

[Sharkfin]

In my recent repair I bought this sandpaper finisher kit from Stewmac. http://www.stewmac.com/shop/Finishin...r_Package.html

All I had was a few clear coat drop fills around the binding. Here's my 2 cents, when you cut the strips of sandpaper, with a pen write the grit of the paper on the back so you can easily identify it. You'll only need to apply light pressure a few times with each grit.

[dan8185]

o.k. thanks for the fast replies. what i've done so far is used this car polish a worker at one of my local mom and pop store recommended me. It took out EVERY scratch that was in it. In a few days I think Im gonnasand down the chiped part I superglued back in. Im gonna get wood filler and stain it red then primer and clearcoat and Im done. The person told me if I did this, it would look good as new. Thanks for the advice. It was helpful in my thinking process on what to do

[triplehold]

It's all good brother! It doesn't look that bad and heck, your boy is only 5, it isn't like some nutso chick tried to destroy your guitar like you hear so many stories about. My very first impression upon reading your thread, is the old maxim- when you are not playing your guitar, keep it in the case. Granted, you'll grab your axe and jam more if it's out and in a stand or whatever, but sooner or later it takes a wipeout. I've gigged plenty over the last 20+ years and have always pulled my axe out of the case, plugged in, tuned up and started and put my axe right back in the case after the show. I've seen the other bands put their guitars in stands with the cord plugged into their amp and had some "roadie" or soundman trip over the damn thing and the guitar ends up in two pieces! I've seen that more than once, not to mention drunks that want to check out your guitar. We've had nuts jump right on stage and spill pitchers of beer over everything, the last thing you want is a guitar in a stand behind you or your face to close to a mic! Oh yeah while I"m going off, I don't mind someone helping me lug 4x12 cabs, but I NEVER let anybody touch my heads. I've seen dudes thinking they are going to help, just grab amp heads and pull everything down or just break stuff because they don't know that there are speaker cords connecting the stuff until it's too late! A little TLC and you can fix that baby.

[Newc]

Wood filler stained red will never look good as new. This isn't like fixing a ding in the dining table

I'm sorry for your loss, but you really need to lighten up. Yes I know no one wants beat-up stuff, but it happens with guitars. There's no harm in trying to put the chips back in place and cover it up, but I strongly advise you to give up on the idea of it coming out like a Servpro ad - like it never even happened - unless you're going to put out the money or have the tools and skills yourself to do a complete strip and refinish.

[dan8185]

It's all good brother! It doesn't look that bad and heck, your boy is only 5, it isn't like some nutso chick tried to destroy your guitar like you hear so many stories about. My very first impression upon reading your thread, is the old maxim- when you are not playing your guitar, keep it in the case. Granted, you'll grab your axe and jam more if it's out and in a stand or whatever, but sooner or later it takes a wipeout. I've gigged plenty over the last 20+ years and have always pulled my axe out of the case, plugged in, tuned up and started and put my axe right back in the case after the show. I've seen the other bands put their guitars in stands with the cord plugged into their amp and had some "roadie" or soundman trip over the damn thing and the guitar ends up in two pieces! I've seen that more than once, not to mention drunks that want to check out your guitar. We've had nuts jump right on stage and spill pitchers of beer over everything, the last thing you want is a guitar in a stand behind you or your face to close to a mic! Oh yeah while I"m going off, I don't mind someone helping me lug 4x12 cabs, but I NEVER let anybody touch my heads. I've seen dudes thinking they are going to help, just grab amp heads and pull everything down or just break stuff because they don't know that there are speaker cords connecting the stuff until it's too late! A little TLC and you can fix that baby.

Yeah, I hear ya man. I never let anyone touch my mark iv except me. Because one time my friend was helping my haul my old 5150 on stage when he tripped and fell. It was like slowmotion watching my brand new amp fly though the air and smash the ground. There were no dents or anything but a couple of broken tubes. Needless to say I was pissed

[missionguitars1]

Wood filler stained red will never look good as new. This isn't like fixing a ding in the dining table

+1 - you already have the color under there, you only want clear over it now. Drop the additional CA into any low-lying spots, let dry, and proceed with wetsanding/polishing -trust me...