Paint job on natural wood bass

[Olivetti17]

I unfortunately have to have my expensive bass coloured,on top of a what was a beautiful quilted maple finish.

I will have this professionally done but i'm simply asking what type of paint is normally used.I'm assuming primer/colour,plus protective coat.I can't afford a luthier when its just a paint job,albeit a pro one.

Thanks in advance

 

[itu]

Can you tell some background, why is the colouring a must?

[Olivetti17]

I gave it to a friend who offered to repair a chip prob 10mm round.he used a wood dye that didn't match,and since showing it to a restorer he explained its 'rest in peace'.and it would still show whatever you do to it..

I told him to cancel his guitar making course!.

 

[Manton Customs]

Can we see a pic of the chip? Sometimes the best way to disguise a mark is to hide it in plain sight...eg make it look like a natural defect in the wood. I’d certainly rather go that route before painting quilted Maple. You could also consider a dark transparent finish, or a burst if it’s at an edge.

[lemmywinks]

Carvin used to do some exquisite stained quilt basses, have a look at these for some inspiration:

[Olivetti17]

They look fantastic,yes i'll take some pics.

Thanks

[Maude]

If you went with a darker stain, the edges of the darker 'repair' could be airbrushed to disguise it as a stronger area of quilting. If it's still noticeably darker then a similar mirrored area could be done to make it look book matched. It's hard to say without seeing the area in question. 

[Delberthot]

How about some racing stripes to disguise the area?

 

 

[Andyjr1515]

The bit I don't quite understand, @Olivetti17 , is - if you are considering the cost of prep, paint and finish coat - then isn't sanding back to bear wood, thus removing the aberation, then (restaining if necessary) and recoating in clearcoat going to be just as cost effective? 

That is, refinish back to its original look rather than overpaint.

A quick photo really would help...

[Olivetti17]

Ive tried sanding back to bare wood and its putting up a good fight.

Although ive tried no power tools yet.

Yes i'll post some pics over the weekend.

Thanks

 

[Andyjr1515]

21 minutes ago, Olivetti17 said:

Ive tried sanding back to bare wood and its putting up a good fight.

Although ive tried no power tools yet.

Yes i'll post some pics over the weekend.

Thanks

 

If it's a commercial poly finish then yes, it will put a fight.  There are various ways of speeding it up, but the safest way is using a sanding block and frequent changes of paper.  Off and on, it can take a couple of days but you are much less likely to end up with gouges or burns which are always possible with some of the alternative ways.

[Bassfinger]

On 09/10/2019 at 17:43, Delberthot said:

How about some racing stripes to disguise the area?

 

 

Careful doing that - racing stripes make for a much faster bass.  When I did mine I couldn't stop playing thrash metal and ended up having to remove them.

[Olivetti17]

Very good!!