Refinish

[sachmo63]

Hello all, I just came into possesion of a Kettler F5 Mandolin from a friend/band mate of mine. It was built somewhere around '85 or so, don't know exactly as there's no label but the previous owner had told me that the original finish had started to check/crack for some reason so in an attempt to refinish the instrument he removed all the finish. As it stands now there is no finish on the back, sides or neck. Those areas are down to bare wood. The front is dark, maybe was black at one time i don't know but he did not take the front to bare wood but the lacquer is gone.

This mandolin sounds and plays fantastic and is structurally sound, i'm not going to spend the $$$ on a complete refinish because i'm not working but I am handy and work with wood often. Is there something I can do to at least protect the bare wood and maybe add some color to the back/sides? What are my options?

I'll post some pictures later today, after coffee.

Hope you all can help.

S

[eastmountain]

I'd recommend you just use Tru Oil or Tung Oil. Rub it in and buff it out.

[Dave Bucher]

Hello all, I just came into possesion of a Kettler F5 Mandolin from a friend/band mate of mine. It was built somewhere around '85 or so, don't know exactly as there's no label but the previous owner had told me that the original finish had started to check/crack for some reason so in an attempt to refinish the instrument he removed all the finish. As it stands now there is no finish on the back, sides or neck. Those areas are down to bare wood. The front is dark, maybe was black at one time i don't know but he did not take the front to bare wood but the lacquer is gone.

This mandolin sounds and plays fantastic and is structurally sound, i'm not going to spend the $$$ on a complete refinish because i'm not working but I am handy and work with wood often. Is there something I can do to at least protect the bare wood and maybe add some color to the back/sides? What are my options?

I'll post some pictures later today, after coffee.

Hope you all can help.

S

One thing I CAN recommend is that the instrument not sit "in the white" for very long or you run the risk of having it crack somewhere. As I've detailed elsewhere in the forum here, I had a pulmonary embolism followed by several heart attacks and congestive heart failure in 2007 (sounds bad no?) and several commissions have been hanging in the white for that whole time including one for a forum member whose name I'll not mention but during that time it developed a long crack from latitudinal expansion and contraction against the transverse bracing I normally use. I've finally removed the top and cut a replacement now that I've begun working again but this would not have happened it I'd just gotten even a couple coats of sealer on the instrument but as it was not the time for that I had not gotten to it.

When I moved from Mendocino county California (the Redwood Empire) to Kansas City I brought many uncompleted CBOMs and guitars with me and they hung here. One, an experiment I call the "Ultra" guitar that is a 12 stringed unison strung big bodied monster, has developed a longitudinal crack along a line of grain that is a 1/16" wide now. I will not be able to use that top. The binding ledge had been cut but it was not bound yet. The unsealed wood is at the mercy of the much drier climate in the midwest. Anyway, brush on varnish or spray on lacquer from a can. The Stew Mac company sells this though I've never used it. The brand is well respected and a couple of cans will do the job I'd guess.

Good luck.

Dave

[sunburst]

I'd recommend shellac as a sealer because it is compatible with so many finishes. If you are planning to do the complete finish, Truoil is fine, but if you just want to seal it and leave it, eventually someone will want to do a complete finish (almost certainly), and if it is sealed with shellac, they can finish it with almost anything without worry about compatibility.

[P.D. Kirby]

If you are handy with a spray can I would recommend at least putting a light coat of sanding sealer this would protect the wood until you are gainfully employed and can be done for less than $10.00 and a little of your time. here's a link to Stew Mac's finishing products. You might even want to apply a little stain which is also easy to do and cheap. Make sure to look at the instruction tab at the bottom of the page.

http://www.stewmac.com/shop/Finishing_supplies/Colors,_tints,_and_stains/ColorTone_Aerosol_Guitar_Lacquers/ColorTone_Aerosol_Guitar_Lacquer.html

[sachmo63]

Here are the pictures, as far as time line. Its been like this for about 2 years. I don't think it was used much but still.....

What would the Tru oil look like on that bare wood. How long does it take for the shellac to cure so that its playable again.

thanks

[adlerburg]

I'd recommend you just use Tru Oil or Tung Oil. Rub it in and buff it out.
+1 here about the Oil finish. Very easy, looks/feels great. I've been using what I consider the evolution of these oils called monocoat. Here is some info (http://www.monocoat.us/). They claim that you can't mess it up.. just wipe in on, that it molecularly bonds with the wood, and once that happens, the excess just wipes off.. you can't mess it up! I can't argue as it worked just like they said for me.. and I've been playing this hard for months after and still looks perfect.. Here's what it looks like on a neck....
http://i1007.photobucket.com/albums/af194/adlerburg1/neck3.jpg
Just to quantify the obvious... I did stain to match the burst under the oil finish. I think if you oil finished it without stain, it would be darker than "white", but still very light.

[Steve Ostrander]

I would leave the top the way it is. That's some serious Mojo right there. There are people who pay a lot of money to get a brand new mandolin to look like yours!

[adlerburg]

I would leave the top the way it is. That's some serious Mojo right there. There are people who pay a lot of money to get a brand new mandolin to look like yours!
I agree with Steve, and I think there is too much "white" on the back to go unprotected. The front looks fine, but the sides and back looks like it needs protection.

[sachmo63]

Yes, I was thinking i'll leave the top alone too. I'll look at the monocoat....Thanks

[sachmo63]

Well its off to Big Joe's who's going to do a lot of work and a refinish job. I'll post pictures when available.

[Tom C]

Oh...what we sacrifice for our mandos. Good choice.