Re: Lacquer for first mandolin?
Do you really have your heart set on lacquer? It is very toxic, and success includes a steep learning curve. Do you have a ventilated spray booth set up to go with that spray gun you plan on buying? And a proper buffing wheel set up? Having tried working with lacquer with only moderate success after much struggke, I came to the conclusion that lacquer should be left to the professionals with the room to set up a proper shop to handle it. That said, acceptable results can be had with rattle cans from Stew Mac or Guitar ReRanch. You have to follow the recommended finishing schedule for best results. That is time consuming and a lot of work hand rubbing if you don’t have a power wheel. And of course you will get a very shiny finish unless you buy matte or satin. They are actually the same as the gloss but with flatting agents added. And yes, the lacquer marketed for musical instruments is superior for that purpose to anything you will find at Home Depot or Lowe’s. All lacquers are not the same.
You say you don’t want anything too shiny? Would you be willing to try a non lacquer finish? Here are some options to consider. Good old shellac is a very nice and easy finish for a beginner. You can spray it on, or even brush it. You don’t have to learn French polishing although that gives you a very nice finish. But it’s not necessary to achieve good results if you make the cut just right, thin enough for irregularities to go away but thick enough to prevent runs. You can use a Preval sprayer for a custom cut. And if it doesn’t turn out the way you want you can easily sand it out and try again. Also, you could try a wiping varnish like Danish Oil or similar. You can even make your own wiping varnish by mixing equal parts of you choice of oil based varnish, you choice of boiled linseed or 100 percent tung oil, and mineral spirits. It works great! Easy wipe on application and cures hard. I achieved outstanding results on a project with multiple coats of homemade wiping varnish with two clear coats of Tru Oil. Tru Oil, available at spirting goods stores (gunstock finish), is great stuff. Practically goof proof. Some of our members have reported great success with a couple of coats of shellac as a sealer, with multiple coats of Tru Oil over that. I love the look of Tru Oil. Shiny but muted, classy looking, like a fine violin when done right. Another product, a bit newer, that some of our members love is called Royal Lac. It is an easy to apply shellac based finish with other resins added for hardness. The Achilles Heel of shellac is that it is soft, so the Royal Lac tries to address that.
And, my two cents worth before someone chimes in and says this finish or that “kills tone”, it is my opinion that, as far as tone is concerned, it really doesn’t matter what you use to finish your instrument as long as it’s thin. If you keep it thin enough, it just doesn’t add enough mass to be significant to the tone. And, before anyone says that you need a finish that allows your instrument to “breathe”, that’s nonsense. Even if your instrument did breathe, which it doesn’t, it would be able to do so just fine through the unfinished interior.
I hope this all helps. Good luck.
Don
2016 Weber Custom Bitterroot F
2011 Weber Bitterroot A
1974 Martin Style A
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