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Help, Flying V BIG finish damage


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Need some advice. My son plays in a band, his Flying V is his workhorse. Close quarters during practice, I dunno, stuff happens. We talk about taking care of the expensive instruments... Latest problem, BIG finish damage on one of the wings, see pic.

 

I'm kinda handy, we could try to repaint, dub with nitro and buff to smooth. I've done some fixes on guitars. This is a pretty big biff though.

 

Question: would an attempted fix just look like a botch job, and should we just leave it and let it take it's battle scars?

 

If fixing, how can I get Alpine White touch up paint from Gibson? What type of Nitro to seal with?

 

I know the steps: paint, apply Nitro in layers, sand, layer, ultimately buff w/heat.

post-90313-081930000 1517983012_thumb.jpg

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I've played Flying V's since 1983 and mine have some similar dings on the V parts. That's a pretty big one though. If you can do a professional job and make it look like new, you can. It'll hurt the value a little but it's just another battle scar, perhaps the first of many to come. It's not as bad as a neck break. My opinion is that if you can do the job and make it look professional, go for it. You could always take it for a second opinion too and see what the costs are there. Flying V's take some getting used to because they stick out further on both ends.

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I've played Flying V's since 1983 and mine have some similar dings on the V parts. That's a pretty big one though. If you can do a professional job and make it look like new, you can. It'll hurt the value a little but it's just another battle scar, perhaps the first of many to come. It's not as bad as a neck break. My opinion is that if you can do the job and make it look professional, go for it. You could always take it for a second opinion too and see what the costs are there. Flying V's take some getting used to because they stick out further on both ends.

 

I'm just afraid of doing a botch job and making it look worse (like those celebs with plastic surgery gone bad...)

 

Matching the paint would be difficult and also getting the right type of nitro finish. At this point I'm leaning towards doing nothing.

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Hmm, I dunno,, that's a pretty large area, which would first have to be filled then, a correct finish applied.

 

I'd hunt around for a repair guy in your neck of the woods that also does finish work.

 

 

Guitars are tools,,, tools get knocked around, we've all got the scars to prove it..

 

Sometimes you just leave em be, other times, they are bad enough where a fix is in order.

 

That one to me, would need some attention. I'd be concerned the area will widen over time.

 

If my experiences are any thing to guide you, It will be worth every penny.

 

These guys that do finish repairs have the right materials, and the right touch to do these repairs professionally. There is usually no guess work. They get right at it.

 

I don't think you're looking at much more than 50/75 USD to do something about that. (Just a wild a$$ guess..)

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I'd leave it alone. I think! It's a ding, all right...

 

What you COULD do, if you worry it'll spread, is apply very, VERY little superglue to where the cracks could spread. That you can always buff off.

 

What model V is it, btw?

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I'd leave it alone. I think! It's a ding, all right...

 

What you COULD do, if you worry it'll spread, is apply very, VERY little superglue to where the cracks could spread. That you can always buff off.

 

What model V is it, btw?

 

2017 model, which came out late 2016. Gibson wasn't making a White V for a few years before that.

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  • 4 weeks later...

Follow up. I had decided to have it professionally repaired since it was so big. I'm in the States, Seattle area. I took it to a very reputable (and expensive) shop. $80/hr and it took over an hour of shop time to fix (+ another small pockmark on back of neck which was irritating). The picture here is not clear, but if you look close in person you can tell, it's impossible to match colors completely. Overall, looks good. This won't become a habit though. If you want more info send me a message.

post-90313-096882400 1520388842_thumb.jpg

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Follow up. I had decided to have it professionally repaired since it was so big. I'm in the States, Seattle area. I took it to a very reputable (and expensive) shop. $80/hr and it took over an hour of shop time to fix (+ another small pockmark on back of neck which was irritating). The picture here is not clear, but if you look close in person you can tell, it's impossible to match colors completely. Overall, looks good. This won't become a habit though. If you want more info send me a message.

 

Looks good.

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  • 4 weeks later...

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