DarkTides Posted December 12, 2023 Share Posted December 12, 2023 Hello all, Came across and picked up left handed 1982 Les Paul Custom Black Beauty. Great condition overall, but it does have some aesthetic wear and tear from general use. Attempted some good old elbow grease with Gibson vintage restoration polish, with no luck getting some of deeper finish scratches out. I was hoping to see if I could go one level deeper with a orbital buffer or some type of motorized buffing tool. Any recommendations? I have experience waxing vehicles and such and guitars, but largely on poly finish. Thanks! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pinch Posted December 12, 2023 Share Posted December 12, 2023 My rule of thumb is, don't. If you have to, have a good luthier do it. But remember: you can always get it done... some other time. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Eracer_Team Posted December 12, 2023 Share Posted December 12, 2023 Nitro will blend into itself buffing the daylight’s out of it will remove the nitro if you’re into DYI , get some nitro from Stewmac and spray a new coat your results may vary Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DarkTides Posted December 12, 2023 Author Share Posted December 12, 2023 Yes, I think I will just let things be and accept the battle scars. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
havasasabata Posted December 23, 2023 Share Posted December 23, 2023 (edited) On 12/12/2023 at 11:07 PM, DarkTides said: Hello all, Came across and picked up left handed 1982 Les Paul Custom Black Beauty. Great condition overall, but it does have some aesthetic wear and tear from general use. Attempted some good old elbow grease with Gibson vintage restoration polish, with no luck getting some of deeper finish scratches out. I was hoping to see if I could go one level deeper with a orbital buffer or some type of motorized buffing tool. Any recommendations? I have experience waxing vehicles and such and guitars, but largely on poly finish. I recommend starting with a soft buffing pad to minimize the risk of damage. Remember to be careful when handling vintage guitars to preserve their value and unique character. In general, it’s good that there are many different tools nowadays for different subjects, etc. I found a paraphrasing tool for myself, I use https://edubirdie.com/paraphrasing-tool for this. It actually makes life a lot easier. I don’t know how people lived before. It must have been a bit difficult. Thanks! Use professional polishing compounds designed for musical instruments to achieve optimal results. Edited December 23, 2023 by havasasabata Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
10PoundLester Posted December 23, 2023 Share Posted December 23, 2023 On 12/12/2023 at 4:07 PM, DarkTides said: Yes, I think I will just let things be and accept the battle scars. A wise decision IMO. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sgt. Pepper Posted December 23, 2023 Share Posted December 23, 2023 So you have a relic'ed guitar that was relic'ed the real way and you want it back to looking pristine. Hear that Gibson - Stop The Relic'ing. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dub-T-123 Posted December 23, 2023 Share Posted December 23, 2023 2 minutes ago, Sgt. Pepper said: So you have a relic'ed guitar that was relic'ed the real way and you want it back to looking pristine. Hear that Gibson - Stop The Relic'ing. I’m sure they’ve heard quite a bit of that but the sound of $10K per Les Paul must have stolen their attention Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sgt. Pepper Posted December 23, 2023 Share Posted December 23, 2023 1 minute ago, Dub-T-123 said: I’m sure they’ve heard quite a bit of that but the sound of $10K per Les Paul must have stolen their attention A 10k guitar better sound not just good, but otherworldly. Relic'ed or not, Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dub-T-123 Posted December 23, 2023 Share Posted December 23, 2023 My R9 is pretty damn excellent in every way but I don’t like relics and try to keep my stuff in good shape. I’m not a touring superstar or anything so my stuff will never look like a “relic” Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sgt. Pepper Posted December 23, 2023 Share Posted December 23, 2023 Just now, Dub-T-123 said: My R9 is pretty damn excellent in every way but I don’t like relics and try to keep my stuff in good shape. I’m not a touring superstar or anything so my stuff will never look like a “relic” I got a rope and a car if you ever change your mind. A mile dragged behind a car and then all the cool kids want it. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dub-T-123 Posted December 23, 2023 Share Posted December 23, 2023 lol that’s not how it works you gotta thwap it with keys and pop it in the freezer and whatnot 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pinch Posted December 23, 2023 Share Posted December 23, 2023 48 minutes ago, 10PoundLester said: A wise decision IMO. Listen to this man. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dub-T-123 Posted December 23, 2023 Share Posted December 23, 2023 1 hour ago, havasasabata said: Use professional polishing compounds designed for musical instruments to achieve optimal results. This is such a strange use of AI 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PrairieDog Posted December 23, 2023 Share Posted December 23, 2023 I have a little different question on this timely topic. I just picked up a used, super cheapo (house brand) acoustic guitar on a lark (Okay, it was green, it’s the holidays, and looks festive propped up against the tree). Still, after the 89 bucks worth of fun is expended, since it plays surprisingly okay, we are thinking about passing it on to our niece. At 14, “shiny new” is more important than “authentic” relic-ing (give her a few years). It has a couple of 1 inch deeper scratches in the finish, but not into the wood. So in this case a good buffing won’t hurt anything. Any recommendations what to try to even them out? I’m sure it has a poly finish. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sgt. Pepper Posted December 23, 2023 Share Posted December 23, 2023 (edited) 1 hour ago, Dub-T-123 said: lol that’s not how it works you gotta thwap it with keys and pop it in the freezer and whatnot I know I watched the video of Tom showing us his trusty railroad spike. My go to is I grab a handful of pennies and throw it at the guitar at 10 paces. And sometimes I just loan a guitar to this guy and he pretends its Superman. Edited December 23, 2023 by Sgt. Pepper Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dub-T-123 Posted December 23, 2023 Share Posted December 23, 2023 1 hour ago, PrairieDog said: I have a little different question on this timely topic. I just picked up a used, super cheapo (house brand) acoustic guitar on a lark (Okay, it was green, it’s the holidays, and looks festive propped up against the tree). Still, after the 89 bucks worth of fun is expended, since it plays surprisingly okay, we are thinking about passing it on to our niece. At 14, “shiny new” is more important than “authentic” relic-ing (give her a few years). It has a couple of 1 inch deeper scratches in the finish, but not into the wood. So in this case a good buffing won’t hurt anything. Any recommendations what to try to even them out? I’m sure it has a poly finish. Either I’m reading this incorrectly or you have a wildly incorrect understanding of what an inch is 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PrairieDog Posted December 23, 2023 Share Posted December 23, 2023 19 minutes ago, Dub-T-123 said: Either I’m reading this incorrectly or you have a wildly incorrect understanding of what an inch is Inch long, I thought by saying it didn’t go into the wood it was implied I meant in length. I was Just saying they aren’t merely surface marks. You can feel the edges when you run your fingernail over them. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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