Official Luthiers Forum!

Hi everyone

I'm trying to intentionally check the lacquer on my tele. I finished it
following Dan Erlewine's finishing schedule in issues 38 and 39 of
American Lutherie for the relic look and just tried cracking it with the gas
he suggests. He wrote that just a small amount will start the cracks. I
started small, then dowsed, and still nada. Any other methods floating
around?

I mean, we're talking ice crystals forming here, and nothing!

Stick it in the freezer for a couple hours then bring it out into a warm room.

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tim...
http://www.mcknightguitars.com

Thanks, Tim. Will that give me hundreds of little cracks, or larger lines
and what not?

I once watched a band mate take a guitar from his car and open the case in a warm venue. It actually made sounds as it cracked before our eyes. Pretty awesome (except that I got to do the repair).
TRY THIS ON SCRAP FIRST!!!!!
put it in the freezer for a long time so that the whole thing is cold through and through. Then preheat an oven to 120? or so. Go straight from freezer to oven. Should do the trick nicely. Again, make a test piece and try that first.

James, how fresh is the lacquer?

If it's too new, it won't crack or craze no matter what you subject it to, because it is still very flexible. Give it a couple months, then hit it with the gas/freezer/etc....

Art takes patience....

edit: found a photo I'd uploaded last week while discussing this very topic. It's my beater guitar, and the 'antiquing' wasn't done intentionally; it just happens up here when you take you instruments to camps up the river, towed behind snowmobiles at -30 to -40 temps, and then taken fishing in the hot summer sun, then back to the winter camps, season after season...



Mario38828.9223263889

What lacquer did you use, how long has it been since your last coat, and
how thick is it? All of these things can have a big influence how the
lacquer checks.

And the cold checking method will certainly crack the finish, but gives a
very different pattern than how an instrument will normally craze over
time. The only way I've really to found to give a genuine look is to lightly
etch in the lines by hand with a razor, then use cold checking somewhat
conservatively to finish it out. It's certainly more time consuming, but will
yield more accurate results when doing a restoration.

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Eschew obfuscation, espouse elucidation.

I see mario already beat me to the post. One more thing to add is that
some lacquers (like Behlens stringed instrument lacquer) have a more
effective plasticizer and are intentionally less prone to cracking. I think
that McFaddens cures a little bit harder, but the "production lacquer"
made by Mohawk/Behlen has almost no plastizers and crazes much
better than others I've tried.

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Eschew obfuscation, espouse elucidation.

The one in the photo is Behlen's, which I find crazes much more readily than McFadden's. That was my main reason for switching! I could ship a McFadden-finished guitar in sub-zero temps as long as it was under 6 weeks old. No way Behlen's instrument lacquer would hold up...

Ah ha. Hmm. I sprayed it over two years ago, but just recently leveled
and buffed about three weeks ago. Thanks for the suggestions. I used
deft spray can lacquer. The things we learn.

Mario, my friends think I'm nuts because of how much I love winter
weather, but I couldn't handle your area!         & nbsp;    

I agree with Mario about Behlens lacquer. Another lacquer (Deft) to consider IF you want cracking because it has fewer plasticizers as well. Another [no no] is applying the lacquer to heavily as this will lead to cracks as well.

_________________
tim...
http://www.mcknightguitars.com