TIP: Getting A Highly Polished, Wet-Looking Clear Coat

[railhead]

One of the biggest struggles I've had in painting shells is getting a clear coat I'm happy with. Pretty much every non-HT painted shell has all kinds of imperfections (trash, as car painters call it) causing bumps and blemishes in the clear coat -- even the new version of the Fuzz Factory I just bought is covered in crapped-out clear coat.

So, I've spent the last several months coming up with a way to get a decent clear coat without breaking the bank, and I've finalized my process -- so I thought I'd share. First off, take a look at this close-up. Note the reflection of the foot switch as well as the reflection of the fabric backdrop along the sides of the pedal.



To get this highly polished and smooth look (no blemishes), I do the following:

1. Paint the shell the way i want it, sanding as usual between paint coats, etc., etc. This provides as smooth a surface as possible for the clear.

2. I've started using polycrylic, applied with a foam brush, and I put on a cover layer -- not too thick -- and bake it at 150° for 30 minutes.

3. I let the shell cool and cure for at least 12 hours, then I sand and smooth with 2000 grit paper, making sure to rinse off all the particles afterward.

4. I repeat steps 2 and 3 four to eight times, until I'm able to get a totally flat surface all across the shell.

5. I then use high grade car buff compound to smooth out the final sanding I did, and that leaves me with an almost crystal clear, mirror-like finish.

6. The final step is something I haven't tried until recently, even though I always have a bottle in my garage: NuFinish car polish. An application of this brings the clear into a crazy high-gloss, and it just looks awesome.


Anyway, I just thought I'd share now that I have something that really works well for me.

[suprleed]

I just finished my first build and am ready to paint and finish my enclosure.  How critical is it that I bake my enclosure after a color or clear coat?  Does this provide some sort of significant benefit for the finish or does it just speed up the process.  I've read in several places that builders will bake their pedals after painting them.  I don't have a toaster oven and was just planning on letting my pedal air dry for several days.  Thx.

[railhead]

It speeds things up, as well as works to smooth out the finish. You can get a cheap toaster over for $18 at Wal-mart -- just make sure you get something that allows you to control temperature by degrees and not just lo-med-hi.

[modsquad]

Okay don't take this the wrong way but...isn't the pedal going to get banged up anyway with use.   I always looked at clearcoat as nothing more than eye candy and protection for the underlying paint.

[railhead]

Well, I've been playing for over 20 years, and good portion of that time was spent with pedals and floor processors, gigging all over the State in all manner of venues, and no, none of my gear ever got/gets "banged-up."

I wouldn't buy a car with a screwed-up clear coat, and I wouldn't expect someone to buy a pedal from me with a screwed-up clear coat, either.

To each his own.

[m-theory]

I've had pretty good luck with a 2 part epoxy clear that's uber thick and flows to an absolutely flat, glass-like finish.  You do have to keep it covered for several hours, however, because the clear stays open for so long and it'll grab anything that's floating around over period of time.  

Traditional 2-part automotive clear would work well, also, because it too, would flow and stay open long enough to lay down completely smooth when poured out.  Spendy stuff, though.

That said, I have to agree with modsquad.  At the end of the day, regardless of how much money or time you spend in getting the "perfect" finish, it's one bump again from a chip.  Even powdercoating, which is, by far, the most impact resistant, hard-surface finish that I'm aware of, will chip.  I always try to achieve "perfection" with my finishes, and I've been known to strip and re-finish, if something goofy happens along the way.  I don't, however, spend any time buffing dirt out of the clear.  It's part of my signature, and besides, unless you've got your face right up to the pedal, you don't see it anyway!  ;-)





"none of my gear ever got/gets "banged-up."

That's pretty stunning.  I don't think I've ever run across a single person, ever, who can claim that not a single piece of their gear has ever sustained any nicks, abrasions, or scratches while in the midst of heavy gigging, let alone claim that over a period of 2 decades! 

[railhead]

Didn't say that I never get nicks -- I said my gear doesn't get banged-up. We obviously have different ideas as to what banged-up means.

Regardless, rather than argue about the merits of wanting a decent clear coat and the definition of banged-up, maybe we should just let the topic stand as was intended?

[jrem]

looks nice, but I would hate to step on it!

I don't think I have any gear that ISN'T banged up in one way or another.  But I do try to keep my new pedals free from scratches prior to handing over the keys.  No one wants to buy something that is new but looks used.

Although my brother thinks the uglier the better.

[m-theory]

"Didn't say that I never get nicks -- I said my gear doesn't get banged-up. We obviously have different ideas as to what banged-up means."

In my mind, "banged up," means nicks/scratches/abrasions that come from normal, day-to-day rigors of the road.  I don't consider it to mean being dragged behind the bus from gig to gig.



"Regardless, rather than argue about the merits of wanting a decent clear coat and the definition of banged-up, maybe we should just let the topic stand as was intended?"

I think you were the one that got off topic.  You offered some great tips, and it seems to be working well for you.  It just happens that two of us find it a bit much, considering how reality tends to fall upon these beloved pedal creatures of ours. 

I can definitely see your point, particularly for retail sales, but personally, if I were mass producing and selling pedals, I'd be powder coating, not wet sanding one-part clear.  For my own personal consumption and even for a handful of friends that buy stuff from me on occassion, I just don't care whether everything is spot perfect, as long as it works when I want it to.

No offense intended here....just expressing an opinion. 

[StickMan]

I spent 3 weeks this summer spraying 5 cans of nitrocellulose lacquer on a guitar body, with sanding between coats.  My feeling is that it's going to get dinged and scratched and beat up over the next 30 years, but that's just good, honest wear and tear.  It came out of my workshop as near perfect as I could get it, and each nick that it acquires as time goes on is "experience".

That being said, I can comment on getting a mirror finish.  It's easier without wood grain to fill.  I'd start by laying down 3 or 4 coats without any sanding, because the worst thing that can happen is a touchdown into the underlying paint when sanding.  Secondly, I'd do only a little bit of sanding with a 800 grit paper after the first few coats, then move to pumice as soon as possible.

The problem with sandpaper is that it tends to trap debris under the paper and the paper itself is relatively hard.  The result is that you will get swirls that are deeper than grit you are using will polish; which means that they are there forever unless you are going to spray another coat.  The pumice is used with a wadded up rag, so the actual pressure and heat build-up are less.  I haven't tried this on an enclosure yet, but my guess is that you'll get a quicker, better result with pumice.

I've heard that the 3M automotive polish is good, but my bet is that Rottenstone is better.  Like pumice, it's a powder, but you rub it in with water with bare fingers.  It's scary how smooth a finish you can get with it.

Anyways, the 1200-4000 grit sandpaper is no easier or cheaper to get than a lifetime supply of pumice and rottenstone.  I'd bet you can get a huge jug each of 2F and 4F pumice, and a similiar size pot of rottenstone for less than $40.00.  Pumice and rottenstone are old-fashion french polishing supplies, and you can get them from fine woodworking and luthier supply stores.

[StickMan]

And one other thing...

Once you've put a decal on the box, then you can't bake it anymore.  No matter how much clearcoat you put on top of the decal.

[m-theory]

Nitrocellulose is a particularly difficult finish to work with, because it's so easy to damage, either with too much heat from aggressive buffing, excessive buffing, minor scrapes and dings, or even fairly mild solvents.  It's still THE most gorgeous guitar finish for natural wood grain guitars, by far, but it's without question the least durable. 

Luckily, we don't have to rely upon that type of material to finish pedals with!  I sometimes wish I were still in the automotive refinish products business, because I had cheap access to any color I could dream up, and easy access to some very nice down-draft bake booths that would've been truly awesome to apply some wicked, multi-staged colors and insanely durable clearcoats in! 

[moro]

railhead, that looks great. And it might be something that I can do, since it doesn't require spraying.

Does it smell nasty when you bake the enclosure? Is this something you'd want to do outside?

[railhead]

And one other thing...

Once you've put a decal on the box, then you can't bake it anymore.  No matter how much clearcoat you put on top of the decal.

I've never had any issues with waterslides and polycrylic.

[railhead]

railhead, that looks great. And it might be something that I can do, since it doesn't require spraying.

Does it smell nasty when you bake the enclosure? Is this something you'd want to do outside?

Yes, you should bake outside, and in something you'll never use for food.

[StickMan]

Nitrocellulose is a particularly difficult finish to work with, because it's so easy to damage, either with too much heat from aggressive buffing, excessive buffing, minor scrapes and dings, or even fairly mild solvents.  It's still THE most gorgeous guitar finish for natural wood grain guitars, by far, but it's without question the least durable. 

Luckily, we don't have to rely upon that type of material to finish pedals with!  I sometimes wish I were still in the automotive refinish products business, because I had cheap access to any color I could dream up, and easy access to some very nice down-draft bake booths that would've been truly awesome to apply some wicked, multi-staged colors and insanely durable clearcoats in! 

I wasn't suggesting that anyone use nitro to finish anything other than a guitar.  That being said, my experience getting a gloss finish with it may be somewhat different than what you'd get with a poly finish on an enclosure.

When  I started playing with decals, I did a test and baked one that had a couple of coats of clearcoat over the decal.  It still melted and shriveled.

[railhead]

If I bake too hot or too long, waterslides will crap out, but 30 minutes at 150° keeps them fine on the 15 or so shells I've used them on.

[modsquad]

To each his own...I was just implying that for a pedal that's going to get stomped on banged around and nicked I would hate to have the awesome finish that you have perfected because I wouldn't want to use the pedal.   

Having a custom car finish with 4 coats of clear, I can tell you that the key to that type of finish is keeping crap out of the clear when applying, lightly buffing/sanding to get it uniform and reapplying again to fill in imperfections.   Too much patience for me on stompboxes but go for it if you have the patience.

[m-theory]

I have a question for railhead with regard to the pedal photo that he posted...

What's up with the color coat on that pedal?  I think I see a lot of wrinkling/lifting going on there, or are my eyes playing tricks? 

[railhead]

I have a question for railhead with regard to the pedal photo that he posted...

What's up with the color coat on that pedal?  I think I see a lot of wrinkling/lifting going on there, or are my eyes playing tricks? 

Here's the info (from the pictures thread): http://www.diystompboxes.com/smfforum/index.php?topic=36392.msg495595#msg495595