Getting the neck paint stripped
Getting the neck paint stripped
Its kind of a tedious process, but its something you can do if you have patience and a little skill...
You'll want to get a bunch of brand new razor blades, along with 250, 400, and 600 grit sandpaper, and a can of high grade tung oil. Tape off the area you intend to remove the paint from. You'll want to use the razor blades to scrape away from you, in this kind of motion <<<<<<<<<< \.
You'll want to scrape through the clear coat and just about all of the paint. Once you start seeing bare wood, you can start at it with the 250 grit paper. Be careful not to scrape your fret ends on the fretboard itself. Be extra careful on the edges of the headstock. I usually use the sharp edge of the razor and carefully scrape away the paint on the edge of the headstock, with the goal of leaving the painted face of the headstock with a factory look.
Once all the paint is gone, go over the neck with the 400 grit, and finish it off with the 600. You will then want to apply tung oil to any exposed wood, using an old t shirt or fine cotton rag. Apply your first coat, let it dry for a few hours. Over the next couple of days, apply a few more thin coats but not to the point where the oil residue builds up and causes it to get sticky. Once you've applied 4-5 coats of oil, you can hit it with some light steel wool to get rid of any stickiness. The natural oils from your hand will sink into the wood over time and make the neck slick as butter.
I've done this to 4 or 5 guitars and its worked out great every time...just be patient and careful, and you'll be happy with the result.
I love the feel of the satin finish on the neck of my RG321. I'm currently looking at the MH-1000 or a Horizon NT-II but both of them have painted necks. Is there any way to get the "feel" of the satin finish without stripping the paint ?
wet-sand the neck with 1000-2000 grit sandpaper. if you find you don't like it after sanding, you can always buff it back out later.
i,m doing the same thing to my JD 600. It feels great so far, and its probably just me, but it seems to have unlocked some tone hidden undernieth the claer and sealer. i'll post pics once i,m completely done. I tried the razor on a few of the tricky areas. Id personally just use sand paper where ever you can. The razor seemed to be more work than any help, except for on the paint lines where it a must.
What's wrong with painted necks?