To fill or not to fill

[Ron Daves]

I'm finishing a Uke and will soon be ready to brush on a lacquer finish. the top is Western Red Cedar and the rest of the body is Myrtle. The neck is fir.
My question has to do with whether or not I should fill before I put any finish on.
I have some Stewmac Micro Bead Rosewood and Natural filler left over from other projects.

So, here are my questions.
1.) Should I fill the Western Red Cedar Sound Board with the Natural Micro Bead?
2.) Is it necessary to fill the Myrtle?
........If yes, would it be a mistake to use the Rosewood Micro Bead filler?
3.) I have pumice, although I've never used it.
........Will Pumice work with a lacquer finish?
4.) Should I read up on and use pumice on the whole instrument?

[Chuck Raudonis]

Ron,

Here is the page of my build blog that talks about how I grain filled my bass with shellac. There is also a good link to an in depth article that I used as a basis for my decision to go this way.

http://thewaywardluthier.wordpress.com/ ... lexandria/

Here is a link to see the finished product:

http://thewaywardluthier.wordpress.com/ ... churchill/

I think it worked very well and the full depth of the grain is visible. The finish looks really deep.

Let me know if you have any questions.

[Chuck Tweedy]

??
You don't need to fill any of those woods.
Myrtle is diffuse porous, and the softwoods do not need fill.

[Brad Heinzen]

I agree that these woods should fill just fine during the finishing process. My only other comment on grain filling in general is to fill completely, or don't fill at all. Half-filled can look really crappy. If you choose not to fill an open-pored wood such as walnut, be careful not to go too heavy on the finish.