Blushing and touchup after neck steaming/repair
Posted: Tue Jan 07, 2025 6:42 am
Hello, I am dipping my toe into the waters of guitar repair, after a fairly long break from building (and posting here).
I have a cheap plywood topped nylon string guitar which I rescued from the in-laws in the Czech Republic. It had a very high action, probably as a result of being strung with steel. I removed the neck to transport it, which was surprisingly easy as the heel was beginning to separate. The neck came off cleanly with just a spatula and a wiggle or two, leaving the more firmly attached heel in place. Once I was back home with access to my tools I steamed the heel out, and glued it back to the neck.
The alignment between neck and heel is very good, but not perfect, so I can feel a very minor step in the joint at the treble side. I hope to lose this by applying some drop fills and sanding lightly. I also have what I think is blushing on the side of the bass heel. I think the guitar is finished in nitro.
What are the best approaches, and order of operations to tackle these issues?
-Is a nitro drop fill better than CA, given that time isn't really an issue?
-Should I address the blushing before or after drop fills, and what is the easiest way to remove the blush? I can spray a light coat of lacquer and/or thinners on the effected area with an air brush.
-I still need to trim the heel where it contacts the body, and then shim and refit the neck to correct the angle. I assume I should complete all this work before doing any finish repair. Or should I drop fill first so it can be drying and shrinking while I do the other work?
I have a cheap plywood topped nylon string guitar which I rescued from the in-laws in the Czech Republic. It had a very high action, probably as a result of being strung with steel. I removed the neck to transport it, which was surprisingly easy as the heel was beginning to separate. The neck came off cleanly with just a spatula and a wiggle or two, leaving the more firmly attached heel in place. Once I was back home with access to my tools I steamed the heel out, and glued it back to the neck.
The alignment between neck and heel is very good, but not perfect, so I can feel a very minor step in the joint at the treble side. I hope to lose this by applying some drop fills and sanding lightly. I also have what I think is blushing on the side of the bass heel. I think the guitar is finished in nitro.
What are the best approaches, and order of operations to tackle these issues?
-Is a nitro drop fill better than CA, given that time isn't really an issue?
-Should I address the blushing before or after drop fills, and what is the easiest way to remove the blush? I can spray a light coat of lacquer and/or thinners on the effected area with an air brush.
-I still need to trim the heel where it contacts the body, and then shim and refit the neck to correct the angle. I assume I should complete all this work before doing any finish repair. Or should I drop fill first so it can be drying and shrinking while I do the other work?