Help for refinishing Rudy Larna

BluesBop Harry

Hi guys,
I just acquired a used Rudy Larna oval hole. I got it from an ex student for very cheap just to help him out as I really don't need another guitar...
I've been dabbling into lutherie for the past couple of years and would like to use this instrument for practicing french polish and refretting. Maybe even add a soundport ( Thanks for the inspiration Buco!)


I'd love to hear from those of you who have done refinishes... Chemical stripping ? Sanding? Heat gun?
There's plastic binding and I don't want to risk melting that
The top appears to be solid and I don't know about the back/sides

Any help appreciated

crookedpinky

If it's a polyurethene finish then chenical stripping will have little effect, I.m not saying it will have no effect but it will be minimal so I'd recommend manual sanding. As for the soundport I would definitely say yes as it should improve the sound as Buco reports.

Buco

Hey thanks guys
Yeah it really improved the sound for me. I don't know about the audience (pretty sure it didn't make it worse) but I bought the guitar for me, not the audience.

bluetrain

I've refinished two guitars. I would recommend you to learn how to use scraper, how to sharpen it etc. I'm sure there's lot of videos in youtube. If the guitar doesn't have super thin top then it's pretty easy and much more convenient than sanding because sanding creates insane amount of dust. You can do the scraping pretty much in your living room. After you've done scraping then just carefully sand with different grades of sandpapers.

psychebilly

Don't use chemical stripper, as it will melt the binding, and the guitar will literally fall apart.

You'll have to use a heat gun, a scraper, and sandpaper to get the finish off, no matter what it is.

You also don't have alot of room for error, because the ply's are so thin, so be aware of that. They use a sealer for the first coat of finish, which turns a whitish-pink color when you've sanded down to that layer. It is tough to get out/off the wood, so again, go a little at a time. Use a sanding block so you don't make any 'dips' in the wood if you sand with your fingers.

A good french polish will take you a very long time to do, is very tedious, and gets sticky in a warm/hot environment when you're playing.

In the USA, nitrocellulose lacquer is available in rattle cans if you want to DIY. It is much easier to apply than the french polish.

I had a SelMac 'copy' hand-made for me, and we shot the nitro here where I work @ RS Guitarworks. I asked the luthier who made the guitar to shellac the inside and out. Using the shellac as a sealer was better than using standard sealer used in guitar finishing - MUCH thinner, yet does the same job. The finish on my SelMac is very thin, and is very-3D with a 150+-year-old top and flamed french walnut back-&-sides.

Just my 2¢...