how to prevent orange peel on clear

im about to paint the second tele body i cut out of alder, sealed it with shellac & gave a coat of primer, gonna do another sand & maybe fix some bumps with some filler then reprime & was wondering, after i put the base coat & clear anyone know what you can do to prevent orange peel from happning? im using catalyzed urethane clear so i can sand & buff the next day...i know one of the reasons it happens is cause the paint is drying before it hits the surface....you think if i add maybe a teaspoon of thinner it will help?

You might want to add thinner and retarder. A good starting ratio is 75:25 (coating / thinner + retarder) The thinner / retarder ratio. Check the instructions for the retarder you use to see what the recommended amount is.

Having said all that, you might still get some orange peel during the first couple of coats. But those usually get cleaned up by later coats. Just make sure you shoot the coats wet enough.

See Colt's thread.
http://www.tdpri.com/forum/finely-finished/279878-how-i-approach-nitrocellulose-lacquer-finish.html

It contains a lot of good info.

Robert

The secret to not getting orange peel is to spray an amount that is almost enough to cause runs and sags ... but doesn't. That's also the secret to spraying any paint.

If you're using catalysed polyurethane it shouldn't be curing in the air on the way to the guitar.

i have the same trouble :wink:,i have always orange peel on top and back but my sides are really clean ?
miss product i think but i am scare of runs in fact i have to resand all my metallics cause i have sand the varnish before it was dry (when you want to arrange something you must wait now i know !)
i use 2 k urethane brand u pol with a gravity gun nozzle 1 mm
at 2.5 bar
in 3 wet pass and i use less or more 250 ml for the 3
the first i just wet the body
the 2 nd i put more
and the 3 rd i try to tend but each time i have orange peel and the last time i have runs :cry:
then now i try to not have them cause i know i must sand but runs are dangerous
i trust finish without sanding but at this time it is not what i am doing :roll:
i have change my way of doing i have try to paint top and back with the body flat but same result always orange peel
http://i49.servimg.com/u/f49/15/99/09/81/imgp0317.jpg
http://i49.servimg.com/u/f49/15/99/09/81/imgp0318.jpg
http://i49.servimg.com/u/f49/15/99/09/81/imgp0319.jpg
http://i49.servimg.com/u/f49/15/99/09/81/imgp0320.jpg

far is beautiful but i have all this orange peel that bother me
http://i49.servimg.com/u/f49/15/99/09/81/imgp0322.jpg
the guys who sell me the varnish tell me maybe my nozzle is too thin
or must i try to thin but with thinner i scare run
now the metallics is protect i will try to inscrease my technique on the next coat to have something more like Colt result but i prefer miss with orange peel that i can sand contrary to run who need really aggressive sanding :oops:
do you have a answer where i don't do right ?
last precision on the body is the first 3 pass of clearcoat just after the metallics and on the neck it is the 2 nd after a little sanding
and when i make my spaying the first was splendid ,the second was a little more ,then and on the third i don't put too much varnish to avoid run and i as i see it tend really well,but a neck is something easyer than a body to do

and i forget thanks Colt for your thread i have learn lot of things

You have to keep a wet edge when spraying too.
Your sides might look nice if you are always spraying them last because the overspray is going onto the top and back and giving it a rough look.
If you spray fast enough you can get an even wet coat over the whole body at one time and it will all dry with the same texture.

I try to minimize it but I really don't worry about it. I just make sure I put on enough clear so that I can sand back the clear enough to get rid of the orange peel without sanding into the color coat. 2 aerosol cans of clear is usually enough.

Orange peel is OK, almost impossible to avoid. This is why you wet sand and then buff the body after spraying your clearcoat. Orange peel gone.

I do not recommend using retarder as it can do some bad things to the curing process if you use too much.

thank for advise
how i proceed
first i do the sides with the body flat i turn over the body
and after i do the back still flat and after i do the top
when i do the side ,i cover also the contour cause there is always miss of varnish at this part cause varnish tend naturally on curve (and really less in carve)
but to made a really nice spraying on top and back need to put more product and then the risk of run is enormous (before i suspended it for drying and it is not the same way that i spay then now i avoid i let in the same position for an hour or 2 before put in the room for drying (it is a little house in wood for parking a car for exemple ,cause the 2 k smell hard and degaze for ten hours in fact and i can let in the garage of the house cause it go in the house and it is very naughty moreover my mother is allergisc at all kind of varnish )
i will try to experiment the distance of spraying for top and back cause i spray at 20 or 25 cm for all maybe on top and back need to be more near to have the wet result more over if it tend better maybe less varnish needed ?

on the neck for exemple i am happy with upper side of the head stock i have charge it a little but it tend really good on the opposite side i have some orange peel cause i was afraid to charge it cause of the runs (i have notice that a surface even charged more than needded who is flat and to the up don't run easily contrary at the same surface to the down )
the side too are risky cause if you charge them the run arrive fast
the better way i find at this time to have something the moer regulare on top and back is fog but i have always orange peel with that ,i didnt arrive to put a complete coat like you said :?:

Orange peel is OK, almost impossible to avoid. This is why you wet sand and then buff the body after spraying your clearcoat. Orange peel gone.

+1. What I do is sand the clear with 320 to remove the orange peel and then give it a final coat that is mostly thinner with some blush eraser and it looks like glass. Dont even have to wet sand and polish. Adding Smoothie also works but it's alot more expensive.