Fuschia SparkleCaster build Thread, inspired by Buckocaster

[Spunky99]

Originally Posted by Buckocaster51

It's BLUE!

It's BLUE!

Looks like the other one is FUCHSIA!

FYI...I found out with the RED ones that if you happen to sand through the clear and into the flake and get a little SILVER showing through...you can do a LITTLE touchup with an appropriately colored SHARPIE. Last resort option though. It is better to take is slowly like you are and NOT sand through.

Looking good!

In a couple of hours, I'll have sky blue sparkles to show.

My technique at this point is to spray lacquer on the body and use the bottle of sparkles flip up tip. Aim and shoot. Add some more lacquer and aim and shoot. It gets thick fast and I give it a tint amount of lacquer to hold it in place. It is very unlike the effect you get when you put the sparkles in the spray gun and shoot it on. It is more like the "clump" method...LOL
3D-3D-3D-3D

Here is a teaser

[Spunky99]

Oh my God......

These sparkles are everywhere.....I found some on the FuschiaCaster under the lacquer I just sprayed. I'll sand through them so no worries but I have to somehow isolate them from each other. I used my compressor and a high pressure nozzle to blow out the garage.

This technique is painful. The flake comes out like 40 grit sandpaper and takes 50 to 60 coats to cover and it takes forever. The result is pure beauty.
I call this unobtanium as it is impossible to find.

Here is the back with a nice complete covering of sparkles.

[Buckocaster51]

Originally Posted by Spunky99

Oh my God......

These sparkles are everywhere...

Have a good story ready for work on Monday.

[Spunky99]

I looked at the fuschiacaster in the late afternoon sun and found about 15 blue flakes in the last clear coats.
I used a dental pick and removed them as I'd already sanded the surface with 600 grit on a rubber sanding block and didn't get down to them.
I'll get the holes filled in eventually.

I sprayed a couple of coats on the Skybluecasted to hold the glitter in place and took some close up to show what a daunting task it is to cover this rough surface. This is not an easy task but the end result is like looking into heaven.

[Spunky99]

[Colt W. Knight]

You know what would be awesome ??? Sparkle fret markers. I bet it would be pretty tough to get the old ones out and put sparkles in there, but it would look great with those matching sparkle headstocks and bodies.

[Spunky99]

Originally Posted by Colt W. Knight

You know what would be awesome ??? Sparkle fret markers. I bet it would be pretty tough to get the old ones out and put sparkles in there, but it would look great with those matching sparkle headstocks and bodies.

A drill will take the old markers out and no big deal to fill in with sparkles.
I'm wondering if they would blind ya while on stage tho.

I'll keep this idea in mind for a couple of days and see what develops.
Thanks for the idea.

[Colt W. Knight]

Blind you with "Awesomeness!!!!"

[lammy]

Love this thread. Love those guitars. Keep it up!

[Spunky99]

SCORE

I went over to the Sherwin Williams store today.
They serve the professional and contractor side of the business but it is still a retail store and I have an account.
Because of California's "Green Law" signed by the Guvenator Arnold...it is damn near impossible to obtain anything
that has any amount of VOC or nasty chemicals.
There was no Dimension which is the same as the Napa Cross/Fire product that BuckoCaster is using.
No way to get the catalyzed lacquer I used before on the kitchen cabinets or just about anything else good.
I did score a gallon of....guess what?

Yes siree.....this is the real deal. It is pre thinned and ready to apply and is genuine
High Gloss nitrocellulose lacquer
The Sky_Blue_SparkleCaster is going to be finished in nitro lacquer.
The dude at the store was very surprised that they could sell the Nitro and I think someone made a big mistake and
violated state law as I know nitrocellulose has been banned in California for a lot longer than the Green Law has been around.
The dude was surprised that I could get the Deft shipped into California as it's supposedly banned from shipping and sale here.
So I scored big time. I paid my $29.77 incl tax and took it out of the store as fast as I could before the sales dude decided to check on the legality of selling this.
It's also a High Build version. Supposedly 3 mil per application so it will build a lot faster than the Deft which is probably less than 1 mil per application.

[Spunky99]

I am so close I can taste victory.
I used the Dewalt random orbital sander today with 320 grit paper to smooth down the exaggerated orange peal finish.
After 3 coats I hit it again with the Dewalt.
Here she is after 2 more coats of Deft.
If you look close you can see the pock marks where I had to dig out the sky blue flakes that got on her. I decided to wait on the blue one until I was done spraying the fuschia Tele.

The sparkles are really vivid and very alive in the body like they were in the headstock now.


Here's how smooth it is and the pock marks and everything....


Just another day and I might be done with the body....If'n ya can digg!

[Buckocaster51]

Neat.

One good thing about getting to that point...you aren't spreading any more stripper dust around.

If you know what I mean

[Spunky99]

Originally Posted by Buckocaster51

Neat.

One good thing about getting to that point...you aren't spreading any more stripper dust around.

If you know what I mean

The problem is the driveway in the background in those pictures is below street level and covered in fuschia and blue sparkles.......
I am closing the garage door to spray and opening to exit fast and hoping the blue doesn't get stirred up high enough to get on the fresh lacquer.

We have a natural air conditioner here. It's called a sea breeze and we get it most every day from 11:00 AM to 7:00PM. This is what stirs up the flakes.

Wearing my respirator to spray......

[Spunky99]

hI hit her with the Dewalt orbital sander again and sprayed another coat.
She is definately looking flatter. In chinese this is called Xiao long bao but that usually refers to a woman...LOL....
pronounced shao long bow.

[cmatthes]

Beautiful work! Love that blue...

After a bit of a "project" here over the last few days, there's also a good bit of that pesky glitter ("Stripper Dust"!!) at my place too.

As far as sparkle fret markers, getting the dots out is a fairly easy process. I'd recommend snagging a small scrap / sheet of sparkle drum material and cutting it up for the dots.

[Spunky99]

It was a long day today.

I got 9 coats sprayed and sanded with the random orbital sander 3 times.
Other than a few pockmarks, the surface is flat now. The combination of a flat surface and the gloss really makes the sparkles shine.
Glitter, glittery, glitz

The beach workshop....
Sanding


Spraying


Shiny

[Buckocaster51]

Shazaaam!

[Spunky99]

OK,

So the next trick is to drop fill the pock marks and the low spots.
After the lacquer is dry, I can spray on a few more coats and do a final sand before the 2 final gloss coats.

Here is the tool, a chopstick. I buy these by the 100 pair pack as I use chopsticks 98% of the time to eat (lost a bet in 1974). They work really good for moving wires in a tube amp to see if the hum goes away or if there is an open....Keeps the high voltage at bay....You dip the stick into the lacquer in the can and then quickly to the low spot and let her drip off.

Using some of the Deft from a quart can and if you look really close, you can see the drops of Deft on the body in the reflection on the left bout
.

[Spunky99]

Sanded her down today with the random orbital sander and layed down 2 thin coats. The drop fills worked perfect.

The top and bottom are smooth as silk...not shiny yet but then that's what buffing is for. Flawless....

[lammy]

This thread is unbelievable. Love it love it. THose 2 are works of art!

[Spunky99]

Originally Posted by lammy

This thread is unbelievable. Love it love it. THose 2 are works of art!

Well....works of art take time and lacquer is very slow drying when it as thick as this is to build up above the flake.
The tuner hardware pressed into the top of the headstock as the lacquer was still soft. It left a round circle in the lacquer where the washer was. I let it sit for 3 weeks and sanded it down smooth and put on another coat of lacquer. Worked out well.



I was able to contain the body in the tub and covered it. So far the blue is contained...well mostly
So now the top has sparkle.

[Buckocaster51]

Like I said before...

that is BLUE!

Tedious, isn't it!?



But worth it I think.

[axmaker]

lookin' good!

[Colt W. Knight]

Sparkly Goodness I would say.