Problem with CA glue on neck

[nebafe9288]

Hello,

I have this guitar that I bought second hand where the skunk stripe popped out and the finish around it was missing (from 2nd to 8th fret approximately). The finish of the neck is poly.
So I put some CA glue on it, sanded it to 1500-grit and then buffed it with rotary pads.
Now I feel that the skunk stripe is flush with the body and that it stopped moving but the problem is that in order to smooth the edges I over sanded it on the sides (or so it seems).
For some reason no matter how layers of the CA glue I apply it's turns out to be foggy/dull OR if I don't sand it enough - not flush with the body.

I must say that the back of the neck feels really smooth now and I can't really feel that it was there but it's still bothers me.
Is there is some way to fix it or it's over?

Thanks.

 

[Danb541]

I would try some tru-oil or tint some rub on poly

 

[nebafe9288]

I would try some tru-oil or tint some rub on poly

I thought about it but the problem is that I'm afraid to make it worse.
Would like to hear if someone had experience with similar problem.

 

[Telenator]

Take off your glasses and just enjoy playing it.

It looks like you sanded down through the tinted poly they used on the neck. CA glue is not tinted to match.

 

[Danb541]

I thought about it but the problem is that I'm afraid to make it worse.
Would like to hear if someone had experience with similar problem.

Doubt you'll make it worse. You can always sand it off.
I've finished a lot of raw necks with this from woodcraft, it's excellent. Lots of light coats until you get the color you're after.

Touch-Up Solutions - Dye Toner - Solvent Based - Golden Oak - Aerosol 12 oz

Repairing those ugly scratches and gouges on your wood furniture from everyday use or moving is no longer a major chore, thanks to Touch-Up Solutions® furniture care products. Dye Toners are designed to help you blend finishes that are inconsistent from each other or just off-color. Dye Toners...

www.woodcraft.com

all of these necks are finished with it.

 

[Danb541]

These necks too

 

[dsutton24]

I thought about it but the problem is that I'm afraid to make it worse.
Would like to hear if someone had experience with similar problem.

Make it worse how?

You've sanded through the finish you'll always be able to see it. I've never been a fan of necks that have had the finish sanded off of them, but lots of people claim that it doesn't hurt anything. If that truly is the case, then that narrow strip of unfinished wood is fine. If it feels good, don't worry about it.

If your objection is that there's no protective finish there, then Tru Oil is a good solution. You'll apply a few drops to the back of the neck and rub it like crazy with a lint free cloth until it gets quite warm. Build anywhere from three to a zillion layers. Tru oil will blend with the existing finish, you won't have to sand, you might do a little rubbing with 0000 steel wool.

Tru Oil is nice, if the finish does wear, you can simply add a few more layers of finish and get on with life. It is by far my favorite finish for necks.

 

[stratisfied]

You sanded through the tinted neck finish to bare wood. The only way to correct it is to sand the neck down to bare wood and reapply a tinted finish. You can try sanding lightly (just to give the CA some "tooth") and attempt a touchup with a stain pen followed by a full neck overspray with clear lacquer or wipe-on poly. The wipe-on poly is my go-to these days for small work like necks.

 

[nebafe9288]

You sanded through the tinted neck finish to bare wood. The only way to correct it is to sand the neck down to bare wood and reapply a tinted finish. You can try sanding lightly (just to give the CA some "tooth") and attempt a touchup with a stain pen followed by a full neck overspray with clear lacquer or wipe-on poly. The wipe-on poly is my go-to these days for small work like necks.

Is it possible to tint it with many layers of tru oil like mentioned above?
Or some kind of stain is a must?

I saw some results like this or this. I think that's exactly what I need.
The question is how it will react to the CA glue.

 

[Fenderbaum]

Agree, i would sand the whole backside of the neck up to the headstock. Re-tint or apply finish of choice

 

[nebafe9288]

Ok, I decided to try to finish it with tru oil and see what will happen.
I hope that it will darken the white parts a bit.

 

[Boreas]

Is it possible to tint it with many layers of tru oil like mentioned above?
Or some kind of stain is a must?

I saw some results like this or this. I think that's exactly what I need.
The question is how it will react to the CA glue.

Welcome aboard, BTW!!

If you are trying to make that lesion disappear, you can't - other than a refinish of the back of the neck. Trying to match a tinted finish can send one to the looney bin! Even a pro would have trouble.

It isn't really that difficult to refinish the back of the neck. But it starts with sanding off everything between the heel and the headstock so that it looks uniform. Or better yet, everything on the back side, but you could any decals on the back of the headstock, if present. But if you do this, you can refinish with tinted nitro which many people prefer. Or you can use oil or tinted poly.

The issue you mention with the CA being "foggy/dull" is that you didn't go high enough on grit. You essentially need to polish it with extremely high grit, OR DON"T SAND IT AT ALL, if possible. The best way is to use really low viscosity CA to wick INTO the crack, then remove all CA from the surface so that you don't see it. This can be done with acetone or just sanding. If it's not there, it won't be foggy! But if you are trying to fill a depression with it, it will need to be polished if sanded. Same with epoxy. If possible, I like to use a single edge razor blade with a curl burnished onto the edge to make a mini-scraper. This doesn't scratch the surface as grit will, making polishing easier.

TruOil will protect the wood. It ain't gonna hide nuthin' and will still bother you.

 

[nebafe9288]

Welcome aboard, BTW!!

If you are trying to make the lesion disappear, you can't - other than a refinish of the back of the neck. Trying to match a tinted finish can send one to the looney bin! Even a pro would have trouble.

It isn't really that difficult to refinish the back of the neck. But it starts with sanding off everything between the heel and the headstock so that it looks uniform. Or better yet, everything on the back side, but you could any decals on the back of the headstock, if present. But if you do this, you can refinish with tinted nitro which many people prefer. Or you can use oil or tinted poly.

The issue you mention with the CA being "foggy/dull" is that you didn't go high enough on grit. You essentially need to polish it with extremely high grit, OR DON"T SAND IT AT ALL, if possible.

TruOil will protect the wood. It ain't gonna hide nuthin'.

I see, but I don't confident in my skills to finish the whole neck myself, so I don't want to go this route...
If I don't sand the CA at all I can feel the transition lines of where the glue was applied.
Also I imagine (like you said) that it will be hard to matching the tint.

So it seems like I have no option...
Are you sure that the tru oil will not create dye/yellowing effect like in this post?

 

[Boreas]

I see, but I don't confident in my skills to finish the whole neck myself, so I don't want to go this route...
If I don't sand the CA at all I can feel the transition lines of where the glue was applied.
Also I imagine (like you said) that it will be hard to matching the tint.

So it seems like I have no option...
Are you sure that the tru oil will not create dye effect like in this post?

No good options if you want it to "disappear". You said it is plenty smooth, but it still bothers you. That is because of the cosmetics. You can try matching the color with tinted poly and it will minimize the color difference, but a perfect match is almost impossible. It will likely still bother you.

Refinishing the back of the neck is no different than what you will be doing to blend the color - just a larger area. It could even be easier and quicker, since blending with the front is easier because of the angles of the wood. But you could always do your best to match the tint for now, and reserve the refinish for a future project. I find necks pretty easy to refinish. A good place to learn (after perhaps a little practice on scrap maple).

 

[schmee]

An alternative to Tru Oil is Minwax wipe on poly. It builds faster and readily available at the hardware store. Not sure the repair is going to totally match or not, but that neck doesn't appear heavily tinted.
Wipe on, wait overnite, sand lightly or 0000 steel wool, repeat a couple times. Final polish to blend edges.

 

[Boreas]

I see, but I don't confident in my skills to finish the whole neck myself, so I don't want to go this route...
If I don't sand the CA at all I can feel the transition lines of where the glue was applied.
Also I imagine (like you said) that it will be hard to matching the tint.

So it seems like I have no option...
Are you sure that the tru oil will not create dye effect like in this post?

No good options if you want it to "disappear". You said it is plenty smooth, but it still bothers you. That is because of the cosmetics. You can try matching the color with tinted poly and it will minimize the color difference, but a perfect match is almost impossible. And the proper tints can cost a small fortune. Stain will not work, so don't bother trying. Regardless, if you can see the discrepancy, it will likely still bother you.

Refinishing the back of the neck is no different than what you will be doing to blend the color - just a larger area. It could even be easier and quicker, since blending with the front is easier because of the angles of the wood. But you could always do your best to match the tint for now, and reserve the refinish for a future project. I find necks pretty easy to refinish with rattle-cans. It would be a good place to learn, after a little practice on scrap.

 

[Telenator]

Ok, I decided to try to finish it with tru oil and see what will happen.
I hope that it will darken the white parts a bit.

I wouldn't do that. Tru oil is just that. An oil. It will not be compatible with the poly finish, and may cause worse issues along the edge of the bare spots where the poly may begin to lift.

 

[nebafe9288]

No good options if you want it to "disappear". You said it is plenty smooth, but it still bothers you. That is because of the cosmetics. You can try matching the color with tinted poly and it will minimize the color difference, but a perfect match is almost impossible. And the proper tints can cost a small fortune. Stain will not work, so don't bother trying. Regardless, if you can see the discrepancy, it will likely still bother you.

Refinishing the back of the neck is no different than what you will be doing to blend the color - just a larger area. It could even be easier and quicker, since blending with the front is easier because of the angles of the wood. But you could always do your best to match the tint for now, and reserve the refinish for a future project. I find necks pretty easy to refinish with rattle-cans. It would be a good place to learn, after a little practice on scrap.

I see.
Do you think something like StewMac Wipe-On Poly and ColorTone Liquid Stains will work (I suppose that I need the Vintage Amber)?
Do I apply the tint and then the poly or do I need to mix them?

 

[nebafe9288]

I wouldn't do that. Tru oil is just that. An oil. It will not be compatible with the poly finish, and may cause worse issues along the edge of the bare spots where the poly may begin to lift.

That's what I'm afraid of.
Do you think that wipe on poly is better soluton?

 

[Texicaster]

Depending upon how careful you were with the CA it may have seeped into the wood too creating a barrier for ANY tint to get through or at least be even.

As mentioned above a poly coat is sealed and will not accept tints the same way bare wood does or at all.

I'd sand down the neck. CS relics have sanded necks and plenty of players do it. I have never heard anyone complain about a bare wood neck. It feels MUCH better! Does no harm to the wood or neck shape/integrity.