Hi, thanks for the instructional. I’ve got a cheap tele type guitar a friend wants me to work on, gotta take the paint off, no idea what type of paint it is, just a standard cheap electric guitar probably 1990’s era. Just wondered how long this process took you ?
Glad to help. The paint will almost certainly be a poly on your friends guitar, which means you’ll need the heat gun approach! The actual heat gun stripping doesn’t take too long, 1.5 hours maybe, but if it’s your first time it’ll take a bit longer getting used to the rhythm of it. It’ll take a while after it’s stripped to get it all sanded and smooth too.
I'm trying to strip a Strat Polyester body and it doesn't come off as easy as yours and my body cracked because of the heat ! Didn't peel like your guitar , came off by tiny bits and pieces. Gonna try sanding it tomorrow instead !
I’m curious how it went. My two cents worth: I’ve stripped a few guitars with poly. Sanding takes forever- it can be maddening. If you’re wanting to paint it then you can find tutorials for priming and painting over the existing finish. I’ve seen some come out nice. Of course some people say that the poly suppresses the tonal qualities of the wood. If you find yourself becoming pissed off, just walk away for a few rather than getting heavy handed.
@@flatsixx Well all Mex are Polyester apparently and had no choice sanding it down because it's hard as glass and damage the wood when you scrape it with a heat gun. I even saw a joint on the body that really didn't like the heat. I've decided to go all the way because I re-did the belly cut and arm rest to vintage specs and It's beautiful now , going to do an aged Olympic white and i should be done after. Bouth a brabd new Warmoth vintage body a few months ago and they are not like an old body so I needed to work on this one also ! Fun times.
@@lousekoya1803 it sounds like you’re a lot more patient than I am lol. Years ago I was stripping some no-brand import body and had the brilliant idea of using an angle grinder with a 60 grit flap wheel. It looked like a bad attempt at chainsaw art. I’ve learned to walk away when I get that itch to hurry things up. Fortunately I never experimented on anything of great value. And even though I have a relatively poor success to failure ratio, I absolutely love working on guitars. It’s addictive. I’ve got several in the works right now. I recently bought an Eric Johnson semi-hollow strat body that’s gonna be a keeper when I get finished. Also I’m going to try some amber shellac as a top coat on a cheaper body hoping to get a vintage look. Good luck to you, buddy.
@@flatsixx Yes , I was more of a butcher like you before, not beeing able to take the time to do things right for greater results but when you get older , patience is your friend ! I've ordered some Olympic white Nitro spray cans from Oxford finishing supply and should be able to spray the body soon , my sealer is all good and sanded. There is a guy who sprays Fender Custom Shop bodies on YT and he's amazing to watch . I even had a welder guy do a similar spray jig like he has so it can turn and swivel . What his other videos to see other colors and his jig. Great stuff my friend ! ua-cam.com/video/61Yw7z7VnPw/v-deo.html
@@lousekoya1803 Not all MIM Fenders have poly finishes. The majority do but some do have nitro. Sounds to me like yours may have had a nitro finish. Either way, I hope you got there in the end and it turned out well.
I've seen videos and heard stories of people having success with a hair dryer, but it apparently depends on the poly finish!. I tried it on a guitar of mine and got absolutely nowhere, then saw a video on here of a guy using the same method and the poly came off in huge chunks with ease!. As I said, you will probably need a heat gun like this video as I've heard of people using all types of nasty/toxic chemical strippers and even they didn't touch the poly, but it's certainly worth the shot as maybe you're blessed with the type of poly that cracks right off like in the video I mentioned that is on UA-cam!..
It’s a 1500w heat gun, the temperature is 330c on low and 510 on high. But it’s more of a feel thing. You can use either setting, just keep the gun moving quicker on the high setting
Ugh, I painted/clear coated and I'm trying to remove with a heat gun. It isn't coming up in sheets, it just turns to goo and it's like scraping snot off the body. It's nearly impossible to get all the residue off.
Straight to the point, thanks!
Good vid. Thanks 👍🏻
Thanks for watching 😃
Nice video. Have a Fender Jazz that was dropped on a rock patio and the finish is is badly damaged. Going to try this.
Thank you. Good luck with the jazz bass!
Matsumoku made some amazing basses in the late 70s, early 80s.
Hi. Good video. Did you strip the control cavity or leave it?
Thank you, if I remember right I did, but it isn’t strictly essential…unless it is flaking away due to other issues.
Neat. That was fun to watch.
I just drank a quad shot of espresso and took the sander to mine. Worked like a charm 😂
😆 ☕️ 😵💫
@@mantoncustoms Do I then, sand , grain fill and use sealer after the heat gun?
Hi, thanks for the instructional. I’ve got a cheap tele type guitar a friend wants me to work on, gotta take the paint off, no idea what type of paint it is, just a standard cheap electric guitar probably 1990’s era.
Just wondered how long this process took you ?
Glad to help. The paint will almost certainly be a poly on your friends guitar, which means you’ll need the heat gun approach! The actual heat gun stripping doesn’t take too long, 1.5 hours maybe, but if it’s your first time it’ll take a bit longer getting used to the rhythm of it. It’ll take a while after it’s stripped to get it all sanded and smooth too.
Cheers , thanks so much for advice.
PS. Will neck unscrew or is it likely glued in place too ? If glued do you use heat gun to melt neck glue ?
If it’s a bolt on (it has screws on the back) it shouldn’t be glued. So you can just undo the screws and lift the neck out. 😃
Ta very much, it’s my first attempt at this so your input is a massive help, cheers , much appreciated 👍
Thanks
Thanks for watching!
I'm trying to strip a Strat Polyester body and it doesn't come off as easy as yours
and my body cracked because of the heat ! Didn't peel like your guitar , came off by tiny bits and pieces. Gonna try sanding it tomorrow instead !
I’m curious how it went. My two cents worth: I’ve stripped a few guitars with poly. Sanding takes forever- it can be maddening. If you’re wanting to paint it then you can find tutorials for priming and painting over the existing finish. I’ve seen some come out nice. Of course some people say that the poly suppresses the tonal qualities of the wood. If you find yourself becoming pissed off, just walk away for a few rather than getting heavy handed.
@@flatsixx Well all Mex are Polyester apparently and had no choice sanding it down because it's hard as glass and damage the wood when you scrape it with a heat gun. I even saw a joint on the body that really didn't like the heat. I've decided to go all the way because I re-did the belly cut and arm rest to vintage specs and It's beautiful now , going to do an aged Olympic white and i should be done after.
Bouth a brabd new Warmoth vintage body a few months ago and they are not like an old body so I needed to work on this one also !
Fun times.
@@lousekoya1803 it sounds like you’re a lot more patient than I am lol. Years ago I was stripping some no-brand import body and had the brilliant idea of using an angle grinder with a 60 grit flap wheel. It looked like a bad attempt at chainsaw art. I’ve learned to walk away when I get that itch to hurry things up. Fortunately I never experimented on anything of great value.
And even though I have a relatively poor success to failure ratio, I absolutely love working on guitars. It’s addictive. I’ve got several in the works right now. I recently bought an Eric Johnson semi-hollow strat body that’s gonna be a keeper when I get finished. Also I’m going to try some amber shellac as a top coat on a cheaper body hoping to get a vintage look.
Good luck to you, buddy.
@@flatsixx Yes , I was more of a butcher like you before, not beeing able to take the time to do things right for greater results but when you get older , patience is your friend !
I've ordered some Olympic white Nitro spray cans from Oxford finishing supply and should be able to spray the body soon , my sealer is all good and sanded. There is a guy who sprays Fender Custom Shop bodies on YT and he's amazing to watch . I even had a welder guy do a similar spray jig like he has so it can turn and swivel . What his other videos to see other colors and his jig. Great stuff my friend !
ua-cam.com/video/61Yw7z7VnPw/v-deo.html
@@lousekoya1803 Not all MIM Fenders have poly finishes. The majority do but some do have nitro.
Sounds to me like yours may have had a nitro finish.
Either way, I hope you got there in the end and it turned out well.
thanks for the process vid.
Thanks for watching!
can you use a hair blowdryer?
I doubt it would get the poly hot enough. Thanks for watching.
I've seen videos and heard stories of people having success with a hair dryer, but it apparently depends on the poly finish!. I tried it on a guitar of mine and got absolutely nowhere, then saw a video on here of a guy using the same method and the poly came off in huge chunks with ease!. As I said, you will probably need a heat gun like this video as I've heard of people using all types of nasty/toxic chemical strippers and even they didn't touch the poly, but it's certainly worth the shot as maybe you're blessed with the type of poly that cracks right off like in the video I mentioned that is on UA-cam!..
Do I then, sand , grain fill and use sealer after the heat gun?
Yep, that’s right 😃
What setting did you use, or how hot does your gun get?. I have two bodies I'm looking to strip and refinish or stain and am new to heat guns!..
It’s a 1500w heat gun, the temperature is 330c on low and 510 on high. But it’s more of a feel thing. You can use either setting, just keep the gun moving quicker on the high setting
Ugh, I painted/clear coated and I'm trying to remove with a heat gun. It isn't coming up in sheets, it just turns to goo and it's like scraping snot off the body. It's nearly impossible to get all the residue off.
If the paint you used was a non catalysed finish you should be able to wipe it away with acetone or lacquer thinner.
Hi man how old is the guitar?
Late 70s I believe. Thanks for watching 😃