Official Luthiers Forum!

There's a very old rule of thumb in finishing: Fat over Lean. In other words, if you put a hard coat of something over something soft, it will crack, not stick, or otherwise fail.

Lacquer over latex couldn't be a more perfect example of what NOT to do. Lacquer hard, latex soft! I'm afraid you simply won't get that "hello kitty" shiny guitar look this time. Best bet at this juncture is to use Krylon's clear coat, which presumably has been tested with their paints. You might want to check with them.

Electric guitars have generally used the same finish types as cars from whatever era they were in. Early on, it was nitro lacquer, then acrylic lacquer with nitro clear coats, then two part urethanes, etc. The point I'm getting to is that you may want to visit your friendly auto supply touch up section if you want some colors and clears that will shine up nicely.

I agree with Greg about the lacquer over latex. I recently did a painted cabinetry job that the client wanted a Benjamine Moore paint colour, but needed extra protection over it. My finish source told me that lacquer over latex would never set hard, so I used a tinted lacquer formulated to the B. Moore colour. Look into General Enduro Custom Color Poly and Enduro Clear Poly. They are both water based.

Alex

i know that multi-colored guitars at the music store didn't have house paint used on them, but just the same, they have hard clear coats, so what lacquer type are they using and/or what paint type are they using for the bright "hello kitty" guitars? there has got to be a solution for clear coating latex house paint ... and whatever it is, i'm missing. sorry if you all have already addressed this and i merely didn't pick up on what was being said.

Thanks for the link back to Tony's video (and thanks Tony for making it). I'm going to set up a few test boards and have a lacquer/rockhard/tru-oil party.