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I'm trying to figure out how to fix 3 gaps n my hog neck right at the volute up against the RW veneer. I tried mixing some timbermate but my understanding of colour is not that great. The first one came out to pink & it sticks out like...well wood dough. I'm wondering if I can some how inlay slivers of HOG instead. Ideas please.
MM

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Mike McNerney

Mixing sawdust and finish material usually gives the best color match if you are not going to stain the wood. Inlaying wood can work well if you can match the grain orientation to that of where you are inlaying it (flatsawn to flatsawn,vertical grain with vertical grain, etc.)

Pictures would help us advise you.

I use solvent based Famo-wood for all types of defect repairs. It is made with actual wood fibers and is sold by the species it matches. The Water based stuff does not blend in and match like the solvent based stuff. I also use burn in fills for lots of small defects and gaps. It depends on the situation.

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Brian

You never know what you are capable of until you actually try.

https://www.howardguitarsdelaware.com/

Sawdust, epoxy, and common kitchen flour as needed to match the color.

I rarely use any "putty" type defect filler on bare wood. The material, be it glue based or what ever will inadvertently seal the surrounding area. What happens later in the process is that area shows up as a blotch under the finish coats. So I wait to fill until after final sanding and sealer coats are applied.

Brian -- that Famo product is interesting, sounds similar to the old "Plastic Wood" which also needed a proprietary solvent. Will common solvents work? Can it be tinted?

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Ken Cierp

http://www.kennethmichaelguitars.com/

Interesting product. Brian, have you found any of their types to be a match for spruce? I'm guessing pine or fir, but I wouldn't have any idea as to which,
thanks, Mike

If making your own putty/filler I suggest "wood flour" it is not the same as edible flour

Wood flour is finely pulverized wood that has a consistency fairly equal to sand or sawdust, but can vary considerably, with particles ranging in size from a fine powder to roughly the size of a grain of rice. Most wood flour manufacturers are able to create batches of wood flour that have the same consistency throughout. All high quality wood flour is made from hardwoods because of its durability and strength. Very low grade wood flour is occasionally made from sapless softwoods such as pine or fir.

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Ken Cierp

http://www.kennethmichaelguitars.com/

Sorry cameras dead. I was somewhat successful with some solid wood but some dark glue likes are still there.
Depending how it looks after pore fill & sealer I may dig some dark spots out & try the burn in stick
Thanks all
Mike

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Mike McNerney

I,ve used famo wood for a lot of years in cabinetry.It is a good product, but it dries out in the can and most of it gets wasted.Bordens has a water based product they just came out with that they call a professional filler that works just as good but it doesn't dry out.also if you let it dry properly before sanding ,it takes about ten minutes on a small hole, it stains and finishes virtually invisible.

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James W Bolan
Nashville Tennessee

It does have a proprietary solvent but I have successfully used DA, lacquer thinner and acetone in a pinch. As long as the product is well mixed before application it will not seal any area and will take stain and finish just as the original wood it is based on. I have used this stuff for 35 years, one of my go to products for all types of repair during construction.

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Brian

You never know what you are capable of until you actually try.

https://www.howardguitarsdelaware.com/

Depends on the spruce.....lighter colored woods are always harder to repair invisibly. You can mix these together to get some different matches. The biggest problem with spruce and lighter woods in general is the darker summer grains. Most people just fill, sand and finish. But if one takes the time to draw the grains back over the filler before applying finish the repair is a lot less noticeable.....but as on old master of mine used to say " once a repair, always a repair".

Also the product can be kept without drying out for long periods if the rim of the can is kept clean so the lid fits tightly and one pours a small amount of solvent over the putty in the can before closing. I have tried the water based version of this product and can say it does not blend in very well in a lot of instances so I continue to use this.

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Brian

You never know what you are capable of until you actually try.

https://www.howardguitarsdelaware.com/

Filling is part of the learning curve. There are many techniques of doing this. Another method is filling after the staining process and seal coat. When you know the final color it is easier to fill. I never had much luck with the solvent filler and that well may just be me. Once the stain is on and the seal you can take some of the wood that you want to fill and sand some to make your powder. I don't use CA but will pat the power into the void and ad a small drop if stain . You may want to use a lighter color as the dust may appear darker. Then you can drop fill some finish into the mix .
This is just another technique you can use. most stated methods will work but I have to advise that Super Glue may seal the wood around the fill spot and let a footprint in the finish cycle.. Another point is I have a gun with satin and clear. I may hit the fill area with a splash of satin , under the clear , this helps diffuse light and help hide a bit more. I learned that trick from the finish guy out at Martin.
In the end you can take all this info and try it on a sample. Any one of these will work you just have to see which one works for your situation.
the lighter the wood the harder the filling

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John Hall
blues creek guitars
Authorized CF Martin Repair
Co President of ASIA
You Don't know what you don't know until you know it

And then there's Bondo....... (which actually can work pretty good on cherry, and will take stain)
I've used solvent based Famowood and the Borden's product and found them to work about the same. The water based Borden's is a little easier to use and better than most of the other waterbased filllers I've used in the past.

Seems Brian does not know -- so any Flamo user, is the solvent truly proprietary or just lacquer thinner of other common solvent? And can it be tinted? With what?

Thanks

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Ken Cierp

http://www.kennethmichaelguitars.com/

As Brian mentioned, other solvents will work in a pinch, but if used repeatedly they seem to affect how well the stuff sticks. I don't know what the proprietary solvent is but the MSDS lists acetone , methyl ethyl ketone and naphtha as ingredients.

Of course the Famo website would have that info - you'd think I'd know that. The vehicle in the compound is nitrocellulose lacquer, so no doubt lacquer thinner will work and I am sure it could be tinted easily.

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Ken Cierp

http://www.kennethmichaelguitars.com/