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Hi Todd - thanks for checking back in with me. Well, I've learned many valuable lessons sanding this guitar.

Here are some "Lessons From a Noob" (well, some lessons and some observations) :

1. I don't like Micro-Mesh.
2. Like all other sand paper, Micro-mesh, loses it's bite. I purchased 2 sets of the micro-mesh pads, and that certainly wasn't enough. The micro-mesh quickly loses it's sanding abilities. And unless you're made of money to purchase a lot of it, there's no sense. I'm going to go back to using quality wet/dry paper. This way I can continually switch out to good, clean paper. What I realized was happening was that the micro-mesh lost it's bite, which caused me to sand harder. Sanding harder caused deep scratches, even in the higher grits. It was a losing battle. I discovered this when I opened my second pack of micro-mesh and the new pads worked like a dream versus my first pack. Fortunately, I was able to use the two packs together, and I achieved amazing results.
3. If you're going to use Micro-mesh, sand at least up to the 6000 grit.
4. Sanding in random circles didn't work for me. I couldn't tell if I removed all the previous grits scratches. I reverted back to the "alternating directions" and it worked much better.
5. Remove "ALL" the previous grits scratches! And if you think you've got them all, check again - you missed some!
6. Get better lighting. Just when I thought I had all the previous grit's scratches out, I would rotate the guitar a quarter turn and discovered previously hidden scratches.
7. Take your friggin' time. Lol.
8. Listen to the pros. They're pros for a reason.
9. Sanding is much more enjoyable with a drink.
10. It would be nice to make a rotating table of sorts so you can turn the guitar for sanding, without rubbing the soundboard across my carpet. Anyone make one of these?
11. I love my new buffer I built.
12. and lastly, I learned that my lacquer thickness was definitely thick enough during spraying. I've sanded this back 3 times and didn't sand through.

And now, without further adieu, here's the back of my guitar!









And because I mentioned I built a buffer, here she is :



Todd - I do have a quick question for you. After buffing, I have a little bit of buffing compound on the guitar that the buffing wheels didn't remove. What should I use to remove this as well as miscellaneous fingerprints etc, without effecting the buffing gloss? I have a bottle of Farecla G10 swirl remover - would that do the trick?

Anyways, I really appreciated everyones input on this thread. It's been a tremendous help!

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Rob Flindall
Flindall Guitars
http://www.flindallguitars.com
https://www.facebook.com/FlindallGuitars

Buflex!

http://www.eagleabrasives.com/

_________________
https://soundcloud.com/jeffreylsuits/he ... -runnin-13

+1

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Thank You and Best To All

Thanks guys! Hopefully my comments will help other new luthiers like myself when it comes to the finishing steps. It'd be nice to be able to give back to the community.

I decided to go back and resand my soundboard and I'm happy I did. I had a few scratches from the micro-mesh and I went back to the 3M paper. My soundboard finish turned out perfectly.

Here are some pics (although they're not the greatest quality)









Now to get rid of those pesky scratches on the sides...... I feel I've been sanding forever on this guitar! Lol.

_________________
Rob Flindall
Flindall Guitars
http://www.flindallguitars.com
https://www.facebook.com/FlindallGuitars

THe finish looks great! It would have been a shame to leave orange peel or fine scratches on such a nice log.

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http://www.CostaGuitars.com
PMoMC

I have found naptha to be great for removing buffing wax residue.

I haven't finished a guitar yet with Micro-Mesh, but I use it on my pen turnings when I finish with CA glue. I haven't had issues in that case with wear, were you using it wet?

Naptha did the trick guys - thanks!

Evilfrog - I presoaked the micro-mesh and used it to wet sand the guitar. I can see them begin great for pen turnings because there's so little wood to sand. But when you turn your attention to sanding a guitar, they wear out quite quickly. I returned to using 3M sandpaper and it was both light years faster and yielded much better results.

_________________
Rob Flindall
Flindall Guitars
http://www.flindallguitars.com
https://www.facebook.com/FlindallGuitars