Thoughts on this '62 JM? Remove finish?

[Baracus]

Picked this up just recently. Slab board, plays and sounds great.

Everything seems legit except obviously the finish.

You can see on the forearm wear it looks like it was painted over in a similar color (why??) and it chips off relatively easily.
The paint looks very old - done a long time ago and the color has gone real 'dirty' looking

Also looks like it was just painted to the edge of the scratch plate? Agree?

You can notice in a few pics from when I got it to a little later where I have chipped more paint off and it seems to have little effect on the original finish underneath it but I don't want to damage the original finish any further

Ideally I'd like to get this top layer off though

It feels like I could almost just chip it away... obviously there is a better way, anyone done it successfully?

Or should i just leave it alone

Anything else you notice on this guitar please chime in.










Bit of shim still in there... will get rid of that

[mgeek]

Oooh that's lovely!

I've done this several times and there's no one answer, as it all depends on the particular types of paint used, but picking it off with a plectrum or some other plastic object is probably best here.

Wet sanding with a really high grit can do the trick too, as can Acetone, but I feel like they'd both interfere with the glorious patina you've got here.

[Danley]

I wouldn’t use acetone. It’s very difficult to control removing only one layer of lacquer.

[Baracus]

So wet sanding possibly, or simply chipping off with a plastic pick or similar?

Could take a while.... think I may just play it for a bit and decide.

Ultimately I think the paint will bug me enough that I will get rid of it

I don't suppose anyone has any before and after pics of doing this sort of thing?

Also had that been painted in the neck pocket or is that original, can you tell?

[blacktiger]

Why is it so dirty under the pickguard?

[Baracus]

Why is it so dirty under the pickguard?

60 years of dirt being built up?
Looks like it hasn't been cleaned much over the years

Doesn't look like this pickguard has come off in a very very long time

[BoringPostcards]

I'd definitely refinish that. It didn't relic well at all. It almost looks like it was covered in whiteout (correction fluid).

[Danley]

It's really hard to tell where one thing ends and one thing begins on that finish - is it just chipped clearcoat on the lower bout, or is that also over-coat? I guess some people call that relicing though.

Part of me appreciates the spirit of whatever previous owner trying to cover up his careless dings/wear, mostly because it seems like something I would do In that spirit however, I might try to wet-sand/chip it off (if only to see if a pro could do a better job more invisibly fixing whatever damage lies beneath.)

[Jaguar018]

That guitar looks gross to me-- just kind of dirty and uncared for.

If that finish is actually original I'd hesitate on refinishing it-- because I'm sure there is someone out there that would think all that gross stuff actually looks good. Of course, I doubt they'd want to buy it, but maybe there would be someone.

Chances are better that no one would want to pay a reasonable amount for it... if I was determined to keep it, I would at least take it to some pro that could at least assess and clean it up. It's going to be pricey no matter what.

[stevemac100]

Not sure if you've seen this post (viewtopic.php?f=41&t=111061). Looks to be a similar situation to yours.

[mgeek]

I'd been seeing this all wrong!

I thought it was a tiny patch of overpaint but mostly original finish, but it's the other way round, right?

I'd try wetsanding but with a really high grit, 1000 -1500 or something, on the back first to see how it goes and barely touching the sides. The aim not being to sand through the oversprayed finish, but to sort of 'knock it off'. If it's coming off fairly easily then the adhesion to the original paint probably isn't very good, and with a bit of water that could become even more so the case.

[E Baxter Put]

I had a tele deluxe with paint over the original finish. I ended up chipping it off with a small plastic scraper. I think would be really difficult to sand it off without damaging the finish underneath.

It looks like the top coat is chipping off on yours pretty easily?

[Axolotl]

I'd been seeing this all wrong!

I thought it was a tiny patch of overpaint but mostly original finish, but it's the other way round, right?

That's what I thought when I first saw the photos. I'd definitely try to sand it or knock it off as you said. See what it looks like, you can always refinish it later!

[Mechanical Birds]

Oooh that's lovely!

I've done this several times and there's no one answer, as it all depends on the particular types of paint used, but picking it off with a plectrum or some other plastic object is probably best here.

Wet sanding with a really high grit can do the trick too, as can Acetone, but I feel like they'd both interfere with the glorious patina you've got here.

I can’t be the only one who is saying “no, it’d be a crime to NOT strip and refinish this thing do it ASAP” right? That headstock... thing should be in the “Why Did You Do It” thread haha. I hope you got a good deal my dude.

[mgeek]

I can’t be the only one who is saying “no, it’d be a crime to NOT strip and refinish this thing do it ASAP” right? That headstock... thing should be in the “Why Did You Do It” thread haha. I hope you got a good deal my dude.

Santa is always watching my dude. We do not refinish 57 year old guitars with the original paintwork, even if it's under a nice thick coat of tippex!