Playing Around with Egg White Pore Filling

[kiwigeo]

No guitar building going on in the shop today but I did have a play around with egg whites as a pore filler. I got some Indian Rosewood and sanded back to 220 grit. Pore filling procedure was then as follows:

1. apply egg white to small area of wood with paint brush.
2. sand area with 320 grit paper and work up a slurry..sanding in small circles and pushing fairly hard to get slurry into pores.
3. worked slurry into pores using an old credit card (about all their good for with the credit squeeze on). Worked across the grain making sure no accumulations of slurry left on wood surface to harden.
4. Left everything for half an hour.
5. lightly sanded with grain using 320 grit paper.
6. repeated process two more times.

Pics of the result attached. There are still a few unfilled pores so Ill do another session tomorrow and see how it turns out. One thing I like about this method is there is no bleeding of colour from the rosewood as is the case with filling using pumice and alcohol. Build up of egg white is also easier to sand off then build ups of pumice/shellac.

Craig, youve had a play with this method, any comments?

Cheers Martin

Unfilled IRW - sanded to 220 grit









After three sessions with egg whites.

[Hippety Hop]

Well done. Sounds easy enough.

My mum made lots of cakes, and had powdered egg white in the pantry. Something to do with the icing. Just add water.

Cheers Hip.

[Allen]

I did it on the last EIR with cutaway and arm rest. It works really well, and as you found out it sands very easy. After a couple of months under finish, I notice a little sink back in the pores. Not bad, but if you have a gloss finish it's noticeable. Does make it look like wood though. I think that if you went with a more satin type of finish, then you wouldn't notice this at all.

Whether letting it dry / cure more before applying finish, or being in a drier climate than up here making a difference, I don't know. It's most definitely easier and less toxic to use than epoxy. Much easier to use than Timbermate.

The first couple of guitars that I built I used the Timbermate on and they too have a little sink back in the pores. So perhaps it's just the nature of a water based filler moving about with humidity fluctuations..

[kiwigeo]

Okay Ive just finished pore filling the other half of the rosewood back using pumice after putting on two spit coats of 1lb shellac. To be honest after spending the same time with the pumice as I did with the egg whites the pumice gives a better result.

Pic attached are taken after three body sessions with 2lb shellac. Bottom half is pore filled using pumice, top half with egg whites.

[Allen]

When using pumice, the pumice is an abrasive, and part of the filler as well I presume?

Where you go get pumice suitable for this?

[kiwigeo]

I use Behlens 4F grade pumice, bought from Lee Valley. One container will last you a life time.

The pumice does get worked into the pores but its primary function is to grind up the wood fibres into a slurry which does most of the filling.

[Allen]

Thanks Martin, but that's a REALLY bad place to shop. I dropped into the Vancouver store every time I was in the city, and well....the credit card takes a hell of a hit. Thank god they don't sell tone wood as well.

[James Mc]

You can get pumice powder from http://www.goodsandchattels.com in Brisbane... about $25 for 500g and they have mail order. Just go to the site and hit the restoration hardware link. I've always found them easy to deal with and very reasonably priced, but it is under new ownership so only time will tell.

Cheers
James

[kiwigeo]

Great link James, Ive been looking for someone who sells the Liberon products.