A better way?

[DarwinStrings]

Last night I scribed a bridge to a top and then scraped out the top finish to glue the bridge. Every time I do this I wonder if there is a better way. Maybe I am just a bit slow at it but it does take me quite some time cause I have to be so careful not to slip and then have to repair the finish. This time while I was scraping I considered masking off the area and using paint stripper to soften the finish before scraping to speed things up (might be showing my desperation there ). I don't want to try that on a guitar in case it stuffs the glue joint so I may spray up some test panels and try it on that first but before I go to the trouble, has anyone ever come up with a faster method with suitable results?

Jim

[kiwigeo]

I think youll find paint stripper will leave a goey gunge which youll end up having to scrape off to end up with a clean gluing surface.

I mask off all except the out periphery of the bridge area..that way I just have to do a bit of scraping..doesnt take me more than half an hour to get the job done. I wear a pair of magnifying binocular glasses and make sure Ive got both hands guiding the scalpelt/violin knife when I get close to the bridge line.

[DarwinStrings]

1/2 an hour beats me Martin, I am about three times that. I suppose masking off would make me less scared and speed it up a bit.

Jim

[DarwinStrings]

Oh and you use a violin knife, the one with a handle that looks like a skew chisel? That may be better as I just use a broken stanley knife blade. It wrecks my fingers too, can't play guitar after I scraped the finish.

Jim

[GregL]

Hi Jim,

I think Kathy Matsushita uses paint stripper when removing finish for the bridge. Maybe you could check her website?

Thanks,
GregL.

[DarwinStrings]

Cheers Greg, I found it on her site. Kathy refers to the stripper she uses as "orange safe" so I checked that and found there is citris strippers available, sounds like it will save me a not so fun job.

Jim

[auscab]

Hi Jim ,
Do you glue down your bridges with HHG ? I'm thinking if it would be possible to scribe your bridge position before any finish is put down ,then brush coat within the scribe line with thick HHG, let it dry , finish the top.
Then put bridge back on and re scribe the line to just cut through the finish , after that either scrape through finish to the glue and dissolve the glue back with warm water or warm up the glue with a hair dryer and see if it and the finish moves . I suppose it could be done with other water soluble glues as well

To me , with scraping the finish under the bridge position I have always thought of the danger of damaging finish out side the line and also of creating a less than perfect joining surface, if I was to scrape at any of the sanded top timber.

[DarwinStrings]

G'day and thanks Rob, I use yellow glue for the bridge and am happy to stick with that. I don't have any trouble with scraping the joint well, once I get through the finish, it is just the getting through the finish that I find time consuming and wearing on my fingers. Still your ideas sound sound enough.

Jim

[Allen]

Some use a laminate trimmer with cutter just scoring through the lacquer and cleaning it up that way. I tried it once, but my bum was puckered up too tight for me to continue on with that method.

Others I've heard heat up a knife and use it to scrape up the finish. Not tried it, but I think it was Chuck Moore among others that uses this method.

Me, I've masked off the surface, and then sprayed and buffed. Then pulled tape off. Now I just finish the whole instrument and scrape it back. I mask the entire outside perimiter of the bridge area with tape to give me a bit of confidence in hooking in with a scraper. Takes me about 10 and no more than 15 minutes on my rather complicated footprint on my bridges.

[kiwigeo]

I tried it once, but my bum was puckered up too tight for me to continue on with that method.

[kiwigeo]

Oh and you use a violin knife, the one with a handle that looks like a skew chisel? That may be better as I just use a broken stanley knife blade. It wrecks my fingers too, can't play guitar after I scraped the finish.

Jim

That's the one.....Ive got a set of the things and I keep them razor sharp. Theyre good for "hogging out" finish and when I get close to the bridge perimeter I sometimes switch to a scalpel with a stiff blade.

[Trevor Gore]

Scribe around, really sharp dog-legged chisel used across the grain, ~15 minutes all up. (Figs 20-23 to 20-25).

[vandenboom]

I use the riskier technique Allen refers to using a dremel mounted in the small dremel base, then finish off with stanley knife blade. I do the same in the head block area before gluing fingerboard extension down. Depth testing obviously crucial and dremel has a tendency to walk as the bit is barely touching the surface - so, yeah, all a bit risky but no disasters yet and pretty quick. Frank

[DarwinStrings]

Thanks all, that made me chuckle too Allen. I should open that white book of yours more often Trevor. I think I am probably just being too ginger with it and sounds like I need to man up get rid of the stanley blade and scrape a little harder or yep buy one of those dogs leg jobs. I had read about that method Frank, thought I might go too slow and burn the thing.

Jim

[ozziebluesman]

Can't add much Jim I mask off the area under the bridge footrpint mark with a pencil around the outline then use a violin makers knife in a home made handle (one of my first ever projects) and scribe about 2 mm inside the pencil line. Peel away excess and scrape and sand away. I use a French Polish finish and HHG on the bridge glue up.

Cheers

Alan

[Craig]

It takes me too long as well Jim . Have a try at turning the sharp edge on a smooth bit of hardened steel creating a hook on whatever your using to scrape off the finish.
Don't put masking tape on a recently French polished finish !! or you'll end up very pissed off ?

[DarwinStrings]

Cheers Alan, Craig. Comforting to know I may not be the slowest kid on the block Craig. Time to improve/change the method so I am looking forward to that bit on the next guitar now.

Jim

[ozwood]

Hi Gents,

Maybe I am missing something or about embarrass my self , But I just put a layer of tape down accross where the bridge is going to sit, position the bridge , score around it with a sharp exacto knife , remove the waste masking tape , spray , level sand and polish to my hearts content and then score around the edge of the tape,remove it and glue my bridge on,........... never a problem, and I know I'm not the only one who does it that way, if there is an obvious down side to doing it , it's not obvious to me !

Just my two bobs worths.

Cheers,

[Allen]

Nope..........That'll never work.............

[ozwood]

Nope..........That'll never work.............

Too simple you thinks Allen, not in keeping with complex and sacred traditions of Lutherie........aww shit , I'm not gonna be cast out am I.... .

[Allen]

One small step from being banned!

[DarwinStrings]

I have to agree, far too easy Paul, keep your ideas to yourself next time.

Jim

Someone ban him so I can use it without him knowing please.

[Craig]

Sorry Paul ,,,,,,,,,,You're out

[charangohabsburg]

Wow, the last secret in luthierie has surfaced.

From now on luthiers will be just normal people like plumbers, professors and pedestrians are.

[lauburu]

+1 for Ozwood
Guess I'll have to ban myself as well
Miguel