I was asked recently, would I finish this Violin for a friend's Daughter and I thought why not, it makes a change from my usual furniture and repairs.
And was a good experience for me, to be able to work on such a nice object.
I had to very gently sandpaper the surface smooth to remove the finger marks that had occurred whilst handling by the owner.
After sanding, I had to stain the violin with a suitable colour and without damaging the carved patterned front.
Then due to the awkwardness of handling the violin, I decided to hang the violin from a string and then this left me with free hands to be able to spray the finish over with several coats of lacquer.
I was asked not to stain the fingerboard and to leave it in its natural unfinished state. Usually, they are stained black.
The feedback from my friend was that his Daughter was "She really pleased with my work", and I was also was told that the violin Stringer was very impressed.
Always good to hear.
Nice work.
ReplyDeleteHi Andrew, I just discovered you wonderful blog and have been enjoying reading the various posts and admiring your work. I’ve been experimenting with French polishing for a couple of years and have a couple of questions if you don’t mind. The first question regards expectations. Do I expect a mirror like finish when view directly or just when I look at the surface from a low angle. Second question is I’m polishing a box lid with a fiddleback Koa thick veneer. During the process of sanding off dust nubs with 600 grit paper with water lube and re bodying there seems to be a small spot that refuse to take the finish. Any suggestions are much appreciated. Thanks, Mike
ReplyDeleteHi thanks for asking and your kind comments about my Blogsite.
ReplyDeleteFirstly, to be able to achieve a mirror finish is not always necessary, as most people don't like the reflective surface. I usually dull the finish down with a dulling brush and pumice powder. Go with what your Client wants.
If your rubbing down using water, this could be getting into the wood grain and not drying out properly and stopping the polish being able to adhere properly. Why not try and build up the surface so that the grain is almost filled with polish and then rub down with white spirit and using 1000 grit paper, this will give you a much better finish for sure. You must ensure that all of the dust has been cleaned off before you start polishing. You could try using Shellac sanding sealer as a base coat and then check to see if the grain in the area you mention is still open? If so you will need to apply more base coats of sealer. Hope this will be of some help to you? Once again thanks for enjoying my Bolgs you have lot's to read should you wish. Regards, Andrew.