Fix For Acoustic Finish?

[elduave]

We took this in and I'm wondering if there's a home remedy to stop the bleeding. Thoughts?

[crunchee]

I'm just spitballing, but if that's a polyester/polyurethane finish and there's no actual damage to the wood, maybe clear fingernail polish?

[elduave]

Yeah, that's where I went first. I'll take advice, even on that. Revlon? Maybelline? Why cantcha be true?

[velorush]

No help, but that binding is beautiful as is the grain on that top!

[Teh]

What brand/series? Taylor? Recent? Frankly, if that's a 900 series or similar, I'd preserve the investment and ship it out to California for a proper repair job. There are also guys closer to you that can do the repair. The investment will pay off when you sell it, as they can blend the patch making it virtually invisible to preserve resale value.

Now, if it's a Takemine, clear nail polish is fine...

[Uncle Thor's Hamer]

Thin cyanoacrylate glue works very well on Ovation guitars which have a catalyzed polyester finish. Knowing the type of clearcoat is important before you start applying more solvents and chemicals. You can always apply a small amount to a hidden area to see if it reacts poorly or if it fails to adhere.

The thin superglue from a hobby store or StewMac is a lot better than what you're likely to find in a grocery store. If you go this route, I suggest the StewMac glue and get 5 or 10 of the "whip tips". The whip tips are very thin applicator tips which allow precise placement of the glue.

Thin glue wicks into the cracks and fills them well. Acetone dissolves superglue, so after carefully testing the guitar to be sure the acetone won't damage the existing finish, you can wipe the repair several times with an acetone soaked rag to smooth it out. Then you can, if needed, use very fine sandpaper to buff it.

The StewMac micromesh soft touch pads work very very well, and they last a long time. http://www.stewmac.com/Materials_and_Supplies/Sanding_and_Polishing/Sandpaper_and_Finishing_Papers/Micro-Mesh_Soft_Touch_Finishing_Pads.html

If you use sandpaper, use a high quality paper which has no odd large stray pieces of abrasive in them. Regular hardware store sandpaper could have these stray particles which will leave scratches. StewMac sells excellent sandpapers at a very reasonable price.

This short video has some ideas which might help you out. http://www.stewmac.com/How-To/Online_Resources/Finishing/Fixing_a_small_chip_in_your_guitars_finish.html