PRS SE repair??

[blynn894]

Wondering if anybody has any suggestions on how to go about repairing this gouge on my Prs Custom.

 

[dvlsadvc8t]

Sorry, but that's not a repair job. You'll need to get a complete refin to take of that.

 

[Poffypoffa]

I agree that would be a tough repair--it looks like the veneer is missing. I would accept it as a battle wound and put a sticker on it.

Actually, if it were my guitar, I would buy some plastic model paint and touch it up. Unfortunately, red is a pain in the ass paint color to darken, because it turns brown, so if you need to mix colors, darken the red with a touch of dark purple.

 

[themike]

Do you have the piece of missing veneer? Might be able to glue it back inplace and reclear. It wont be perfect but it will be pretty good!

 

[Hopeful Sinner]

Remove everything from the guitar, strings, pickups, knobs and wiring harness. Strip the clear, sand through the entire veneer until you get to the plain maple cap underneath. Fine sand it smooth and then stain and re-clear. Voila, plain top PRS SE..

By the way, if you don't mind sharing, what the heck happened?

 

[Mikegarveyblues]

Yeah, it's a shame you don't have the missing piece of veneer...

Not sure what i'd do if it was mine.. Possibly try and match some paint as best I can and touch it up. Battle wound.

 

[blynn894]

Remove everything from the guitar, strings, pickups, knobs and wiring harness. Strip the clear, sand through the entire veneer until you get to the plain maple cap underneath. Fine sand it smooth and then stain and re-clear. Voila, plain top PRS SE..

By the way, if you don't mind sharing, what the heck happened?

I never thought of doing that. I do like the red, but I guess I could even add some color tone to the plain top.

I actually bought it this way as a "scratch and dent" thinking I could do something about it and they unfortunately did not have the piece of veneer. Believe me, I still love the guitar, but this sticks out like a sore thumb! Thanks for your advice.

 

[dvlsadvc8t]

You could also completely strip it, sand away the remainder of the veneer, glue down a new veneer, redye the top, and clear coat it. The veneer is actually pretty cheap and not hard to glue down.

 

[crgtr]

So this may be a crazy question, but would the PTC repair an SE? I know the cost would probably be more than the SE is worth, but I wonder if they've ever, or would ever work on one?

 

[blynn894]

So this may be a crazy question, but would the PTC repair an SE? I know the cost would probably be more than the SE is worth, but I wonder if they've ever, or would ever work on one?

I have not contacted them, but as you said for an SE I'm not sure it's worth the cost. I am intrigued to the idea of replacing the veneer, I just hope I'd know when to stop sanding, haha.

 

[rugerpc]

I have not contacted them, but as you said for an SE I'm not sure it's worth the cost. I am intrigued to the idea of replacing the veneer, I just hope I'd know when to stop sanding, haha.

This is not an idle concern. A few years ago I got a kit guitar just for the fun of it. it had a maple veneer over an unknown wood base. It came in rough shape so sanding was necessary before staining and finishing. There was one spot in the veneer that looked like a bad spot in the maple, so I gave that extra attention. instead of getting smaller and going away, it got bigger and bigger.

It turned out to be a hole in the veneer and I was now down to the back wood! Very disappointing. Fortunately, it was an inexpensive ( <$100 ) kit, so I took it as a learning experience. A custom decal covered the problem and I went on from there...

 

[andy474x]

Stewmac sells stain pens and burn in sticks that I used to fix some dings on my SE custom. You can re color, add clear coat with the burn in sticks, and use a set of sanding pads and buff to get it back in presentable condition. Let me know if you're interested and I can get you more info.

 

[stonevibe]

Collect some more dints and live with it.

 

[blynn894]

it's been a while and i am considering sanding down the top (as suggested here) and either leaving it as a plain top or changing it to a gold top. Any suggestions on how to do this while retaining the veneer? I'm not sure how thick the veneer is and I don't want to go too far. PRS repair said the repair would exceed the cost of the guitar, so I don't see another option. I actually think it would be "easier" to refinish the whole top as oppsed to trying to match and fill the area damaged.

What would be the best way to approach removing the finish down to the plain veneer?? I think I may even want to continue removing over the edge of the body and possibly give the maple top a side reveal.

Am I crazy??

 

[Artist]

I have not contacted them, but as you said for an SE I'm not sure it's worth the cost. I am intrigued to the idea of replacing the veneer, I just hope I'd know when to stop sanding, haha.

Here you go...