THE INFINITY JOB

This is where I sand down the varnish on the soundboard of this old Wappen guitar. There are eight coats of Le Lion's #2 luthier's varnish designed specifically for Ben's Guitar Repair Shop.

This varnish is a delight to lay on with a brush - it's 70% nitro-cellulose & 30% shellac - it's fairly slow-drying so you don't have to rush. The eight coats were applied over two weeks & the last one has been drying for five days.

I start off sanding dry with a 400 grit to take off all the lumps & bumps - then I go wet with 600, 800, 1,000, 1,200, 1,500, 1,800, 2,400, 3,200, 3,600, 4,000, 6,000, 8,000, & 12,000 grits.

After the passage of the 12,000 grit - if I've got it right - there'll be a brilliant gloss!

I've got the 400 grit job done - it's going to take all tomorrow for the rest + an awful lot of old-fashioned elbow grease!