how to paint the black and yellow eddie van halen guitar

[MaxEVH]

Hello!

I'm making a EVH Bumble Bee replica.

And I just want a few questions answered...

What grit sand paper should I use?

Should I sand all of the old finish off the guitar?

How many coats should I apply for each colour?

How long should I wait in-between coats?

Please help me out man!

Thanks you for your time.

ROCK ON!

[cdickenson64]

@MaxEVH May I tell you what I do? First, if I were to redo a guitar, I would strip the paint and stay away from the paper as much as possible. You will have to sand some anyway. Two coats of each color should be plenty. Too much then you can feel it in the clear... A lot of wet sanding required later. Depending on the type of paint you use, ten minutes to two hours between coats. Overnight for color changes. Sand with progressively finer paper starting with 400 stepping down to 2500.

[Gingerlord01]

lol, can i have a soddering gun please>?

[cdickenson64]

Did you use enamel paint? Enamel chokes the tone quality of the wood ,and is not very durable... not to mention it will never buff out to high shine like urethane or lacquer will. It may be more "Convenient" as it dries faster... But if you want a quality paint job, and a good sounding guitar stay away from enamel.

[AeRoSmItH101112]

@cdickenson64 yeah i used crappy paint it isnt shiny i was pissed but i repainted the guitar black and i used the right paint this time

[cdickenson64]

@AeRoSmItH101112 it sucks when you have to redo... but it is a learning experience. the color scheme was aces though

[AeRoSmItH101112]

@cdickenson64 yeah it does suck but now i know lol

[StixZidinia777]

@cdickenson64 Not true, if you do about, 35-40 caots of clearcoat over it, wet sanding inbetween each coat, itl shine.

[cdickenson64]

@StixZidinia777 But with urethane or lacquer, you will do it with half or less coats, and have a much more durable finish. Besides, what happens when the temp changes dramatically and the guitar expands? The enamel paint will crack and the guitar will look crappy. Not to mention what it does to the sound.

[KingNast]

@cdickenson64 I have a strat with just a really heavy clearcoat on it.. Had it in my car in the winter, then took it inside, and the finish cracked all over like that.. sucks! I guess it has character now.

[cdickenson64]

@KingNast What kind of clear did you use? As long as the paint doesn't start flaking off, it would have character... Like a vintage guitar with a lot of mileage.

[KingNast]

@cdickenson64 It's actually the factory finish.. not sure what they use. It's a MIJ '68 strat reissue. I think it was made in '96 which is when I bought it new.  It's not painted, just natural wood finish with clearcoat. The cracks appeared a few years after I bought it, and still the finish is intact.. and you can't even see it from a few feet away. I don't really mind anyway.. I love the guitar!

[cdickenson64]

@KingNast  The factory uses nitro cellulose, I think. Having a guitar that you love is all that counts anyway.

[GrizAdams111]

did you take it down to bare wood or can you leave the sealer coat on if it has one?

[AeRoSmItH101112]

@GrizAdams111 all that you have to take off is the clear

[FreshlyBakedGrass]

can u send me the pi u used, i ant get any good ones

[AeRoSmItH101112]

@FreshlyBakedGrass lol i dont even know what pic i used it was like a year and a half ago

[FreshlyBakedGrass]

do i need to put primer o the headstock? or can i just paint?

[AeRoSmItH101112]

@FreshlyBakedGrass no u need primer cuz the paint wont stick or come out good

[Chillybeef123]

@AeRoSmItH101112 on my frankenstrat replica i didn't use primer and it stick fine . . . you just have to rough up the wood with like 60 or 100 grit sandpaper, and do very thin coats . . . i don't recommend this however, because you run the risk of grain showing through in the end result, you SHOULD use primer, but you don't HAVE to

[XxSuperSass69xX]

do i rele need to wetsand? or can I just spray the primer, then wait 3 nights, then spray the primer, then wait three nights, then spray the primer and wait three nights?

[AeRoSmItH101112]

@XxSuperSass69xX why would u do that its a waste of time just spray a couple coats of primer then wetsand

[vanhalenIOU1]

How did you cut the tape to the perfect strip, and how did you perfectly get it in the exact spot?

[AeRoSmItH101112]

@vanhalenIOU1 i used a razor blade and cut the tape in strips and i copied a picture i printed out on the computer.....i placed the tape on the guitar where it looked good similar to the picture

[XxSuperSass69xX]

Can I a list of all the things that I'll need to do this to one of my squires?

[AeRoSmItH101112]

@XxSuperSass69xX just watch the video and get the stuff i used

[daytonbrandi]

I am doing the same thing but the vh1 version

[OddTimeMan]

It's not necessary to strip the original paint off the body if you're just going to paint over it anyway. Just sand off the gloss so that the new paint has something to stick to.

[AeRoSmItH101112]

@OddTimeMan yeah but if u want it done the best u sand all the paint off

[OddTimeMan]

@AeRoSmItH101112 Not true (unless the guitar was originally painted poorly). Why sand off the original primer and then primer it again yourself? Makes no sense. When they repaint cars, they don't sand it all the way down to the bare metal every time...they just sand off the clear coat so that the new paint will stick.

[AeRoSmItH101112]

@OddTimeMan well lol i guess i did alittle more work than was needed

[MrRhoadsliveson]

@OddTimeMan yes i just did that. its alotta work to strip the paint completely but you just need to rough it up

[bubbah12345]

wow that looked really good just primered white

[drpez12]

do you have a pic of it done?

[AeRoSmItH101112]

@drpez12 actually lol i was gonna make a video of it done about a vear ago but i forgot but i will have a video up sooon of it done

[Metallicaforever95]

also do you have to put a base or primary coat on the guitar before you paint it

[AeRoSmItH101112]

@Metallicaforever95 yeah i put a couple coats of primer on

[Metallicaforever95]

what is wet sanding

[AeRoSmItH101112]

@Metallicaforever95 wet sanding is when u have special wetsand paper and u wet the sand paper and sand the guitar using water

[thecrismaster099]

how much coats

[bucktheusa]

I got a pic of the back if you want it.

It's pretty rare. Message me and I'll send it.

Can I post links on youtube?

[morbidsaint1]

@bucktheusa HEY I WANT THE PIC OF THE BACK PLEASE! IVE BEEN LOOKING FOR IT EVERYWERE MAN

[Newb50]

could you send me the link to that picture in the beginning

[AeRoSmItH101112]

@Newb50 i dont kno it. i just looked it up on google

[blackstars26]

did you use any grainfiller or shit like that beside primmer

[AeRoSmItH101112]

@blackstars26 nope

[buttsucker555]

i just finished pulling off the tape on mine. did you sand after you took yours off? and if so what grit sandpaper did you use.

[AeRoSmItH101112]

first you apply alot of coats of clear right on top of the color and then u sand and use very fine sandpaper

[AeRoSmItH101112]

wetsanding

[SuperJaykay93]

aerosmith ftw

[MVLINEMAN]

hey bro , do you have to buy another neck to put in a locking nut or can you just cut a part of the first fret?

[AeRoSmItH101112]

yeah but the measurements have to be great and u have to use a router and be very careful

[miiloos133]

the guitar is extream cool. But the video is boring :~( without musik

[AeRoSmItH101112]

lol i kno i said the same thing when i made it but i couldnt figure out how to get the music on it

[MrDirectGraffiti]

my guitar is alredy black so is it any point to sand away all the black paint just to paint in black again and then paint it yellow????????

sorry for my bad grammar i'm from Norway

[AeRoSmItH101112]

u have to sand it back down cuz u have to paint it yellow first and then black

[MetalOmgz]

looks like a lot of time to do this......im so lazy but i want to change my guitars color

[king666nothing]

Hey man, I'm about to paint my guitar. What would you recommend for a primer? I'm thinking of getting the Killz primer (in spray can), you think it'll do the job? Nice job on yours by the way.

[AeRoSmItH101112]

thanks and it doesnt matter what primer u use as long as it is wood. i used rust-oleum its really good and i reccomend that for primer and color. i used krylon for color only cuz thats what i had but the rust primer was really good

[king666nothing]

@AeRoSmItH101112 Hey thanx for reply. I'm already layering paint. I found this relatively unknown brand - Mohawk paints. I met a guy who works at the hardware store and he makes custom guitars for people in his spare time. And he recommended this paint (and primer) because he always uses it. Damn, it's just perfect. But thanx for the advice anyway.

[THEAMAZINGTJ]

sanding these things take forever, i did a diferent color combo a while ago

[METALLICA7757]

i made my kirk hammet replica look exactly like this with some yellow electrical tape and about 6 hours of staring at a picture copying it in my basement..then an hour after i finished i had a shoe to play and everybody was like dood that guitar looks sick, 5 months later i took the tape off....and i really regret it!

[0073380]

and did u spray clear coat?

[AeRoSmItH101112]

yes

[CodeRosario]

Is it possible to a purple guitar with green stripes?

[AeRoSmItH101112]

u can do anything u want my friend

[0073380]

wat is the use of painting and cutting the pickguard?

[AeRoSmItH101112]

it was to make a pickguard like eddie but after the vid i realized it was dumb and i got rid of it and got a new black pickguard

[0073380]

ah kool so you didn't cut the new pickguard

[AeRoSmItH101112]

right

[xg419]

if u put a locking nut in woundnt it mess with the intonation and stuff?

[AeRoSmItH101112]

not really u just have to get it right the first time

[xg419]

how r u goint to put a locking nut on that?

[AeRoSmItH101112]

u take a router and right where the old nut is but not hitting the first fret u cut out a section of the wood big enough to bolt the nut on

[DrCerebro]

Just started my own project. Working on a bass though. This video was extremely helpful! Thanks!!

[Near14]

I was thinking about doing this aswell, how much did it cost overall ? (with the paint and new hardware and all that)

[AeRoSmItH101112]

honestly the paint and the new pickups costed the most but it was not much at all i dont remember how much it depends on wat type of paint u get. i had all the other materials

[bllfn]

i did this but the lines didnt come out very straight cause the paint bled through the paint. Any suggestions on how to prevent that?

[AeRoSmItH101112]

you probably didnt let the paint dry long enough before putting the next coat on

[dogtownskater777]

are you gonna post a video of all the hardware and pickups etc?

[AeRoSmItH101112]

actually im not done yet so maybe soon i will

im lazy so ill get to it

[TommyBellingham]

Thank you for this, do you have to sand it down. Is just repainting over it a bad idea?

[AeRoSmItH101112]

painting over the original paint is bad cuz the new coats you put on will come out crappy if you can try to sand it down

[dogtownskater777]

it doesnt realy make a difference man.

[AeRoSmItH101112]

yea it does it makes a big difference

[dogtownskater777]

if you can, you should try to get the floyd rose that has no fine tuners on it cuz thats the one ed had on his.

[cathodic11]

did you clear coat it?

[AeRoSmItH101112]

yup there is about 4 clear coats on it

[cathodic11]

you wetsanded the paint or the clear?

[AeRoSmItH101112]

both. you wetsand after the color paint goes on and then you wetsand after the clear coats go on

[cathodic11]

thanks

[AeRoSmItH101112]

no problem

[ben0125]

do you wetsand it after a different color of each coat is on.

[AeRoSmItH101112]

no you wetsand it after all the paint is on. it smooths itself out

[ben0125]

how long did it take you to sand it?

[ben0125]

what if you dont wetsand it?

[AeRoSmItH101112]

if you dont wetsand it it doesnt come out as smooth but its not a big deal and it took me like a week to sand it the sanding is the hardest part also it depends on how gritty the paper u use is cuz heavier grit paper will sand faster than lighter grit i used 120 and it took me a week

[gibsonguy86]

Eddie used an old record for the pickgaurd

[AeRoSmItH101112]

no he didnt he used a strat pickguard that was a 3 ply plastic cuz his had the white line on the side of it and it didnt have the grooves like a record

[xXxDjShamblesxXx]

"Van Halen got rid of both tone control potentiometers (pots) and wired up the pickups in a simple circuit, due largely to his limited knowledge of electrical circuitry. Van Halen famously used a knob reading 'tone' on the volume control spot. He then used a vinyl record he cut up to use as a pickguard to cover the controls." From wikipedia

[AeRoSmItH101112]

yup thats the article that i saw

[AeRoSmItH101112]

well do you mean on the frankenstrat or the VH1

[gibsonguy86]

frankenstrat, but they r close enough

[AeRoSmItH101112]

theyre the same guitar

[gibsonguy86]

whatever the fist frankenstrat had a record for a pickguard

[AeRoSmItH101112]

oh ok i remember eddie saying something like he made that pickguard for the white guitar i didnt kno it was a record

[gibsonguy86]

i read it on a EVH site or wikipedia or something like that

[AeRoSmItH101112]

yea now i remember so did i

[kkkkkkkklf]

hello you okay?

which brand you used all these products please send me an email if possible with the answers

obs. all products and brands please

Thank you very much

[TheRockNRollFan]

awesome. this is my fav eddie guitar

[AeRoSmItH101112]

i kno i love this one too and nobody had a video out there so i decided to make it myself

[TheRockNRollFan]

i noticed that too. so im glad someone made one

[DUY1337GUITAR]

oh that's weird, I found you on a how-to-EVH video lol.

[TheRockNRollFan]

beware for i am everywhere, duy