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when you get a guitar body from warmoth they say 'dont wet sand primer or it will swell the wood, wait until there are several coats of hard finish on the body'

so far ive put about 2 500ml cans worth of normal primer on, and 4 coats of quot;filler primerquot; to 100% fill the grain on it. the grain is now totally filled - can I now use wet sanding to wet sand part of the filler primer?


Originally Posted by shredaholicwhen you get a guitar body from warmoth they say 'dont wet sand primer or it will swell the wood, wait until there are several coats of hard finish on the body'

so far ive put about 2 500ml cans worth of normal primer on, and 4 coats of quot;filler primerquot; to 100% fill the grain on it. the grain is now totally filled - can I now use wet sanding to wet sand part of the filler primer?

The main reason you DON'T wet sand primmer is that it is pourous and will retain mosture. What do you mean by filler primmer? Sand sealer? What type of wood are you working with?

Why would you need to wet sand the primer coats?


Originally Posted by kmcguitarsWhat do you mean by filler primmer? Sand sealer?

Some automotive primers are called primer/filler. It is basically thicker paint designed to fill in small scratches and pits. I believe that's what he's referring to.


Originally Posted by ratherdashingSome automotive primers are called primer/filler. It is basically thicker paint designed to fill in small scratches and pits. I believe that's what he's referring to.

yep - it's designed to fill imperfections, which is why I used it as I'd put a ton of primer on the body and the grain was still showing quite badly (it's a northern hard ash body). the reason I ask is because after putting all the 'filler primer', there is now a fair bit of paint between the top paint coat and the wood, and when I tried a bit of wet sanding on a small patch of the filler primer, it seemed to work a hell of a lot better than dry sanding - the paper lasted at least 10x longer, and worked 10x faster.

when wet sanding, the 'filler primer' that had been removed seemed to turn into thick wet paint, as opposed to paint granules floating in the water, which is what ive experienced sanding normal primer on other stuff. maybe this 'filler primer' is more like paint than primer? - either way, it really did the job filling in the grain.


Originally Posted by MikeSWhy would you need to wet sand the primer coats?

1. Wet sanding is usually only used on the final coats.

Like others have said, there's really no need to wet sand a primer coat.

Another tip: instead of heaping on layers and layers of primer, try using a grain filler compound (also called wood filler). It has the consistency of peanut butter, and you can spread it on with a plastic or silicone spreader (don't use metal - it will scratch the wood), then dry sand off the excess after it sits overnight. It will fill in most of the lines and pores in the wood, which means you won't have to use as much primer.

It's probably too little too late for that, but maybe next time


Originally Posted by ratherdashingLike others have said, there's really no need to wet sand a primer coat.

Another tip: instead of heaping on layers and layers of primer, try using a grain filler compound (also called wood filler). It has the consistency of peanut butter, and you can spread it on with a plastic or silicone spreader (don't use metal - it will scratch the wood), then dry sand off the excess after it sits overnight. It will fill in most of the lines and pores in the wood, which means you won't have to use as much primer.

It's probably too little too late for that, but maybe next time

cheers, I'll use it next time I do an ash body, as although I've got this one pretty much sorted now, your method will take a lot less work!


Originally Posted by shredaholiccheers, I'll use it next time I do an ash body, as although I've got this one pretty much sorted now, your method will take a lot less work!

I wish I could take credit for the method. I first learned about it here: have a Warmoth LP body and neck on the way, both mahogany (which has a grain texture similar to ash). I have been practicing doing a finish on a few pieces of scrap mahogany laminate, because I am scared of screwing it up on the real thing. This is how I learned about the grain filler method. I'm still not a master at it, but I'm getting better.