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I have a 1972 Mosrite Celebrity body that I recently acquired. I would like to take off the finish and repaint the body after making a couple of repairs. My goal is to put a Celebrity 12 string neck on it.

Any suggestions for removing the finish?

thank you!

Hi Sarah,

No one wants to tackle this one? It really depends if it's lacquer or polyester or another catalyzed finish. Lacquer comes off with paint remover. Great pains must be taken to protect your plastic binding from it though. Cabinet scrapers and sandpaper after the main removal. The other coatings are not that simple. Unfortunately I cannot offer any suggestions there. I used to work at VOX guitars that had a catalyzed finish and it was near impossible to clean the finish off successfully without damaging the wood underneath. There may not be a quick way.

Maybe this will open the discussion to others that have had success with this process.

Thank you Terry for the tips! I don't know much about paint, but I seem to recall that Mosrite used Nitro Cellulose Lacquer. Does that sound right? If so, then perhaps the lacquer thinner will work. I contacted someone who did this many years ago on his Celebrity. He told me that nothing would touch it so he ended up using chisels and slowly chipped it off. It took him about 40 hours. He then gave the body to Gruhns Guitars to finish the project.

Sarah,
Lacquer thinner can be used but it is much less aggressive. Which may be a good thing but it still attacks the binding. Be careful. You should also familiarize yourself with cabinet scrapers. They are invaluable in the building process and still very useful in the refinish process. They can cleanup areas that are difficult to sand and help keep a flat surface from getting a 'thumb groove'.

The trick with scrapers is knowing how to sharpen them. They don't come ready to use. You apply a kind of rolled hook edge. There are lots of how-to's on that subject.

I'm sure other have there favorite ways as well.

Good luck

Sarah, if you're talking about the body I think you're talking about it was painted by Gene Moles, probably sometime in the early '80s, and I believe it's poly.

Adam

Sarah, There are strippers out there that will remove a poly finish.The stripper needs to be for wood and it may take 2 of 3 times over it to remove it. The paint will almost pull away from the wood as the stripper works. That is not the hard part, saving the binding is however. I have always taped over the binding with a top quality masking tape and leave about a 1/2" overlap on the paint. Go slow and don't let the tape pull up to the binding or it will melt just like the paint. It can be done and done safely but it will take some time.

Jim

Do you have any pictures of the body?

Hey Adam, yes it is the same body you're thinking of.





I don't know what color I want yet but I'm not fond of the current color. Would it be a big deal to just let the solvent take off the binding? I like multlayerd binding better anyway.

Thanks for the tips Terry. I think I will invest in those scrapers. It would be a good school to learn.

"I don't know what color I want yet but I'm not fond of the current color. Would it be a big deal to just let the solvent take off the binding? I like multlayerd binding better anyway." - Sarah

Hi Sarah,

That would be a big step, taking off the binding. Remember what ever you put back would have to be the same thickness unless you are will to re-cut the rabbet which is a whole other thing. But hey, that's a great way to learn first hand. I admire your willingness to jump in. - Terry

I'ld keep the color but get rid of the gold stripe 1st.