# Nitrocellulose Lacquer = sticky???



## Stratin2traynor (Sep 27, 2006)

I recently bought a American Vintage '57 Strat. According to the specs the neck and body are finished in Nitrocellulose Lacquer. Love the guitar but I find that the neck is kinda sticky. I have another MIA strat with a satin finsh on the neck and it's nice and smooth. So my question is....- is this normal for a Nitro Lacquer finish??? Thanks


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## dwagar (Mar 6, 2006)

yes, nitro isn't like poly, it can take a few years to cure. Keep it in the open air, that'll help. Nitro also gets thinner over time, which is the whole point, you want as little finish blocking the tone as possible.

I use a Guild mist type spray polish on the neck on my LP, that takes away the sticky feeling I get with cream polishes.


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## Hamm Guitars (Jan 12, 2007)

When you say sticky, do you mean that the finish is just not that smooth and your hand doesn't slide on it that well or does it actually get tacky when it is humid?


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## joshmac (Aug 20, 2007)

Thats completely normal for nitro lacquer. It has a much longer dry time than poly


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## Stratin2traynor (Sep 27, 2006)

Hamm Guitars said:


> When you say sticky, do you mean that the finish is just not that smooth and your hand doesn't slide on it that well or does it actually get tacky when it is humid?


Exactly. My hand doesn't slide on it that well. I do have some Dunlop spray polish but that's not helping much either. I have it hanging on the wall so hopefully that'll help the curing process.


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## bogoboy (May 21, 2006)

Try McGuire's Fender guitar polish. The kit comes with three bottles. It's safe for nitro finishes and is an EXCELLENT polish.


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## Stratin2traynor (Sep 27, 2006)

Hey thanks. I'll give that a try


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## fraser (Feb 24, 2007)

ive had the same feeling on nitro necks with 30 or more years of drying time- nitro often seems to "grab" my hand- like i cant slide up and down the neck in the same fashion as with a poly or bare wood neck. once im used to it i change my style to suit, but i switch amongst a number of guitars, so it keeps happening. a bit of work on it with 000 steel wool does the trick. 
i would think that if the finish was not cured enough to be actually sticky in your hands, then it would also be collecting a lot of oil from your hands and lint and cigarette ashes etc, no?
if you didnt already, check out the reranch forum- those guys know theyre nitro, and theres a huge archive of info- ive seen this exact question asked there.
link= http://www.reranch.com/reranch/index.php?sid=7c311af8c1ec7d9655003fa7b82177f8
btw- thats a nice fekkin guitar- congratulations. id love one, but they cost about 3 times more than ive ever spent on a guitar lol. still trying to convince myself i need one.


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## Stratin2traynor (Sep 27, 2006)

Thanks fraser. Luckily I bought mine used and got it for about 1/2 price. Actually cheaper than what I paid for my first MIA Strat. 

As for the steel wool - I've just spoken to a buddy of mine who is an practicing musician and he said the same thing. He emphasized that as long as it's a "players" guitar and not a "collectors" guitar. 

While I'm not the greatest player in the world (or probably on my street) I certainly didn't buy that Strat just to look at....I'll be picking up some steel wool asap! :rockon:


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## fraser (Feb 24, 2007)

good score then lol- im sure in time lots of these will be around for sale used
if you steel wool only enough to make the shininess turn to a more matte finish, then try it- if it feels sticky do a bit more- shouldnt take much. your hand on the neck will polish the shininess back into it, or you can burnish it back with a peice of denim or similar-if you use 000 steel wool and nothing heavier it will be pretty much invisible, and if it improves the feel of the neck
then its worth the effort.

edit- just thought of this- take your time with it, the more you put in, the more youll get back


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## dwagar (Mar 6, 2006)

I use the Fender Meguires kit for the rest of the guitar, but haven't found anything as good as the Guild spray to turn the back of the neck into 'glass'.

I'd suggest trying a couple different types of polish before sanding the back of the neck.

Also, I prefer the 3M sanding pad things to steel wool. I'd use the lightest possible, in the commercial stuff it's white I think.


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## Ringwraith (Nov 17, 2007)

My Les Paul was like that for a few months. I bought it last summer (06) but is an 05. The neck is like glass now. Just play the shit out it & it will settle down. ;-)

Sean


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## Stratin2traynor (Sep 27, 2006)

Thanks for all of the suggestion guys. I've been playing quite a bit and now that summer has passed my strat is nowhere near as sticky as it was. Haven't sanded the neck yet. I'll try the polish or spray if it acts up again in the spring/summer and if that doesn't work then 3M it is. Thanks again


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## SkunkWorks (Apr 12, 2007)

Stratin2traynor said:


> Thanks fraser. Luckily I bought mine used and got it for about 1/2 price. Actually cheaper than what I paid for my first MIA Strat.
> 
> As for the steel wool - I've just spoken to a buddy of mine who is an practicing musician and he said the same thing. He emphasized that as long as it's a "players" guitar and not a "collectors" guitar.
> 
> While I'm not the greatest player in the world (or probably on my street) I certainly didn't buy that Strat just to look at....I'll be picking up some steel wool asap! :rockon:


If it's a players guitar and it doesn't bother you to do so... sand the finish right off the back of the neck. I did this to all of my "player guitars" and they were more slippery than a (place crude hillbilly metaphor here). Over time it will actually gain back a certain amount of glossy but still slippery sheen just from cleaning it (wiping or buffing with a rag or cloth) and playing it.

By the way, lets hear some crude hillbilly metaphors for "slippery"


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