Well, I sanded down to bare wood last night, cleaned up the mess and did a new dye job. Even though the last one came out really good I decided that if I was going to get a do over I would try a burst. I've always wanted a tobacco burst. So I tried this method I found in a web video by a guy who makes Mandolins. I can't remember the link off hand but have it home and will post it, because it worked.
He uses water diluted dyes and puts each different color dye in a shallow bowl. He also has a bowl of plain water. He then makes pads like the kind used in French Polishing for each color. I made mine from an old tee shirt. His secret is that he wets the body good before he starts. He claims, and is right, that the water in the wood disperses the dye so it spreads naturally and takes less work to blend. He was right. I started in the middle with vintage amber, then proceeded to the outside with the dark brown. It worked like a champ. I was able to blend the brown into the amber smoothly with little effort. I then added just a little orange to the area where the brown met the amber. If you get any streaking or places that are hard to blend, use the pad with plain water to lightly go over that area and help the blending. It looks great, just like I knew what I was doing!
Once dry, he lightly sands and seals it with shellac. Then he does a French Polish, which I may try. His finish was beautiful.
This morning after drying for a night I went down to lightly sand and much to my surprise the same spot sanded through, with 400 grit! There must be something with the wood there that just doesn't take the dye well. I easily repaired it using the same method. I guess I'll have to be extra careful around that area.
I'll post a picture once I get some sealer on there.
JESUS
