The key word for brushing on polyurethane is patience. I've had good luck with chisel tip foam brushes. I get good results by letting the foam brush soak in the poly in a plastic tray. I let it sit in about an inch of poly for a couple minutes. That way it's fully loaded. I'm also careful not to press the brush either into the tray or on the work surface. That creates bubbles. Then as I brush I go extremely slowly at the proper angle and with almost no force and let the poly flow out of the brush. It takes patience but if you are you can get an almost glassy smooth finish. Of course that first coat will have some imperfections and bubbles but the second coat will be close to perfect.

My late father in law was a house painter 70 until 30 years ago or so. I've got tons of nice, natural bristled brushes to choose from thanks to him. Thank you for the tips, you rock Brad.

I don’t do anything with guitars but I do a lot of woodworking and have quite a bit of experience doing so but I’m always looking to better my skills and while you may be explaining things I know already, you have very well explained videos and I have definitely picked up more than one tip from you, things I never thought of doing, I guess that’s what makes a good craftsman, acknowledging you don’t know it all and be willing to listen to others with experience. Thanks Brad!

Another tip I got from Dan Erwin on keeping the edge of a paint can clean and avoid splatter when tapping the lid back on is use a Dixie cup to “dip” what you need from the can... no mess at all on your rim... I find new ways to use Dixie cups and tongue depressors everyday. Great video! 👍🏻👍🏻

Thanks Brad I like your videos..very helpful

Awesome Instruction and techniques. Really appreciate the videos Brad.

That looks great! Really excited to slowly build my brother's old guitar into something exceptional and unique. Thanks for the super helpful videos!

Been working on my PRS copy and using the brush on Golss Poly by Minwax. Your videos take away any doubt when using these products. I’m now confident that I’ve chosen the right method for a strong finish.

thanks for making these

Thank you for all your videos and the hard work that goes through making them. I’m currently working on a guitar of my own.

Awesome background music! I am so grateful for this channel for so many reasons. This episode was an absolute gem.

Brad. so glad you collaborated with Dan at Guns and Guitars! I’m not a refinisher but would not be afraid to try. I make lap steels and cigar box guitars as retirement hobby Great channel -Bob. Athens. GA. USA

Great brush finish option. Thanks

Great video tutorial! I'm nearing the end of my first build and was debating what kind of finish to use. This video convinced me to give this a go!

great video thank you.

I still refer back to your channel for awesome instructions and this is my 15th build now...thanks brad

Nice and shiney..

I checked out the but vid you sent me, great stuff. I have patched the bridge hole sanded it down and letting wood glue set before paint and finish. Your vids and help have been great. Thanks for all the work you put in. It's allowing my '87 Dean Z Autograph to be able to sing again after 30 years of being cased in a closet. I can't wait for it to be finished. 👍

Very useful and thank you. I am not doing guitar but wooden rubbing strake on boat.

Really nice finish pretty quickly.

Oh and thanks for the content I watched your other video and I did a good job last time so you definitely set me straight on lacquer I'd never use lacquer it f****** I like the performance of it

Looks great! I need one of those buffers

Good job.very nice

Thank you for posting your videos!!! You saved me a headache with one of your videos about how NOT to use laquer with enamel paints!!! Thank you!!!!

Great video, thanks!

Nice words. Very reasurring

I would definitely use that on a build. After about 4 coats sand and polish with a little compound to a mirror. For headlights (polycarbonate) we use a pink open-cell pad with compound to bring up a factory clarity and shine after 800/1000/1500. 800 would put a lot of scratches into that glossy finish...I'd start at 1500 and go up from there as ll you really need to do is level. Nice beautiful look though.

Got her finished (clear coat gloss) today Brad, few pics sent there now on your fb messenger. I can never thank you enough so all i can say is many thanks. Turned out stunning.

these vids have been so helpful to me over the last week ? after buying a 2nd hand squire online a few years ago, felt it wasnt quite right, anyway after finally stripping the guitar down found a painted after market body, with two layers of paint and a thick plastic covering, ive had to flake off, now im ready to finish the body, i wasn't sure which way to go with it, but now, I think this is the way to go? brush on lacquer, and sand and buff as required, brilliant, thanks for the info Brad

Pro tip: Something he doesn't specifically mention (but does automatically) is that you need to hold your Sanders FLAT to the surface, don't sand on the edge of the tools! Otherwise it cuts a groove into the material and you can easily burn through the finish into the wood.

Brad , awesome finished! ,, please where do i gel all finished , gloss finished . my best !!

Thanks for the effort. Absolutely perfect for the rookie painters. Play guitar for 40 years and never paint one? Ya, das bin ich! Go figure.

I've actually done a lot of floors with that same product. It is a easy product compared to a lot of other stuff

thanks for the vids...i have learned enough to feel confident with the finishing steps for my guitars..working on a telecaster now..i used gloss watco hand rubbed polyurethane, followed with 1000 grit wet sanding and rubbed it out with toothpaste and a little water, because i had nothing else at the time...surprisingly enough it turned out to a realllllly nice satin finish..then used a good auto detailing polish and its smooth as glass...your vids helped a great deal, thanks again.

Wow, shiny. Good work!

finished staining a J bass red mahogany, this technique will work well and protect it. Thanks for tips

products , thank you !

Nice one, saved me there ;)

I'm happy to see this video Brad, brushing is my area of experience much (much!) more than spraying is., although I'm not an 'expert' by any means. If I may......your're right to use long strokes if possible, but if not, then short ones will do to get the material on the job. But, always 'float off' with long strokes. so in other words, get the material on the job as best you can, then with the same brush, but no material on it, make your long stokes (with not much pressure) to level out the material...or to 'float if off' as we say. Also, use the very best quality brush you possibly can get hold of. If re-using a brush, if it isn't 100% clean and soft, then don't use it...get another one because it will not give such a good finish. Ask me how I know this! Lastly, as with any finish, make sure that the material is warm...or at least not cold. I know it's summer for you at the moment so it may not be an issue. For me it's winter so i would need to stand my pot of finish in a pan of warm water before brushing it on. I know you know this, but i thought I'd mention it if you don't mind. For what it's worth, quite frankly I'm surprised that brushing isn't more widely used today. If you cast your mind back to the beautifully finished horse drawn carriages of old, they were all brush finished, as were the early cars. Have a look at an early Rolls Royce or similar quality car from that era with the original paint....all brushed on. Cheers....and go the All Blacks!! ;)

I did not know that whole poking trick that's cool

You can brush it on any old Direction preferably across the grain and then go back and tip it off with the grain you'll get a nicer look and you won't have as many missed spots known by painters as holidays, your varnish will be be evened out as far as thick and thin places. If you do this it'll be relatively the same thickness everywhere. Then you can take a rag wrap it around your forefinger and go around the perimeter wipe off any excess runs around the edge and do the same around the edge of all your cavities such as your pick up cavities wiring cavities anything like this. This way you don't have to spend a lot of time trying to be real neat around the cavities just get it on there real quick, I suggest going across the grain first then tipping it off with the grain as I said before because this evens out the thickness of the varnish/paint/stain coat instead of having thick and thin spots. When you first put your brush down it's thicker right there and then as your brush gives out of paint/varnish/stain it gets thinner. When you put another brush full it's thicker wherever you first stick your brush down, but if you apply your finish in two directions each one counseling out the other you don't have that problem. Your coat of finish will be real even like a spray coat by doing this and you have plenty of open time when using an oil-based product on a small surface like the face of a guitar. Also I suggest that you not sand any higher than 220 for your first coat this will give you better adhesion certainly not higher than 320. 600 is a little slick for my liking. 600 grit might cause you problems with adhesion not right away but at some point down the line it May chip and peel-off down to the wood whereas your coating a lot more grip on 220 and you can't see any difference under a clear coat or a painted coat. I've done this for forty+ years, since 1972 and I've never had any problem provided you sand with the grain and don't have any cross-grain scratches. Typically painters and finishers will use 120 to 150 as their final sand on painted Pine and 220 Hardwood or if they're planning on staining and or varnishing Pine they might go to 220, although 120 works just fine. If you want to go crazy you can go to 3:20 but I never have. also try using a Wooster yachtsman marine varnish brush these are the best for applying oil/solvent based varnish/stain/paint. They have a finer grade of bristle and they're fairly inexpensive because they have a cheap plastic handle instead of an expensive wood handle. The bristle is what matters. They have the high quality marine varnish bristle which is a fine grade of rwhite china bristle like the brush you're using. My favourite China bristle brush for the particular job you are doing is a two and a half inch brush straight across and if you want to get a little more high quality in that it has a little more bristle count per square inch get the Worcester with the little round pencil handle that's what we painters call them the handle is about like one of those fat kindergarten pencils you get it's a wood handllet. God Bless Merry Christmas & Happy New Year to you& yourn!! Jimmy in NC....

Noce job brother

This is great! Ive been wanting to refinish a les paul but worried i wouldnt be able to get a shiny finish but this seems way easier than most other techniques i have seen

Hi Brad. A few [!] words to round off my project. A number of issues encountered on the way that may be useful for those less experienced, like me. 1] As you mentioned before but it has to be made very clear - a really good quality brush is absolutely essential. Mine was bristle but of inferior quality, including shedding bristles. This gave me all sorts of probs which were difficult to remedy. I abandoned it for a foam sponge. More of that below. 2] Depending on the make of poly and the conditions you're working in, if you don't get it right with each pass, trying to make good may result in making worse. I found that my poly was virtually unworkable, as far as a 'repair' on the guitar, after as little as 20-30 seconds! Here we are, in middish Oct and I'm still in just shorts by day, sleeping under only a sheet, in Valencia, Spain. Temp in work room 28C/82F+. 26C/79F today. 3] I had some double-layer dish cleaning foam sponges. One side was a very soft foam, smallish 'bubbles'. I found that really loading the sponge up along one edge and making a non-stop pass down the guitar left a good, thick layer of poly. Looked like a layer of watered-down yoghurt. It's extremely important that the pass is non-stop. I found that a pause, or stopping short, left a boundary line, with brush or sponge, and if not dealt with instantly, just left work to do with the abrasive, 24 hrs later - sanding out the 'ridge' and making another non stop pass down that area. 4] As you must make a non-stop pass, off the edge of the guitar, with a well-loaded brush or sponge, there are going to be runs down the side of the guitar. Mine is square-edged and with plastic binding. It is essential to wipe the runs clear before they run round the lower edge onto the other surface. If they do run 'round the corner' onto the lower surface, they dry to a solid bleb. Picking these off, if on the surface you coated first, results in a disaster - the bleb comes away with all the layers below it! - leaving a torn edge to the area, right down to the original surface! This is exceedingly difficult to repair. If the original surface is wood, maybe it's easier but mine was a factory paint satin finish. Hours of painstaking work with scalpel, abrasive and fine artist brush. Looks close, but no cigar. After 3 attemps to get a finish with that horrible brush, I had fine 'tramlines' all down the back - my training camp. Massive sanding job to try to flat these out - not entirely successful. Only removing all the poly would have worked. Then came the learning curve with the pad, the characteristics of the poly ... you will be suitably amazed to know I ended up with 9 [nine!] coats on the back! I now know how to get a really glassy finish in two coats - if I ever did this again! 5] Once the poly has gone off completely - 24 hrs - it's possible, with great care, to make local repairs. Sand the offending area and load the pad so that the bulk of the poly goes down on the repair area and feathers off onto the surrounding area as the poly on the sponge thins off. This takes some practice. I've done it with household gloss paint and it works with clear poly. The front has three coats and needed a couple of areas of local repair. It could use some more but I have called a halt for now. From 5 paces it looks pretty good. But it was a test bed and shows the signs of being so. I doubt there'll be another but if there is it will be miles better!

Just an FYI. Do not apply Polyurethane by brushing back and forth. You brush in a single direction only and flow the finish on. Once you have applied the finish to the full length of the body, finish with a final stroke the full length of the body from end to end. Follow up he rest of the body in the same direction.

Man you make it look so easy. I hate doing brush on or wipe on poly. It always takes way more effort and time than spray.

Your video's are super helpful thanks man. Im just about to start my first build, i have a lovely mahogany telecaster body. Am i right in thinking i should sand it down to a high grit, then use a grain filler and sand down again, and then finally use this for the gloss finish? Thanks Leon

That Beach toolbox is a great piece of Canadiana, nice to see!

Guys, this strictly a personal preference, but as a long-time automotive painter, I prefer spraying every time. Thick finishes are said (by some purists) to alter tone. Spray-can polyurethane enamel clears work fine on guitars -- so do Krylon spray paints from Wally World or K Mart. (Others will work, and any cheap spray-on primer is okay, but I've always found Krylon to be the best quality spray paint.) Ya won't have brush-mark streaks, either, and final polishing is IMHO optional. Depending on how well you handle a spray can. (Car model builders will be ahead of the game.) That said -- good vid, Brad, that should be a nice-lookin' guitar.

Hey Brad, As usual - amazing video. How do you do the sides and back of the guitar using this technique? Finish one surface at a time and then move on to the next? Or would you suspend the guitar and do all the surfaces together?

Love the videos man, any idea what would cause spray can clear to wrinkle over time even after it is cured. Keep it up dude!

Thank you for your great help. May I use this technique to classical guitar finishes as well? Look forward to hear from you soon. Thank you

Hi Brad... any tips for finishing a basswood guitar body? Thank you for your videos.

Hey Brad, I enjoyed your tutorial. Did you mention what kind of gloss you are using? The can was turned at an angle that I could only make out "professional" written on the can. I love the high shine. Thanks for sharing your knowledge with us.

you mentioned about doing a test to make sure it won’t cause problems with the paint. in another video you used dupli color paint.. do you know if this will work over that kind of paint? i’m still trying to figure out if i need to use lacquer or acrylic lacquer paint. help… thank you for your work and videos. they are so helpful

Dude those holes in the can it's a great idea but for some reason I saw it on Martha Stewart tips show you know her home economics show or whatever she used to have LOL

Hey Brad, great video! I have almost finished my project and it looks great, the only thing is the poly finish still gets imprinted when I run my fingernail across. The project has sat for 2 weeks. Should I just let it dry longer?

Is it possible to brush spraying nitro lacquer with proper thinning? I'm not able to get this kind of varnish finishes. Your's turned out nice.

What type of wood is that? The color is beautiful! Would I get the same results if I used spray and with the same method of polishing?

I can't thank you enough. I took everything you said on board on a very expensive vintage guitar. Had a very bad reaction with nitro lacquer on my vintage lacquer (monday), yes it should of stuck but none of it did, nightmare. Took a deep breath and decided to get it off quick (long story, but i did, thank god). I then bought some Coo - Var (pack 2) polyurethane clear varnish gloss, and tested for 1 hour were the 4 screws hold the headstock to the fret board, perfect. Then putting the guitar body up the ways in a hard plastic rod tube and taped the made up bit of wood i screwed in to headstock and used also my experience on how i was taught to varnish with yes sanding with 600 grit as i had my old lacquer intact. Varnished the whole body and wow it came up like new, 1st coat is dry (thursday) and tomorrow il sand with 600 grit (lightly) and after it dries il let it sit for 3 weeks. You guys are craftsmen and i can never thank you enough.

how do you apply it to the back of the guitar? do you do the back first or what?? looks great

I have a question. I have a Epiphone Les Paul that I just got. It has a factory (dull) satin finish on the body. I am putting on transparent decals on it. To keep the stickers permanently on the guitar and to give the guitar a kind of shiny finish on top of the stickers, what would I use on it? How long til the guitar body is fully dry and able to out the hardware back in it? Thank you.

Thank you! Are you reusing the polishing pads?

Can this product (or any product) be put on over a Tru Oil finish, without string back to bar. Love the look I've got, just want a glass gloss finish to it. Thank for passing on your expertise. Locked down in Edmonton Alberta. lol

So is it okay to do this to the body before you drill holes? I’m thinking both for the bridge and the switch board.

I’ve never worked with anything like this but plan to soon. I have a old guitar that was never used. So i decided to sand it down and customize it with some acrylic paintings. I want to gloss it back up! Would my acrylic paintings on it smudge after applying gloss?

Hey Brad so i got me a new kit and i have some oil based wood stain . And a water based polyurethane clear gloss. On it . Have you ever use varathane wood stain and would you recommend it.

Would a water based finish be cheaper?

Thanks Brad, could you indicate what the rpm's are for the orbital sander and the polisher? I don't want to sand through the body.

You mentioned early in the video to test a section if you're painting first, to make sure that clear coat doesn't have a bad interaction with the paint. How about if you are using a transparent stain first? Same thing or is that less risky? I love the gloss level you achieved with this product and process!

That finish looks fantastic. But I can't find that particular Varathane product around here. Would another product work just as well? Maybe regular polyurethane?

Fantastic!!! How do I avoid runs or drips when I paint the sides and back? Thanks!!!

In that this glossy layer is oil based would it be safe to apply over an oil stained and hand rubbed oil finish to get a mix of ultra glossy and satin finished with just the oil rubbed finish?

That appears to be a flat top, so if I am thinking of doing this to a very matte finished Gibson with a slightly carved top. would the process change? In other words. would the material dissipate from the top as gravity pulls wet finish to the edges?

I have a brush on satin poly, I'm staining the guitar black Should I thin it enough to just wipe it on or would the brush work And as far as the coats go, I have no way to suspend it, so should I do the front and sides first? Or tape off the sides, do the front, then do the back, then sides? It's my first time so any help would be absolutely amazing!

Brad, I cannot find behlens polish anywhere. Do you know what other hand polish I can use? Thanks, Steve

Is it atall possible to brush on a top coat on tanks ect and get a good finish ... I use an airbrush but haven't got the equipment to spray laquer to finish ?

Hw 2 gv gloss on the fretboard

Hey Brad, first of all thanks for your video! Great stuff! Can I ask, do you finish the top first then the back then the sides (or some other particular order)? Or do you finish all of them at the same time and hang the body somehow? Is there any problem to tackle them separately? The wood moving cause one part is finished and not the rest for example? Thanks!

Beautiful and helpful video, as usual... Just a question: if the guitar has been colored with water-based stain, would you use any product like sanding sealer, grain filler or would you just brush the finish directly onto the stained wood? Thanks a lot.

Brad, what do you recommend for a good masking tape?

Varathane Professional Clear Finish 900 Gloss seems to be available in Canada only. Is there a comparable finish that is readily available in the US that is just as good? Thanks.

What grit sandpaper do you use to sand the first and second coats of stain on a headstock?

Thanks Brad! Is Varthane available at home depot? And can it be applied over stain or dye?

If I were to do a second coat, what grit sandpaper (dry or wet) would you recommend?

Have you got an alternative for the verathane coz I’m from the uk and they don’t sell it here, will any oil based gloss finish work?

Would it be advised to polish a matte/satin finish to get rid of any imperfections, or would that add to much sheen?

What about the back and sides? Do you sand and poly as well?

Hi Brad! Do i need some kind of sealer on a sanded down guitarbody before applying lacquer? The wood is poplar so its a fine grain.

How do you feel about the water based varathane finishes? Particularly I’ve heard the floor finish dries super clear and pretty durable? Any thoughts? Thanks.

Did you build the body of the guitar yourself or was it purchased? if you purchased it where can I find it or what model is this body based off of?

Hi Brad, thank you for taking the time to make your videos. Two questions: 1. Did you fill the grain on the wood here before adding a finish? 2. Would this finish work over a previously applied nitrocellulose finish? (I have a guitar body that already has a thin nitro coating).

Hi Brad, could you do this to a guitar with paint on? (What I’m looking at doing is removing the gloss off the guitar, drawing/decorating on it, then re applying the shiny finish to the guitar) Do you have any other pointers on how to do this effectively or if there is a better way of doing this? Thanks in advance 😀

Roll and tip. Thin the varathane @ 10% with a combination of spirits and naptha, roll it on with a foam hot dog roller, and immediately tip it one stroke only, in one direction, with a finish dampened badger hair varnish brush. It will look smoother than if it was sprayed and if you do choose to rub it out, there will be a lot less sanding. You may even decide it does not need polish. Also, you can wet sand wood finishes with mineral spirits without damage or changes to the wood or the subsequent finish coats.

Hiya Brad... A thought crossed my mind (a strange thing I know), but if I were to spray a dark burst effect that fades into the natural wood, is it possible to use the 2K clear to finish as you did in the Frankenstrat? I know I could brush (or spray) the polyurethane as you've shown here, but I wonder if the 2k clear would be fine on the natural wood? I ask the question because the 2k clear will dry very hard, which might be desirable. Cheers

Can this be used on top of a Duplicolor spray lacquer? Assuming it has dried properly for a few days before top coating.

I maybe a bit late to the party I've been watching as meany of your guitar videos as I'm working on a les paul style my self. I have this question can I use this method on a stained body or is it best to use spray cans

Since you mentioned that you're fairly inexperienced with brushing technique, here is a good tip. Never start your stroke in the wet material. Meaning, either start it on a previously unpainted section or, on a guitar, start at one edge and go all the way through and off the opposite edge. If you need to get to a spot in the central area that was missed, always start at an edge and brush towards the center. This eliminates lap marks.

Could I paint over the wipe on poly with the brush on stuff you used? The wipe on poly didn’t give my guitar the super glossy look I was looking for

Great Channel and videos. I'm going to be finishing a new Alder body Strat in the next few weeks. What I'm looking to do is to achieve a wine red finish. I was thinking about going to Stewart MacDonald and getting some color tone stain. I was told to mix up some red and blue to achieve that color. Do you think I should get some wood filler apply that in and sand it off maybe get some highlights in the wood and then apply the mixed stain into the body or put some sanding sealer on there first? Also was thinking about using the Varnish in this video or maybe some wipe on poly after that. Any tips would be appreciated. Thanks Thanks for your efforts and good luck.