I'm watching this series of videos for the third time to see the details. The spectacular work, your diatics and generosity are fantastic. I'm sorry for living far away and not speaking English very well because I'm Brazilian. But it would be great if one day you could come here to Brazil to teach a course. I've been building guitars for several years but I always learn something new from your videos. Thank you very much.

Excellent! You know I have a special interest in French polishing, so looking forward to the series!

What a great professor, Pablo. Congrats.

Great Pablo!

Excellent video, very clear and useful instructions. Thank you for sharing your knowledge with us.

Epoxy grain filling done. Thank you so much for the confidence I gained watching this.

Hello again Pablo just put the first coat on of the resin came out real well thank you so much for sharing your talents with the public.

Pablo, thank you so much for sharing your wisdom with us!

Your videos are informative, and a joy to watch- I read somewhere in here that you may be doing a video series for sale eventually. Looking forward to this.

Thank you for your patience with the masses. It is easy to follow someone that you feel inside that he is a master. Thank you master Pablo.

Excellent video and quite informative.

Mr. Requena is exceptionally articulate about his craft....a rare combination to be able to teach as well as expertly perform.

Thank you Pablo! Patiently waiting more. Soon I hope.

It's great you returned, you're always very clear

Hello Pablo, thanks again for sharing your knowledge and craft. I tried some pore-filling materials, but sofar wasn't very happy with the result. I will give your method a try. Can't wait for the rest of the series.

Pablo Thanks for showing me how too do the job. I just built my first Guitar a Martin 000 28 this will sure make it nice.....

Pablo , you always present the little nuances that are so important . The slower setting 206 West System hardener is definitely better to use in the application , not only to provide a longer working time , but also to allow the applied resin a longer period of time to ‘flow out’ and level the surface porosity .

Grandísimo Maestro ! Muchas Gracias por sus excelentes videos y compartirnos de manera tan detallada, tantos valiosos conocimientos.

Great video, I'm becoming your fan! Thanks a lot, Pablo!

Nice work!

Brilliant ! Thank you very much...

Thanks for publishing all these videos Pablo...they are so useful for we budding luthiers. Clear and inspiring.

Pablo is so humble it becomes even a better job to watch. I'm brazillian and I need to restore a Di Giorgio, Romeo and this seams the perfect way considering the marks I have on the wood. Thank you!

I enjoy it mucho!

Pablo, It's great to see this. I'm getting ready to finish Bruce's guitar now and intend to do it exactly as you teach it here. Thank you my brother for all your kindness.

I love your channel!!!

Thank You.

Hola Pablo, interesante, impaciente de ver tu manera de hacer, un abrazo!

Good job. This is one way of filling pores. I prefer paste pore filler or pumice/shellac/alcohol (not sprinkled on the wood!). But I have tried epoxy a few times before and didn't like it. That said, there are many ways to skin a cat. You must find the best way FOR YOU to fill the pores, and also to French polish. What one maker likes, another hates. We are all different. Looking forward to the rest of this series, Maestro. Thank you for sharing your methods.

This is very interesting. I restore concertinas and harmoniums and have been French polishing for a number of years. The idea of using epoxy as a grain filler is a relevation - so many thanks for the great tip!!

Brilliant, thank you. I'm not sure I have the courage to try epoxy, but your technique is great.

Beautiful work maestro! Just a couple of thoughts: 1. You can 'hot coat' West System epoxy, which means after the first coat is sticky to the touch you can apply a second coat without sanding and so on. So if the goal is to create a three coat base, this can be done easily in one day. Then the last coat is gently sanded in preparation for your final finishes. 2. You can use a larger plastic spreader just like the ones used for auto body filler. This will dramatically reduce the number of lines when the epoxy is cured. 3. There is a product called PeelPly which can be applied to the last coat of wet epoxy. When the epoxy has cured, this material is peeled off and a very smooth finish is the result. You can also simply use thick plastic which is available cheaply at Home Depot. Using this method will result in no lines from the spreader.

You can buy the larger cans of West system and use their pumps that pump out the correct ratio. Also, epoxy doesn't dry, it cures. Epoxy is an exothermic reaction, not an evaporative process. You can also use Cyanoacrylate adhesive (super glue) to do pore filling too. Easier to sand. Apply with a cotton ball and work fast.

I absolutely love your video's. I have just about finished constructing my workshop so that i may be able to hopefully attempt making guitars myself. Your video's are a mine of information. I only wish I could afford to attend one of your courses. Have you ever thought of putting your knowledge down in a book ? I cant wait for your next video.Cheers

Gracias Pablo por el tutorial sobre Frensh polish. soy Edwin Aponte de Puerto Rico, me gustó el vídeo y espero por el proximo. Saludos.

Thank you so much for this series’s of videos on French polishing, you have encouraged me to restore me 1978 Yamaha FG512 ii 12 string which has almost exactly the same woods are your guitar is video. Question, do i need to take it all the way back to bare wood?

Maestro I have fair amount of experience with West System epoxy for my various boat projects. The 207 Special Clear Hardener is ideal as a base for clear finishes / varnishes as it is very clear and has UV inhibitors in it. This might be ideal for your application as well.

Interesting Pablo, I’ve used Pumice but I fancy trying this. I checked out the West System and they have a 207 clear hardener. What’s your thoughts on using it instead of the 206? Look forward to seeing the other videos, they’re always very informative. 😊

Thank you you have just made my job easy! I hope i can find the West System fill. I really did not want too use the powder that stewmac has maybe i hope he may have the West System....

I'm looking for the other 8 videos...

K recuerdos Pablo! Buen video, saludos!

Pablo, thanks for this series, its excellent. Do you seal the raw wood with Shellac first or do you apply the Epoxy directly to the raw wood.

Thanks for a great series of videos! Would you say that walnut needs grain filling?

How long have you been using Epoxy for grain filling?

Hello Paplo, Thanks for your videos they have been most helpful in my french polishing my mahogany guitar which has turned out beautifully. I am currently french polishing a new guitar I made with rosewood back and sides. However I have hit a snag. I large area (about 10%) of the back remains a flat finish whilst the rest polishes up nicely. It's as if this part of the back has some foreign substance on it and wont take the polish. I have sanded back (by hand) all the polish on the back and repolished but same result. Have you any suggestions please. Peter

Really enjoying this, it's a great start and I'm very much looking forward to the coming episodes. Forgive my ignorance, but if you're mixing 1ml hardener with 6ml resin, wouldn't that give you a 6:1 ratio?

great video. Thanks for sharing. Apologies if you've answered this elsewhere but what grit do you sand to before using the epoxy? Thanks

Thank you for these videos!!! That guitar has a beautiful shape! what kind of plantilla did you use? Thanks

Ole!

Maestro, do you know if it is possible to use a epoxy filler like West System 404 to thicken the resin, for the very first application? In case which one?

Hello Pablo I have a question for you if you can answer it please. My Rosewood and the guitar is ready to be started can I clean the wood with alcohol before I start to put on fiberglass? And the shellac on The Binding. I have looked at probably a dozen different polishers on KZfaq and you are the best. Thank you so much giving us access to this valuable information on polishing. You are number one.

Hello Pablo, I’m Steve your videos and explanations are amazing so informative and extremely helpful I have a small question I’m watching the tutorial on French polishing and it’s great but my question is what is the polish you use is it just the shellac with little alcohol or is the a named product you use?

Does the epoxy counter act the benefit of the French polish on tone by soaking into the wood

Isn't shellac a grain filler itself? I saw shellac solution marketed as "sanding sealer", is that the same thing as grain filler? Thanks!

Pablo, im about to embark on my 1st French polish on my most recent build (nearly finished) My current build has a 3 piece back, mahogany with a rosewood center, and mahogany sides. Do you recommend using an epoxy filler like this on mahogany back and sides? Or should I just utilize pumice? I also have rosewood binding & rosewood rosette (the rosette has HUGE pores) do you think I should try and fill the pores on the binding and rosette using epoxy?

Hi Pablo, so if one wants to stay with all natural material French polishing using shellac , what do you recommend for sealer instead of epoxy?

Congrats for the videos! Is french polish recommended only for classical guitar? If yes, why the reason?

Can we use Epoxy on Acoustic guitar also? Here Araldite is available , it is also useable?

I have been watching your videos which I enjoy very much. One thing I do not understand is, why don´t you use two syringes, one for the resin and another for the hardener. It looks to me to be an easier and better way of doing the job, nevertheless I would be very much interested to know if you have a strong reason for doing the mixer with just one syringe. Best regards and thanks for the videos.

Hay una guitarrista clasica de nombre REQUENA és familiar suya. Gracias

Why do you have to do the grain filling at all? Thanks for your videos, they are very well done and informative.

Has this epoxy layer any impact on sound ?

A quick question Pablo, if the resin is clear why not use it on the heel to stabilise the wood of the neck?

What’s the best way and product to strip a lacquered guitar ?

Mr Pablo I want to filling pores back and sides wenge wood..it has really open pores..this way is suitable or the pores will become green??thanks for sharing these videos!

Hi Pablo, you are obviously a very skilled craftsmen and have perfected your technique but did cringe when you used the same syringe in hardener and resin, I was always told not to just incase of contamination. Carry on making videos on making your fantastic creations

I can only find 6 of the 9 where are the rest Pablo??

Very nice, thanks for detailed explanations! Except for saying 1000 times “soy” 😆

For anybody using epoxy resin, please be very careful, in many countries you have to be certified to use this stuff, at the very least wear gloves and work in a very well ventilated place or outside.

I want to apprentice in your shop. Ill work my ass off for next to nothing.

Hello, my name is George, I'm from Romania and I follow your tutorials on the internet. Out of love for music and for the Spanish guitar in particular, due to a medical condition in my left hand I could no longer play and that's when I learned to bring it back to life, to repair it a little bit, to set up for the guitars. At this moment I would like some advice regarding the finishing of an Alhambra 4P guitar, namely the back of the guitar had damaged lacquer, it was whitish like milk in a places.I don't have a workshop or a suitable place to paint the guitar, I want to finish it with Shellack. I sanded this back from guitar down to the bare wood, it's a veneer that I damaged in some places when I sanded the surface to make it flat and clean without any traces of old finishes. Until today, I tried repeatedly to finish the back of this Alhambra 4P guitar, but the wood became uneven when I applied Schelack.French Polisch The first time - I sanded the varnish down to the wood -I finished the wood with P320 sandpaper - I sealed the edges with Shellac - -I then applied pumice powder with Shellac 2 times, then I sanded lightly and proceeded to the French polish technique. I had left because the wood was not uniform The second time -sanded to the wood -finished the wood with P320 -applied Aqua Coat 2 layers and lightly sanded with P320 between the two applications -then French Polish and again those uneven spots appeared in the wood. Now I don't know what to do? I saw that you use Epoxy for the back of the guitar and its sides. I would like if you have any advice on how to renovate only the back without damaging the sides of the guitar.

Hope you use an activated charcoal face mask normally when using epoxy. Also gassing off is not in your workshop.

Pablo, have you ever used glaire (egg whites) to fill the pores?

si hablas español porque no haces los tutoriales wn español

meh...you just made that wood guitar a plastic one...

Obviously you're a master builder.. but please tell me you didn't just put epoxy all over the guitar to fill the grain??!!! Jesus... why even bother french polishing it... might as well spray some poly on and call it a day. (the whole point of the wood is to let it resonate in a natural and organic way... all of your grain is now filled with epoxy... I know it's incredibly subtle, and probably not too many people could hear a difference, but ... Your top is part hard plastic!! Besides filling the grain there's a nice thin layer over the wood!!).

I just subscribed to the channel before I watched the entire video. Then I saw 'grain filling with epoxy' ... sorry - had to unsubscribe immediatelly ....