Thanks for that Wez - it all fits with what I experienced (if not with what I did!!)
Interesting about that wet-sanding with the oil. The first coat I followed the instructions on the tin - ladle it on (I used a paint brush) then wipe off after a few minutes.
The next coat went on with fingers, with a wipe off. I could see problems developing - patchyness with regard to gloss/satin, marks from the wipe-off cloth because the oil had cured too long (even after 1-2 mins!! What's this "wipe off after a few minutes" about then?? :lol:), etc. So I wire wooled it (dry) a bit, but I could see my skills/patience weren't going to be up to that.
So I had what I thought was a brainwave - I applied the last coat with wire wool, rubbing it in for each section until it had reached the "wiped off" stage. I decided to go for only 3 coats, because I wanted minimal coating to provide "just enough" protection. I'm planning on it having successive Bri-wax treatments over coming months/years. As it won't be getting subjected to the "sweat-soaked" gigs I used to do, I reckon this will be enough to turn it into a nice, protected, "old piece of furniture" finish...
After the oiling phase, and letting it fully dry for a couple of days, I ended up with a consistent but much glossier finish than I had been expecting. I also had a few places where there was oil build-up (eg drip marks over edges). So I applied Bri-wax in much the same way as the last coat of oil, using wire-wool to apply and cut back the gloss at the same time. When the wax was dry, I rubbed off the excess, then buffed it back up. This revealed the areas I hadn't cut back enough, so another Bri-wax coat (entire finish) but concentrating on the shiny and lumpy bits first.
That's the last layer I did, knowing I'll do some again later. With playing/handling and it all settling, I can see a few areas on the front where I missed a few shiny spots, and a few areas (near the edges of the body) where oil build up wasn't completely sorted - these result in duller patches. However it only shows up in the mirror when you'r posing and the light catches it - it's a real bugger to spot it when you're inspecting it "first-hand" (with a view to fixing it).
I'm confident that leaving it like this for a few weeks for the inconsistencies to "develop" and for me to learn where they are, followed by another Bri-wax session is going to be just peachy :D
As it stands now, I'm very impressed with what I've done and would feel no shame playing it and allowing people to see it in this state. However, if I'd actually paid someone else to do it, and this was presented as the finished article, I'd be unlikely to take it back to them!! :lol:
