68' Vette getting the kinks out

So this part of the process isn't that easy to show in pics so I'll try to describe what I'm doing and I'll show pics as they become available/or as they become viewable....very difficult to see the small stuff.

The guitar has various small to extremely large dings and scratches that have penetrated the finish and actually affected the wood....pretty deep ones too. Luckily this is old growth lumber that is very dense(grain). This means we can use an old technique that has been in use for centuries in woodworking to raise the grain and effectively heal old wounds.

It's a kinda magic...wooooooooh...

I start by removing the finish. this is accomplished using nasty chemicals and light sanding...I gotta stress light sanding... I'm removing finish, I don't want to remove any wood. Once the finish is removed and we are dealing with wood and only wood I start the magic process.

I let some water soak into the dings and scratches, I then apply heat to the areas using a soldering gun. NOT touching the wood but hovering over it just enough for the grain to stretch and lift. This occurs when the water turns to steam and effectively pushes the grain up. Once this dries completely I'll repeat the process over and over until the grain has lifted enough to give me a flat enough surface to start applying sanding sealer....thats it...water and heat. Mother Natures magic.

I'll have before and after photos when I get to the after process. Sometimes this takes awhile. Especially on a really beat up piece of wood.