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Well, I sprayed my first (gloss) Oxford 9000 and it is a decent product, not nitro mind you but decent. It doesn't have the clarity and depth that nitro has. It's slightly cloudy, not bluish but seems to hide the wood a bit.

Sands nicely after 2 hours and seems to burn in well.

Benefits include: hardly any fumes and I didn't notice any off-gassing either.

It doesn't tac up as fast as nitro so you have to pay attention while spraying so that it doesn't sag. I had to wipe my first coat off as I had way too much material coming out of the gun (which had previously sprayed nitro). Had to cut the volume way back on the fluid needle. I sprayed thinned at 10% with DA and also sprayed straight from the can. I prefer straight. As it sets up a lot slower than nitro it allows the finish to flow out very flat which is a plus.

My one major complaint is that it coagulates and spits out chunks of stuff. I double strained it with various media filters and it didn't seem to help. I will contact Target and see what the fix is.

I have high hopes that it will clear up when buffed. I'll let you know in a couple of weeks.

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tim...
http://www.mcknightguitars.com

[QUOTE=Tim McKnight]My one major complaint is that it coagulates and spits out chunks of stuff. I double strained it with various media filters and it didn't seem to help.[/QUOTE]

Welcome to the world of high-solids waterbornes. They tend to do that, even KTM-9 does that on occasion. I've had better luck since going to one of those high-end metal coffee filters at Mike Doolin's suggestion.

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"I want to know what kind of pickups Vince Gill uses in his Tele, because if I had those, as good of a player as I am, I'm sure I could make it sound like that.
Only badly."

Hey Tim,
I've getting ready to finish my first and have been playing around with the Oxford 9000 on a piece of scrap. I used a paper filter from a drip coffee maker. Took a while, but it worked okay.

One other thing - I've been wondering about the waiting time from last coat to buffing. I seem to recall that someone posted that if you wait too long this stuff is really difficult to buff out. I guess I need to check with Target.

Keep us posted, and I'll follow your lead
BruceH

5 days is about ideal for buffing. 3 days will work, but you'll get some sinkage. Wait 2 weeks, and it'll be a bear to buff.

The chuncks it spits are of no consequence; when all is dry, they will sand away while levelling and dissapear. I just use hardware store paint strainers... As Don says, welcome to waterbornes, which brings up my next observation:

Do yourself a big, big favor, and stop comparing it to nitro. I drove myself nuts comparing everything to nitro. Of course it is different. It will spray different, it will lay down different, it will sand different, and it will buff different. All waterbornes will. Once you accept this fact, and forget everything you know about finishes, and start looking at this as a new learning curve, you'll be fine.

Do not thin it with anything. Use it neat. These things are so touchy to any contamination that the only way to be consistent is to use it straight from the can. Do not even re-use your stir stick!

And be very, very careful not to build too much of it; this stuff is NOT nitro; it builds fast, and what you lay down does not all dissapear(like with nitro). I apply 5-6 dry, dusty coats. You seem to be laying wet coats on; stop at 3-4, or you'll have too much, and it will be soft with low clarity. Keep it thin, and it will be hard, tough, andf crystal clear. I use it on all my necks, and 90% of my headplates are ebony; they show no blue cast, even in direct sunlight, as long as I keep it thin.

Mario:

Yes, I am spraying it wet and I did stop at 4 coats. I had a nitro back that had some scratches in it. I sanded most of the nitro off and sprayed the 9000 on it. I have been using nitro for so darn long it's hard not to make the comparrison. I didn't notice any bluish color but it just looks a bit cloudy like it is masking the real beauty of the wood. I'll know more in 4 more days, right?

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tim...
http://www.mcknightguitars.com

Mario,

Are you using this on guitar bodies too, or just necks?
I would consider trying this product if it was really good. I get great results with KTM-9, but there's always another product to try I guess.

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"I want to know what kind of pickups Vince Gill uses in his Tele, because if I had those, as good of a player as I am, I'm sure I could make it sound like that.
Only badly."

Only necks at the present. I am using McFadden's polyester for my bodies at this time.

I got to a point, with my decade long build list, that I had to stop 'testing' and start building <g>

My long term 'test and learn' is by using the waterbornes on my necks.

I did use the 9000 on a few bodies, and it did look good, and they are holding up fine.

Tim, judge the clarity after it has been sanded and buffed, and cured a couple weeks. Part of my testing of finishes involves building a film on glass, and this stuff remained very, very clear, once buffed(yes, I sanded and buffed the glass samples). USL is a tad clearer, maybe(very close between the two), but it isn't near as tough. More forgiving, the USL, is though.

4 wets coats over an already sealed surface? too much... You'll know if it is, when you buff an edge; if it looks and feels "rubbery", it is too thick.

Is it better than KTM-9? Dunno, because I never jumped on the KTM wagon. I detest epoxy(and am sensitive to enough chemicals already, thank you...) and everyone reported long wait times and a relatively soft finish, so I went my own direction.

Mario:
Thanks for the tips. I spoke with Jeff W. today and we "may" have figured out the coagualtion problem. I thinned the first cup with DA and he said that it could have kicked the 9000. My cup is also teflon lined and he said there might be a problem there too? None the less he said to only thin with water if I had to and to also flush the gun with water (which I didn't do). I only flused with DA. It's a learning curve, eh?

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tim...
http://www.mcknightguitars.com