I own 2 Heartfield EX-1 's. Both are (were) pearlized white and manufactured in 1989 (going by serial numbers). And I'm warning you guys now, I plan to ruin the collectable value of one of 'em.
Through researching and personal experience, I have learned that Heartfield finished these guitars with a base coat of flat white paint, and used actual pearl powder in the clear coat to achieve that pearlized finish. The appearance is amazing.....when they're new. The problem is that real pearls yellow naturally over time, even in perfect environmental conditions.
Both are now yellow(ish) and the pearl effect is less noticeable.
One is not very yellow, and looks "antiqued", sort of. That one I've decided to leave as it is.
The other is (was) VERY yellow, and not a good yellow. It looks like the clear coat was brushed on with a pee-soaked diaper. And, even if you happen to be into that sort of thing
, it's still pretty ugly. So I've decided to re-finish it, and I've already removed the old finish and I'm in the pre-base-coat sanding process. I used West Systems Marine Grade Crystal Clear epoxy as the sealer/filler, and after that step, the natural wood appearance was beautiful, and I was tempted to not paint over that because it looked so good. But the body is two pieces of wood. The larger is poplar (I think) and is beautiful. The lower 1/3rd or so (looking at it from the front, in playing position) looks like ash (maybe) and isn't quite as nice as the large piece. I flipped a coin, and it landed "proceed with painting". So...
The base coat is going to be a light-medium purple, with a darker plum on the face of the headstock and in all the pockets and cavities. Logo and serial number (and the "Made in Japan") hand-painted on in silver. The clear coat will be the same epoxy mentioned above, with a synthetic silver powder mixed in (which I'm told will give it a distinctive sparkle without changing color as it ages). I plan to be finished with it in about a month, since I need to build a clean room/spray booth first.
I'll post pics when it's all finished.
Any thoughts/advise?
