Technical Library DECORATION VI: Case painting Entire Contents Copyright © 2010 CBH

•  Choose a premium-quality paint.
•  Preparation is the most important part of the job: Paint doesn’t hide imperfections on the surface, but rather, reveals them.
•  Brush marks are part of the picture of a beautiful hand-crafted object, but they should be almost invisible.
•  Paint can be applied on the surface in any direction, but must be finished by “laying off” lightly with the brush.
•  Always work from wet towards dry.
•  Greens and blues cover particularly well.
•  The almost translucent nature of the red pigments means you will need additional color coats for adequate coverage.
•  Sand lightly between coats.
•  Finish with a varnish for your desired level of gloss and protection to the finish.

Choosing the paint…

The eighteen colors of flat oil paint colors shown here come from a small manufacturer in Pennsylvania who continues to produce oil-based paints the way they used to be made, with pigments ground into oil. These rich paints are heavy-bodied, and a joy to work with.

Modern glossy paints or ordinary enamels cover less well, and are much harder to work than the real flat oil paints. And you certainly want to avoid the appearance of a sprayed harpsichord!

Some of these colors were made for the restoration of Old Salem Village in Massachusetts, covering a time span from 1800 to 1840. Most date back to the eighteenth century.

OIL PAINT COLORS         Colonial White   Philadelphia Blue           Japan Silk   Cabinet Maker’s Blue           Town House Ivory   Soldier Blue           Old Gold   Tavern Table Blue           Chinese Red   Colonial Green           British Red   Wild Bayberry           Salem Brick   Sugar Box Green           New England Red   Forest Green           Antique Pewter     Black

Application of the paint…

The actual application of the paint is the easiest part of the job—a pleasure that follows your careful preparation. Major imperfections must be removed with a plane or scraper, or sanded off with 120-grit paper. Compression dents must be swelled out with water. Small gaps and holes can then be filled with putty. An application of shellac or rub-on varnish will seal the wood, and you are ready for the undercoat which can be sanded down to a perfectly smooth and even surface.

A nice brush makes painting pleasurable. The first coat of color should be sanded back before the second, somewhat thinner coat is applied. Depending on the sort of finish you are after, and what color you are using, more coats may be required.

After a final, very light sand, you are ready for three or four coats of rub-on varnish at four hour intervals to protect the surface and provide a depth of gloss, then all is done. The rub on varnish is also suitable for bare wood finishes.

You can, of course, purchase many of the items mentioned from us. All the materials are the best we have found for the purpose, and are identical to what we use in our shop to apply the highest standard of finish to our custom instruments. You couldn’t ask for any better recommendation than that.

		Painting the harpsichord case — Time-lapse Time-lapse of Carey Beebe applying the first coat of color to a French Double Harpsichord.
		Brush technique Carey Beebe demonstrating hand painting on a harpsichord lid flap.
		Priming the harpsichord case Carey Beebe applying primer to a Ruckers Double Harpsichord case.

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