Laser Cleaning Stained Mandolins

[Simon DS]

Saw vids of people having their tattoos removed using a laser.
Seems reasonably painless but wondered how that would feel on a mandolin?
Have any of you guys tried this or seen the results?

[MikeEdgerton]

This might be a solution looking for a problem. Most of the time a damp soft cloth can be used to clean a mandolin and I'm not sure what anyone would be looking to remove that would require a laser but I'm open to looking at almost anything.

[allenhopkins]

My kid has made laser-etched wooden objects, including a nice pick box for me. However, it seems that the function of the laser is somewhat similar to the old "wood burning" kits some of us used back in the day, to add marks to the wood rather than remove them.

Removing tattoos by laser apparently involves vaporizing the tattoo ink. Those who've had it done compare it to being repeatedly snapped with a rubber band -- not really "painless," but endurable. If there were an imbedded discoloration on a mandolin, and the discoloring agent were susceptible to being vaporized and aspirated -- and if the wood and the finish could "take the heat," so to speak, without damage....

Well, a lot of "ifs"...

[Bob A]

Belt sander is my go-to for mandolin touch-up and tattoo removal.

[Richard500]

Removing a tattoo using a mandolin would be painful.

[Marty Jacobson]

The reason why laser tattoo removal works is that it breaks up the pigments into particles which are small enough for the human body's immune system to remove them. The laser itself does not do anything to remove the tattoo pigment. When you watch the video, it looks like something is happening immediately, but it's just an initial inflammation and scattering of the particles that makes it look like the markings are dissipated immediately, even though they're all still there.

[mandroid]

Had a laser cleaning up under my cataract replacement lens in my eye, vision was cloudy before that..

[Simon DS]

The reason why laser tattoo removal works is that it breaks up the pigments into particles which are small enough for the human body's immune system to remove them. The laser itself does not do anything to remove the tattoo pigment. When you watch the video, it looks like something is happening immediately, but it's just an initial inflammation and scattering of the particles that makes it look like the markings are dissipated immediately, even though they're all still there.

Well, back to the drawing board. I guess sanding is easier, but maybe there are situations where there’s inlay or something. I imagined that the dies or stains could be somehow bleached and then removed with a solvent but I guess there are probably other better ways. The thing I like about the laser option is that it could work with graphics on a computer and be reasonably precise.

[Sheila Lagrand]

Belt sander is my go-to for mandolin touch-up and tattoo removal.

Hey! Do you have my home "bugged"? Because this comment is quite reminiscent of a frequent exchange between my husband and me.