Grain filler & tru oil

BassAv8r · #1 02-15-2005, 11:12 PM

So I am ready to put a Tru-Oil finish on a mahogany/maple bass and need to find a grain filler for the mahogany. I can't find anyone in the area who carries Birchwood Casey's sealer & filler, which was my first choice. I tryed using some minwax wood filler on scrap and soon discovered that it wasn't clear and was made for being stained. I was thinking about sanding sealer, but didn't know if it would work with Tru-Oil. I would like to be able to use something from Home Depot or Woodcraft instead waiting for something to be shipped. Any suggestions?

Hambone · #2 02-16-2005, 06:20 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by BassAv8r

So I am ready to put a Tru-Oil finish on a mahogany/maple bass and need to find a grain filler for the mahogany. I can't find anyone in the area who carries Birchwood Casey's sealer & filler, which was my first choice. I tryed using some minwax wood filler on scrap and soon discovered that it wasn't clear and was made for being stained. I was thinking about sanding sealer, but didn't know if it would work with Tru-Oil. I would like to be able to use something from Home Depot or Woodcraft instead waiting for something to be shipped. Any suggestions?

If you do it right, most pore fillers will work well because they go into the holes and you sand off everything else. But you don't have to use them if it's not possible. Why not just us the Tru Oil? It'll take a little longer but you do it the same way - apply a fairly thick coating and then use a plastic scraper of some sort to push it down into the pores. A couple of rounds of this with sanding in between and it should be very smooth.

Luke Sheridan · #3 02-16-2005, 07:07 AM

Hammy, you seem to be quite an advocate of Tru oil. Do you have any pictures to post showing a body oiled with Tru? I will soon be finishing by Goncalo/Padouk body and am podering finishes.
Sam qx on using filler, do Goncalo and padouk need a filler or just the oil.
Thanks...

N*Joy · #4 02-16-2005, 07:19 AM

I was looking for an answer to this question however not as a grain filler but more to fill two very small holes in the laminate top of a P bass body I have (it was only $90 so I won't complain!). Hopefully I can start with the tru oil soon but I need to fill these gaps first - what kind of filler should I be looking for?

JTGale · #5 02-16-2005, 09:06 AM

I first heard of Birchwood Casey's in reference to finishing gun stocks. Have you tried any local gun shops or gunsmiths? Might be worth a call ...

BTW, I love their stuff! Great product with nice results.

M.R. Ogle · #6 02-16-2005, 10:24 AM

The Tru-Oil is all that I use on the wood. No filler, no sealer, nothing but Tru-Oil. They have some good tips on it's usse at the Birchwood Casey site, too.

BassAv8r · #7 02-16-2005, 01:50 PM

Using just tru oil appears to work on the mahogany, with the exception of the end grain. The end grain seems like it soaks up the tru oil, even after multiple applications, and doesn't build to a gloss. Do I just need to keep pushing the tru oil in until the surface begins to build?

Hambone · #8 02-16-2005, 08:17 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Luke Sheridan

Hammy, you seem to be quite an advocate of Tru oil. Do you have any pictures to post showing a body oiled with Tru? I will soon be finishing by Goncalo/Padouk body and am podering finishes.
Sam qx on using filler, do Goncalo and padouk need a filler or just the oil.
Thanks...

Luke, I'm not just a stuffed shirt with my opinion towards TO. I have a real reason for being so enamoured with it. I'M AN IDIOT and this is the perfect finish method for me because I can't screw it up!

I have another pic of a walnut bass that has a few more curves and shows the finish better but since it's not done, I'm not letting that cat out of the bag yet. But here's my maple Jazz with a TO finish, only a TO finish and nothing but a TO finish, so help me God. It's a little blurry but it gets the idea across:

JTGale · #9 02-16-2005, 10:54 PM

Nice!

How many coats of TO are on there? It really does look like you have some kind of clear coat on there ...

JSPguitars · #10 02-17-2005, 01:20 AM

I'm guessing at least 15 coats.

Puarija · #11 02-17-2005, 01:35 AM

Any ideas for filling the grain in a fretless wenge fingerboard Hambone?

tjclem · #12 02-17-2005, 05:08 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Puarija

Any ideas for filling the grain in a fretless wenge fingerboard Hambone?

Slow setting CA glues I do it all the time. Spread it on with a thin card. Mask off the sides. Do only outside the fumes are nasty!

then sand off the excess.......t

Hambone · #13 02-17-2005, 06:24 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by JSPguitars

I'm guessing at least 15 coats.

I don't think it took that many - I probably didn't have the patience for it.

The maple is very smooth and that helps with setting a gloss in the early stages. And a coat with my technique isn't a "coat" in the usual sense of the word. I wet my paper towel and simply wipe over the previously dried oil until it's shiny all over, then let it dry. I think the real reason it looks like it's got more depth is first, the rubdown with the polishing compound and then second, the waxing. Then the look of the oil changes from a slightly plasticy look to a nice natural organic shine that is really appealing.

Hambone · #14 02-17-2005, 06:26 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Puarija

Any ideas for filling the grain in a fretless wenge fingerboard Hambone?

Quote:

Originally Posted by tjclem

Slow setting CA glues I do it all the time. Spread it on with a thin card. Mask off the sides. Do only outside the fumes are nasty! then sand off the excess.......t

Nope, not a clue.

Hambone · #15 02-17-2005, 06:31 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by BassAv8r

Using just tru oil appears to work on the mahogany, with the exception of the end grain. The end grain seems like it soaks up the tru oil, even after multiple applications, and doesn't build to a gloss. Do I just need to keep pushing the tru oil in until the surface begins to build?

I've never used it on Mahogany but my walnut is quite porous and it closed up quickly. You might want to not "push" too much but rather slather the stuff on in a thick coat and let it go. What I think will happen is that it will get to the drying stage before it all soaks in. Then you can wet sand off the high spots and do it again for any of the areas that did soak up the oil.

patrickj · #16 02-17-2005, 08:30 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Hambone

Luke, I'm not just a stuffed shirt with my opinion towards TO. I have a real reason for being so enamoured with it. I'M AN IDIOT and this is the perfect finish method for me because I can't screw it up!

I have another pic of a walnut bass that has a few more curves and shows the finish better but since it's not done, I'm not letting that cat out of the bag yet. But here's my maple Jazz with a TO finish, only a TO finish and nothing but a TO finish, so help me God. It's a little blurry but it gets the idea across:

Nice wood!

Luke Sheridan · #17 02-17-2005, 09:35 AM

That's nice. I guess I'm going to actually have to feel what TO feels like on a bass. I'd like it to actually feel like wood rather than a hard coat. Rudy's in NYC has a great selection, but the help there is less than optimal, at least on my last visit.

BassAv8r · #18 02-17-2005, 02:15 PM

Here's the bass that I am finishing after one coat of tru oil on the top. I'll probably build it up to about 4 or 5 coats before I use wipe-on poly. I'm still trying to get the mahogany part of the body to soak up the tru oil, but I think it should do it after a few more coats.

Hambone · #19 02-17-2005, 04:00 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by BassAv8r

Here's the bass that I am finishing after one coat of tru oil on the top. I'll probably build it up to about 4 or 5 coats before I use wipe-on poly. I'm still trying to get the mahogany part of the body to soak up the tru oil, but I think it should do it after a few more coats.

Yowza - too bad you couldn't get that flame to pop!

Looks Great

Bass Viking · #20 02-17-2005, 09:07 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by BassAv8r

Here's the bass that I am finishing after one coat of tru oil on the top. I'll probably build it up to about 4 or 5 coats before I use wipe-on poly. I'm still trying to get the mahogany part of the body to soak up the tru oil, but I think it should do it after a few more coats.

Beautiful looking top! Have you considered wet sanding the oil finish? I did that with a maple neck and it feels amazingly smooth. I'm going to do that with a black korina body I have.