Bronzing guitars

[VegasCustom]

Hey guys, any info on bronzing a Strat available? Trying to make my dad a bunch of guitars he loves to adorn his office walls, not necessarily played but more appreciated.
Legend always says Robbie Robertson straight up dipped his guitar in a vat of molten bronze. Doesn’t sound possible with what little I know. Was it electroplated? Or is there some special esoteric method for bronzing wood by dipping it?

 

[Beej]

You mean like we used to have done to our baby shoes? They spray it with an electroplating compatible coating and then coat it for the bronze effect. It can be done to a strat for sure, but it will probably turn it into an art piece. There's probably someone relatively close to you in the US.

 

[Bruce Johnson]

Hey guys, any info on bronzing a Strat available? Trying to make my dad a bunch of guitars he loves to adorn his office walls, not necessarily played but more appreciated.
Legend always says Robbie Robertson straight up dipped his guitar in a vat of molten bronze. Doesn’t sound possible with what little I know. Was it electroplated? Or is there some special esoteric method for bronzing wood by dipping it?

Rather than messing around with real bronzing technique, just paint them. You can get spray cans of "bronze" paint which has a very nice bronze-like metallic glow. It's usually a clear acrylic or polyurethane with tinted metalflake mixed in. Or mix your own, adding bronze metalflake to your choice of clear poly.

Take the strings off, wipe it down thoroughly with DNA or NAPTHA, and spray the whole thing. Everything, all assembled. Maybe put something in the output jack hole to mask it. Don't put it on too thick, just a couple of coats.

After it's dry, put the strings back on, being careful not to chip the paint on the tuners too much. Tune it up, and it should still play okay. Obviously, the paint will quickly wear off the crowns of the frets, and wherever you rest your right hand. But, so what? It would look nice as a wall decoration, with a little bit of grubbiness from being played occasionally.