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Finish Preferences.

Fergie Fulton

Fergie Fulton

Nov 22, 2008
4,652
1,056
Braintree
Disclosures
Retrovibe Artist rota
#1
Hi all I am collecting some basic information on the various finishes to bass guitars.

If you prefer a painted finish then please state preferred colour and why.
There are many colours, some single colour, some mixed colour, some are shades etc.


If you prefer a natural finish then please state type of finish and why.
There are many ways to finish a natural bass, some like a dark finish some like a light finish, some like combination finishes going from dark to light or light to dark.
Some like different finishes to different aspects of the bass, especially if bindings or inlays are used.

Please pass the link to this thread around as the more information on what players want or desire the better.
Thanks

F.

If either preference comes with a prefered scratch plate colour and hardware please state, and of course is the finish on either a gloss or matt.
 
#5
wvbass said:
I prefer dragonburst with gold hardware because it reminds me of the pet dragon I used to have. Ralphie had gold-capped teeth.
Click to expand...

Interesting, but what colour was your dragon that complimented gold hardware....?

Basic main colour that seem popular amongst manufacturers through the years for painted are, Black, White, Blue, Green, and Red of various shades..such as Polar White, Sea Green, Fiesta Red, etc.

Natural finishes depend on the wood and perhaps the grain being used.
 
#6
IMO, there are many appealing ways to finish the body and headstock of a bass. But, the back of the neck should either be bare wood or a very light nitro finish. It must not get sticky to the touch at all.

Hope this helps.

Jim
 
#8
I'm not really that picky. Certain basses just look "right" in certain finishes though. As for a blanket statement?

I like nitro finish vs. poly
I like nitro (can be gloss or satin), satin, oiled, or unfinished necks vs. poly gloss
I like black or chrome hardware vs. gold

If I had to choose one color combo for the rest of my life it would be Black & Maple.
 
#9
Yamaha Attitude Limited II lava red:
basically a red/black mix, satin maple neck and fingerboard

Yamaha Attitude Limited II all black:
solid black, satin maple neck and fingerboard

Ibanez Doug Wimbish Bass1 Prestige:
highgloss transblue (to let all maple neckthru body shine thru gloss), higloss PauFerro fingerboard with abalone inlays... Being an Italian, to me it's like Mario Balotelli shooting goals with the Italian National Football Team cobalt blue shirt on

Fender '10 AmericanStandardJazz:
vintage white with polyester maple neck

Fender BT dual splitcoil WCP Jazz:
white chorme pearl with higloss maple neck

Fender Reggie Hamilton 3TS Jazz:
3 tone sunburst trans finish, with polyester maple neck

Ken Smith Design '60s Proto Jazz:
3 tone sunburst trans finish, with polyester maple neck

Eko Florence Acoustic:
solid black with ivory bound binding

Yamaha Attitude DiMarzio "Will Power":
lake placid blue finish (metallic blue) and higloss maple neck and fingerboard

Yamaha RBX 350 Hipshot GB7 "Gotoh":
sparkling blue metallic and polyester maple neck

Yamaha BBN #5:
walnut satin finish, satin maple neck finish

Fender Modern Player Jaguar Special:
solid black with higloss maple neck and fingerboard

Fender Precision jr. DiMarzio "Model1":
Torino red (somewhere between Ferrari blood red and Alfa Romeo crimson red) polyester maple neck

Squier Praha/Bartolini UpGraded Jazz:
higloss maple body, satin maple neck and fingerboard

Squier Bartolini/SeymourDuncan Jazz:
olympic white and higloss maple neck

Reading this all up, chances are you'll get, not my favorite bass guitar, but surely my favorite finish...

Cheers,
Wallace
 
#10
jsbarber said:
IMO, there are many appealing ways to finish the body and headstock of a bass. But, the back of the neck should either be bare wood or a very light nitro finish. It must not get sticky to the touch at all.

Hope this helps.

Jim
Click to expand...

Thanks Jim, i have found an un-painted back of neck to be a preference for many players. Yes the body can be painted but the back of the neck is more about the functionality of the finish to assist the hand in movement, and give a solid feel to the player. Problems only really become apparent in use under lights when the player gets hot..not something you can test in a shop. But some light talc on the back of the neck helps relieve stickyness but can be messy.

Something i believe is certain Satin finishes did not do work, the main complaint was it felt "cheap".
I have always taken this to me " not a solid feel" as to me they do not feel like part of the instrument...like the neck was an after thought, or a neck from a different bass.
 

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