• TalkBass has been independent since 1998. Add your voice.
    Create a free account to reply to discussions, view embedded media, and browse with fewer display ads.
    Join free Log in
    Want zero display ads or expanded classifieds tools? Compare plans.

Guitar finish, bed liner?

Ronbeast

Ronbeast

Sep 20, 2008
847
551
33
Placentia,Newfoundland,Canada
#1
I just wanna start off by saying I have no idea which forum this should be posted in, but luthier's corner seemed semi-logical

I was just wondering if anyone had any experience with a guitar finished in truck bed liner? I searched it for a long time on google and only came across 3 or 4 examples of guitars that have been painted with the stuff.

A lot of the ones I saw were a really textured finish with a lot of sharp looking protrusions. I'm looking more for a satin/semi textured finish and I came across "Rustoleum bed liner", which seems more in the ball park of what I'm looking for. I guess what I'm really asking is have any of you coated a guitar or bass in bed liner? What brand did you use and do you have any tips? I've seen people do cabs and heads in the stuff, but not as many people seem interested in painting their instruments with it.

Thanks for any advice or criticisms!

-Ron
 
#2
If I was going to do I would do Duratex and shoot for the orange-peel finish. That is what my fEARful is done with and it is smooth to the touch.

That being said, nobody does it because it is super heavy. Nobody does it commercially because guitarists believe in magic, and magic only comes out of wood if it can breathe, so you need a thin finish like nitro.
 
#3
DiabolusInMusic said:
If I was going to do I would do Duratex and shoot for the orange-peel finish. That is what my fEARful is done with and it is smooth to the touch.

That being said, nobody does it because it is super heavy. Nobody does it commercially because guitarists believe in magic, and magic only comes out of wood if it can breathe, so you need a thin finish like nitro.
Click to expand...

I don't believe in any of that magic, I just wanna get my cheap Ibby back in commission. As for weight, I'm not too concerned, even if this thing is in the 10lb range it's still in the average for most of the instruments I own, plus I have it heavily stripped of parts anyway; no controls, one pickup. I was just curious based on what I've heard in terms of ease of use and durability.
 
#4
I used the Rustoleum on a box I made for my GB Shuttle 9.0 ( not a guitar, I know). I expected it to be rough, and fill some smaller voids in the wood. The finish is dimpled but it didn't fill the voids as much as I thought. It appears very durable and could be sanded smoother if desired. Easy to apply and fast drying. Probably take more than one can to do a body.
 
#5
What kind of finish is on it now? You could always go to bare wood and just tung oil the thing. It is probably the easiest and cheapest option. It also will not add a couple pounds to your bass.

Duratex has to be imported but it is for speaker cabinets, not truck liner, so it is much lighter, even then it is pretty heavy. It is super easy to work with though. I am not good with finishing and I was super happy with my results. I would think you could use the same technique on any old bed liner material but I don't know.

If you do it in bed liner post some results, I would be very curious to see it.
 
#6
DiabolusInMusic said:
What kind of finish is on it now? You could always go to bare wood and just tung oil the thing. It is probably the easiest and cheapest option. It also will not add a couple pounds to your bass.

Duratex has to be imported but it is for speaker cabinets, not truck liner, so it is much lighter, even then it is pretty heavy. It is super easy to work with though. I am not good with finishing and I was super happy with my results. I would think you could use the same technique on any old bed liner material but I don't know.

If you do it in bed liner post some results, I would be very curious to see it.
Click to expand...

unfortunately the body is plywood. I stripped this guitar a long time ago and have since painted it a few times, so far it has been black, blue, white and now I think it will be bed-linered :p

I think I'll go ahead and try it out for the sake of experimentation. Nothing to lose on this guitar as I don't plan to sell it, and it's not worth anything anyway.
 
  • Like
Reactions: maves75
#9
It has come up here on TalkBass before. Hopefully it will turn up on a search here.

Keep in mind that when Music Man SUBs came out, there were a few threads on removing that finish, as some people didn't like the feel of it on their forearms.
 
#11
I don't know if this technique works on other bed liners but this was the results with Duratex. Basically, you apply the Duratex and take a crinkled up shopping bag to it when wet. Just stick it on and pull it off. The bigger the bag the easier it is to do. I found the more crinkles the better.

Here is the texture of my cabinet, nice and smooth.
texture_close_Small.jpg


If you wouldn't mind weighing your body before and after the liner, I would be very curious to know how heavy it actually is.
 
#12
pilotjones said:
It has come up here on TalkBass before. Hopefully it will turn up on a search here.

Keep in mind that when Music Man SUBs came out, there were a few threads on removing that finish, as some people didn't like the feel of it on their forearms.
Click to expand...

I removed mine, because the bass was white and a bunch of funk got into the texture. It was pretty disgusting looking, and impossible to clean. I just sanded it down until it was smooth and painted over it.
 
#13
If you have a auto shop near you, most have the Rustoleum spray on truck bed liner in a rattle can. If you have a Harbor Freight near you, they have a similar thing for cheaper and the quality is the same (brand is "Iron Armor" or something like that).

I would love to see the final results if you do go ahead with it. I'm all about truck bed liner, but I never thought of doing a guitar.
 
#14
DiabolusInMusic said:
If you wouldn't mind weighing your body before and after the liner, I would be very curious to know how heavy it actually is.
Click to expand...

I'm sorry I can't do a before and after of the weight, because I already went ahead and did it :p

I must say though, the body does not feel noticeably heavier. I'm sure it did gain a little weight, but not so much as to be a burden. I'll get the pics up now:

2n6c7iv.jpg


112a62w.jpg


140gc1z.jpg


i36qys.jpg



So, the finish was a success, I was able to get a nice even coat and now my guitar looks and feels like a stealth bomber :D

Pros to this type of finish:
1)This stuff is cheap, I was able to completely finish the guitar for $20, that was the cost of two cans of the Rustcheck brand bed liner, I only used one full can and a little out of the second for touchups.

2) It is easy to use. There is a little bit of a learning curve (About 15 minutes) and I recommend using a test piece if you haven't used this stuff before. I got a few blotches on the back which will be hidden by a back plate, mainly because this stuff builds quickly if you don't move fast enough.

3) You can change the overall texture of the bed liner by changing your distance and the speed you move across the body at. I settled on a fairly grainy but not abrasive texture once I got a hang out it.

4) This stuff is strong, but it also has a little bit of rubbery effect to it (very minimal amount) so it helps against impacts.

5) Coats dry very quickly. I was able to lay down a new coat every 5 minutes and this guitar was completely dry to the touch after an hour, I did 3 coats.

6) Because this stuff is Highbuild, it will fill in small gouges etc if you use it right. It won't fill massive craters, but I had a few small dents and gouges the size of the tip of a pen which have completely disappeared and it also covered the plywood sides of my guitar which always had grain showing through, no matter how thick I laid paint on.

Cons to this type of finish:
1) It's not everbodys cup of tea. I can't imagine anybody who is a purist would like this stuff. For a DIY guy like myself, it turned out great and looks cool (very distinguishable).

2) It is semi-abrasive, but it hardens strong enough to be sanded down. I chose to leave mine the way it is because although it isn't smooth to the touch, it won't cut you either.

3)It can be difficult to paint in cavities because this bed liner build so quickly, you're almost guaranteed to get a run, but it is only during cavity painting.

Overall, I recommend this finish to anyone who just wants a quick, cheap and durable finish on their guitar. Of course, I haven't taken my guitar out yet due to the fact that is it still in pieces, but so far I'm very satisfied YMMV.

-Ron
 
  • Like
Reactions: Doctor Morbius, Buchada Azeda, DiabolusInMusic and 2 others
#15
Ronbeast said:
I'm sorry I can't do a before and after of the weight, because I already went ahead and did it :p

I must say though, the body does not feel noticeably heavier. I'm sure it did gain a little weight, but not so much as to be a burden. I'll get the pics up now:

2n6c7iv.jpg


112a62w.jpg


140gc1z.jpg


i36qys.jpg



So, the finish was a success, I was able to get a nice even coat and now my guitar looks and feels like a stealth bomber :D

Pros to this type of finish:
1)This stuff is cheap, I was able to completely finish the guitar for $20, that was the cost of two cans of the Rustcheck brand bed liner, I only used one full can and a little out of the second for touchups.

2) It is easy to use. There is a little bit of a learning curve (About 15 minutes) and I recommend using a test piece if you haven't used this stuff before. I got a few blotches on the back which will be hidden by a back plate, mainly because this stuff builds quickly if you don't move fast enough.

3) You can change the overall texture of the bed liner by changing your distance and the speed you move across the body at. I settled on a fairly grainy but not abrasive texture once I got a hang out it.

4) This stuff is strong, but it also has a little bit of rubbery effect to it (very minimal amount) so it helps against impacts.

5) Coats dry very quickly. I was able to lay down a new coat every 5 minutes and this guitar was completely dry to the touch after an hour, I did 3 coats.

6) Because this stuff is Highbuild, it will fill in small gouges etc if you use it right. It won't fill massive craters, but I had a few small dents and gouges the size of the tip of a pen which have completely disappeared and it also covered the plywood sides of my guitar which always had grain showing through, no matter how thick I laid paint on.

Cons to this type of finish:
1) It's not everbodys cup of tea. I can't imagine anybody who is a purist would like this stuff. For a DIY guy like myself, it turned out great and looks cool (very distinguishable).

2) It is semi-abrasive, but it hardens strong enough to be sanded down. I chose to leave mine the way it is because although it isn't smooth to the touch, it won't cut you either.

3)It can be difficult to paint in cavities because this bed liner build so quickly, you're almost guaranteed to get a run, but it is only during cavity painting.

Overall, I recommend this finish to anyone who just wants a quick, cheap and durable finish on their guitar. Of course, I haven't taken my guitar out yet due to the fact that is it still in pieces, but so far I'm very satisfied YMMV.

-Ron
Click to expand...
 
#17
I just scored a neck on ebay for this one, a 22 fret Ibanez GIO neck that has never even been bolted onto a body before. It doesn't have a model number stamped into the back, no screws for the tuners drilled and not even a nut cut! I think this one might get a zero fret installed. It's actually incredibly hard to find a decent 22 fret Ibanez neck, and I wanted to have a genuine Ibanez neck because It just flows with the guitar and I've dealt with cheaper stuff and didn't like it...

Seems like this project is progressing quickly. The main troubles I ever had with this guitar were the finish and the neck. Now I will have both up to my standards and I already have all of the other parts to finish it, except for the pickguard, which I will be making sometime soon.

-Ron
 

Latest posts

Top Bottom
Back