Help with finishing options

[VegasCustom]

Hey everyone, I have a 6 string fanned fret bass I’ve been building for a while now and is about 2 steps away from finishing time. It’s a full laminated wenge neck through with Bubinga body wings. I’ve learned that I can’t use a nitro finish on wenge because it will darken, which is a shame because the nitro on bubinga looks magical. So I’m now leaning in two directions. 1) finish entirely with water based poly to protect the wood and keep most of the natural look OR
2) leave wenge entirely unfinished but finish the bubinga in nitro which presents another problem… is that in any way possible if I also demand a level surface?
3) I guess this leaves a third option which would be a natural oil finish on bubinga, again wenge with no finish because I’m pretty sure all oil finishes will darken the wenge. Obviously this is one of the first finishing jobs I’ll be doing so I’m extremely limited in my knowledge.

 

[Bruce Johnson]

Hey everyone, I have a 6 string fanned fret bass I’ve been building for a while now and is about 2 steps away from finishing time. It’s a full laminated wenge neck through with Bubinga body wings. I’ve learned that I can’t use a nitro finish on wenge because it will darken, which is a shame because the nitro on bubinga looks magical. So I’m now leaning in two directions. 1) finish entirely with water based poly to protect the wood and keep most of the natural look OR
2) leave wenge entirely unfinished but finish the bubinga in nitro which presents another problem… is that in any way possible if I also demand a level surface?
3) I guess this leaves a third option which would be a natural oil finish on bubinga, again wenge with no finish because I’m pretty sure all oil finishes will darken the wenge. Obviously this is one of the first finishing jobs I’ll be doing so I’m extremely limited in my knowledge.

You need to put a finish on both the Wenge and the Bubinga. Don't leave the Wenge bare wood. There would be a big risk of it absorbing moisture and cracking, and it may also start giving you nasty splinters. You need to fill the pores and coat the surface with a good hard finish.

I don't recommend nitro lacquer in general because it's so fragile and doesn't last long. It cracks and chips and peels easily. And it's flammable and smells bad and is expensive. I don't get why anyone still uses nitro lacquer.

I recommend finishing the whole bass in water-base polyurethane. Many good reasons. Our favorite these days is Varathane Ultimate. I'm sure you've seen our thread all about using water-base polys.

Varathane Ultimate is very clear, almost no natural tint. It will darken the Wenge less than oil-base finishes.

 

[Bruce Johnson]

Call it Fun Friday. I thought there was a big shim in the lower neck pocket but it appears that Epi just slants the pocket. Also, why the center hole in the pocket? It doesn’t match any hardware location. Clean, new Power Steels, and a fresh setup.

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[Stealth57]

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Too many alerts…

 

[VegasCustom]

I’m not 100% if I have would you mind linking it?
but that’s actually really lucky on my part because I have a few cans of that stuff in my garage from only a month or two ago. Going to use that for multi guitar stand too for durability.
My affinity to nitro is purely on the fact that they seem to cost more and I’ve never owned one. I have no usable experience yet and am more just trying to seem more professional and turn a bigger profit.
That being said, I have read a ton over the years on using poly and acrylic as it remains in a like new condition for extremely long times. And of course I believe (with no valid proof) that nitro “sounds” better.
feom a health standpoint I’d prefer to never even touch nitro. Evident by me buying cans of it as far back as 2017 and never once opening them.
I do use a brushing lacquer which I don’t know if it’s nitro for insulating pickup magnets on fender style pickups

You need to put a finish on both the Wenge and the Bubinga. Don't leave the Wenge bare wood. There would be a big risk of it absorbing moisture and cracking, and it may also start giving you nasty splinters. You need to fill the pores and coat the surface with a good hard finish.

I don't recommend nitro lacquer in general because it's so fragile and doesn't last long. It cracks and chips and peels easily. And it's flammable and smells bad and is expensive. I don't get why anyone still uses nitro lacquer.

I recommend finishing the whole bass in water-base polyurethane. Many good reasons. Our favorite these days is Varathane Ultimate. I'm sure you've seen our thread all about using water-base polys.

Varathane Ultimate is very clear, almost no natural tint. It will darken the Wenge less than oil-base finishes.

 

[ardgedee]

I’m not 100% if I have would you mind linking it?

Using water based products for instrument finishing, Target Coatings 9000 6000 and Varathane WB

It's pretty huge. Bruce has made a couple "what we've learned" summary posts within it that provide good step-by-step instructions on how to spray VU, so it's worth a skim.

 

[Thumpin6string]

I used a wipe on poly gel finish on both my 6 strings. It's easy to apply, looks great and holds up well. The finish on my 6 string fretted (first pic) is over 20 years old and still looks great.

 

[Freekmagnet]

My affinity to nitro is purely on the fact that they seem to cost more and I’ve never owned one. I have no usable experience yet and am more just trying to seem more professional and turn a bigger profit.
That being said, I have read a ton over the years on using poly and acrylic as it remains in a like new condition for extremely long times. And of course I believe (with no valid proof) that nitro “sounds” better.
feom a health standpoint I’d prefer to never even touch nitro. Evident by me buying cans of it as far back as 2017 and never once opening them.

Yeah, the irrational belief in the magic of nitro is one of those enduring mysteries that never seems to go away. I think it's rooted in the "it's what Leo used, so it must be right," mantra of guitar-building pixie dust. The fact is that in the 1950's, nitro was the product that was available. Finishing products, like a lot of other technologies, have a come a really long way since then.

Nitro is expensive, very toxic, and very flammable. Guys will charge more for a nitro finish just because of that. The benefits are questionable. Nitro looks fantastic right out of the gate, but it's not very durable and it's also not very stable. Any ideas about sound benefits basically come from guys who are trying to convince themselves that they're actually getting something for the extra money that they're paying for a technically inferior finish. I mean, really, that argument centers around the notion that a few microns of paint on the surface of a plank of wood is going to drastically alter the sound of a solid-body instrument. Wood doesn't breathe - it doesn't have lungs, nor is it even alive from the moment they cut the tree.

In terms of cost, usability, and durability, water-based polyurethane is a superior finish to nitro. Automotive poly is even more durable, but it's also more expensive and is very toxic. I think the only reasonable argument in favor of nitro is that if you're looking for a "relic'd" guitar, nitro will wear in such a way makes it look old. Personally, I like my finishes to stay shiny for as long as possible.

My advice is to just forget about the nitro and explore another finishing option. For instance, if you're gravitating toward those fancy-pants tropical hardwood basses, guys will pretty much wet their jeans over a hand-rubbed oil finish.

 

[JeezyMcNuggles]

Hey everyone, I have a 6 string fanned fret bass I’ve been building for a while now and is about 2 steps away from finishing time. It’s a full laminated wenge neck through with Bubinga body wings. I’ve learned that I can’t use a nitro finish on wenge because it will darken, which is a shame because the nitro on bubinga looks magical. So I’m now leaning in two directions. 1) finish entirely with water based poly to protect the wood and keep most of the natural look OR
2) leave wenge entirely unfinished but finish the bubinga in nitro which presents another problem… is that in any way possible if I also demand a level surface?
3) I guess this leaves a third option which would be a natural oil finish on bubinga, again wenge with no finish because I’m pretty sure all oil finishes will darken the wenge. Obviously this is one of the first finishing jobs I’ll be doing so I’m extremely limited in my knowledge.

No matter what you put on it, even wipe it down with mineral oil, it will darken. But, you gotta protect it.

Just get some tung oil, and give it a few light coats.

 

[Bruce Johnson]

I agree with Jeremy (Freekmagnet) and Jeezy;

If you are building a bass from exotic looking woods, and you want to show them off, the simplest finish for it would be a wipe on oil-base finish. Really simple and fast to apply, almost fool proof. A thin wipe-on finish will protect well against moisture, but it isn't much mechanical protection against abrasion or dents.

But, with an oil-base wipe-on finish, the wood has to be sanded to a much higher quality level, better than 400 grit level. Any scratches larger than 400 will show up and look bad. Every square inch of the wood has to be nearly perfect.

Oil-base wipe-on finishes always have some amount of amber-ish tint. The color will be different for various brands and flavors. Many shades are available. Most people want that tint, because it makes the wood look warmer in color. But it will darken the wood somewhat.

Don't use Pure Tung Oil or Pure Danish Oil, or any other finish labeled as Pure. Use Tung Oil Finish, Danish Oil Finish, etc. Look for the work Finish on the label. That means that it has Boiled Lindseed Oil or a poly base mixed in, so that the finish will harden. Minwax, Watco, Varathane, Tru-Oil, and others are all oil-base finishes that work well as a simple wipe-on finish.

You can also use a water-base finish, wiped on. No real odor, faster drying, about the same toughness. Varathane Ultimate can be wiped on, and it's very clear, no real tint. And there's Minwax's Oil-Enhanced Water-Base Polyurethane Finish; super easy to use, and has a nice oil-like tint. And there are other choices.

A wipe-on finish is definitely the simplest and fastest finish you can apply. The tradeoffs are that you have to do a lot more careful work on the wood before you apply it, and it's not very durable long term, if the bass gets played a lot.