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How many Warmoth Bodies have YOU ruined?

comatosedragon

comatosedragon

Oct 12, 2014
1,840
2,959
Rockingham VA {616}
#1
Doesn't have to be Warmoth I guess - maybe an Allparts body or something else.

We've all been there - hearing the sweet, seductive siren call of a raw piece of wood from the Warmoth Showcase. Your mind thinks of all the possibilities of finishing the body yourself; having something that is truly yours. It might not be about the money or the time; maybe you just want to prove to yourself that you can do it. So you spend hundreds of hours reading threads; watching videos and trying to sort out all the misinformation and downright lies.

I have personally ruined 3 Warmoth bodies; I think I'm done.

#1 Was back in 2014 I believe. I purchased a Black Korina extra light Gecko body from the showcase. Purchased supplies from Guitar Re-Ranch including analine dyes and oil based wood grain filler. Applying wood filler is a horrible messy job, and it feels like much more gets thrown away than actually used. Applying the dye is so much fun! Watching that boring raw wood spring to life with the intended design and color was just magical. Then the nightmare began. Everyone says a Tung Oil finish is great and easy to apply. I don't know if people just have lower standards than I do; or what. But the results were horrible. Firstly; the Tung Oil did not soak into the body; it just sat on top, creating a thick goopy layer. Any amount of sanding (wet or dry) did nothing except ruin the finish further. The body had to be thrown right into the dumpster. It was kind of heartbreaking; but I told myself It was a learning experience.

#2 So I decided to try again a few months later. Purchased another Gecko showcase body (Swamp Ash this time). I still had dyes and some grain filler left from my previous attempt; so I did not need to purchase more. Grain filled the wood, and then achieved stunning results in a homemade dragon-burst. It was beautiful; I was so proud of myself. I decided to not try Tung Oil; and this time try "Wipe on Polly" which I heard a lot of people (including many on these forums) like to use. The results were equally disastrous. After having the first several coats dry and then moving on to wet sanding (to fix the "orange-peel") it was evident this method was no better than Tung Oil; and in fact produced results equally horrific. The finish stayed tacky for months, Highlighted every single piece of cat hair or dander; and just overall looked and felt horrible. So that one got thrown in the dumpster as well.

Then I said "F This" and I just purchased a Pre-Finished Gecko Body; and everything was good.

#3 Was just now (2020). I purchased a light weight Z-Bass body in Swamp Ash from the showcase. I have been watching many videos about Angelus Leather Dye; and am super impressed by the results. So I ordered a bunch of dyes also to try out. Let me say, these dyes are awesome (and very cheap!). I was able to get a magnificent yellow/amber burst for what was to be my final bass; an extension of myself. In my hubris I actually thought I could complete this. So I got some Lee Valley Tung Oil again; and decided to try this again. Two weeks and several attempted coats later; and I knew this was not going to work. I don't get it -- I really don't. I had worked as a painter for many years; so all of this is not new to me. But I just can not achieve acceptable results when finishing a guitar. The tung oil "goops-up" (am I completely misunderstanding the purpose of tung-oil? Isn't it supposed to soak into the wood??!!) and sits on top of the body, like a thick finish; not like an oil at all. It drips and leaves horrible stains and runs around the horns and on the edges of the body. The drips can not be sanded out, because attempting to do so would change the contours of the body at this point.
I just walked back up from the dumpster; and I'm feeling horrible and stupid. What a waste of time and energy. Like I say, I don't know if everyone else just has lower standards than me or what. But I am through wasting time and supplies. I guess I will just have to purchase pre finished bodies from now on, and know that I will never be able to have something that is truly me. (I do have 3 Warmoth basses built from pre finished bodies; but I wanted something personal :crying:)

I am leaving this thread here mostly as a reminder to myself in case I ever feel like doing something stupid again.

Feel free to answer the question though; How many Wamoth bodies have YOU ruined?
(either by your own stupidity or not)
 
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#2
This sucks to hear. Warmoth bodies are not cheap. I have never tried to finish a Warmoth body myself. I have either taken mine to a pro or bought a finished body from them. I have 2 Warmoth P Basses that I really love. Maybe some of the professional luthiers/painters? can shed some light on what's happening with your tung oil/poly finishes.
 
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#4
comatosedragon said:
Doesn't have to be Warmoth I guess - maybe an Allparts body or something else.

We've all been there - hearing the sweet, seductive siren call of a raw piece of wood from the Warmoth Showcase. Your mind thinks of all the possibilities of finishing the body yourself; having something that is truly yours. It might not be about the money or the time; maybe you just want to prove to yourself that you can do it. So you spend hundreds of hours reading threads; watching videos and trying to sort out all the misinformation and downright lies.

I have personally ruined 3 Warmoth bodies; I think I'm done.

#1 Was back in 2014 I believe. I purchased a Black Korina extra light Gecko body from the showcase. Purchased supplies from Guitar Re-Ranch including analine dyes and oil based wood grain filler. Applying wood filler is a horrible messy job, and it feels like much more gets thrown away than actually used. Applying the dye is so much fun! Watching that boring raw wood spring to life with the intended design and color was just magical. Then the nightmare began. Everyone says a Tung Oil finish is great and easy to apply. I don't know if people just have lower standards than I do; or what. But the results were horrible. Firstly; the Tung Oil did not soak into the body; it just sat on top, creating a thick goopy layer. Any amount of sanding (wet or dry) did nothing except ruin the finish further. The body had to be thrown right into the dumpster. It was kind of heartbreaking; but I told myself It was a learning experience.

#2 So I decided to try again a few months later. Purchased another Gecko showcase body (Swamp Ash this time). I still had dyes and some grain filler left from my previous attempt; so I did not need to purchase more. Grain filled the wood, and then achieved stunning results in a homemade dragon-burst. It was beautiful; I was so proud of myself. I decided to not try Tung Oil; and this time try "Wipe on Polly" which I heard a lot of people (including many on these forums) like to use. The results were equally disastrous. After having the first several coats dry and then moving on to wet sanding (to fix the "orange-peel") it was evident this method was no better than Tung Oil; and in fact produced results equally horrific. The finish stayed tacky for months, Highlighted every single piece of cat hair or dander; and just overall looked and felt horrible. So that one got thrown in the dumpster as well.

Then I said "F This" and I just purchased a Pre-Finished Gecko Body; and everything was good.

#3 Was just now (2020). I purchased a light weight Z-Bass body in Swamp Ash from the showcase. I have been watching many videos about Angelus Leather Dye; and am super impressed by the results. So I ordered a bunch of dyes also to try out. Let me say, these dyes are awesome (and very cheap!). I was able to get a magnificent yellow/amber burst for what was to be my final bass; an extension of myself. In my hubris I actually thought I could complete this. So I got some Lee Valley Tung Oil again; and decided to try this again. Two weeks and several attempted coats later; and I knew this was not going to work. I don't get it -- I really don't. I had worked as a painter for many years; so all of this is not new to me. But I just can not achieve acceptable results when finishing a guitar. The tung oil "goops-up" (am I completely misunderstanding the purpose of tung-oil? Isn't it supposed to soak into the wood??!!) and sits on top of the body, like a thick finish; not like an oil at all. It drips and leaves horrible stains and runs around the horns and on the edges of the body. The drips can not be sanded out, because attempting to do so would change the contours of the body at this point.
I just walked back up from the dumpster; and I'm feeling horrible and stupid. What a waste of time and energy. Like I say, I don't know if everyone else just has lower standards than me or what. But I am through wasting time and supplies. I guess I will just have to purchase pre finished bodies from now on, and know that I will never be able to have something that is truly me. (I do have 3 Warmoth basses built from pre finished bodies; but I wanted something personal :crying:)

I am leaving this thread here mostly as a reminder to myself in case I ever feel like doing something stupid again.

Feel free to answer the question though; How many Wamoth bodies have YOU ruined?
(either by your own stupidity or not)
Click to expand...

If you were using enough tung oil to "drip" you were using 1,000times more than you needed. It takes a TINY bit of tung oil to do an entire body.

To drive this point home, I had a bass with a Tung oil finish neck years ago. After it git dingy I sanded it down, bought some Tung oil, and took it to my uncle who was an expert woodworker. When I pulled out my new bottle of Tung oil he chastised me for ever buying it. He said "I've got a bottle on that shelf right there. There's enough left in there to do 400 gun stocks, 10 dining room tables, and more bases than you could ever buy."

Skeptical, I asked him to show me how to do my neck. We took a thick old shop towel and folded it up until it was 4 layers. He put a quick, tiny dab of the oil in a small spot on one side. Then he folded the towel once more and pressed it. When he opened it back up, there were now two spots, one where he had dabbed it from the bottle and one where he had pressed that dab against the other side. He point to the new, smaller, lighter dab and said "Rub THAT one up and down the neck lightly. DON'T rub that one on it. There's too much oil in that side and it will get sticky." (He was pointing at the original dab he had made with the bottle that time.)

It worked perfectly. Even as light as that coat was it was still a tiny bit tacky for a few days.

When I left he literally said "Tell all your friends you have Tung oil. None of you should ever have to buy any for the rest of your life. I was going to will this one to you but it'll go to your brother now." :D

It's 20 years later and I still have my Tung oil with barely any gone from the bottle. My brother proudly points out his bottle of "Uncle Bo's" Tung oil every time I go in his shop.

The point of this whole story is this. Just the fact that you said it was "dripping" tells me you used enough Tung oil to last a lifetime of projects and then some on one bass.

Sorry you had to learn that after it was too late.
 
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#5
David Jayne said:
Tung oil doesn't soak in. Nothing really does.
Click to expand...

two fingers said:
The point of this whole story is this. Just the fact that you said it was "dripping" tells me you used enough Tung oil to last a lifetime of projects and then some on one bass. Sorry you had to learn that after it was too late.
Click to expand...

Thanks for your replies. This is part of what I was talking about in my original post, about separating all the different advice. You seem to have found a way to apply the oil; but just look at the instructions straight from the manufacturer of my Tung Oil:

"You can apply the oil with a natural bristle brush, a sponge brush, or a soft and lint-free rag. Apply the oil liberally to the surface. Unlike varnish (which sits on top of the wood), the goal with tung oil is to thoroughly saturate the wood cells. When you’ve applied the first coat, let the oil absorb."
 
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#6
comatosedragon said:
Thanks for your replies. This is part of what I was talking about in my original post, about separating all the different advice. You seem to have found a way to apply the oil; but just look at the instructions straight from the manufacturer of my Tung Oil:

"You can apply the oil with a natural bristle brush, a sponge brush, or a soft and lint-free rag. Apply the oil liberally to the surface. Unlike varnish (which sits on top of the wood), the goal with tung oil is to thoroughly saturate the wood cells. When you’ve applied the first coat, let the oil absorb."
Click to expand...

Well, that was ridiculous to say to begin with. Different woods react differently to different finishes. A one-size-fits-all set of instructions for finishing all woods was ignorant on their part.
 
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#7
Tung oil might soak into raw wood like the instructions say depending on the wood and it’s age and how dry it is. Even at that, liberally would typically mean, to me, the cloth being sorta damp and rub a minimal amount in and wipe the excess back off. I know with TruOil after the first application just a tiny bit on a rag will coat the whole body.

Having said that, the fact that you grain filled and stained first means that the wood was sealed or partially sealed to start with and you did only need the “second drop” amount that @two fingers was talking about.

Sorry that things didn’t work out. Not sure what the issue was with the poly. If you do get the urge to try again I’d suggest getting some pieces of the same type of wood as the body and experimenting with those. Any finish process can have several different ways to apply it and different variations work better for different people.
 
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#8
comatosedragon said:
How many Wamoth bodies have YOU ruined?
Click to expand...

LOL! All of them!


...though I have yet to ruin any of them by trying to apply finish...in part because I keep reading horror stories like OP's and I get scared off. I've had one unfinished Warmoth body since 2014. Got all the supplies (for a simple clear satin Wipe-On Poly finish) in 2014 also. And then every time I tell myself "okay, this is it, this is the day I'm going to finish that bass body" I start re-reading the instructions, and embedded in those instructions are the horror stories, and then I say "Screw it, some other time." Six years.

Anyhow, I ruined that bass body by not using a drill press to make holes for the pots and jack.

The other ones I ruined by being impatient/overzealous in trying to get them built up too quickly, and/or by exposing them to temperature extremes before the finish (applied by someone else) had fully cured.

I'm 3 for 3!
 
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#9
comatosedragon said:
Thanks for your replies. This is part of what I was talking about in my original post, about separating all the different advice. You seem to have found a way to apply the oil; but just look at the instructions straight from the manufacturer of my Tung Oil:

"You can apply the oil with a natural bristle brush, a sponge brush, or a soft and lint-free rag. Apply the oil liberally to the surface. Unlike varnish (which sits on top of the wood), the goal with tung oil is to thoroughly saturate the wood cells. When you’ve applied the first coat, let the oil absorb."
Click to expand...

that reminds me of the classic shampoo instructions: lather. rinse. repeat. corporations' attempt to have consumers use twice as much of their product. 8-)
 
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#10
I have also learnt that home finishing is a false economy. Unless it's a body made of mahogany and something that I want to reshape a bit before clear coating / protecting with Tru Oil, I would always recommend saving a little longer and getting Warmoth to factory finish the body exactly how you want.

Sure, adding paint to an online build adds anywhere between 200 - 400 dollars more, but when I think of all the hours of my time and the stress it takes -and only to look terrible, I think that it's money well spent.
 
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#13
Always test your complete finish routine on a scrap of the same wood.

Sometimes a customer wants me to use some strange stain or finish. I always do a proof piece, all the way through buffing.

Don't ask me how I know to do this......lol
 
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#16
Just one - I mis-measured the placement of the bridge so that the Gstring saddle was not able to be intonated correctly. I used (and continue to use) threaded metal inserts & epoxy, for securing the bridge - there are "6" total in the pic below.
I did order a second body and measured the s*** out of it before successfully installing the 6 inserts for the Gotoh bridge.
I then rage-poured red nail polish on it as evidence of the Crime Scene and hung it on my workbench as a reminder of my incompetence. I had no money left for Anger Management Classes.
(The second one was correct, FYI.)
Thanks.
IMG_2684.JPG
 
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#18
David Jayne said:
Tung oil doesn't soak in. Nothing really does. My best results were gotten by wiping on a thin coat. Then wiping most of it off and waiting for it to dry before applying additional coats, sometimes sanding between. It takes awhile.
Click to expand...
^This^
I just stripped and refinished an old laminated maple hiking staff with tung oil. Sanded all the old finish off then hung it up from the ceiling over an old shallow pan then gobbed on tung oil, let it sit for a few minutes then wiped it off and let it dry at least overnight, then sanded, tacked and did it again. It took over two weeks to get a decent finish. I then let it sit a few weeks and finish sanded and hand buffed it. It wound up looking really good.
 
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