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Inspiration for a Finish on Roasted Swamp Ash

Preferred Finish

  • Total voters
    86
#21
K. Powell said:
swamp ash with black grain filler, check out Reverb and look up Madlad bass bodies, there are two nice examples listed.
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Four decades ago I assembled a FrankenPJ from a Schecter ash P body and Charvel P neck. I asked for a red transparent finish, and the local techs that did the work suggested staining (or filling) the grain black. Sounded like a great idea and I was thrilled with the result. Black under red was somewhat subtle, but the grain really stood out in stage lighting. Wish I had a pic from way back then!
 
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#22
20230814_121051.jpg


What i had in mind.
 
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#25
#26
You can also look at Sandberg guitars - a lot of their matte finishes are colored bursts over ash, and they leave a lot of the grain texture as well. If I was going to try a DIY finish over ash it would probably be a Brown Burst of some kind. Maybe I just love walnut too much
 
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#31
Loiner91 said:
Thats a pretty cool effect-reminds me of actual amber.
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It's hard to see the gold in the image, this might be a better representation.
Here's a short showing the finish on the front a little better. Still, the camera's dynamic range can't grasp the live image.
 

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#33
Malak the Mad said:
On the other hand, sometimes I'm in the mood for a more vibrant color, but one that still showcases the ashy grain, albeit in a subtle way. This Mighty Mite Transparent Blueburst of mine is an excellent illustration of my point. It, too, is classy, but with a more modern sensibility.
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I'm with you on this. I would lean to some sort of transparent color burst that isn't a shade of brown.

Blue, green, red, yellow or purple (my personal choice) burst would look killer with that grain.
 
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#34
This is a bit of reddish stain (Danish oil), with satin poly over the top:

Red front.jpg


Roasted ash has a bit of a greenish cast to it naturally; a reddish or orange stain balances that well - it doesn't need much to look really good.
Thunder Front.jpg
This is a bit darker/browner stain over roasted swamp ash, again with Minwax satin poly over the top (a really tough finish that's quite thin)
 
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#35
Loiner91 said:
That's gorgeous. Whats the texture of the tru-oil like? Do you know how it ages/dings?
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It was originally created for rifle stocks, so it's pretty durable. But wood will dent, no getting around that. It does make the wood amber, more with more coats. It's not clear.

2-4 coats will be a nice satin, 8 or so will start to get semi-glossy, and 15-20 will glow.

It's pretty easy to apply, start with a thick first coat, let it absorb for about 10 minutes, then wipe off any remaining. Let each coat dry completely before adding another. 2-12 hours. I usually do front and back alternating so I can hold the other side while applying with a clean soft cloth. After the first coat, add very thin coats. Every few coats (2-3) use synthetic (not steel) 000 or 0000 steel wool or 600 grit sand paper to lightly take down any wood fibers or imperfections. Stop when you're happy.

Be sure to cap the bottle between coats!

There's an amazing moment when you put the first coat on the wood. It's fabulous with curly maple, but ash does this as well. The tru-oil soaks into the grain and it's almost like developing a photograph—the grain just pops out of nowhere.
 
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#36
micguy said:
This is a bit of reddish stain (Danish oil), with satin poly over the top:

View attachment 7244485

Roasted ash has a bit of a greenish cast to it naturally; a reddish or orange stain balances that well - it doesn't need much to look really good.View attachment 7244488 This is a bit darker/browner stain over roasted swamp ash, again with Minwax satin poly over the top (a really tough finish that's quite thin)
Click to expand...
That reddish hue is definitely my preference. Did you highlight the grain with filler or did that just pop with the stain?
 
#40
Loiner91 said:
That's gorgeous. Whats the texture of the tru-oil like? Do you know how it ages/dings?
Click to expand...
Texture is smooth and not "grabby/sticky" at all. Like mentioned earlier it is designed for wooden gun stocks. All wood is susceptible to damage based on usage and care but cannot say I feel anymore or less protected than any other finish applied on any other instrument.
As far as aging goes I have never encountered any checking or peeling issues with tru-oil on any of my gun stocks or instruments but if you are talking aging to the wood I believe UV will age/darken all woods over time and I do not believe tru-oil has any UV protectant but not 100% on that. Hope that helps some and one more tidbit, if you do decide to use tru-oil, on your last/final coat mix in a very small amount of mineral oil with your tru-oil and that is what gave me that great glossy finish you see in the pic. That pic was 1 year ago and it still looks like that today!
 
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