Nitro, given a choice. Pretty sure my Vintera P is poly, though. My FSO freteless Jazz, however, is nitro.
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Nitro or poly?
- Thread starter SJan3
- Start date
I would only go nitro on a refin of a true vintage Fender.
Poly has gotten a bad rap, mainly because Fender used excessively thick coatings on their mid 70's and later basses for at least a decade. Those coatings actually did inhibit the playing / tonal qualities of the basses. Modern poly finishes, as done by folks like Pat Wilkins, are so thin that they have negligible effect on the acoustic properties of the instruments, while providing substantially better protection than nitro.
The main things a finish needs to do is protect the wood while allowing moisture to pass in and out of the instrument; the latter being necessary for proper wood aging.
So, my instruments will be poly; except for my vintage Fender, which is nitro.
Poly has gotten a bad rap, mainly because Fender used excessively thick coatings on their mid 70's and later basses for at least a decade. Those coatings actually did inhibit the playing / tonal qualities of the basses. Modern poly finishes, as done by folks like Pat Wilkins, are so thin that they have negligible effect on the acoustic properties of the instruments, while providing substantially better protection than nitro.
The main things a finish needs to do is protect the wood while allowing moisture to pass in and out of the instrument; the latter being necessary for proper wood aging.
So, my instruments will be poly; except for my vintage Fender, which is nitro.
I'm a former finish guy for a boutique acoustic maker who worked with nothing but nitro the entire time and I didn't have to think about how I'd answer this: poly.
It sounds the same on electric instruments as nitro just so long as you do it thin (not the way most makers do, loading it up until it's a couple of millimeters thick when dry) and it's far less reactive with stands, case plush, bag interiors. It's also a lot more forgiving of impact.
There's a time and a place for everything, and the time and place for nitro is on acoustic instruments.
Also, FWIW, "nitro finished" Fender basses are a thin coat of nitro on top of a poly finish. Even the old Fenders were a few coats of nitro on top of a thick coating of Plasti-Dip. There's never been a Fender made that started with a nitro finish directly applied to grain-filled wood, save possibly for a few Custom Shop pieces.
I have to go with poly. I love the way nitro finishes change color as they age, particularly LPB and olympic white, but I am not a fan of the fragility of the finishes, chipping etc. The relic-ed look has never appealed to me.
I do like what some manufacturers are doing to capture that aged nitro look with poly overcoats. Fender's Ocean Turquoise color, to my eyes, is nearly identical to some of the aged LPB finishes I've seen.
I do like what some manufacturers are doing to capture that aged nitro look with poly overcoats. Fender's Ocean Turquoise color, to my eyes, is nearly identical to some of the aged LPB finishes I've seen.
Poly just on looks alone!
I don't subscribe to the theory on better tone with Nitro on electric instruments especially playing loud rock music blasting an SVT at breakup volumes. The pickup(s) and strings are more crucial to an electric instruments overall tone.
On acoustic instruments, I can see how a Nitro finish can affect the tone over poly or even having no finish which may sound better but would leave the wood susceptible to drying out and splitting.
I don't subscribe to the theory on better tone with Nitro on electric instruments especially playing loud rock music blasting an SVT at breakup volumes. The pickup(s) and strings are more crucial to an electric instruments overall tone.
On acoustic instruments, I can see how a Nitro finish can affect the tone over poly or even having no finish which may sound better but would leave the wood susceptible to drying out and splitting.
Nitro's toxic and bad for the environment, so poly.
I would lean nitro given Fender's thick poly, but if they could do a decent thin satin poly finish, I'd go poly.
Poly for me. I'm not into wear and tear. Relicing, natural or artificial, is a negative to me. I love my Tony Franklin Fretless and think it is beautiful and it pains me that it's nitro Lake Placid Blue finish is going to fade into a kind of ugly green over time and develop checking. Not to mention having to worry about what brand of guitar stand I rest it on. I haven't made a purchasing decision based on Nitro vs Poly, but given a choice between the two I would pick the poly every time.
JeezyMcNuggles
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- Feb 23, 2018
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i voted "poly" but i like both finishes. my current 'collection' sports poly finishes and i'm fine with that.
I remember reading an article by Michael Tobias where he stated that nitro, for lack of a better way of putting it, breaks down over time, allowing air to get to it. According to him, this leads to improvemnts in the instruments tone.
Nitro all the way. My Jaco and Tony Franklins both have nitro finishes. At first I thought I would hate it, but I've had them a little over a year and they're already starting to chip off the finish around the edges. I love the way it looks, with "my" marks on it. Even though I suck, it makes them feel more like "my" basses.
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When I got the unfinished Birdseye Maple neck for my Precision I thought "go old school" and finish it with Nitro.
I wish I hadn't.
I wish I hadn't.
I'd love to have a bass with a nitro finish, but here in Brazil all the instruments that a regular person can buy are poly. Nitro is only for specific, high-end instruments or imported ones that cost a fortune because of the exchange rate.
Poly, I like my things to stay shiny, and Nitro doesn't sound any different
I'm laughing because people are choosing nitro for its poor performance. It wears and chips off, and it is chemically vulnerable. It reacts with some plastics.
Poly outperforms nitro by a mile. And I guess this is why folks choose nitro?
Poly outperforms nitro by a mile. And I guess this is why folks choose nitro?
I voted nitro since the thread is about Fender style basses.
I used to want nitro on everything really, but that has changed a bit. My #1 player is a 1970 Guild Starfire, which was born during the first year of Guild experimenting with poly and I've honestly grown to love it. Well done poly on a semi-hollow or hollow-body can really make the instrument feel sturdier/tougher. I think I would still want nitro on a solidbody, but when it comes to anything with F-holes and air inside of it, I think I prefer a light, transparent poly.
Should also note, I can't stand a thick, opaque poly. Makes anything look and feel like plastic to me.
I used to want nitro on everything really, but that has changed a bit. My #1 player is a 1970 Guild Starfire, which was born during the first year of Guild experimenting with poly and I've honestly grown to love it. Well done poly on a semi-hollow or hollow-body can really make the instrument feel sturdier/tougher. I think I would still want nitro on a solidbody, but when it comes to anything with F-holes and air inside of it, I think I prefer a light, transparent poly.
Should also note, I can't stand a thick, opaque poly. Makes anything look and feel like plastic to me.
