One big problem with using epoxy as a finish is that it yellows and degrades with exposure to UV light. For that reason the canoe and kayak builders who coat their boats with epoxy coat it with spar varnish after for protection. They use the epoxy for its waterproofing benefits.
Enjoy the benefits of a premium membership!
Upgrade Account
-
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.
Show and tell: finishes
- Thread starter Fasoldt Basses
- Start date
Couple of pics of my custom built bass that I finished the neck and body using Tru-Oil for the finish. I mixed the oil with naptha to a 75/25% ratio and used my HVLP detail gun to apply. The body was sprayed with 10 coats, letting dry in between each coat. Then rubbed lightly with 0000 steel wool between every 3 coats, tacked and resprayed. When all the coats were applied, let dry for a week, then rubbed again with 0000 steel wool and Wool-Lube. Polished with Pumice and Rottenstone. Only applied 4 coats to neck and headstock. It does yellow the color coat, but I like the effect.
http://www.reranch.com/
read up on this, it should help you quite a bit and to show you how much effort it would normally take, have fun and experiment
read up on this, it should help you quite a bit and to show you how much effort it would normally take, have fun and experiment
bassmanhamilton
Commercial User
This thread seems like a great idea to help narrow down the choice of many available finishes. Especially for those of us who are relatively new to many of them. So, here are the materials, suppliers and a breif description of the finish process on a bass that I am wrapping up. This bass is for my son and he wanted a "mirror" like finish.
I went a pretty traditional route as follows:
I was dealing with some pretty open grain wood so I started with Lawrence McFadden transparent filler from Stew Mac. I left it on a little too thick and it was a real pain in the butt removing the excess.
Then I sprayed 2 coats of Lawrence McFadden Vinyl Sealer and followed with 16 coats (in 4 coat increments) of Lawrence McFadden Nitrocellulose lacquer. All purchased from Stew Mac. For what it is worth, I tried a regular gun and a HVLP gun and the HVLP gun did much better in my case.
After curing for several weeks I wet sanded from 600g up to 2000g.
Buffed out the finish using 3M Perfect-It II rubbing compound and finished up with 3M Imperial Glaze. Purchased both from O'rileys Auto store.
This is the end result.
Hope this helps.
Joe
I went a pretty traditional route as follows:
I was dealing with some pretty open grain wood so I started with Lawrence McFadden transparent filler from Stew Mac. I left it on a little too thick and it was a real pain in the butt removing the excess.
Then I sprayed 2 coats of Lawrence McFadden Vinyl Sealer and followed with 16 coats (in 4 coat increments) of Lawrence McFadden Nitrocellulose lacquer. All purchased from Stew Mac. For what it is worth, I tried a regular gun and a HVLP gun and the HVLP gun did much better in my case.
After curing for several weeks I wet sanded from 600g up to 2000g.
Buffed out the finish using 3M Perfect-It II rubbing compound and finished up with 3M Imperial Glaze. Purchased both from O'rileys Auto store.
This is the end result.
Hope this helps.
Joe
I've used on the back of necks that were naked or dyed with good success, but I would rather rub the Tru-Oil on my necks vs spraying. Haven't applied for a natural finish, but have seen a few basses that have. Makes for a fast, protective finish that feels good. Easy to repair also.
Joe, That's a great finish! you can't beat nitro for that 'classic 'look. Being an old guy, I 'grew up' using nitro lacquer on my instruments.
My favorite finish, from an aesthetic AND sonic sense is still a rubbed-in finish. I absolutely love the tactile sensation of a well used tool in your hands, and strive to get that patina in my finishes. For that, I use a tung/poly mix. after sanding to 320, I wet-sand in the mostly tung oil first wet coat. The slurry produced helps to fill in pores especially in walnut and mahogany.. I let it soak quite a while ( but not until it's tacky) and wipe off the excess . then steel wool (i prefer 000 to 0000 ) inbetween coats. re-apply with more and more poly added to the mix.
This finish can be as little as 3 coats or as many as a dozen, depending on the amount of shine you want. each successive coat has a bit more poly and a bit less tung.
finally, after a week or so of hardening, I buff with 000 and wax (body only) .......
my personal bass, which I built in the early 90's has literally hundreds of gigs and the finish is holding up great! easily repairable too.
It's all about the prep.
I;ve been experimenting with automotive urethanes as well. and generally like them , but don't have a decent spray booth, so that limits my experimentation. but here's one I did with automotive urethane
Karl Hoyt
My favorite finish, from an aesthetic AND sonic sense is still a rubbed-in finish. I absolutely love the tactile sensation of a well used tool in your hands, and strive to get that patina in my finishes. For that, I use a tung/poly mix. after sanding to 320, I wet-sand in the mostly tung oil first wet coat. The slurry produced helps to fill in pores especially in walnut and mahogany.. I let it soak quite a while ( but not until it's tacky) and wipe off the excess . then steel wool (i prefer 000 to 0000 ) inbetween coats. re-apply with more and more poly added to the mix.
This finish can be as little as 3 coats or as many as a dozen, depending on the amount of shine you want. each successive coat has a bit more poly and a bit less tung.
finally, after a week or so of hardening, I buff with 000 and wax (body only) .......
my personal bass, which I built in the early 90's has literally hundreds of gigs and the finish is holding up great! easily repairable too.
It's all about the prep.
I;ve been experimenting with automotive urethanes as well. and generally like them , but don't have a decent spray booth, so that limits my experimentation. but here's one I did with automotive urethane
Karl Hoyt
thanks... it lives in your part of the globe:
here are a couple recent instruments sporting the rubbed oil/poly finish
fast necks, repairability, good looks and simplicity are all reasons to consider the oil/poly finish
here are a couple recent instruments sporting the rubbed oil/poly finish
fast necks, repairability, good looks and simplicity are all reasons to consider the oil/poly finish
bassmanhamilton
Commercial User
Great looking work Karl! The rubbed finish looks real nice and I know what you mean about the feel. It is a very natural.
Is there any particular urethane that you are using in this mix?
Joe
Is there any particular urethane that you are using in this mix?
Joe
My basses end up all over the place, so I use off the shelf materials, so I can talk a customer through fixing a dent if need be: so......... Formsby's gloss tung oil and Minwax gloss polyurethane.
I used to use the minwax rubbing polyurethane, but instead I now use regular polyurethane (since the rubbing poly is essentially regular poly with a little more mineral spirits in it).. It builds a little quicker and with experience, I can flow it on without any streaks....almost like french polishing.
my cheesy webpage shows lacquer, auto, and rubbed finishes on everything from archtops to a mini guitar for my grand-daughter .
I used to use the minwax rubbing polyurethane, but instead I now use regular polyurethane (since the rubbing poly is essentially regular poly with a little more mineral spirits in it).. It builds a little quicker and with experience, I can flow it on without any streaks....almost like french polishing.
my cheesy webpage shows lacquer, auto, and rubbed finishes on everything from archtops to a mini guitar for my grand-daughter .
Is there a tutorial on this method anywhere? It sounds perfect for my application and skill level. I tried hitting your website, but was refused access.
sorry for the inconvenience, SJ...I thought I'd get tricky on the webpage and it backfired. it's back up now:
actually about everything you need to know I shared above: sand to 320, mix about 60% tung oil and 40% polyurethane into about a pint container. Put on some vinyl gloves and make sure you have plenty of ventilation and/or respiration. Wet the bass liberally and use the 320 wet/dry paper to wet sand (with the grain is best ) the whole bass... add the mix if things start getting sticky.
once you have wet-sanded thoroughly, wipe off the excess and let it dry. the next day (maybe more if it's really humid) buff with 000 steel wool.
repeat this again, adding a little more poly to the mixture......repeat the wet sanding just one more time.
after your second wet-sanding/wiping off/steel wool session, you can start just using a rag and rubbing the mixture into the wood relatively dryly. (kind of like polishing shoes)
the numbers of coats is totally dependent on your taste. Minimum I feel is three coats.
after the last coat, let it sit about a week in a nice dry location. then buff with steel wool and apply wax: I use minwax hard finishing wax or boston polish and buff vigorously. This will give you a nice finish that is pretty rugged.
you can spot repair any dings at any time, expecially if you keep your jar of poly stuff handy.
have fun.
Karl Hoyt
actually about everything you need to know I shared above: sand to 320, mix about 60% tung oil and 40% polyurethane into about a pint container. Put on some vinyl gloves and make sure you have plenty of ventilation and/or respiration. Wet the bass liberally and use the 320 wet/dry paper to wet sand (with the grain is best ) the whole bass... add the mix if things start getting sticky.
once you have wet-sanded thoroughly, wipe off the excess and let it dry. the next day (maybe more if it's really humid) buff with 000 steel wool.
repeat this again, adding a little more poly to the mixture......repeat the wet sanding just one more time.
after your second wet-sanding/wiping off/steel wool session, you can start just using a rag and rubbing the mixture into the wood relatively dryly. (kind of like polishing shoes)
the numbers of coats is totally dependent on your taste. Minimum I feel is three coats.
after the last coat, let it sit about a week in a nice dry location. then buff with steel wool and apply wax: I use minwax hard finishing wax or boston polish and buff vigorously. This will give you a nice finish that is pretty rugged.
you can spot repair any dings at any time, expecially if you keep your jar of poly stuff handy.
have fun.
Karl Hoyt
Just a quibble - Formby's "Tung Oil Finish" is actually a wiping varnish made from tung oil, but there's no raw tung oil in it. What your method is really doing is blending two kinds of varnish.
There's nothing wrong with that, and your basses look great!
Reid
Just a quibble - Formby's "Tung Oil Finish" is actually a wiping varnish made from tung oil, but there's no raw tung oil in it. What your method is really doing is blending two kinds of varnish.
you're correct about the formsby's, though polyurethane is not technically an old school 'varnish'. It's still keeping with my "use off the shelf stuff" credo so that the average person can get their hands on the materials I used should they want to refurbish a finish or repair a dent.
kfh
you're correct about the formsby's, though polyurethane is not technically an old school 'varnish'. It's still keeping with my "use off the shelf stuff" credo so that the average person can get their hands on the materials I used should they want to refurbish a finish or repair a dent.
kfh
Rickett Customs
Commercial User
Erikbojerik is working on mine, looks awesome, i'm sure it'll be even more awesome when it's done:
http://www.talkbass.com/forum/showthread.php?t=455135
http://www.talkbass.com/forum/showthread.php?t=455135
Joe, That's a great finish! you can't beat nitro for that 'classic 'look. Being an old guy, I 'grew up' using nitro lacquer on my instruments.
My favorite finish, from an aesthetic AND sonic sense is still a rubbed-in finish. I absolutely love the tactile sensation of a well used tool in your hands, and strive to get that patina in my finishes. For that, I use a tung/poly mix. after sanding to 320, I wet-sand in the mostly tung oil first wet coat. The slurry produced helps to fill in pores especially in walnut and mahogany.. I let it soak quite a while ( but not until it's tacky) and wipe off the excess . then steel wool (i prefer 000 to 0000 ) inbetween coats. re-apply with more and more poly added to the mix.
This finish can be as little as 3 coats or as many as a dozen, depending on the amount of shine you want. each successive coat has a bit more poly and a bit less tung.
finally, after a week or so of hardening, I buff with 000 and wax (body only) .......
my personal bass, which I built in the early 90's has literally hundreds of gigs and the finish is holding up great! easily repairable too.
It's all about the prep.
I;ve been experimenting with automotive urethanes as well. and generally like them , but don't have a decent spray booth, so that limits my experimentation. but here's one I did with automotive urethane
Karl Hoyt
What is this tung poly mix?
What are the components and what are the amounts used?
