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Show and tell: finishes

#61
I tried a Mohawk nitro lacquer on a current acoustic guitar that I building for a client. I am very impressed with the workability and the polish that you can achieve with this finish.
This ain't no bass but it has a finish on it just the same:)
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Ebony headplate polished out.
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This is sealed with a Mohawk sealer and grain filled with epoxy.
Then approximately 8 light coats of lacquer.
Let it sit for 3 weeks then wet sanded.
The finish layer down really flat so I was able to start out with 800 grit then progressively up to 2000 grit.
I then went to 3m compounds and polished it out.
I am impressed with this product.
Joe
 

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#65
Yes I am spraying in a controlled environment.
I basically designate a corner of my shop to spraying when needed. I am in a small space so I can keep it conditioned at approximately 74 degrees and I keep a dehumidifier running to stay below 55 percent.
I keep an exhaust fan on while spraying too.
 
#67
Musiclogic said:
55% in Georgia, that's a beautiful thing...LOL the humidity complains about Humidity in Georgia...LMAO
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Yes sir! It is ridiculously humid here!
Before I built my small "climate controlled" shop, I had many finishes blush on me. That was usually on Millwork projects though. Either way, makes for a bad day!
 
#69
Lots of good info here but it seems like most people are using spray systems to apply these various finishes. Am I correct in this? Sorry in advance if it's a dumb question but I'm starting my first build and have no money for a spray system and will doing it all by hand.
 
#70
Jonny5bass said:
Lots of good info here but it seems like most people are using spray systems to apply these various finishes. Am I correct in this? Sorry in advance if it's a dumb question but I'm starting my first build and have no money for a spray system and will doing it all by hand.
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Yes, there are lots of sprayed finishes in this thread, though Tru oil is mentioned a lot which is a wiping varnish (no spray equipment required). Don't let lack of spraying equipment put you off, you can get great results by wiping/brushing too. My best advice is to know what type of finish you are after (gloss, semi gloss, matte), as it makes deciding on finish easier. All kinds of gloss are possible without spray equipment, though a perfect high gloss is the most difficult to achieve (still well within your grasp though). Some products to try would be: Tung oil, Tru-oil, wiping Poly (possible to make your own), Shellac, or an oil and wax combination. You could also look into aerosols.

Take a look at my Facebook page or website, most of the instruments you see there have a finish which has been wiped rather than sprayed. That being said, I will be investing in spray equipment shortly, though this is more because of speed rather than anything else as a lot of time goes into a rubbed or wiped finish.

Hope this helps
 
#71
Manton Customs said:
Yes, there are lots of sprayed finishes in this thread, though Tru oil is mentioned a lot which is a wiping varnish (no spray equipment required). Don't let lack of spraying equipment put you off, you can get great results by wiping/brushing too. My best advice is to know what type of finish you are after (gloss, semi gloss, matte), as it makes deciding on finish easier. All kinds of gloss are possible without spray equipment, though a perfect high gloss is the most difficult to achieve (still well within your grasp though). Some products to try would be: Tung oil, Tru-oil, wiping Poly (possible to make your own), Shellac, or an oil and wax combination. You could also look into aerosols.

Take a look at my Facebook page or website, most of the instruments you see there have a finish which has been wiped rather than sprayed. That being said, I will be investing in spray equipment shortly, though this is more because of speed rather than anything else as a lot of time goes into a rubbed or wiped finish.

Hope this helps
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Thanks Manton! I feel better about my prospects of a good finish now. I think I will be going for a high gloss finish. I've got a few book matched pieces of maple that I think will look good. Would many coats of the tung oil with sanding get me to a gloss finish? Also, would the tung oil act as a pore filler or would I need to do something else to seal it? Thank you all for the great info!
 
#72
Jonny5bass said:
Thanks Manton! I feel better about my prospects of a good finish now. I think I will be going for a high gloss finish. I've got a few book matched pieces of maple that I think will look good. Would many coats of the tung oil with sanding get me to a gloss finish? Also, would the tung oil act as a pore filler or would I need to do something else to seal it? Thank you all for the great info!
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No problem, I'm glad to help. A high gloss with pure Tung oil (what they call pure anyway) isn't easy, as its not the most glossy finish out there and has more of a nice semi gloss appearance. Still beautiful, just not what you'd call high gloss. You would be better with a wipe on poly or Tru oil for this.

Pore filling depends on the wood, no filling would be necessary on Maple as its not a very porous wood. But woods like Ash, Oak and Mahogany all need it if you want a super flat finish. In fact most woods except Cherry and Maple could benefit from pore filling.
 
#74
I recently saw this bass on No Treble. Does anyone know how to get those colours on the top?

I'm new to this, but I believe it's a burled elm top? Is that just how the dye/stain/paint or what ever it is react to the wood grain?

If anyone is interested, this one is by Alpher instruments, and they make a variety of stunning guitars and basses.

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#75
Tchar said:
I recently saw this bass on No Treble. Does anyone know how to get those colours on the top?

I'm new to this, but I believe it's a burled elm top? Is that just how the dye/stain/paint or what ever it is react to the wood grain?

If anyone is interested, this one is by Alpher instruments, and they make a variety of stunning guitars and basses.

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nntiopo.jpg
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They use dyed and resin impregnated burls, you can do something similar with epoxy and powdered dyes.
 
#76
Tchar said:
I recently saw this bass on No Treble. Does anyone know how to get those colours on the top?

I'm new to this, but I believe it's a burled elm top? Is that just how the dye/stain/paint or what ever it is react to the wood grain?

If anyone is interested, this one is by Alpher instruments, and they make a variety of stunning guitars and basses.

CHRISDABASS

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Why not ask Chris from Alpher directly? He's active on here, although for some reason I can't seem to tag his username: Alpher Build Progress He's got a thread going in the TB Builder's Showcase, stickied at the top of the Luthier's Corner forum: CHRISDABASS
 
#79
I am about to begin the process of finishing my new bass. It will have a clear high gloss finish, using sprayed automotive clear urethane (HVLP). This body is swamp ash, with a beautiful spalted maple top. The top is pretty thick. The spalt is quite figured. I have not chosen a sealer yet. I would love to have recommendations of products used successfully for this purpose. I am trying to avoid a conflict between the sealer, and the urethane clear finish coat. All suggestions are welcome, and appreciated.
 
#80
Well, you don't have to use a "sealer". You can do the whole finish in clear polyurethane, if you want. The thing is, ash and spalted maple both have deep grain and will soak in a lot of finish. If you want a high gloss finish, you're going to have to spray on and sand back a bunch of coats of something to fill up the grain up to the surface. Automotive polyurethane will work fine for that purpose, because you can lay it on thick. Spray on a couple of coats, sand it back, spray on a couple more, repeat, until the grain is filled and you have a smooth surface. Then, clean it all up and spray on your top clear coats.

You can use almost anything for those base coats, as long as it's compatible with the polyurethane. The safest thing is to stick with polyurethane. Generally, automotive polyurethane will stick to any other polyurethane with no problem. You could get a can of brush-on polyurethane and use that for the filling and sanding.

Don't try to spray polyurethane over top of nitro lacquer, or acrylic enamel.

Now, a common technique is to add some color to those filler coats, to make the grain of the wood pop out. You can do that with the automotive polyurethane, adding some brown or black to it.
 
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