Which finish would YOU choose?

If the grain is pretty I would go with oil. It's understated and beautiful on the right piece of wood. If they can do the nitro in a "semi gloss" that would be my next choice. Mirror finishes on wood grain don't do it for me at all.

 

I vastly prefer real oil finishes to anything else; a very thin wiping varnish is a close second. That said, I hate everything about nitro, and most other, lacquer- from the application process through the upkeep. Just can not stand the stuff.

 

I also think that oil finishes look amazing (on the right wood).

 

Nitro is a temporary finish, fragile and effectively obsolete. The whole "nitro breathes" notion is ridiculous. An oil finish allows the natural grain to be felt on the surface, which appeals to me in the way poly finish doesnt. An oil finish on the neck keeps it fast, not "sticky". Go with oil.

 

Boy, did you ever make the right choice.

 

That bass brings back strong memories of the 1970's. It looks like all the obscenely-heavy ash-bodied precisions, and the no-contours body reminds me of some of the "international" series colored ones I saw at a shop in Collinsville, Illinois many moons ago.

In short, it's a fascinating looking bass...

That I do not want.

(Like a Rickenbacker.)

Good job, though!

 

That's one beefy slab! What's she weigh?

 

Very nice!
BTW That Sean Penn avatar pic is so cool! @Jah Wobble Fan.

 

If you fought a really big tree with that thing then I think the tree would lose. That is one beast of a bass! I dig it.

 

IMO nitro's one positive feature as a finish is that it (like shellac) is easy to re-float or repair if it gets damaged. As a finish, it's far from being obsolete even if it really isn't the best choice of finishes for a guitar when it's compared to some of the alternatives. Truth is, it's probably better suited for something that is kept in one place (with a fairly stable climate) where it is lightly used and well taken care of.

Musical instruments aren't always similarly fortunate.