Can one explain how to get this finish?

[brandondoing]

It's been driving me crazy for years I love it. It's so comfortable.Ibanez RGD Prestige 6 string.

[Prostheta]

Hopefully this will help it stop you going nuts then! :-D

I am not familiar with this particular finish, however there are three ways of producing this style of pattern. Sort of. I'm not that good at finishing I'm afraid. 

Firstly, there is a technique called veiling or webbing. This requires a specific type of paint gun (a "veiling gun" or "webbing tip", oddly enough). This spins a thin line of paint out of the gun, however these tend to leave more larger and more consistent webbing spirals than this does. A Google Image Search should turn up some examples.

The second is a crackle finish, albeit a bit of an odd one. Crackle finishes are usually done using layers, the top one of which shrinks or deforms so that cracks appear exposing the lower layer. Some paint manufacturers like DNA Paints in Aus (http://www.dna-paints.com.au/specialpaints/index.htm) sell all kinds of additives that do crazy crystals, cracks and webbing but they're a lot more flashier and extreme than this example.

The third option. I suspect that it might be something a lot simpler than expected. For example, a black undercoat with retarded (the paint has an additive to stop it drying quickly) grey top. Whilst wet, dropping and lightly dragging something like chains or whatever to expose the lower black layer. That line across the arm contour is a clue. I'd think light chain, the kind of thing you'd use to hold a dog tag around your neck. Maybe even a bunch of metal wires?

It's finishes like this that are the result of thinking out of the box. I would almost put money on it being the simpler of the three. Anybody else have anything to chime in on this one?

 

Here's a couple of better photos:

[ScottR]

Grey base coat with black webbing is the first thing that came to my mind.

SR

[Prostheta]

I bet there's all kinds of crazy ideas and methods to do things like that. Even dipping the same way as you swirl a guitar, but using some kind of paint which more or less dries on the surface in a web like that but sticks to the body. A cross between swirling and hydrographics.

Aren't those Prestige instruments? They're certainly not the low end junk so who knows what craziness the warlocks over in Japan figured they'd do for a laugh.