matttheguy Posted May 20, 2006 Report Share Posted May 20, 2006 Hello all, and thanks for whatever responses you provide! Alright, let's get down to business. The finish I want to replicate is seen here: Now, I'd like to know how you people would go about replicating a finish like that. I've been looking through the Reranch site and I think the middle of the burst would be closest to the Fender Neck Amber and the outer ring of the burst, the sides and the back would all be the Cherry/Heritage Red. What I really want to know is how would I go about doing this kind of finish. For example, what I need grain filler, primer, et cetera. Will these finishes be opaque or will the grain show through, things like that. Sorry for my ignorance, and thanks again! -Matt Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bluetic Posted May 20, 2006 Report Share Posted May 20, 2006 Hello all, and thanks for whatever responses you provide! Alright, let's get down to business. The finish I want to replicate is seen here: Now, I'd like to know how you people would go about replicating a finish like that. I've been looking through the Reranch site and I think the middle of the burst would be closest to the Fender Neck Amber and the outer ring of the burst, the sides and the back would all be the Cherry/Heritage Red. What I really want to know is how would I go about doing this kind of finish. For example, what I need grain filler, primer, et cetera. Will these finishes be opaque or will the grain show through, things like that. Sorry for my ignorance, and thanks again! -Matt I personally would use wood Dye. First mix the yellow with a dab (I mean a very little dab) of black. T acheive the Honey color. Using Cheesecloth wipe or rub the Honey color all over the top. Probably two coats. Then I would use red dye and mix it direcly into my clearcoat. and commence to spraying the back sides and edges of the top for the Burst effect. probably also two coats. Then use clear coat with no dye added to finish it out. Just my opinion. Others may disagree. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
matttheguy Posted May 20, 2006 Author Report Share Posted May 20, 2006 (edited) So you personally would not use the aerosol cans, but the dyes instead? Would you use water based or alcohol based? Also, what about grain filler, or adding a clearcoat after I put the amber down? Thanks again. Edited May 20, 2006 by matttheguy Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MarkPav Posted May 20, 2006 Report Share Posted May 20, 2006 (edited) You could use dyes or the spray cans. Both would work, but dyes tend to give a nicer effect. The problem of applying the colour with a dye is that you can't sand the first few clear coats without a high risk of going through to the dyed wood and making a mess of things. Grain filler isn't necessary for the maple top, since maple is a tight-grained wood. However, you can get some nice effects by applying a coloured grain-filler and then sanding it back, but if you're new to this you may wanna start with something more straight forward. Edited May 20, 2006 by MarkPav Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
matttheguy Posted May 20, 2006 Author Report Share Posted May 20, 2006 I could use the dye in a spray gun, right? I don't want to add any coloured grain filler, I've seen this effect. While it's beautiful, it just isn't what I'm looking for. Ok, let's say I get yellow alcohol based dye (GRYEL) and cherry red alcohol based dye (GRRED). I sand the body down, moisten it, sand again, that process. Next, tape off everything but the binding and do a clear coat to seal the binding. Next apply the yellow dye to the top using either a spray gun or a cloth and then apply a couple clear coats (nitrocellulose, correct?), then apply the cherry red on the back, sides and in a burst on the front, then add more clear coats over that. Will a process like that yield similar results, or am I missing something in there? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bluetic Posted May 20, 2006 Report Share Posted May 20, 2006 Yes, Matttheguy. Sounds like you got the idea. Yes to the spraygun. I wouldnt use any grainfiller either. The rest is trial and error. Your on the right track. :-) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Drak Posted May 20, 2006 Report Share Posted May 20, 2006 From your conversation, it sounds like you've never really done much finishing before, so I would just tell you that there's almost no way you're going to pull a nice faded sunburst off on the first shot, you're in for several weeks of practice spraying until you at least get competant with spray guns before you would be able to replicate a finish like that. I only say this so you don't spend several hundred dollars on products and equipment only to get dissapointed fairly quickly, I'm resetting your expectations to something a little more realistic. Not telling you not to try it, just telling you realistically, I doubt you're going to cop that look reasonable well with a few cans of aerosol or in one sunny afternoon shoot, it might take you weeks or months of practicing over and over and over on some scrap pieces to get good at sunbursting, clearcoating, buffing, etc. to be able to actually 'do' that finish for real. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
matttheguy Posted May 20, 2006 Author Report Share Posted May 20, 2006 (edited) Oh, of course. The equipment is already at my disposal, as I'm using someone else's with much more expertise than I. To build the guitar I'm working at the shop my dad owned before he died and to finish this I am going to get help from a friend of mine from high school who now paints cars for a living. Realistically for me to pull that off in one try is just pure insanity, of course I'll practice extensively on scrap wood. If it really comes down to it, I know my friend could easily pull that finish off. I just wanted a general idea on how to go about a finish like that, process, et cetera, before I came into his shop with supplies, and also what colours you folks believe I should use to replicate a finish similar to that. Edit: As for replicating that exactly, I don't want it to be as worn and faded as that. On that guitar it replicates the wear from the most used areas, obviously, as you see the burst is faded in certain areas and so forth. Regardless, I still understand what you're saying and appreciate your input. Edited May 20, 2006 by matttheguy Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Drak Posted May 20, 2006 Report Share Posted May 20, 2006 OK then. Yes, you want an amber, or just mix up some yellow (90%), red (5%) and brown (5%), or mix to your own personal color, but that's your basic amber mixture. Use water or alcohol based anilyne dye for the amber colors, just wipe it on and wipe it off, no grain filler or anything else. Clear coat that until you can sand your finish level. Apply the reddish burst as a shader coat, where the dye is mixed in with your finish. Apply clearcoats. Let cure a month or two (for lac anyway). Buff. Assemble. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
matttheguy Posted May 20, 2006 Author Report Share Posted May 20, 2006 (edited) Thank you very much, sir, it's much appreciated. I can use this as a basic mainframe for what I want to do, regarless of my extreme lack of experience. No, I will not use the guitar for my first attempt, hah. Sorry again for my ignorance, and thank you! EDIT: Clear coat refers to nitrocellulose, correct? After I hand apply the amber and apply a clear coat, how long do I have to wait before I add another coat and sand? And when I mix the dye with the finish, I'm mixing that with the nitro, aye? Edited May 21, 2006 by matttheguy Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.