killemall8 Posted June 21, 2013 Report Share Posted June 21, 2013 I am so happy with the way they have been coming out, i had to keep making them. My local supplier didnt have any good mahogany for once. I didnt want to wait over a month for them to pull out the new pallet, so i went in a different direction. I picked up some nice looking alder. It was a big board for alder, around 11" wide. I had a few ideas in my head, so i decided to do both. The first will be all black. The other has a nice spalt veneer on it and the back and sides will be black. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
killemall8 Posted June 21, 2013 Author Report Share Posted June 21, 2013 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MiKro Posted June 21, 2013 Report Share Posted June 21, 2013 Looking Good Luis. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
eddiewarlock Posted June 21, 2013 Report Share Posted June 21, 2013 that alder sure looks nice. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Prostheta Posted June 22, 2013 Report Share Posted June 22, 2013 http://i1105.photobucket.com/albums/h351/KEA1983/Alder%20Explorer%20Customs/glued014_zps1f57af2c.jpg Do you roll the treble edge a little more severely than the bass side, Luis? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
killemall8 Posted June 22, 2013 Author Report Share Posted June 22, 2013 http://i1105.photobucket.com/albums/h351/KEA1983/Alder%20Explorer%20Customs/glued014_zps1f57af2c.jpg Do you roll the treble edge a little more severely than the bass side, Luis? Yes, but not entirely intentionally. I usually roll the edges a little more than normal, but that one got away from me a bit. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Prostheta Posted June 22, 2013 Report Share Posted June 22, 2013 Can't see it being a problem though. My semihemi frets draw the rolloff quite far in too and they feel great. Looking forward to doing my next instrument with that fretwork because I'm really digging on the seven I made like that. Gah, you've got my head working now Luis. DAMN Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
killemall8 Posted June 22, 2013 Author Report Share Posted June 22, 2013 Haha, YOU'RE WELCOME I usually prefer it overly rolled anyway. Now that i look at it, it wasnt that i over rolled the treble side, it was more that i didnt roll the bass side enough. But that isnt too much of a problem, because most of the time your hand doesnt contact the bass side fret corners as much. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Prostheta Posted June 22, 2013 Report Share Posted June 22, 2013 Rolling over the edges is just as important as a back profile. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
killemall8 Posted June 23, 2013 Author Report Share Posted June 23, 2013 Indeed it is. I always wondered why most name brand guitars dont even do it at all. They just bevel. Sneek peek! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Prostheta Posted June 23, 2013 Report Share Posted June 23, 2013 Paint? Never seen one of yours under it yet. This should be fun. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
killemall8 Posted June 29, 2013 Author Report Share Posted June 29, 2013 Apparently i forgot how much of a pain it was to paint a guitar. And i also forgot how sensitive alder is to water. I went to wet sand it, and used BARELY any water at all, and wiped it instantly. And yet, the slightest bit of water that got in the holes and routs caused it to freak out badly. It cracked and lifted up the paint in every single place there is a rout or hole. So much for that idea. A shame too. It looked amazing black. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Prostheta Posted June 29, 2013 Report Share Posted June 29, 2013 Really. Huh....at least this is good information to take onboard since I have a neck through bass with Alder wings to paint and several builds based on locally sourced Alder. Maybe this is another reason why Fender drowned their Alder in "Fullerplast" in the 60s. Our sauna is mostly made from Alder. Maybe painting it black is not an option then. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FireFly Posted June 30, 2013 Report Share Posted June 30, 2013 A good thing to do is apply a coat of finish to the guitar before you paint it. There's a tutorial on this site somewhere that shows the entire process. Basically: sand the guitar to 400 grain fill apply poly (3 coats, sanding with 400 between coats) primer paint (3 coats, lightly sanding between coats for adhirance) finish I think you can do this, and probably better than I could given your experience with building from the ground up, and finishing! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
killemall8 Posted June 30, 2013 Author Report Share Posted June 30, 2013 FF, That is what i used to do. But the thing is, automotive primer doesnt work on top of sealer or wood finishes. I tried it in the past, and it isnt compatible. It separates and makes goo. It surprised me that even with 4 coats of auto primer that it was still somehow able to get between the wood and the primer. I also once tried soaking the guitar in thompsons water seal before i sprayed it. That too caused compatibility issues. The finish wouldnt stick to the sealer. Automotive lacquer primer really doesnt work on top of anything but bare wood or bare metal. So i resulted to wet sanding with mineral spirits. It worked well. But it wasnt enough to save the original finish. I will however, be able to do a marble finish on it that will cover them all. Just has to be less than the 105* we have had lately to spray it. The second one got sprayed clear today. Looking pretty nice! I normally wouldnt do a natural alder finish. But this one seems to work well. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Prostheta Posted June 30, 2013 Report Share Posted June 30, 2013 The majority of common or garden auto primers are actually hygroscopic. This fact makes me chew up inside when some hotshot is driving around their car modification half finished with the primer in the open. I am unsure as to whether this is a contributive factor or not. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
killemall8 Posted July 1, 2013 Author Report Share Posted July 1, 2013 hmm, i am not sure. It always has the effect like if you sprayed lacquer on top of enamel or something. It melts it. Not wanting to deal with that again, I sprayed the one with the spalt veneer clear. Leveled it back a bit, and sprayed more sealer coats now. I didnt want to do an alder bodied guitar completely clear, but it is looking nice. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ScottR Posted July 1, 2013 Report Share Posted July 1, 2013 You could always sneak a tinted burst between layers of clear on that alder body...... SR Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
killemall8 Posted July 1, 2013 Author Report Share Posted July 1, 2013 I was thinking about that. But the finish i am using isnt tintable Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MiKro Posted July 1, 2013 Report Share Posted July 1, 2013 I was thinking about that. But the finish i am using isnt tintable What finish is it Luis? I have tinted polys before.This tele is done with Poly That I tinted. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
killemall8 Posted July 2, 2013 Author Report Share Posted July 2, 2013 Its minwax poly. I have tried to tint it before, but it doesnt blend. The color just goes to the center and doesnt blend. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MiKro Posted July 2, 2013 Report Share Posted July 2, 2013 Its minwax poly. I have tried to tint it before, but it doesnt blend. The color just goes to the center and doesnt blend.What are you using to tint with? I use Trans tint liquids in General Finishes Water based poly, I get from WoodCraft. One thing though, I put some ball bearings in with it so I can keep it mixed. It takes some shaking to get it to suspend but is not a problem.Mike Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
killemall8 Posted July 2, 2013 Author Report Share Posted July 2, 2013 I have tried liquid stains frome stew mac and water based and alcohol based powdered dyes from LMI. Since the poly isnt water based or solvent based, it doesnt dissolve in it or blend. Trust me, i have tried it multiple times over the years. The water based minwax takes a tint. but it looks really off. Since it has a blue tint to start with, everything ends up looking florescent or glowing when you spray it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MiKro Posted July 2, 2013 Report Share Posted July 2, 2013 I have tried liquid stains frome stew mac and water based and alcohol based powdered dyes from LMI.Since the poly isnt water based or solvent based, it doesnt dissolve in it or blend. Trust me, i have tried it multiple times over the years.The water based minwax takes a tint. but it looks really off. Since it has a blue tint to start with, everything ends up looking florescent or glowing when you spray it.Well Luis, never having used MinWax I cannot give you advice. I know that what I use has been successful.I wish you luck.Mike Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
demonx Posted July 2, 2013 Report Share Posted July 2, 2013 I'll have to completely dissagree that you cannot use Auto 2k primer on wood. I used it for years. In fact, I was sent a link on the weekend to a video of to two of my guitars playing side by side on stage in Melbourne. Bothy are old builds, both I used auto 2k primer on. No goo, paint still holding up, so you must be doing something seriously wrong. The only reason I stopped using Auto 2k primer is because of sinkback. Even though I had grainfilled thet things to death, over a period of time I was still getting sinkback. Not in the time the instrument was here, but several months aftrer the customers had taken delivery. So I now approach grain filling and sealing differently (west systems epoxy is doing the job at the moment) then just use an automotive clear over the top as a primer, then can add color or whatever after that. No sinkback. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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