Maiden69 Posted June 6, 2004 Report Share Posted June 6, 2004 Yesterday I was browsing the internet andI noticed in the Zakk Wylde site that they found the Grail. I Knew that this guitar was a solid color but I didn't know that the neck was mahogany, I wanted a bare neck on my Epiphone but I didn't like the color or texture of bare mahogany... I Decided to pull out my Epi and sand the neck just a little bit to make it slippery. And after sanding for Iwhile I noticed a familiar pattern on the wood. This neck is not mahogany as the web site says, but a lightly flamed maple neck!!! I removed all the lacquer and the cherry stain, using 600 sp sanded, wetted, sanded, wetted until the grain stopped lifting, then sanded with 1500, and 2000 sp, and theis is what I came up with. The first one is before applying a light coat of lemon oil, the second with oil. The question is, can I leave this raw and have no problem with it? or do I need to apply tung oil or tru oil, and how do this feel since I haven't try eighter one? I love the feel of the polished raw neck, but I don't want to damage it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
skibum5545 Posted June 6, 2004 Report Share Posted June 6, 2004 nice!! I love the look of maple necks. I'm not sure what you mean about Zakk Wylde and the grail, though...? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
spirit Posted June 6, 2004 Report Share Posted June 6, 2004 it would be better to finish it with something because, if i'm not mistaken, bare wood is more prone to warping. someone else may know better though, so wait for more answers Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
westhemann Posted June 6, 2004 Report Share Posted June 6, 2004 you can just tung oil it,but it will get dirty pretty quick... tru oil is really nice Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
canuckguitarist Posted June 6, 2004 Report Share Posted June 6, 2004 i thought zakk wylde's grail had a maple neck...? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
VanKirk Posted June 6, 2004 Report Share Posted June 6, 2004 I like tru-oil but I find it just a bit stickier than tung-oil. Specifically, I would use Formby's tung-oil. It feels very smooth and would be perfect for the neck. Just give it a wipe down with lemon oil every once in awhile and it should stay pretty clean. If it starts to build up dirt, lightly rub it down with 0000 steel wool and put anoter coat on. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Maiden69 Posted June 7, 2004 Author Report Share Posted June 7, 2004 Thanks for the advice. I just play this at my house and I always wash my hands before playing the damn thing. I read a few articles that say this will extend the life of the strings... Also I have seen so many nasty guitars with gunk on the strings that the owners claim that sound bad, after changing the strings, voila, the guitar is better than ever! Well on theGrail issue. The Grail was a Blonde (Vintage White) custom LP that Zakk bought when he was about 17, and then painted with the bulls eye because (as he said on Guitar Mag) he didn't want to be badged as a Randy imitator. The LP is Mahogany to include the neck, as you can see on the pics below. Here is were I found out. Just click on IMAGES. You will find pics of the Pawn Shop that the Grail was found and the person who found it. I included some pics just in case. The guy there is the one who found it, and where he did. I bet Zakk is a very happy MF right now... And the New custom made Bulls Eye guitar that Gibson makes is the one that havea maple neck, the original Grail is all Mahogany. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
metalthrashingmad Posted June 8, 2004 Report Share Posted June 8, 2004 i dont know much bout building guitars, but its obvious if the neck is unfinished it will be more likley to warp due to sweat from palms and finger tips. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
weezerboy Posted June 8, 2004 Report Share Posted June 8, 2004 does slash not have unfinished necks? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Maiden69 Posted June 9, 2004 Author Report Share Posted June 9, 2004 No Slash doesn't use a bare neck. I have two concert DVD's from G&R and the neck is finished. Even on the Buatiful red Mocking Bird. Zakk Wylde does. I'm trying to see if I can get his tech e-mail to see if he will answer the question. mainly is how much does problems does the bare neck brings him. I read an article from him a few years ago and he didn't mentioned anything about the neck. I love the feel of it. I guess that I'm just going to keep it bare, and clean it once a week with lemon oil if it get's dirty. I e-mailed epiphone asking about the maple neck, since this guitar was advertised, including on their web site as being a mahogany neck guitar. It have a mahogany veneer running from the sides of the heel and in the back of the head stock, the back of the neck was stained dark cherry like the back of the body, it looked suspicious because you could barely notice a hint of flame. Now I'm wondering if the dody is a venner covered one, and if the male is solid. When I replaced the pick ups, the top looked solid, but it can be an alder top with a flamed maple venner! I will wait until I get my other guitar back to take this one apart and refinish it. Then I will post pics and progress. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Simo Posted June 9, 2004 Report Share Posted June 9, 2004 And the New custom made Bulls Eye guitar that Gibson makes is the one that havea maple neck, the original Grail is all Mahogany The Grail has a Maple neck not Mahogany, there's a article in this months Guitar World mag, I don't have my scanner rigged up at the moment so I took a pic with my digital camera, you can read it here.... http://www.smartgroups.com/picvault/225772...lllllllllll.JPG Be warned 56k users it's pretty big Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Maiden69 Posted June 9, 2004 Author Report Share Posted June 9, 2004 And the New custom made Bulls Eye guitar that Gibson makes is the one that havea maple neck, the original Grail is all Mahogany The Grail has a Maple neck not Mahogany, there's a article in this months Guitar World mag, I don't have my scanner rigged up at the moment so I took a pic with my digital camera, you can read it here.... http://www.smartgroups.com/picvault/225772...lllllllllll.JPG Be warned 56k users it's pretty big I agree with what the Mag says because I have it. I got almost all the guitar mags that come for sale! But I knew this until I saw the photos from the recovered Grail in the posted pics on my previous posts. I KNOW that is not a maple neck. Unless the guy who had it was a mechanic and used burnt SAE 5W50 syntetic racing oil (Castrol is my favorite) to clean the neck instead of lemon oil , I mean I know that a raw neck can get dirty, but that looks like a 1950's baseball bat that was kept in a shed for eternity! Like I said before, I belive almost all that I read, but a picture is worth a thousand words, and is more true than a history told by someone who was not the one that actualy did it. I guess we will have to call Zakk and ask him on this one... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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