DivebombInc

This was a from scratch build including the body and neck.

I built all of these bodies and necks except for the Danelectro neck.

I still can't get over the tone. It's a ROCKER for sure. Oh, and it's a 25" scale. The Rockinger really set's it off I think. Future builds will have to have other tremolo's or fixed bridges; this is a one of a kinder.

I rarely use necks that I don't make, but this one has been sitting in my office for quite a while. I made this Basswood Star body a while back and the Rockinger tremolo I found on eBay a few years ago. The Seymour Duncan Super Distortion has been on a shelf for years too. Specs: Basswood Body Danelectro Neck and Tuners Rockinger Tremolo (no arm) Super Distortion Humbucker 500k Volume Fiesta Red Nitro Cellulose Finish Played through my Metro Amps Marshall Plexi Clone and this thing is a beast. Sounds incredible. Wish I had a way to record.

I think the clear over the black it an important step to the look that Fender acheived. Once you spray the white and do the aging some of the areas where you go all the way to the wood have black around the edges and there are some areas where you just sand the white to expose a hint of black underneath too. If you spray the white directly on the black it's hard to do this and in some cases it all comes off together. The clear in between helps.

Someone just posted this pic on another site. Based on this I think Fender cleared over the black (it's pretty glossy), I would guess they did the same for the white. If they cleared over the red they steel wooled it and rubbed it out to take off the shine. That's what I'm thinking now. That would allow some aging of each color without the danger of going through the underlying color unless you wanted to. I'm trying it over the next week. I'm sure they used basecoat/clearcoat automotive paint for this project. Not sure how interested anyone is in seeing the results, but I'll post them anyway.

I guess I'm looking at the details on the Fender. The paintjob just has an interesting look to the layers of paint and the seperation of each color. I know the steps to recreate the paintjob, it's just that look that Fender acheived that's escaping me. I use masking tape and liquid latex masking to make all those weird little shapes. Maybe the body prep is what I'm not doing right. Because I use automotive paint I used automotive clear and then wetsand smooth before spraying the first color. One of my issues is when I age the white/black stage as soon as I get through the white I go through the black too and expose wood. In some places I want to take off the white and still have some black. Here's an example: maybe I'm over thinking it. Would allowing each color to cure more before spraying the next maybe make a difference. I do know that Ed said in an interview that he did clear it after it was red because he saw some pictures of it and the grain was showing a lot.

Thanks for the response, but I can put my paintjobs up against any of those and probably do pretty well. I'm looking for more technical info on the technique used to get this look like possibly doing a coat of clear in between colors and body prep. Here's one of mine-

I know this really isn't what some would consider a beautiful finish on a guitar. I'm really looking for the technique more than how to do this particular guitar.

I have done this paintjob before, but I really want to get it to look like Fender did. I have a spray rig and I use PPG auto paints. My question is this... How the heck did they accomplish this look? Can I seal the body with clear and wetsand it and then spray color over the clear? I guess I could spray a thin coat of clear over each color so that the colors don't "stick" to each other. Does anyone know the answer? This pic is of the Fender.

Okay, I've been working on this deal with the manufacturer for 5-way switches that are accurate to the real Frankenstein and also can be used in restoration projects and/or aged new builds. My costs are coming back making it cost prohibitive. I’ll have to sell them at $49 to make any kind of margin making it worth my time and investment. Considering the broad range of applications for this switch and the accurate vintage specs do you think this is something I should pursue? It will look like this minus the solder of course.

that's a walnut inlay on the fingerboard

i was very careful to not stain up to the edges and once i sanded with a block it sharpened everything up. carve is more like scraping with this. yes the bridge will cover the image slightly, but it was intentional.

i'm making this one for john evans; he's a big john wayne fan and his nickname is... well... you can see what his nickname is. the image was sketched and then carved out of the alder carefully. i applied a little stain and then sanded to sharpen it up.

Thanks, I was just reading about Alsa; it might work.