Hi.
I may be building an electric guitar for my brother soon. He wants an ebony headplate (it will be a scarf joint neck). I am a beginner, and I use oil varnish because it doesn't require special equipment.
On the guitar I'm working on now, I inlaid a few pieces of cocobolo into the headplate. The oil varnish is still sticky over the pieces of cocobolo (put on more than a month ago). I understand that cocobolo is an "oily" wood, and that this is why the varnish won't dry if applied directly. So far, I have not needed to put anything on the wood before I apply the varnish. I am not looking for a perfectly smooth finish.
My question: does anyone have experience with putting oil varnish on ebony? Will it dry? Should I put some other chemical on first? Should I thin the varnish with turpentine?
Thanks. This forum is cool.
Geo
