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Hard finish for western red cedar

bagman67

bagman67

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So I have a really, phenomenally beautiful looking non-Warmoth Tele body in Western red cedar.  The dang thing is so soft it will take a dent if you say an unkind word in its general vicinity.  I am aware there is little I can do to change the fundamental fragility of this lumber, but I'd like to at least do what I can to toughen it up.  I'm thinking about z-poxy as a hard coating, but I'm interested in others' experiences with softwood bodies.


The shadow across the left lower bout is just that - it's not a forearm contour.  You can see a scribbly scratch near the spot where the treble knob would line up on the control plate, that pretty well demonstrates how fragile this guy is.  I have since raised it with an iron over moist paper towel, and sanded back, but it's hardly likely to stay pristine if it ever gets played at all.


So:  Thoughts?



24549010020_1d13896fe6_b.jpg
 
With wood that soft, I would be tempted to just let it naturally wear. Play it hard and wear the scars proudly.
 
I used z poxy on spalted maple.  Worked well and have a nice amber hue  it would make that look real nice.  Sand smooth and shot some nitro clean and you are done.
 
line6man said:
With wood that soft, I would be tempted to just let it naturally wear. Play it hard and wear the scars proudly.
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I'll plus 1 on the use n abuse. Give er some character  :toothy11:. Some pretty wood.
 
Plus for me, too. The tough part will be the first bit of 'character' that goes onto the otherwise pristine body. Another thought may be to consider distressing it up front, relic style. You're in control with that.
 
Thanks for the input, fellas.  I think I'll go with the zpoxy for now, given that no matter what I do to it, it'll still mark pretty easy.  I'm actually building a baritone out of this body for my cousin, who's going through tough times, and I want to present him with as pristine a guitar as I can.  He'll beat it to hell on his own schedule.
 
Locktite 2 ton epoxy, I used it on my spalted maple  tele top. Stuff will stand up to C4, doesn't yellow and will polish up nicely... :icon_thumright:
 
My cousin's just about likely to expose the dang thing to C4, now that I think of it.
 
Hey, Doug, I went looking for your spalty build, and hoped to find instructions for how you applied the epoxy, to no avail.  So:  DId you brush it on, trowel it on, or what?  How many layers?


Thanks


Bagman
 
Bagman67 said:
Hey, Doug, I went looking for your spalty build, and hoped to find instructions for how you applied the epoxy, to no avail.  So:  DId you brush it on, trowel it on, or what?  How many layers?


Thanks


Bagman
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Go to page 5 of this thread.  I used a small plastic scraper to apply the z-poxy.  An old credit card or store awards card works well too.
http://unofficialwarmoth.com/index.php?topic=20285.60
 
Unless you wrap it in steel plate - the wood underneath will always be subject to compressive dents. That's an absurd example, but even there, it'd have to be pretty thick steel.  I'd think letting it micro divots would look better than huge spiderwebbed cratered dents because this finish tried and failed to protect the underlying wood from compressive failure.
 
Bagman67 said:
Hey, Doug, I went looking for your spalty build, and hoped to find instructions for how you applied the epoxy, to no avail.  So:  DId you brush it on, trowel it on, or what?  How many layers?


Thanks


Bagman
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I don't guess I ever documented here the process. Pretty easy really, mixed it up on a old plastic cutting board, spread it on with an old plastic scraper. Let it cure for a couple days level sanded with some 220 and repeated process two more times. The first coat I put on a little thick and spread it and worked it over the top a bit to get it to soak in. :icon_thumright:
 
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