Is this a stupid finish idea??

[KaiserSoze]

I'm planning a pretty basic hardtail strat with an alder body.  I can't spend a lot of dollars at once so like to buy a body and work on it for a while as I collect other parts.

I thought of possibly just bleaching an alder body, and, assuming it goes okay, applying a finish like TruOil and call it good. Will it look crappy or should I just do the oil finish and be cool with it?  I just get bored with a brown guitar. 

 

[Cagey]

Alder is pretty bland and white to begin with and has little apparent grain so I'm not sure what you'd gain by bleaching it. But, that's an easy step so you have nothing to lose. If nothing else, the chemicals are cut with water so it'll raise the grain some before finish sanding.

From Wood Magazine:

Look for a two-part bleach to do the job

You'll find three kinds of products marketed as wood bleaches. But only one will remove the natural color from wood: a two-part wood bleach of sodium hydroxide (caustic soda) and hydrogen peroxide. Other wood bleaches are chlorine bleach and oxalic acid.

Chlorine bleach, which is like ordinary laundry bleach, will remove dye color from wood, but not the wood's natural color. Oxalic acid is commonly employed to bleach out water or rust stains. Teak stain remover sold by boat dealers is often based on oxalic acid.

Continue reading...

 

[dmraco]

Try some of the water based Minwax stains.  lots of reds, green, blue hues there.  Very Cheap. 
http://www.minwax.com/wood-products/stains-color-guide/

Alder will also take a dye well too.  Very cheap.

 

[Tonar8352]

Here is a thread I did along time ago that shows the effect of bleaching on alder so you can see what it will look like.
http://www.unofficialwarmoth.com/index.php?topic=462.msg3182#msg3182

 

[Cagey]

Tonar - I'm surprised at the difference that bleach makes...

Regular Kroger-brand Alder...​

After Tonar teaches it a lesson...​

Almost looks like a casting.

I don't know that I'll ever be doing that, but I'm glad to know what the results would be if I did.

 

[DangerousR6]

If the grain sucks, then I'd say bleach it. But this grain doesn't suck, I'd have wanted it to look just like this... :headbang1:

 

[Tonar8352]

But this grain doesn't suck, I'd have wanted it to look just like this

I agree but this guitar was about replicating as closely as possible a 63 finish so I did what I had to do.  :-\ 

 

[DangerousR6]

But this grain doesn't suck, I'd have wanted it to look just like this

I agree but this guitar was about replicating as closely as possible a 63 finish so I did what I had to do.  :-\

I guess sometimes what has to be has to be... :dontknow:

 

[KaiserSoze]

Thanks,  I did see that thread with the bleached alder picture and really liked the look without any other finish.  Might be interesting to try just a clear coat on nearly-white alder that or add some warmth with some truoil  Haven't seen it before so I thought it might be interesting.

I like woodgrain with an oil finish, but have one already.

 

[Cagey]

Time for some paint, then. Buy a cheapo body from one of the usual suspects like Guitar Fetish, a few rattle cans of sanding sealer and nitro, a mittenful of sandpaper, and teach yourself a lesson. They have computers on the internet now... there's a boat-load of information out there to guide you. And if you screw it up, who cares? Start over.

Once you've figured out what works and what doesn't, then buy into the better stuff and have a blast.