My Flame Strat

[Strat Matt]

Hello everybody.
I finally decided to take some pictures of my current project.  I bought this stuff almost four years ago.  Had the body finished twice, but something happened during the clear coat
so I had to start all over.  This is the third try.  Hopefully what they say is true.  Anyways, here it is:

This is the body stained with Minwax.  It looks a bit darker in person.  Alder with flame maple top.  OFR route, with extra notch for d-tuna.  I have no idea if that will work.

Here's the neck.  Maple with rosewood, standard thin.  I think it's the 1 11/16" nut, but I can't remember.  I originally wanted to do a reverse headstock.  I'm really glad I didn't.

A closeup of the headstock.  I got a ton of birdseye without asking for any.  I think it looks awesome.  Looks better in person.

Everything's mocked together here.  Black floyd(for some reason).  Tone Zone in the bridge, Air Norton in the neck, and a poorly placed coil tap switch.  I'll move that one day and
keep the gaping hole as a constant reminder of a lesson learned.

After seeing it all together, I'm strongly considering skipping the sunburst.  Partly because it looks good without, partly because I just want to get it done.  I also want to put a single
in the middle.  Any suggestions for that?  I want this to be versatile, but it will probably play mostly metal from Motorhead to Van Halen.  I also play a lot of blues and I recently
discovered how good the middle pickup of strats sound, so I don't want to miss out.  Also, you can't see it, but I'm using Dunlop flush-mount strap locks.  I absolutely love the idea
of these and I'm surprised more people don't use them.  However, they were a bugger to track down, so maybe that's why.

I don't think I'll ever do a figured top again.  I definitely won't finish it myself if I do.

So enjoy.  Any comments or suggestions are welcome.

 

[rockskate4x]

no sunburst? no problem... almost any figured guitar looks brilliant with simple clear... and yours is no exception! Good work!

 

[Wana_make_a_guitar]

:icon_thumright:  Thats great looking and the D tuna idea is great, Warmoth should do it.

 

[greywolf]

Great  looking body and neck, I'd vote for leaving it clear . If so i think  a vintage pearl ( creamy) pickguard would compliment it better.

Another option that would look wicked with the grey pearl is a trans black , it would let that gorgeous flame through and really be a knockout

 

[Strat Matt]

Hey, I'm back with an update. I've actually completed assembly on this guitar. There are still upgrades to be made; shims and a tremel-no for the Floyd, and of course the d-tuna.
Here are a couple pictures of the body after I sprayed the burst and a few coats of clear.  This is right before the level sanding and buffing.

I think I covered way too much of that flame, but it's my first burst, let alone my first paint job.

I realize that my old pictures don't work because I organized them, but I don't feel like fixing it right now.

I'll post pictures of the "completed" project tomorrow.  Thanks for viewing.  Any comments are appreciated, including what color pickguard you would rather see.

 

[jay4321]

Man I really don't like making negative comments about other people's projects, but I strongly suggest you strip it down and start again, or take it to a pro. Not only is it an abyssmal finish it's an abyssmal finish on what looks like a great flame top.

I say this only because I think you'd be far happier getting it done right (and also because you asked for comments).

I'm wondering if I'm even seeing it right on this monitor. I mean it's jet black, thick burst, with no transitition colors added since these photos, and just natural in the middle? that how it appears to everyone else?

 

[jay4321]

And I did catch this has been refinished already before and you're probably tired of the process. Maybe strip it down one more and talk to Tonar here? He does good work for a number of us, but can also give you some pointers. He's actually working on one strat with a similar top now (dye job), has a photo up somewhere lately.

 

[AGWAN]

I have to agree, as harsh as it sounds.

that wood looks lovely, but that burst just looks... not awesome.

Its great for your first time.

but a body that pricey deserves some special treatment!

 

[Panthur]

If it was me, I'd say forget the burst too. The non-bursted bit of the finish looks amazing, the top is gorgeous.

 

[jay4321]

The configuration and all of that is pretty sharp too, if done right this could be a GOTM candidate easy. Ton of potential with that guitar

 

[ORCRiST]

I have to agree, as harsh as it sounds.

that wood looks lovely, but that burst just looks... not awesome.

Its great for your first time.

but a body that pricey deserves some special treatment!

+1

I think I see what you were trying to pull off - l like it, its just that the black burst is to much (IMHO) around to the front.

If you could somehow knock off like 1/2 to 3/4's of an inch of black and even add one 'transition' color/layer that'd look
a lot better. Again, thats all in my opinion and its obviously not my body... if you're happy with it, than thats all that matters.

I know shit about finishes, someone chime in here (*cough*Tonar*cough*), but couldn't you just sand back the black off
a bit around the perimeter of the burst (if you wanted to, anyways)?

I have to add, that little extra rout for the D-tuna is sweet!  :icon_thumright:

ORC

 

[Firebird211]

I would have to agree with everybody on the burst transition.  You did way better than I could even do, heck I wouldn't even try on a top like that because there is no way I would get it right.  Even worse, you gotta think about how much of that flame is covered when the pickguard is on.  I don't think you will be happy with it in end. :dontknow:

 

[bigguspickus]

If it makes you feel any better, here's an original 1956 Stratocaster, factory finish.

 

[JaySwear]

i actually really kind of like the finish. i think it would be cooler if the edge burst was a trans black, but this is really cool too. trans would be best on a nice flame top like that though.

 

[tangent]

If you don't want to repaint the whole thing you could always paint the rest of the back black to match the sides then strip the top and do a clear gloss coat.  That wouldn't be much work in comparison to redoing the whole thing, would probably only take a few hours of work and it would look really cool I think.

 

[swarfrat]

What tangent said - no harm in painting the back black, and that leaves just the top to strip.

 

[rapfohl09]

If it makes you feel any better, here's an original 1956 Stratocaster, factory finish.

Only big difference here is that there isn't a beautiful flame top under that finish. I agree with everyone else, this thing could look amazing. And hey, 3rd times the charm right? :icon_thumright:

 

[Alfang]

I painted a burst for a friend just like that, it was a real SOB, I spent more time stripping it and starting over than actually finishing, I think it took me 6 tries, the hardest part was getting the burst to blend smoothly.

I dont think the OP's finish looks all that bad, of course it could be better, but it's not horrible. Stew Mac sells a video on doing a burst finish  http://www.stewmac.com/shop/Video,_DVD/Finishing,_repair/Spray_Finishing.html

I'd like to get this someday and get real good at doing burst finishes,

 

[Mor Paul]

Adding a dark brown could help the transition, maybe

 

[Disco Scottie]

If it makes you feel any better, here's an original 1956 Stratocaster, factory finish.

The difference is there's a transition that smooths it out.

This is why I have no interest in attempting to paint anything. Mine would look even worse.