Paste Wax (and no other finish)?

[Bob Hoover Ross]

An acquaintance on another forum showed me a bass he'd built using an unfinished body, and the only treatment he applied was "Butcher's Boston Polish Amber Paste Wax" He says he sanded the body to 320 grit, applied two coats of this paste wax, polished [sic] it with paper towels, and that was it. It's lasted over 20 years with no subsequent reapplication/polishing. And it looks gorgeous!

Anyone here ever do this? Any downside to a paste wax-only finish? Is there a better paste wax to use than this Butcher's Boston stuff?

I've already proven to myself that I have neither the experience nor the patience to apply traditional finishes easily or successfully, so this sounds appealing due to the low labor requirements. I have an alder+maple bodied Warmoth bass that I've been procrastinating about finishing precisely because I suck at DIY finishing!

Will I screw this up too? Should I not even bother, i.e., is paste wax a bad idea? Thanks.

 

[mayfly]

well, that's an interesting idea for sure.  I have zero experience, but I'm tempted to get a can of that wax and give it a try on some scrap!

I imagine that if you sweat a lot, and some of us do, you might have to re-apply it every now and again.

 

[Rick]

Only did that on furniture, and it looks gorgeous, particular on oak.  Yes, you have to, probably once year, replenish it.  Thing is you're not sweating on the oakpiece and if you spill anything you have to clean it up because the second spill will penatrate into the wood.

 

[stratamania]

Warwick use a beeswax type finish on thier natural basses. So paste wax sounds like a similar proposition.

 

[Seamas]

I have used paste wax on wooden handles on tools  (which are mostly fruitwood) and other things around the workshop.
It can work out fin depending on the type of wood, but I would not expect anything close to a hard finish.

It all depends on what you want to get out of the finish.

 

[gingataff]

I've watched a lot of wood turning videos on youtube and they often just apply a coat of wax, even for cups and mugs which will presumably get a fair amount of abuse. So I've wondered if these kind of waxes would work on guitars.

 

[Bob Hoover Ross]

Follow-up to this query: Any opinions, observations, factoids or whatnot on the difference(s) between this Butcher's Boston Polish Amber Paste Wax and a product more typically used on guitars/basses such as Howard's Feed-N-Wax?

As per my OP, I have an alder+maple bodied Warmoth bass that is still unfinished, and I'm looking for the simplest, least labor-intensive, least skill- or precision-required method of putting some kind of finish on the raw wood. Thx

 

[triple jim]

I've watched a lot of wood turning videos on youtube and they often just apply a coat of wax, even for cups and mugs which will presumably get a fair amount of abuse. So I've wondered if these kind of waxes would work on guitars.

A friend of mine is deep into wood turning and teaching wood turning. I asked him about things like cups, goblets, etc. He said they are purely decorative and never see liquid.

 

[stratamania]

Follow-up to this query: Any opinions, observations, factoids or whatnot on the difference(s) between this Butcher's Boston Polish Amber Paste Wax and a product more typically used on guitars/basses such as Howard's Feed-N-Wax?

As per my OP, I have an alder+maple bodied Warmoth bass that is still unfinished, and I'm looking for the simplest, least labor-intensive, least skill- or precision-required method of putting some kind of finish on the raw wood. Thx

Perhaps get some of the Warwick Surface Finisher (Beeswax based) product I mentioned in post #4 above.

Any finish requires some time and effort to get a reasonable result, but this should meet your criteria.

 

[Michaelga]

Follow-up to this query: Any opinions, observations, factoids or whatnot on the difference(s) between this Butcher's Boston Polish Amber Paste Wax and a product more typically used on guitars/basses such as Howard's Feed-N-Wax?

As per my OP, I have an alder+maple bodied Warmoth bass that is still unfinished, and I'm looking for the simplest, least labor-intensive, least skill- or precision-required method of putting some kind of finish on the raw wood. Thx

You can get a small bottle of Tru oil for around $5. Just use pieces of an old t-shirt and apply at least 5 coats, let it dry and you're done.

Michael

 

[vetteman]

I used pure Tung oil on a couple necks followed by Johnsons paste wax and they turned out great. They feel smooth with no stickiness and seem to get better with age.

 

[Bob Hoover Ross]

Follow-up to this query: Any opinions, observations, factoids or whatnot on the difference(s) between this Butcher's Boston Polish Amber Paste Wax and a product more typically used on guitars/basses such as Howard's Feed-N-Wax?

As per my OP, I have an alder+maple bodied Warmoth bass that is still unfinished, and I'm looking for the simplest, least labor-intensive, least skill- or precision-required method of putting some kind of finish on the raw wood. Thx

After yet another year of doing nothing with this bass (other than playing it occasionally) I finally decided to wax the body with Howard's Feed-N-Wax

...and all I can say is, why did I wait so long?!?! The process was ridiculously easy, it required no special tools or techniques, it was quick, and most importantly, the wood looks fabulous! Really makes the grain pop.

Just gotta find one replacement knob for the one that went missing 4 or 5 years ago, and this instrument will finally be done!

 

[Scott]

I have used Tried and True original wood finish on 2 roasted maple necks (sorry, not on a body). It is bees wax and polymerized linseed oil. The result is super satin smooth. The added oil might offer a bit more protection and hardness than wax alone. First neck I used it on is still looking and feeling good (completed in 2017). As a bonus it is also food safe if you want to use the guitar body as a cutting board or serving tray.

 

[Bob Hoover Ross]

Got the knob, now it's done!!! Yay :::happy dance:::

Already used it on a studio session this afternoon, laying down tracks for a film score by composer Alexey Artemov.

 

[WarmothRules]

An acquaintance on another forum showed me a bass he'd built using an unfinished body, and the only treatment he applied was "Butcher's Boston Polish Amber Paste Wax" He says he sanded the body to 320 grit, applied two coats of this paste wax, polished [sic] it with paper towels, and that was it. It's lasted over 20 years with no subsequent reapplication/polishing. And it looks gorgeous!

Anyone here ever do this? Any downside to a paste wax-only finish? Is there a better paste wax to use than this Butcher's Boston stuff?

I've already proven to myself that I have neither the experience nor the patience to apply traditional finishes easily or successfully, so this sounds appealing due to the low labor requirements. I have an alder+maple bodied Warmoth bass that I've been procrastinating about finishing precisely because I suck at DIY finishing!

Will I screw this up too? Should I not even bother, i.e., is paste wax a bad idea? Thanks.

I think it would be a great idea on a roasted body.