Question about Dying the body! first time

[mkibanez]

I'm dying the alder body of my strat, when I apply it the color is perfect, dark as I like and as soon as it dry, it becomes very light color. When  will apply the clear coat will it be darker more like when the guitar is wet? How do you gage it when it is dry?

Thanks

 

[Cagey]

If this is your first try at this, I highly recommend you find some light wood, preferably of the same species, and practice on it. You don't want to mess with the body until you know what's going to happen.

Wetting the body will always look darker. It's not that it is, it's just how the light is refracted/reflected. When you first dye it, it's gonna be dark. It'll lighten up as the solvent boils off. When you add finish, it'll tend to stay darker.

For instance, here's a swipe on a Mahogany body of absolutely clear Naphtha...

Not a finish, just the solvent. It evaporated almost immediately and you couldn't tell it was ever there. The same thing will happen when you start shooting clear coats over your stain.

Here's that same body after it's been finished with nothing but clear lacquer...

This is why you want to practice on something. Even if you have to get to a lumber yard to get some test pieces, it's worth the time/expense because it's tough to tell how things will turn out. Hate to have to strip/refinish a body. That's no fun at all.

If you can get a chunk of Alder, stain it, then shoot some clear on it, you'll know what to expect and can adjust as necessary before you start terrorizing an innocent (and expensive) body.

 

[mkibanez]

Wow thanks so much for the great informations!

 

[Cagey]

I didn't mention, but should have, that water-based stains will sometimes raise the grain of the wood, which means you'll have to sand it back before you start applying finish. That could result in some uneven results that aren't attractive.

Thin your dye with denatured alcohol, and you won't have that problem. Plus, the alcohol burns off really fast. You can start finishing the same day. Water-based takes longer as the boiling point of water is much higher so it doesn't evaporate as fast.

If you have the time and ambition, there's no problem with either and the successive finishing material doesn't matter. As long as the vehicle (water or alcohol) has completely evaporated, you're good to go. If you do the water-based, though, I'd give it at least a day (or more) before shooting anything over it.

As an aside, I have to warn you that good finishes are slow-going. Seriously. Be patient. If you rush it, you'll be sorry, and more than doubly so if you have to do it over. Plan on several weeks to do it right.

 

[bagman67]

An alternative to dying alder - an believe me, I'd rather do something else besides dye or stain alder - is to spray tinted lacquer, often referred to as a toner.  Many are available in rattle cans.  If you mix your own, you can come up with exactly what you want, but there's a lot of good stuff available off the shelf.


I go to http://www.shellac.net, which has a lot of Behlen toner products in the usual array of colors one would apply to wood - from lighter colors like golden oak, pine and cherry through dark walnut, with many stops in between.


Like Cagey, I recommend strongly that you practice on scrap, and take your time.  Every single possible shortcut involves a detour through potential disaster.

 

[line6man]

I thought that Alder didn't take dye well? Doesn't it get blotchy?

I would suggest getting a more dye-friendly wood.

 

[bagman67]

I thought that Alder didn't take dye well? Doesn't it get blotchy?

I would suggest getting a more dye-friendly wood.

My point exactly.

 

[line6man]

I thought that Alder didn't take dye well? Doesn't it get blotchy?

I would suggest getting a more dye-friendly wood.

My point exactly.

You posted while I was typing.  :blob7: