Stupid idea??

[Cederick]

When you build an "unfinished" guitar, you're really just building one with a salt+grease+dirt finish, you're just finishing it over an extended period. I wonder if any of those clothing manufacturers running sweatshops in China and the Philippines have ever considered hanging some guitar bodies around the factories, for the workers to rub themselves on? Who wouldn't pay a premium for a "Natural Asian Nosegrease Finish", right?

:laughing11:

I was planning an unfinished body. Same thing - it's never going to leave the house and I wanted it cheap. As soon as I got it out of the box, I knew that not finishing it was a bad idea. It felt too soft and you could instantly imagine what it was going to look like with some wear on it. Also, it was incredibly absorbent - I tried a bit of meths (denatured alcohol) on there and it sucked it right up, the surface was dry almost immediately. So any liquid you get near it, it's going in and you'll never get it out again.

All I did was: brushed meths all over it to stop it being quite so thirsty, gave it about three or four brushed-on coats of shellac sanding sealer, with steel wool between each coat (it took about half an hour or so to be dry enough), and then once that was fully dry, gave it a couple of coats of Briwax, just rubbed in with steel wool. The whole finish job took about one afternoon, no smells, no fuss, no equipment needed. The end result is a "smooth" finish - not quite as matte as satin, not as shiny as gloss. I didn't do grain filler so it still feels like a piece of wood.

Here's what it ended up like:

I would really recommend it - everything was easy and while the finish won't take much punishment it protects it from dirt. Any dings and scratches can very easily be touched back in.

Interesting! That sounds like something for me, since , like I said, I have no good place for spray finishing stuff.
Great advice!

 

[Wolfie351]

We're not talking about preserving holy relics or historical artifacts here.  As much as I like Warmoth products, they are easily replaceable and OP sounds like he knows the risks.  I'd do a raw neck and a very very light application of oil/wax/nitro on the body and see how you like it.  If you don't, easy to refinish.  Not so easy if you dipped it in poly.  The redwood Strat I put up for GOM a few months back only had a couple coats of tru-oil, very satisfying to play.  Here's a W neck I bought in 1991.  Been raw for 20+ years and it's just as straight and clean as the day I bought it.  Didn't expect it to last this long, but it helps to live in a temperate climate.  Also helps to do the extra work in caring for it

 

[Ddbltrbl]

Deja Vu all over again!  :laughing7:
You can get the same look / finish with just a couple of coats of Tru-oil. And it's as simple as just wiping it on and dries enough for the next coat in about 2 hours. It isn't quite as tough as poly or lacquer, but its' still pretty durable. This one has a total of about 7 coats if I remember right. It got fairly glossy though all I did was hit it lightly with a well worn 3M pad in between coats. But, 2 or 3 coats would give you the protection you need and still have more of the matte look to it.

 

[croquet hoop]

Briwax is a blend of beeswax and carnauba wax, plus some solvents to make it spreadable. It's a final finish; nothing will go on top of it. I think it does leave a very thin coating of wax on the wood. You just rub it in with 0000, wait for it to dry, then buff it up with a cloth. I think I did two coats.

Thanks for the details 

 

[mark1178]

When you build an "unfinished" guitar, you're really just building one with a salt+grease+dirt finish, you're just finishing it over an extended period. I wonder if any of those clothing manufacturers running sweatshops in China and the Philippines have ever considered hanging some guitar bodies around the factories, for the workers to rub themselves on? Who wouldn't pay a premium for a "Natural Asian Nosegrease Finish", right?

Hey I'm a sweaty Filipino! Great idea I'm gonna sell my custom body sweat sealer coats here. $200 a coat $50 processing fee (water) and ham sandwiches,

 

[Strat Avenger]

Hehe. People still think an electric guitar is supposed to "resonate".  Well, perhaps a semi-hollow body such as a Gibson Es-335, but if a solid-body electric guitar is "resonating", its frequencies are being limited (absorbed).

Acoustic guitars are supposed to resonate, not electrics.
It is a myth that a hard finish somehow takes away from the "tone".  True, a super thick finish could possibly act as a damping material absorbing frequencies or reducing sustain (dull-sounding), but such a finish would have to be thicker (and softer) than what's being used on most electric guitars today.

The tone of electric guitars (before it hits the amplifier) is going to be a result of the pickups, bridge, neck, and the players fingers (technique). Not the finish.