Tat Strat

[Patriot54]

Dinged mid-July, dying to see an update!  :rock-on:

I've been working on some of the small details lately, so there hasn't been much to photograph until now.

The first picture shows the neck before and after a few coats of Tru Oil - that was a couple of weeks ago.

The second and third pics were both taken today - one inside and one outside. You can see the shine on the indoor pic and a hint of gold reflection at the top from the oil finish. The outdoor pics didn't turn out as well as I wanted, but I'll take more after a few more coats of oil. At this point, there's about 5 coats on the neck and 3 coats on the body. When I'm applying Tru-oil, should I wipe off the excess with a second clean cloth, or just rub it in but leave it as thick as possible? The woodburned surface is really rough, especially on the body, so I think it will take a ton of oil.

 

[Patriot54]

Also, I'll be ordering hardware soon. At first I was going to use all black hardware but the Fender Standard Flat Mount doesn't come in black and I decided chrome would look better anyway, so it will be a chrome bridge, black pickups, chrome & black tuners and a black neckplate with a design etched down to the chrome. The jackplate and rear string ferrules will be against the dark stain so I haven't decided if those should be black or chrome. Right now I'm leaning towards these knobs in chrome - one of each.

 

[anorakDan]

Great update! Thanks for keeping us posted on your progress. One question, where did you source those knobs?

 

[Patriot54]

Great update! Thanks for keeping us posted on your progress. One question, where did you source those knobs?

Those 2 knobs are on Q-Parts website. My only hesitation is they want $12 each - I'm almost considering getting plain knobs for much less and etching them myself with the dremel. I also saw a picture of some tribal knobs from Musician's Friend but they were out of stock.

 

[stubhead]

I don't think you have to worry about your guitar looking too plain. :laughing3: In a way, those tribal knobs might be too busy and clashing. I'd go plain chrome domes, with a chrome bridge. They match everywhere.

ED: I think plainer hardware does a better job of bringing out out a great finish, it's a figure/ground thing. And that is one mother of a finish.

 

[Cagey]

Wow! The finish is really bringing your work out nicely! I was skeptical of the whole idea at first, but now I'm sold. That thing is a beauty!

I agree with Stubhead about the knobs. The ones you're showing are attractive, but might be too busy for that body. They'll get lost. Plain chrome knobs would be better, I think. Actually, just about any finish would work on that guitar - gold, black, chrome, etc.

 

[Patriot54]

Wow! The finish is really bringing your work out nicely! I was skeptical of the whole idea at first, but now I'm sold. That thing is a beauty!

I agree with Stubhead about the knobs. The ones you're showing are attractive, but might be too busy for that body. They'll get lost. Plain chrome knobs would be better, I think. Actually, just about any finish would work on that guitar - gold, black, chrome, etc.

Thanks - I'll have to put a lot of oil on this thing to add some color to the maple. Depending on the lighting, it still looks very pale in some photos. Also, the graphics are starting to appear almost 3-D because the oil reflects differently off the shaded sections. I'll try to get some better photos once I build up the finish.

Like all the parts of this project, I'm still undecided about hardware. I just ordered black metal flat top knobs to see if I can etch a simple design into the top - that would look much cleaner (and be way cheaper) than the knobs I pictured. If it doesn't look good, then I only lost a few bucks. I also considered plain chrome like you guys suggested, or plain ebony wood knobs that would sort of match the back and sides of the guitar. If the bridge wasn't limited to chrome, I would have considered gold hardware, but I'll save that idea for a future project.

Also, I sent an idea for a custom neckplate to Dangerous, which will be a black plate with the design etched down to the chrome, which is what I hope to match with the knobs.

 

[DangerousR6]

Wow! The finish is really bringing your work out nicely! I was skeptical of the whole idea at first, but now I'm sold. That thing is a beauty!

I agree with Stubhead about the knobs. The ones you're showing are attractive, but might be too busy for that body. They'll get lost. Plain chrome knobs would be better, I think. Actually, just about any finish would work on that guitar - gold, black, chrome, etc.

Thanks - I'll have to put a lot of oil on this thing to add some color to the maple. Depending on the lighting, it still looks very pale in some photos. Also, the graphics are starting to appear almost 3-D because the oil reflects differently off the shaded sections. I'll try to get some better photos once I build up the finish.

Like all the parts of this project, I'm still undecided about hardware. I just ordered black metal flat top knobs to see if I can etch a simple design into the top - that would look much cleaner (and be way cheaper) than the knobs I pictured. If it doesn't look good, then I only lost a few bucks. I also considered plain chrome like you guys suggested, or plain ebony wood knobs that would sort of match the back and sides of the guitar. If the bridge wasn't limited to chrome, I would have considered gold hardware, but I'll save that idea for a future project.

Also, I sent an idea for a custom neckplate to Dangerous, which will be a black plate with the design etched down to the chrome, which is what I hope to match with the knobs.

From what I've got so far, it should be pretty cool.... :icon_thumright:

 

[Patriot54]

Wow! The finish is really bringing your work out nicely! I was skeptical of the whole idea at first, but now I'm sold. That thing is a beauty!

I agree with Stubhead about the knobs. The ones you're showing are attractive, but might be too busy for that body. They'll get lost. Plain chrome knobs would be better, I think. Actually, just about any finish would work on that guitar - gold, black, chrome, etc.

Thanks - I'll have to put a lot of oil on this thing to add some color to the maple. Depending on the lighting, it still looks very pale in some photos. Also, the graphics are starting to appear almost 3-D because the oil reflects differently off the shaded sections. I'll try to get some better photos once I build up the finish.

Like all the parts of this project, I'm still undecided about hardware. I just ordered black metal flat top knobs to see if I can etch a simple design into the top - that would look much cleaner (and be way cheaper) than the knobs I pictured. If it doesn't look good, then I only lost a few bucks. I also considered plain chrome like you guys suggested, or plain ebony wood knobs that would sort of match the back and sides of the guitar. If the bridge wasn't limited to chrome, I would have considered gold hardware, but I'll save that idea for a future project.

Also, I sent an idea for a custom neckplate to Dangerous, which will be a black plate with the design etched down to the chrome, which is what I hope to match with the knobs.

From what I've got so far, it should be pretty cool.... :icon_thumright:

If you want, you can take a picture when it's done and post it here or in your neckplate thread. I can't wait to see how it turns out.

 

[dmraco]

I must say this is a lobor of love and truely a master piece.  Lots of man hours here that are really showcased.

I must say I was hoping for a "darker" finish.  Do you think the additional coats will darken it up?

 

[Corey P.]

I really like the celtic knot knobs, but agree that simple may be best to keep the focus where it belongs on that body - that said, looking forward to seeing your etchings!

 

[partialdoctor]

I must say this is a lobor of love and truely a master piece.  Lots of man hours here that are really showcased.

I must say I was hoping for a "darker" finish.  Do you think the additional coats will darken it up?

Agreed.

 

[DangerousR6]

Wow! The finish is really bringing your work out nicely! I was skeptical of the whole idea at first, but now I'm sold. That thing is a beauty!

I agree with Stubhead about the knobs. The ones you're showing are attractive, but might be too busy for that body. They'll get lost. Plain chrome knobs would be better, I think. Actually, just about any finish would work on that guitar - gold, black, chrome, etc.

Thanks - I'll have to put a lot of oil on this thing to add some color to the maple. Depending on the lighting, it still looks very pale in some photos. Also, the graphics are starting to appear almost 3-D because the oil reflects differently off the shaded sections. I'll try to get some better photos once I build up the finish.

Like all the parts of this project, I'm still undecided about hardware. I just ordered black metal flat top knobs to see if I can etch a simple design into the top - that would look much cleaner (and be way cheaper) than the knobs I pictured. If it doesn't look good, then I only lost a few bucks. I also considered plain chrome like you guys suggested, or plain ebony wood knobs that would sort of match the back and sides of the guitar. If the bridge wasn't limited to chrome, I would have considered gold hardware, but I'll save that idea for a future project.

Also, I sent an idea for a custom neckplate to Dangerous, which will be a black plate with the design etched down to the chrome, which is what I hope to match with the knobs.

From what I've got so far, it should be pretty cool.... :icon_thumright:

If you want, you can take a picture when it's done and post it here or in your neckplate thread. I can't wait to see how it turns out.

Will do! :headbang1:

 

[Death by Uberschall]

Loving it!! Man, it would be soooooooooo awesome with a Tobacco Burst over that!!  :headbang1:

 

[Patriot54]

I must say this is a lobor of love and truely a master piece.  Lots of man hours here that are really showcased.

I must say I was hoping for a "darker" finish.  Do you think the additional coats will darken it up?

I hope so - I'd like to see a little more orange tone. The oil doesn't absorb into maple too much to darken the wood so most of the color must be coming from the layer of oil and how it's reflecting the light. That's why the color changes in different photos.

Before I started this project, I thought the all maple idea might look a little plain, which is why I did the dark stain on the back and sides. The stain is also looking a little dull to me, so I'm getting some with a hint of dark red to add some color to the back. More pictures of that this weekend.

 

[dmraco]

I must say this is a lobor of love and truely a master piece.  Lots of man hours here that are really showcased.

I must say I was hoping for a "darker" finish.  Do you think the additional coats will darken it up?

I hope so - I'd like to see a little more orange tone. The oil doesn't absorb into maple too much to darken the wood so most of the color must be coming from the layer of oil and how it's reflecting the light. That's why the color changes in different photos.

Before I started this project, I thought the all maple idea might look a little plain, which is why I did the dark stain on the back and sides. The stain is also looking a little dull to me, so I'm getting some with a hint of dark red to add some color to the back. More pictures of that this weekend.

can tru-oil be tinted?

 

[DangerousR6]

I must say this is a lobor of love and truely a master piece.  Lots of man hours here that are really showcased.

I must say I was hoping for a "darker" finish.  Do you think the additional coats will darken it up?

I hope so - I'd like to see a little more orange tone. The oil doesn't absorb into maple too much to darken the wood so most of the color must be coming from the layer of oil and how it's reflecting the light. That's why the color changes in different photos.

Before I started this project, I thought the all maple idea might look a little plain, which is why I did the dark stain on the back and sides. The stain is also looking a little dull to me, so I'm getting some with a hint of dark red to add some color to the back. More pictures of that this weekend.

can tru-oil be tinted?

Good question.....Tonar, you're up... :dontknow:

 

[dmraco]

i personally am not aware of any tint for oil based products.  But Tonar would be the man to ask. :icon_thumright:

 

[stubhead]

http://www.stewmac.com/shop/Finishing_supplies/Colors,_tints,_and_stains/ColorTone_Liquid_Stains.html

For applying transparent color-tinted coats, ColorTone stains can be mixed directly into virtually any finish: nitrocellulose lacquer, shellac, waterbase finishes, and catalyzed varnishes or lacquers.

http://www.lmii.com/CartTwo/thirdproducts.asp?CategoryName=Dyes&NameProdHeader=Dye+Concentrates

For staining unfinished wood or adding transparent coloring to the new water-base lacquers, we recommend using the water-based dyes. For tinting lacquer (and other organic solvent finishes) use the MEK-based dyes.

I would be inclined to think of Tru-Oil as an alcohol-based finish, in this context. I mean, the oil stays behind... and if you want to dilute the Tru-Oil for better flow, you use denatured alcohol. Has anybody even e-mailed tonar? I am sure of one thing, and that is you'll have to be careful about evenness of coating if you are able to tint the Tru-Oil. Any streak or such will be more obvious. You'll be dying the whole thing, too, so it's not going to make the woodburning stand out more, if anything it'll be showing less contrast. You may just have to play it in smokey bars for thirty years.

OH WAIT: OK here we go:
http://www.lmii.com/CartTwo/FinishOverview.htm
LMII has an article reviewing all the different ones, and Tru-Oil is towards the bottom.

Some of these oils are thinned with mineral spirits to make application easier.  These oil finishes are actually varnishes because they are reactive finishes - meaning that they change into a hard film by exposure to air (oxygen) not by the evaporation of the solvent like lacquer or shellac.  These oil varnishes are probably the earliest and simplest wood finishes and the natural luster, or glow, of  wood under an oil finish is very appealing.

Of all the oil varnishes available for use as a simple wipe-on finish for musical instruments we offer and support the use of the Tru-Oil product line.

I'd e-mail them, though it sounds like Stew-Mac is calling this a catalyzed varnish, which their stuff will dye.

 

[Cagey]

Seems like I read somewhere that the way to tint Tru-Oil is to tint the reducer, usually denatured alcohol or mineral spirits, then use that to thin the oil. But, I haven't done it and I can't find the reference, so maybe just stash that little tidbit in the back of the mind somewhere.