Tung oil in an F-hole?

rhythm

Junior Member
Messages
106
Hello chaps. Got a little question............

My strat build is getting close to being finished and I just need to install the pickguard and finish the setup, the only bit that I want to improve on the look is the F-hole. I would like to put some kind of finish in there. The F-hole is just natural (alder) at the moment and the look of the guitar is more sultry so the natural look of the light toned unfinished wood just unbalences the look of the guitar a little. Any sugestions?

I will have to sand the inside of the hole down so it isnt so rough in there and then I am thinking............. tung oil? I really just want to stain it and protect the wood a little. Can you get tung oil in different shades for a richer or lighter tone? Is there anything I should know before trying to tung oil the guts of an F-hole?

Thanks in advance.  :rock-on:
 
Oh, the rest is done. Ive just got to install the loaded pickguard and do the setup then the guitar is totally done. Its finished in a black-brown/tobaccoish burst over flame maple. I just think the natural Alder is a bit too pale on this otherwise quite muted looking guitar.
 
JamesL said:
I think he means on the inside of the F hole..

Yeah, I do. The whole thing is finished but the inside of the f-hole is unfinished. That is the bit I want to finish because I think the raw alder is too light for the look of the guitar. This is the showcase pic of the body in question.
 
tung oil or any other finish might be to shiny for the hole. Id leave it as is or maybe flat black but once youve done that there's no going back...cant sand it out of the hole there very easily.

Brian
 
Yeah, I think what I will do is finish the guitar and post the pics up on here (next week?) and see what people think.
 
Oh, you're not talking about the sides of the f-hole, you're talking about the alder back that you can see. Got it. Tape it ALL off - the entire body - and spray some flat black in there.
You're not going to be able to get in there and do any kind of a job with tung oil, i.e. wiping it thin, buffing it out. no point.
 
I'd leave it as is.  I have a semihollow bass and guitar, both with F-holes.  Sure it looks bright compared with the rest of the body, but they all look that way.  If I saw flat black in an F-hole, that would look strange.
 
I think black would look odd also. Maybe a tung oil or something would look nice, if it could be applied properly.
 
Yeah, I know I dont want black. Like I said, I will post up a pic of the finished guitar shortly and then ask the question. I did think tung would be tough to apply, but remember I dont need the tung to have a proper seal or be wear resistant because of where it is. a couple of coats just to change the look?
 
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