Very new Newbie finish Question?

[beyondat]

Hello, I have my eye on this body http://www.warmoth.com/showcase/sc_guitar_bodies.cfm?type=bass&start=1&itemNumber=B1025&menuItem=1&subMenuItem=0&subMenuItem2=0
I wanted to know if it is possible for it to look somewhat like this http://themusicelement.com/fenderbird.jpg
Canary top with a Black Korina back.
Could I do this finish with stain or is it paint? Also would it have to be sprayed on? Please excuse my ignorance but I'm just trying to save a few bucks and have more of  a custom bass.
Any help would be greatly appreciated.
Thanks

 

[tfarny]

I recommend that if you're doing your own finish just to save money, that you work an extra shift or two, or eat PB&Js for a couple of weeks, lay off the Starbucks and microbrews, and have Warmoth do the finish. They do a great job and the prices are reasonable.
You'll need a few tools, and finishing supplies, so it'll cost you about $50 to finish your own anyhow. Doing a nice professional finish yourself isn't all that easy, and it's really time consuming. You're likely to end up sanding it all off at some point and start over. If you're interested in finishing, by all means go ahead, that's great. But it's not a great place to save $$.

 

[beyondat]

Its not only the money, I just want to have a bass that I sort of created myself. You did say that I can sand it down if I mess up right? i just needed to know if its was stain or paint. I would use only to colors anyway, walnut and amber! Its seems that this can be achieve with aerosol cans.

 

[blue313]

It can be done in both ways.  Dye/stained top (or sprayed) with a sprayed on burst.  Different effects though.

Might as well set up a test board on some scrap.  You'll also learn a lot by using scrap wood for practice as opposed to sanding your nice expensive body too much.

 

[tfarny]

To get a burst like that Fenderbird, you'll be spraying. Reranch and stewmac both sell spray can nitro paints that you can use. Stewmac has some nice free info on finishing, in their finishing supplies section, that you should read.

 

[jackthehack]

That looks like a tobacco burst finish from Warmoth on the Firebird bass; you can reproduce that with amber dye on the body and transparent brown toner to do the burstover. If you have no experience doing finishing getting Warmoth to do that same finish on the body you want is not a bad deal $$$ wise at all, there are a plethora of posts in the DIY section on filling/finishing that body in the manner you want.