Thread: Project BC Rich Gunslinger - What wood is this? and suggestions on finish

our sponsors "ubeaut" have a great range of wood dyes

see them here

havent used it myself but a lot of woodies swear by this stuff

ohh coool thanks for that. I noticed they is a distributor at Aurburn which isnt far from me. (online ordering is down at the moment) I might give them a try. Maybe try their Shellawax shellac over the top of the water dyes too. Can I apply a clear lacqure over the top of the shellac? The shellac is just a sealer isnt it? and then you put your clear coats over the top and the clear coats are the coats you wet sand and then buff for that glass finish? ..

all these different colors .. i dont know what to pick anymore hahahahaha

thanks for your help

also anything special i should be looking for in a grain filler? i found some at bunnings just a water based one (australian made in a 500g tub i think).. comes in different wood colors. I guess i just find one that closely matches my wood grain color..? apply grain filler, then apply the dye over the top, then shellac it, then clear coat it ( i know more detailed steps are involved but just generally speaking )

forget shellawax - i looked at this pretty extensively a few weeks ago
once you have a coat of any sealer you pretty much limited to a spray on lacquer - if the shellac is waxy you may not get good afhesion with a WB laquer - it works good for poly or nitro - you could look at Danish oil which is stunning looking - it really brings the wood grain up a treat and has a very sensual feel - the great thing about DO is that after 3 coats rubbed on with a rag its done - just let it sit for a week in a warm room until it stops smelling then your good to go - you have to apply dansh to a raw surface - tru oil is another finish worth looking at

hmmm yeah i was thinking danish oil at one stage but i want that Glassy hard finish and look.

Originally Posted by old_picker

forget shellawax - i looked at this pretty extensively a few weeks ago
once you have a coat of any sealer you pretty much limited to a spray on lacquer - if the shellac is waxy you may not get good afhesion with a WB laquer - it works good for poly or nitro - you could look at Danish oil which is stunning looking - it really brings the wood grain up a treat and has a very sensual feel - the great thing about DO is that after 3 coats rubbed on with a rag its done - just let it sit for a week in a warm room until it stops smelling then your good to go - you have to apply dansh to a raw surface - tru oil is another finish worth looking at

isn't shellawax a wax friction finish, not a sealer?

Originally Posted by gbx78

Yes of course Dylon!! ill check it out, hopefully they have different colors. Yeah i saw that prooftint stuff at bunnings but didnt know if it was like a dye.. that pic looks awesome and im jealous of your workbench .. hehehe thanks for that ..

Trouble with my bench is that it s too big. (???)
As you work, you can just push crap to the back and keep going, eventually, you work on the last 6 inches on the edge and you may as well have an 18 inch wide bench and put your stuff away. Trouble is that it is welded steel and really strong and flat, and I cant bring myself to disassemble it and rebuild - I could bspend that time and money making guitars!!!

hahah i know exactly what you mean, but still thats pretty cool you can have bench space to push crap further back ..

hey another question, in my original pic of the body all sanded. I mentioned i didnt sand the trem area to bare wood. Would i be safe saying that the greyish white stuff that was under the poly finish would be the primer. Therefore if i wanted to paint this just black i could just do that with no prep as such (other than maybe sanding the primer with fine). Becuase its a difficult area to sand etc i thought id leave it just black. But your gunna tell me if im going to stain then stop being a lazy ass and sand it all .. hehe nahh seriously i thought to do it properly i would have to take out the stud inserts etc and i didnt want to do that and if i try sanding around them etc.. i can just see it being a half assed attempt. Bettter to just leave it as is and paint it black as the f/rose bridge is black anyway.

ps. couldnt help myself i had to see what it kinda looked like in comparison to before..
http://i299.photobucket.com/albums/m...8/Image061.jpg

OK, if it were me, and its not, of course but heres my 2c worth, I would remove the gunk from the trem cavity by fair means or foul. Were it me I would get the lions share out with a router, set to just scrape the surface clean. Keep it moving or it'll burn. near the edges I would knife and chisel it if your uncomfortable getting that close with a router. There are probably attachment for drills that will sand that sort of area too.
The other method may be paint stripper, it could get it out, but you still need to bare the surface down to complete raw timber if you're going this way. A piece of hardwood about an inch square would make a good sanding block for this work.
Look, you're probably looking at an hour or two worth of noodling with timber and a guitar - time well spent IMHO - and you will get a better result. I can guarantee that even if you cant see it real well in the end you'll KNOW its there and that, my friend, is what it is all about.

You've convinced me! i did actually want an extra mm in depth in rear of the cavity so im gunna do it!!i think you're right it would look much nicer than just seeing a big square section of black.. I really hope in the end the whole project comes out really well being a first timer at this. I would hate with everyones time to respond to my questions that it comes out ???? ..

speaking of .. im off to bunnings for that filler and some 320 sandpaper and on my way back mite drop off to the chemist for that dye

thanks again

Good luck, and enjoy the journey, thats what were all in it for (not for the money, thats for sure...)

i think i discovered a new level of pain!!!! cause the routing is about 2mm deap its a pain in the rear!! but getting there.

question though. gut feeling tells me i dont need grain filler. looking at the grain closely theres nowhere the filler could possibly go??? it would go on and then come straight off? i got some timbermate "pine" colored as this was the closest match to my gtr body (shoulda seen the looks i got carrying it into bunnings hehe) .. but i read in a pdf guide (ibanez builder)that alder/basswood/maple may not really need grain filling ( i understand poplar is similar to basswood) ? whats your thoughts on this. Looking at the wood its dead smooth there are no open pores as such that i can see.. i mean i can always use the timbermate (got a small tub just in case i didnt need it or the wrong color).. but i ahve a feeling it will go on and then when i wipe the excess it will all just off and not actually fill anything? thoughts?

oh cant remember if i mentioned it but the rosewood and mahogony feast and watsons prooftint loooks awesome on the display board ( i think it was stained on pine) .. i might go that look with clear over.

I wouldn't even think of grainfilling that !!!! Simply no need.

Stain then Nitro or 2pack. In that order and that simple.

Why complicate things?

yeah thats what i thought .. i think im starting to understand about the woods if they need grain filling .. i saw on the display board at bunnings the different woods and if a grain filler is used .. and the wood i have simply doesnt have those open grains .. its literally dead smooth ??? so i dont think a grain filler is necessary at all. wanted to hear thoughts

If it aint broke...don't fix it.
Don't look a gift horse in the mouth.

Dont grain fill a guitar if it don't need it.

Count your blessings that the step has been taken out and get into it like Oz says!!!