all i really know about finishes is that my strat has a poly finish, and that cheaper strats have lacquer finishes and they wear quicker. Upon reading beandip's post on relicing, i found out that my poly finish will never wear! What do you guys know about finishes, and which do you prefer, why.
Announcement
Collapse
No announcement yet.
Guitar finishes and tone/looks
Collapse
X
-
Guitar finishes and tone/looks
2004 50th Anniversary Deluxe American Strat, SETH-N BRIDGE, ANT 2 SURFER MIDDLE, ANT 2 DLX MINI HUM NECK
280K RS guitarworks volume pot, 250k cts tone pots, .047uf paper in oil Jensen aluminum capacitor, running D'addario Chromes 13's with wound g > Analogman Orange Juicer>Acoustic 200H Bass head> Alesis Picoverb> unknown 12'' JBL Orange car speakerTags: None
-
Re: Guitar finishes and tone/looks
FWIW cheaper strats, etc. do not have nitrocellulose lacquer finishes. Usually low end guitars have thick polyurethane finishes on them.
The traditionalists insist that nitro sounds better/right. Taylor uses a very thin polyester finish IIRC. PRS also uses a newer type of finish. I think that Gibson is the only major guitar manufacturer still using nitro, but it may have more to do with environmental regulations and OSHA problems than improved processes.
IMHO a thinner finish should let more of the natural wood tone out - which is only a good thing if you have good wood. My daughter's Squier is made out of agathis and encased in at least 1/8" of clear plastic (poly). It actually sounds darn good for the price.
ChipHeritage 535 Special, Warmoth frankenstrat, MIM Strat, & Taylor 314C(no E)
Amp Builds: Tweed Princeton (5F2-A) variation, 2 BF Princeton Reverb clones, & Super Reverb clone
Sometimes use a Blues Jr., Tech 21 Trademark 10 & Power Engine 60
SPG modded DS-1, TS-7 & CryBaby; Visual Sounds Rte. 66 & H2O; Guyatone Tremolo
SD pickups: SSL-2, APS-2, tapped Quarter Pound, Custom 5 & Antiquity humbuckers
"Conan! What are the best things in life?"
"Girls, guitars, guns and cars!"
Comment
-
Re: Guitar finishes and tone/looks
Poly finishs DO WEAR .There much more durable than a Nitro finish.
But they are not indtructable. And the do yellow with time just like
Nitro. Maybe not as fast But my 84' Olymipic white strat is now has a
nice bannana pudding like tint to it. As far as witch sounds better??
That's a debate that will rage on for years. I perfer Nitro cuz' I feel
it's easier to work with (for me) And it seems to add a lilttle class
to the insturment. What style paint is more tonefull?? That's all
subjective ?? ( IN THEORY) Take a small bell and ring it. Then
put a condom on that bell and ring it?? Sound much different now
don't it!! That's just theory. I don't know how that works.??
Comment
-
Re: Guitar finishes and tone/looks
Low end guitars (Squiers, lower RG series Ibanez, etc) have a polyester finish IIRC. It's basically like Chip said, a 1/8" layer of plastic over the wood. Very durable stuff. If took me a couple days with 80 grit on a palm sander to take all the finish off my Ibanez.
I can't tell a tonal difference between different finishes. I think the biggest difference would be in the amount of finish applied rather the the type of finish.
I'm going with a polyurethane clear coat on my Ibanez. The first time I tried to laquer the headstock the finish seemed too soft. Even after several weeks I could make indentations in the finish. Plus, I really like the way that polyurethane yellows.Duncan Pickups in currently in use: '59 (rewound to PATB-3)/'59, Custom/AP2H, Tapped QP set for Tele, Crazy 8/Cool Rails, Screamin' Demon/Stra-Bro 90, Custom 5/Phat Cat, SP90-1/SP90-2, SMB-5D
Comment
-
Re: Guitar finishes and tone/looks
Fender produces the Highway 1 series guitars with a "satin" finish, similar to nitro, but not quite. I have the hwy1 tele and I can hear a difference between this and a poly American series tele (both with vintage noiseless p/u's installed). Also a big wieght difference too.
I like the way the "cheaper" finished feel and I love the fact that after 9 months, the finish is wearing thought in all the right places. If you want a guitar that looks "new" a long time, go with poly.Its up to you not to heed the call-up
Comment
Comment