Questions on finish

[925SS]

The prs style i'm building is moving on, so i've been thinking lately about the finish.
I'm kinda keen on this http://www.google.com/imgres?imgurl=http://simscustomshop.com/Quickstart/ImageLib/silverburstPRSthumbnail.png&imgrefurl=http://simscustomshop.com/subsitefour/page16.html&h=190&w=260&sz=93&tbnid=6EXwCUc32MWGvM:&tbnh=96&tbnw=131&prev=/search%3Fq%3Dimage%2Bof%2Bsilverburst%2Bpaul%2Breed%2Bsmith%2Bguitars%26tbm%3Disch%26tbo%3Du&zoom=1&q=image+of+silverburst+paul+reed+smith+guitars&usg=__rMwUd09FMS_U8U8O0poLzpJPL1U=&docid=P2HirrDPc4cfhM&sa=X&ei=lVkxUeS-Ecmx0AGwqYCIAw&ved=0CDgQ9QEwAg&dur=1178

I was wondering if anyone had suggestions on the material, ie primer, filler, paint.

The body I have is all maple, & very hard.
I understand that too heavy a finish can muffle the tone, but maple, being a bright wood, is this a concern?
Any opinions or suggestions would be greatly appriciated

Thanks in advance

 

[Zerberus]

Re: Questions on finish

T.....
I understand that too heavy a finish can muffle the tone, but maple, being a bright wood, is this a concern?
...

It is ALWAYS a concern. Any finish will alter the tone, usually muffling it, and the thicker the finish gets the more pronounced the effect.

If you were in europe I could make brand recommendations, but with the exception of Tru-Oil and Fiebing`s black dye I don`t think there`s a single finishing product I use that`s available on the other side of the lake, sorry....

 

[925SS]

Re: Questions on finish

It is ALWAYS a concern. Any finish will alter the tone, usually muffling it, and the thicker the finish gets the more pronounced the effect.

If you were in europe I could make brand recommendations, but with the exception of Tru-Oil and Fiebing`s black dye I don`t think there`s a single finishing product I use that`s available on the other side of the lake, sorry....

Thanks for the input Zerberus.
I've seen a few guitars with the tru-oil finish, & while they do come out looking good, they always have a nice figuring to the woods.
The maple I have is good quality for construction, but unfortunatly, it's very plain.
I'd tend to call it "paint grade", as it does have some imperfections (some from my lack of skill, & tools, & others inherent to the wood itself).
With these things in mind, I had already decided that I would be painting the body, so my mistakes, & the issues with the wood could be taken care of with finish material.
Consider the "muffling" effect, I plan on 1 heavy layer of primer, sanded back to smooth, folloewd by 1 heavy layer of base, also sanded back, the highlight at the edge, lightly sanded, then the clear.
Maple, being a bright wood, I'm hoping the muffle effect might tone it down a bit without choking it.
Any thoughts on the outlined plan would be helpful.
Thanks

 

[T ROCKER]

Re: Questions on finish

Some of the experiments I did on my test pieces of maple turned out very dark, almost paint-like tones, and some of them looked so good I almost chose a very dark colour for my LP kit. In fact the headstock on mine is actually dye and not paint. I would recommend dye & Tru-oil ... Very easy to use (minimal fumes & such) and not hard to find on Ebay, even internationally. The effect on tone is almost nil ....

 

[925SS]

Re: Questions on finish

Some of the experiments I did on my test pieces of maple turned out very dark, almost paint-like tones, and some of them looked so good I almost chose a very dark colour for my LP kit. In fact the headstock on mine is actually dye and not paint. I would recommend dye & Tru-oil ... Very easy to use (minimal fumes & such) and not hard to find on Ebay, even internationally. The effect on tone is almost nil ....

I'll be checkin the bay to see what I can find, but I still kinda like the idea of toning it down a little, maybe a clear over the dye will give me a little muff...I said little muff