Chrome Body

haha.thanks wokka.all good though.if it doesnt work i got other ideas but it should be fine.Order placed now just have to wait.I really need some sleep.lol

well its started!!!!!Got the kit and i must say im pretty impressed!Few minor scratches on the fretboard.only visible at a close range so will bring that up when im readt to fix it.and the hole for the bridge was a bit rough but other than i cant complain.This kit looks like an awesome kit for a beginner.yes there are still holes to drill and such,but wihtout that then it would be more like a clip together kit,so its good that it makes you have your own input so you can truly say you built it.would recommend it for anyone wanting to start.minimal sanding,however for anyone painting a solid colour prime then spray putty and sand or the grain will still show through.not too bad if your staining it as you want the grain to show.One thing that has confused me though,is it suppose to be made of three different peices.the body i mean.not that it matters just curious.Bit i am really stoked and sould be getting some chrome down by the weekend!!!Wish me luck!!!!

good stuff Calais, generally the ST-1's are 3 or 4 pieces of basswood. You will have to grain fill for the chrome. Post some pics and let us know your plans

first step.back is nearly ready to be basecoat to be applied

Mrs came home from work last night and saw the primered guitar and said "wow.i like that colour"and i thought job done then lol

So here are thepalns as they stand at the moment.Over the weekend the chrome will be going on.Takes about three days all up.Will be spending today and tomorrow priming and puttying and trying to find someone who has got a jigsaw for the headstock in coffs harbour lol.one day i should buy some tool.have spent a week without sleep trying to work out how to hang it for chroming as I cant hang it straight up and down and wondering if i should just tahe it one step at a time.But i think i have that worked out.Going to leave the neck natural but accentuate the grain a bit.The head will be chromed too.Had an idea of making a holographic pickguard,until the black pearl one arrived and i was pretty stoked with that,so that may be the way to go.will fiddle around with silver holo and block holo anyway and see what happens.All hardware is black.So going to chrome the switches and knobs and the covers over the pickups.Why buy them when you can chrome them yourself i reckon.Haing fun with it and finding the body all pretty straight and not very hard to get rid of any marks.deffintely a build for a beginner in fact even for younger ones.But if this work i will show what can be acheived with a relatively inexspensive kit and will be something you cant buy in a shop.Isnt that what this is all about!!!!

sounds good Calais, you can cut the headstock shape with an inexpensive coping saw, then maybe some files and sand the final surface. Would it be better to lye the body flat and do one side at a time ? Depends on the chroming process.
Can't wait to see some pics with chrome on. That's funny the missus thought the primer coat was the final haha

yeah i could but it sort of needs to go on angle for the chmicals and water to run off.my biggest worry is the chrome joning on the edges,but i spose if its easy enough to do with paint it will work with the chrome.I think i will do the back and sides and a little under the lip and then tape it on the edge and the chrome will cover the little bit under the lip if that makes sense.because im so new at it im still learning o lot of the processes.you dont get much help from the suppliers so its all trial and error

drying the body on the back.purely cause i want to see some chrome and so does wokka.

awesome dude bring on the chrome !

we all want to see the chrome!

hhhmmm.not working as well as i planned.the guns im using were both buggered.but might have som sort of a result in a bout two hours.

well back to the drawing board.something went wrong majorly.what to do.maybe try the front and sides and see what happens or pull the blug and just paint it.will take a day to ponder it and see how i go.

has got some good possibility, looks not too far away from being spot on! keep persisting matey. (Rome wasn't built in a day)

sure you will work it out Calais, doesn't look too bad, may take a couple of goes to get it right. Does the chrome paint manufacturer recommend any certain weather conditions ?

pics cant tell the full story, but it doesnt look too bad. Will a recoat make it any better?

Looking good man, keep trying, it'll be a killer axe WHEN you nail it, not if. Please correct me if I'm wrong, but with a chrome coat, isn't it the way to go that you spray the whole piece in one hit so you don't have to blend later?

Bo its not a paint but actual silver between two clear coats.thats why it makes it difficult.its not like just going over the top with another coat.you really only get one shot.I think i can repair it.will see how I go.Its more the cost of the materials thats the issue.but i will get there!!!

plus i have a back up plan.just dont want to have to use it lol

a backup plan may have to be used then Calais ! good luck

Ok.Havent been on for a while but worked out one thing.Chrome is an absolute bitch to remove!!!!!!!Wasnt happy at all with the first go so my nephew and i have decided to do it again.he has put alot of work in sanding and removing in various different ways im not willing to admit lol.But the lowdown is by the end of next week the chrome should be going back on.still undecided but we arent sure yet might get a transparent purple over it to make it chromatic colour but we will see.What he doesnt know is what he is getting for christmas but i think he might be pretty happy depending on the result...........if its bad it could be on the fire keeping us warm on christmas night lol.But it should look good when we finish and good to have his help,Its bonding us as he has only been here for a week and we have only met once before.so here we go again!!!!!

as they say though......chrome wasnt built in a day!!!!!!

good luck Calais, I knew this would be a tough finish to get right. Look forward to pics of the re-coating

Hey Calais ... sorry I've been away from the forum for a couple of months and just catching up (otherwise I would've pitched in on this "chrome" discussion earlier! :D).

If you're really after a true chrome finish ...

I've (still) got an EX-1 kit I bought almost 18 months ago, that for a couple of reasons I decided to go for a full, proper nickel plated finish ... its still on the drawing board and awaiting the necessary available funds to complete, but here's the results of my research into this topic ... it IS possible to electroplate a wooden guitar body, but just you just have to be pretty exacting in the preparation.

I could be wrong (wouldn't be the first time! :eek: ) but I'm pretty sure the original "Satch - Surfing with the Alien" chrome guitar was actually chrome-plated (as in electroplating). I know Ibanez had several severely aborted attempts when they were trying to get it right ... the main problem being that timber expands and contracts with the general humidity ... and chrome can't take it so it ends up cracking, splitting and peeling off.

Anyway, the procedure they eventually worked out goes something like this ...

1. Usual body preparation - fill all dings/nicks/surface-imperfections and then sand, sand, and sand some more ... to get that dead-smooth surface.

2. Use a 2-pack polyurethane to seal EVERY square millimetre of exposed timber ... outside, inside, cavities, even all the holes that the wiring passes through ... everything! ... and give it a minimum of 3 coats! ... you want to end up with a COMPLETELY sealed unit - not even a pin-hole showing through to the timber underneath ... this makes the body inert so it wont swell or contract with humidity

3. Wet&Dry it to a dead smooth surface ... any wave or ripple, even the smallest, will show up like the proverbial "dogs balls" once its plated

4. Mask off those areas not needing plating (cavities, etc)

5. Coat with a conductive, high-solid content copper paint

6. Now its ready for electroplating in the metal of your choice.

Its certainly a bit of an exercise, but for that true polished-metal mirror finish, its the only way to go.

There's mob here in Sydney that specialise in plating anything (and I mean anything!) in a whole range of metals - chrome, silver, gold, nickel, platinum, bronze, brass, etc. ... and yes, they've even done a guitar body before (used for a presentation at the MTV awards a couple of years ago).

The head plater is really helpful and a mine of information (from memory, I think his name's Walter) and this is where I'll eventually get mine done (when the funds become available ... last time I spoke to him, about 12-18 months ago, the charge to plate a guitar body was around $300-350)

Check out their web-site to see some of the truly amazing stuff that he's plated! ...

http://www.bronzingstudio.com.au/

... and believe it or not, they can even plate fabrics!

Anyway, which ever way you go good luck with it and I'm really looking forward to seeing the end result.

Rock on!

some great advice there Scott and looks like alot of prep but sure if it's right would look amazing. Here's a pic from their gallery, looks like a SV1 shape

Yep that's the one!

well wont let me download a pic of my latest adventure.gone of the chrome theme for now but will be back!

Shane (Calais) I tried to upload the pic as well and the attachment box just went in a spin and then had an error.
Anyone else had trouble uploading pics today ?

Hey folks, Calais5litre308 asked me to post this for him, as he was having issues posting pics.

"Have given up on the chrome for the interim.Have new equipment coming in july,august so will have another crack then.Not over yet,just delayed!But here is the newest project.Just a teaser and still heaps to do but impossible to photograph properly.In real life its like glass with hundreds of colour changing LED lights under it.(not really just looks like that in good light)Thanks for the support all and will get back on track soon :)"

Edit: Hmmm, ok there seems to be something about his image that the Forum doesn't like. I will investigate.

Maybe the resolution on the camera is too high.I must admit (allthough not trying to advertise)but we got a new galaxy s6 and the camera is absolutely amazing and its not even set on the top level.I dont it would be possiblr to photograph on a lower level but i will see what i can do.

Well,it says the picture is 6300 kb.not sure how that is possible.still working on it though

Hi calais5litre308, we have sorted the issue, it was a problem with the temp directory, apparently.

Your file was quite large though, it was 6meg. I reduced it and here it is:

Attachment 2827
I can see why it would be hard to photograph, because the surface is so reflective. You can see your background is perfectly in focus, but the body of the guitar not so much.

Still looks amazing though.

thanks adam.Finally people can see it for what it is sort of!Close as its going to get.GOTM maybe i will try lol

Go for it Calais you got 8 days to complete and enter it