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My sons gave me a BlackBeard (sorry) SG kit for my birthday, and while I was scouring the interwebs looking for finish ideas I came across this...
Attachment 45327
Is this type of finish achievable for a complete noob like myself?
I think the kit is basswood so I assume the grain wouldn't look as nice, but if I could get something of an approximation that'd be awesome.
Hi and welcome czzer. Nice birthday present!
I'm not sure how easy it would be to get that "open grain" finish on Basswood. I have achieved something similar with an Ash body. See the last picture at:
https://www.buildyourownguitar.com.a...l=1#post225886.
It was sanded, stained and then given coats of Tru-oil as the final coats. It was only lightly sanded back between coats. No grain-filler was used, no final polishing.
As a close approximation I would try:
black stain with coats of wipe on poly (satin),
or
black spray paint with satin clear coats.
I recall a forum member using a (soft!) wire brush to deepen to grain on a build, but the wood was not basswood. But I can't find the link.
Thanks Trevor, that blue looks awesome!
I see in that post you used a dye rather than a stain? That's one of the questions I had...what's the practical difference between a dye and a stain? I think a dye might work better?
I've ordered some small pieces of basswood from Aliexpress to use as test pieces before I do anything to the actual body. The problem is all these dyes and stains are pretty expensive, so I can't really justify buying too many different types to see what works best.
Thanks czzer.Quote:
Originally Posted by czzer
I'm not 100% sure about the difference between a stain and a dye - but stains sit on the surface of the material, while dyes penetrate deep within the material. I do not have a preference! I use Feast Watson stains for natural wood colours, and Ubeaut wood Dyes for brighter colours. I know that if I sand back too far on either I will get to bare wood:( I have also used alcohol inks which also sit on the surface of the wood.
Great idea to test on scrap wood. And true that they are expensive, but they go a long way. Are you in Oz?
Yeah, I'm in Adelaide.
I think I might need a dye to get that deep black, but it would be nice to try a sample first.
I usually try to get stains from the local hardware store (or BGS - big green shed!). They are reasonably priced, and it is easy to get more!
Good call. I'm heading to a BGS later today so will have a look. I couldn't find many options for black on their website though...
Feast Watson have a black, and their small bottles are around $12 from memory.
Just picked one up. I'll report back with how it goes after I get my practice pieces.Quote:
Originally Posted by Trevor Davies
Cheers!
Just as well DB isn't around these days, you'd be in the naughty corner for encouraging a visit to the BGSFOS ;)Quote:
Originally Posted by Trevor Davies
Yes. Sorry. The FOS part - sometimes you need their "S".Quote:
Originally Posted by dave.king1
I think that dye is a kind of stain, but that not all stains are dyes. I think TD has it right that some stains (generally called either "stains" or "gel-stains" tend not to penetrate as much as dye-stains. The other difference is that you are more likely to chatoyancy with dye-stains, and least likely with minimally penetrating stains like gel-stains. Probably a distinction without a difference if your finish is black ;-)