HELP! Finish Colour and Type - Can't Decide!

As i've just finished off a PBG i've decided to start another project and try and put some of my lessons from my very first build into a second.

Its a non PBG so hope its ok to post on here for some advice.

I've started sanding but have 2 major things i just can't decide on, the first being should i grain fill and pre seal and the second is what colour should i finish this in.

The guitar is a mahogany body, neck and headstock, with a maple fretboard and hard maple body top. I've included a pic (hope that's ok) of the body so you can see.

The only things i know are:

1. Would like to make the back of the body and the headstock, neck darker than the body top (should be easy given its mahogany)
2. Don't want just a plain clear finish on the maple as i find its a bit light at the moment
3. Maybe a light colour stain?

I figure that given i keep changing my mind i would throw it open to everyone here and get some feedback :)

I would like to make the grain stand out more but not sure if possible on the hard maple.

Awesome looking kit. I think I've seen it on eBay and have had to control myself and not buy one.

Can you wipe the wood down with water or naphtha/shellite to show the grain a bit?

If you want some ideas for finishes off check out the finishes on the PRS website. You probably don't have figuring to match but colour wise you should be able to do something similar.
https://www.prsguitars.com/index.php..._hollowbody_ii

Personally I like the blue, purples, and reds:
* Charcoal Cherry Burst
* Violet Blue Burst
* Faded Blue Burst
* Purple Mist

If you want more yellow or brown tones then I quite like Black Gold Wrap Burst and Autumn Sky.

Or the northern lights finish which there are some guides online on how to recreate. You'll need some flaming to make it look good though compared to just a simple burst.

https://m.imgur.com/gallery/IlmD58b

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I hadn't intended on getting this kit but i just couldn't resist...!

I was going to wipe with spirits to see the grain better but its wet and cold at the moment so haven't had the chance.

I'm a massive fan of the tampas green that PRS do from your link, but just worried about the fact its hard maple and isn't one the nice curly or tiger finishes so wasn't sure how it would look.

Like the purples so that might be a good idea.

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Originally Posted by kuanjb

Or the northern lights finish which there are some guides online on how to recreate. You'll need some flaming to make it look good though compared to just a simple burst.

https://m.imgur.com/gallery/IlmD58b

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Thanks for that, awesome instructions! I think again i'm just worried i don't have the grain to pull off suck a nice look.

If there's not enough figuring could you maybe put a veneer on it? I'm personally of the opinion that using high grade solid wood is a complete waste. I think the PRS SE models and Epiphone LPs use veneers over solid maple caps.

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Unfortunately my skill level doesn’t allow for putting on a veneer, at least not yet :-)

Personally I don't think a grain has to be flame, curly or tiger strip to look good.
From what I can see in the photo (granted hard to see all the detail) I find the grain pattern interesting enough.
I can't see if there are any seams in the cap from the photo though.

I did an alder strat with just Tru Oil (and alder is not known for having outstanding grain) and it came out great IMO. Had lots of compliments on it.

Attachment 31648

edited to add pic

Quote:

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Originally Posted by McCreed

Personally I don't think a grain has to be flame, curly or tiger strip to look good.
From what I can see in the photo (granted hard to see all the detail) I find the grain pattern interesting enough.

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I do agree. I actually quite like some of the Gibson LP models which don't have figured tops. The pattern on some of those is very similar to what you have.

https://www.gibson.com/Guitar/USAYNB...KU-LPST00TNCH1

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Yeah there is one seem line but hard to see in pic. Good point about the LPs as they look nice with non figured tops. Was looking at tru oil to start with but worried to top will end up a little too light for me. Doesn’t need to be dark just not really light.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by a_novice

Yeah there is one seem line but hard to see in pic. Good point about the LPs as they look nice with non figured tops. Was looking at tru oil to start with but worried to top will end up a little too light for me. Doesn’t need to be dark just not really light.

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You will see this warning regularly here, but...

Don't use Tru Oil OVER BLUE DYE... it will eventually turn GREEN. (unless you want that) There's pictures on the forum somewhere of this phenomenon.

Don't get me wrong, Tru Oil is great stuff, and I've used it a lot, but it does have a weird relationship with blue :confused:

Serious? Thanks for the heads up. Was looking to do neck and back of body in just tru oil and figured I’d use it as the clear over any colour I chose so nice to know!

Any oil based clear which has a slight yellow tint can cause problems with blues and purples. Either become too dark or change colour. I think Truoil in particular as it penetrates and builds. Probably depends on the wood and type of dye / strain used though. Also I'm not sure if using a sanding sealer after dying would protect the colour more.

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Quote:

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Originally Posted by kuanjb

Any oil based clear which has a slight yellow tint can cause problems with blues and purples. Either become too dark or change colour. I think Truoil in particular as it penetrates and builds. Probably depends on the wood and type of dye / strain used though. Also I'm not sure if using a sanding sealer after dying would protect the colour more.

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Do most use a sealer after a dye / stain?

Quote:

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Originally Posted by a_novice

Do most use a sealer after a dye / stain?

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Tends to rub off onto your trousers if you play sitting down.

cheers, Mark.

I am a novice too when it comes to finishes...but I am using a water based poly to try to avoid tinting my blues.

One a related side note, I matched the light blue paint color almost exactly with my decal, which I put on maple that had been lightly finished with clear poly. Just the very light maple was enough to change the sky blue in the decal to sort of a teal. The good news is that is that the color's don't clash, so I have decided to keep it. That said, it does not take much yellow to change a blue!

Thanks for the advice 😊

What about putting on a light dye (like keda) and then a Dewaxed Shellac?? Thoughts??

Not sure about the shellac as I've never used it.

As to changing colours though you did say you liked the green so could always try blue and if it turns green then there's no real lose.

Whatever you decide you'll do I'd suggest trying it out on a spare piece of wood first though. Might be able to get some cheap off cuts from a local timber yard. I got a nice piece of rock maple about the right size for a uke neck this way.

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Hadn’t thought of that, with starting blue and if it turns green no big deal. Like it. I’ve started ringing around to source some offcuts as I’m too scared to try until I’ve done some samples so that’s the next step.

Is it best to use black or grey and then sand first to help pop the grain?

You could consider using a product called Aquacoat, it’s a transparent, water based grain filler that can be applied before or after dyeing the wood, you can even add the colour to the Aquacoat and dye/grain fill at the same time. You can then use a water based clear over the the top. Great stuff, eco friendly too as well.

I think it depends on the look you want. Use can use coloured grain filler, or a darker tone of dye and sanding, or some sort of penetrating oil. Grain filler might not work as well on a tight grained wood like maple (you might be able to enhance that more a wire brush but I've never tried).

If you're going for a light colour I'd not use black. I'd go a darker tone of the colour you want to end up with. Try raising the grain with some water and then rub in the dye to try and get the colour down into the grain. I know that some people say not to wet wood whereas others say specifically to do it. Hard to know which way's right.

After dying (possibly a few times to really get the colour in) then sand back to lighten, hopefully leaving some coloured grain. I saw a video which did a faded denim colour basically like this.

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