Single cut build - preparation tips please!

[Paul_H]

For my next Pitbull build, I am putting together a single cut 6 string which has a flame maple veneer top with mahogany body and mahogany set neck.

My previous builds have been bass guitars with swamp ash bodies and screw-on maple necks, so I am pretty comfortable with those woods, and with things like fret dressing.

However, veneers and mahogany are new to me. I am thinking to stain both body and neck with ColorTone/Transtint, and finishing with an acrylic clear coat.

I would really appreciate any tips regarding
- preparation of the veneer and the rest of the guitar
- which clear finishes to consider
- how to treat the binding - eg sanding, beveling/rounding, etc
- thoughts about the glue/finish or finish/glue order!

Any advice will be very welcome.

Cheers, Paul

[McCreed]

Hi Paul.

I'll give you what I can here:

[- preparation of the veneer and the rest of the guitar]

Veneer, first thing is to check for glue spots from the factory. You can do this by dampening the veneer/timber with methylated spirits and looking for spots that may appear shiny (or just different) than the surrounding areas. Glue won't absorb the metho the same as the raw veneer. Good overhead light is helpful in seeing the spots, and looking from various angles.

If you have glue spots, you can remove them with Goof-Off (high concentration of acetone) and a small, stiff plastic bristled brush.
This process may need doing several times. NOTE: be careful around the binding with the acetone. It will melt it if you get too much on it!

Last is light sanding overall with a medium grit sandpaper (not coarser than P240, not finer than P400). I prefer synthetic sanding pads (search the forum if you're unfamiliar).
You will have likely read that the veneers are very thin (.6mm ??? IIRC) and people get anxious about sanding it (overly anxious IMO) but if you don't go at it like a bull and use common sense, you won't have a problem. You're not sanding to shape the timber, you're only trying to knock off any stray fibres that have raised due to the timber not being sealed.

The Mahogany - If you're goal is a smooth shiny gloss finish, you will need to grain fill. There are a number of products available to achieve this, so I will leave it to you to do some research. The most common product used here is Timbermate, but there are definitely other products and techniques (like slurry filling - that's a whole chapter on its own).

[- which clear finishes to consider]

Personal preference, but also may be dependent on your work area (can you spray? only apply by hand? etc).
The most common DIY finishes are Polyurethane (can be sprayed or hand-applied), Acrylic or Nitrocellulose Lacquer (sprayed only but both available in rattle cans), and Tru Oil which is basically a combination of poly and boiled linseed oil (usually hand-applied, can be sprayed with a gun).

[- how to treat the binding - eg sanding, beveling/rounding, etc]

Whether you're staining or painting, masking the binding is going to be required. However, be aware that staining comes with the risk (almost inevitably) of bleeding into the binding. The binding will get scraped after, regardless of whether paint or stain is applied.
I don't recommend sanding the binding because it scratches very easily and can be problematic with stain/paint.


[- thoughts about the glue/finish or finish/glue order!]

I presume you're talking about the neck... Either way can work. A lot depends on your workspace and if you can manoeuvre a full-length guitar whilst trying to apply your finish. My preference was to do the two pieces separately and set the neck after. I then did a final clear coat to tie them together.
If going this route, just be sure to leave the contact areas in the neck pocket and on the heel unfinished. You want your glue to contacting bare timber.

[Drashkum]

I would really appreciate any tips regarding
- preparation of the veneer and the rest of the guitar
- which clear finishes to consider
- how to treat the binding - eg sanding, beveling/rounding, etc
- thoughts about the glue/finish or finish/glue order!

Any advice will be very welcome.

Cheers, Paul

I think I can add couple of more points to what @McCreed has extensively and Beautifully written.

On the veneer I have seen people give a single pass with 180/240 sand paper before stain. Anything finer will make wood more polished and stain may become blotchy

Clear finishes depend on whether you have a spray gun or want to do with Rattle cans or wipe in with hand and also depends on compatibility with stains

Choices are
1. Nitro / acrylic if u have a spray gun
2. 1k / 2k Poly from Rattle can
3. Wipe on Poly / Truoil if your hand is your method

But please do stain a scrap piece of wood and try the poly out on it as sometimes it may introduce a yellow tinge or to test the compatibility

3. On the Binding.... You can apply some clear lacquer with QTips/ earbuds and you can mask them with fine line tape and masking tape on top of that to prevent any bleeding into the stain. I had read this somewhere in this forum and from a few people and it works flawlessly most of the time

4. Glue and finish if there are neck alignment issues ( in mock build). Finish and glue if everything is fine in mock build

Did you do a mock up build? What colours of stain are you choosing?.

Looking forward to pictures. Do create a Build Diary in the forum please.

Sent from my NE2211 using Tapatalk

[fender3x]

Not much to add to McCreed and Drashkum. My only thought comes from the fact that all the products I use to finish are water based with the exception of shellac. If you are using a water based stain or clear coat it's important to raise the grain with a little spray of water, let it dry and lightly sand as a first step. I grain fill with Aquacoat which is water based as the name implies.

Colortone, it says at StewMac, can be used water based or alcohol based. I haven't used it, but think I have seen others (Simon IIRC?) recommend alcohol because it is less likely to raise the grain.

My order of battle is stain, shellac (with de-waxed platina/superblond) to seal, grainfill, shellac to seal, clear coat. (McCreed got me started with shellac...I now always have a 1lb cut around).

I like water based finishes because they have less VOCs and other toxic stuff in them, but any water based product runs the risk of re-activating the water based product under it, which is why I use the clearest shellac in between coats. Re-activation is also possible if you are not spraying since wiping or brushing can lift what it goes on top of if you are not careful. So, I test the whole process on similar wood before starting. Testing on something non-guitar is the best advice I have. If you are like me, tests end up as guitar colored coasters or router templates.

YMMV, and it's probably best to specify what products you plan to use, so that others who have experience with those products can chime in.

[Paul_H]

Thanks everyone. There are some really helpful suggestions from each of you. I like the idea of doing a test stain and finish on some scrap. The shellac sealer is not something I had considered.

I've not done build diaries for my IB5 and P Bass builds, so this is something else to consider!

Anyway, I have a J bass kit ready to build as well, so the next decision will be which to tackle first...