First Build - TLA-1F

[dbeltrami]

Hi Trevor,

I used the Dingo Tone finishes.

For the neck I used the colourless finish kit. This worked out pretty well, in the end, but I did have to be patient with the curing process. I am really happy with the neck.

On the body, I used a colourless DT stain for the back and sides. Again, happy with how this turned out.

On the body top, which has a flame maple veneer, I used the DT Bondi Blue kit. This was the biggest problem for me. PBG says not to sand the veneer becuase it is so thin. The first problem I encountered was glue residue. The second problem was I probably went with too many (thicker) coats of the Bondi Blue trying to darken the stain and also trying to deal with the glue residue. The oil just does not want to cure. After lots of attempts to deal with the situation I ended up sanding the top a bit agressively, applying some (non DT) black stain and then another very thin coat of the Bondi Blue intensifying stain before the final (very thin) top coats and letting it cure as much as possible.

After weeks and weeks of waiting for it to fully cure I just gave up and wet sanded gently to remove as much of the non-cured finish as ai could before cutting, polishing and waxing the top. It's ok but I really think that as a first time builder, the DT product should be avoided. It is best left to experts. Also the thin veneers are more trouble than what they are worth. I am not sure why PBG bothers with these - either go with a thicker top or leave them out all together. Not be able to sand/prepare the top makes matters worse with the DT stains in my amateur opinion.

Having said all of that I learnt quite a bit and I am somewhat fond of the "distressed denim" look. Importantly the guitar plays really well and sounds fantastic. I'm not sure what the standard electronics are like but the pickups and electronics I put together are really nice.

I wouldn't have got there without being able to get advice from reading ghis forum and also people like Simon, McCreed and yourself taking an interest in my posts.

Thank you.

[McCreed]

...I really think that as a first time builder, the DT product should be avoided. It is best left to experts.

I would not consider myself to be an expert, but having read enough horror stories from others using DT, I wouldn't touch it with a barge pole.
I don't mean that as a flame, it's just my opinion.

Also the thin veneers are more trouble than what they are worth. I am not sure why PBG bothers with these - either go with a thicker top or leave them out all together.

To be fair to PBG, I think there has been a lot of misleading or, at the very least, overly cautious comments about the thin veneers.
Yes, they are indeed thin, but are far more robust than people think. Using appropriate methods (ie: not going at it with 80 or 120 grit paper attached to a Random Orbital Sander) the thin veneer can absolutely be smoothed after stain coats if needed.

The maple veneers don't require much of that anyway because there is very little grain raising with maple timber (even with water based dyes). Once the clear coat process has begun, it is only the clear coat you have to worry about sanding through. IMO, the clear coat should not be sanded at all until there is an adequate build up to safely do so without sand-through anyway.

The glue spots are a drag (and can be a PITA) but again by taking appropriate measures, can be overcome.

Lastly, the pricepoint of PBG kits needs to be a strong consideration. They are some of the least expensive kits on the market and the reality is with that, there will be shortcomings. There are more expensive kits out there (some cost more than a decent budget guitar) but dollar for dollar these kits are considerably good quality and I have never heard of a problem wasn't addressed by incredible customer service from the PBG crew.

I wouldn't have got there without being able to get advice from reading ghis forum and also people like Simon, McCreed and yourself taking an interest in my posts.

Thanks for the shout out! What's your next build going to be???

[dbeltrami]

You make some very good points there, McCreed, especially in relation to PBG's quality to price equation. Things like nut slot sizes and minor hole misalignment are par for the course, I guess, when you think about you get for the price. Overall it's a great kit.

I'd love it if they offered a premium kit with a thicker, higher quality top but I appreciate that may not be commercially viable.

Don't get me wrong I am happy with the outcome I got and PBG were great from a customer communication perspective.

I will be much better off from this experience in terms of dealing with the thin veneers, glue spots, etc. Also, I won't use DT again. I have watched so many videos of guitar builders using different product that seems to produce terrific results with far less frustration.

As for my next build, well I am really keen on a thinline semi-hollow body style guitar. The PSH-1 is the style I like but a couple of things are not quite right for me - Basswood body (interested in your thoughst here) and the f-holes look weird

The kit that looks to come closest to my requirements GPR-1R. It has a Mahogany body and conventional looking f-holes. The offset design is growing on me, but this is the one thing that I still haven't got my head around.

I'm thinking a red colour with gold hardware and some quality humbuckers will make for nice second build

Keen to hear your thoughts.

[McCreed]

...Basswood body (interested in your thoughst here) and the f-holes look weird

I never noticed it before, but yeah, those f-holes on the PSH-1 do look disproportional to the size of the body and kind of oddly shaped.

As for basswood, opinions vary, and like lots of things guitar, can be a subject of great debate.
I personally think it is a fine tonewood and it gets unfairly judged because it is associated with "cheap" guitars. However there are some pretty expensive guitars that use basswood (eg: Ibanez JS2480 Joe Satriani sig model $3.9k AU).

I have a PBG PRS1-TS that is a basswood body with maple veneer, mahogany & rosewood neck (set) and it feels and sounds great. I also own 2 production model strats and a tele I built with basswood bodies. I have no issues with how they sound. In fact, they all sound great IMO. Some people comment on basswood being too soft and light, but IME there's not a big difference in hardness than what is regularly sold as "mahogany". Which is a whole other subject - not all mahogany is created equal.

My point is, if covered in a good durable finish, it will perform just fine. Any guitar timber will dent if it's dropped or bashed into a cymbal stand! When in comes to "tonewoods" and electric solid body guitars, I am of the opinion that there are way too many other things at play that create or effect tone than simply the timber the body is made out of.

The one less positive thing I'll say about basswood is that it not a nicely figured timber and usually suited more to solid finished rather than natural or transparent ones. That said, my PRS1-TS is cherry stain with a poly clear coat

[ozzbike]

If you want earth and natural timber stains the Proof tint range from Feast Watson that you can get from the Big Green Shed work well. Otherwise I have had great results from Angelus leather dyes.

I use one of two finishes….Feast Watson Fine Buffing Oil….about seven coats….first two applied with oooo steel wool, the rest with squares of t shirt material. Then about four coats of Gillys Cabinetmakers Wax…a Carnauba Wax paste…again applied with oooo steel wool. Careful with the steel wool it will suck the colour out if you get aggressive.

The other is aerosol Cabots oil based polyurethane. They have two styles…interior and exterior. The red label exterior is marine grade and a little more robust…and is dearer. I sand…timbermate…stain….through to 400 grit then three to four coats of Tru Oil helps to grab and raise any figure in your wood…then leave for about a week…then the aerosol poly begins with the 3 coats ten minutes apart process. Then leave at least two days and wet sand 600 grit…then 3 coats 10 minutes apart…800, 1200, 1500, 2000. Then hang for about ten days. Then auto cutting compound until flat….then meguiars ultimate compound, scratch x, Bowden own paint prep, carnauba wax and then fully slick and hand buff. Usually up to four coats of each of these….and you should have a glossy finish.

I use the satin poly….as you can always polish it too a gloss….but if you want a flat neck finish you can’t get that with gloss poly.

[dbeltrami]

Thanks for the advice/recommendations on finishes @ozzbike. I'm looking at what my project will be and have received a quote from PDG on a custom version of the PSH-1 kit. This will take some time to deliver so I'll have a chance to test out some finish options.

@McCreed, apologies I didn't mean to suggest basswood was an inferior body material. I neglected to mention that my finish would be stain and not a solid colour so I was thinking that basswood would not be the best option for staining. For the PSH-1 kit, PBG has quoted a customisation with a Mahogony body so I think I'll go with this.

Thanks again, everyone.