First Time TL-1L build (Natural Finish)

[Bearded-Zeus]

So after borderline waiting at my front door for 10 days for my first PitBull guitar to arrive, i finally have the time to get stuck into it and start my mock build.
This will be my first project and as such any advice or feedback this awesome community has to offer would be super appreciated (I have been reading build threads ever since I ordered the guitar).

So far I am super happy with the kit. the neck joins the Body super well and everything seems to fit in its place.
My plan for this guitar is to keep it a natural finish, with as small amount of lacquer as I can get away with. Possibly a Maple timber stain with a colour reducer as to not darken the timber too much, Does anyone have experience with this kind of finish, or does anyone have any other ideas as to how to achieve a natural light finish?

Having a hard time uploading pictures from my stupid laptop, I will upload some later on.

Cheers
Zeus

[gavinturner]

Hey Zeus, sounds like a great plan! Looking forward to seeing your build come together. You might need to reduce the size of your photos before posting them. Try reducing to a long side of 1000 pixels.

cheers,
Gav.

[Bearded-Zeus]

Here are the pictures i promised earler.
Completed the mock build this morning, all worked well, easier than i though it would be to measure up and drill the holes for the bridge and scratchplate.
Started sanding with some 80 Grit, I have now moved on to 120 Grit. looking good so far.
I go crazy for natural finish guitars, however Im not sure if the grain is nice enough to pull off the look that I am going for. what do you guys thing?

[Bearded-Zeus]

Thanks Gav, you were right. That was the problem all along. How silly of me.

[Swanny]

You could try enhancing the grain with Timbermate, it's like turning up the contrast knob to bring the timber alive.

[Bearded-Zeus]

You could try enhancing the grain with Timbermate, it's like turning up the contrast knob to bring the timber alive.

Thanks Swanny, I have heard that Timbermate works really well. And it looks like I can get it from bunnings, Ill grab some tomorow, see how that goes.
Any recomendations on which shade to use?

[Brendan]

I think there's enough there - I've done a basswood VP bass using Tru Oil with pretty vanilla grain and was really happy with the outcome... (http://www.buildyourownguitar.com.au...ead.php?t=2759). Comes down to your choice of finish and how it's applied.

[Bearded-Zeus]

Spent most of my afternoon cutting and sanding down the headstock. Made a rough sketch of what I wanted and cut it out with a coping saw. then sanded down to shape. There are still some saw marks and imperfections that are proving a pain to sand out...but with patience I will prevail. What do you guys think of the shape?

acquired myself some walnut timbermate. really hoping i made the right choice on shade there. my thinking was that a dark highlight through the grain might be different and look cool.
having said that, I am pretty lost as how to i am suppose to get this thick putty into the grain of the timber. can someone help me out on that one?

[wokkaboy]

wow Zeus thats an original headstock shape, wouldn't want to go any narrower in the centre area as there will be quite a bit of string tension on D G B E strings. Should look cool once it's cleaned up.
Walnut timbermate will work well.
To prepare it I use a flat surface to prepare it, old icecream lids work well. Add a bit of water and mix it with the TM till you get a fairly thick slurry. Can be applied with a plastic paint scraper or a sponge/squeegie. Wipe it over the entire body and let it dry for a few hours before sanding back. THe only timbermate left after sanding will be sitting in all the small pits in the grain surface. A bit of practice you will work it out pretty quickly.
Worth pre-sanding to at least 240 grit before filling

[Bearded-Zeus]

wow Zeus thats an original headstock shape, wouldn't want to go any narrower in the centre area as there will be quite a bit of string tension on D G B E strings. Should look cool once it's cleaned up.
Walnut timbermate will work well.
To prepare it I use a flat surface to prepare it, old icecream lids work well. Add a bit of water and mix it with the TM till you get a fairly thick slurry. Can be applied with a plastic paint scraper or a sponge/squeegie. Wipe it over the entire body and let it dry for a few hours before sanding back. THe only timbermate left after sanding will be sitting in all the small pits in the grain surface. A bit of practice you will work it out pretty quickly.
Worth pre-sanding to at least 240 grit before filling

Thanks Wokka, I'm really pleased with how the headstock it has shaped up. I am a bit worried about the strength of the headstock when under tension. hopefully it will be enough.

after trying to sand out the saw marks with 80 Grit, I have concluded that they are a tad too deep to sand out, Plus being right at the thin part of the headstock, I wouldnt want to thin it out any more than I already have. Hope nobody nottices.

Should I use the timbermate on the back of the neck?
Cheers for the advice
Zeus