would be easy to solve with a spray rig.

What you might have to do, is huff on a cigar. that shouldn't send you back to smoking, but it should give you some intense smoke to get the effect.

try huffing the guitar smoke directly onto the parts of the guitar you want to stain from close enough that your breath condenses on the surface. The moisture from your breathe should work to bind the smoke particles onto the surface.Let the moisture(saliva etc,) evaporate out, and completely dry. reapply more smoke, a few times, then seal it with your clear coat.

As for checking- this is how the custom shop does it: heat with a hairdryer then spray an upside down can of compressed air (like you would use to clean a keyboard). It will freeze the warmed area, wood contracts and expands rapidly and you get a really nice checking effect.

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Custom Shop '59 Strat with John Cruz Master Design Pickups
Vibro King
Fulltone Clyde>Deja-Vibe>TS-808>TS-9>Boss Tuner

That will give the quick temp change you need.

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The strongest reason for the people to retain the right to keep and bear arms is, as a last resort, to protect themselves against tyranny in government.

Thomas Jefferson

If I'm not mistaken, raw egg whites provide a bit of an aged look, or do they? Just something I've heard around, so don't take my word for it...

Also, are the 2007-2008 MiM Strats fitted with unfinished maple fingerboards? If that's the case, I might just do some tinting to the neck....

First coat of nitro is on. Do you guys think there would be any benefit to hanging the body above a heater, so it dries in a expanded state?

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No no and no

That's just going to slow the drying process down. Nitrocellulose remelts the layers underneath of it (this is why you don't sand in between coats).

Why are you trying to let it dry in an expanded state?

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Custom Shop '59 Strat with John Cruz Master Design Pickups
Vibro King
Fulltone Clyde>Deja-Vibe>TS-808>TS-9>Boss Tuner

I just thought it would help the crazing effect when i took it off the heat. I wont bother if its going to slow drying down. Thanks for the not sanding between coats tip too.

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No no and no

Cracks in the finish.

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The strongest reason for the people to retain the right to keep and bear arms is, as a last resort, to protect themselves against tyranny in government.

Thomas Jefferson

The hairline cracks that appear in guitar finishes over time.
Jay its a long and gorey story. In a couple o weeks or a month when the guitars done i will unearth the whole thread and complete it.

Then i've a nice project of strat/tele'ing the sapele body.

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No no and no

Why replicate? Leave it in my proximity for a few days, you'll get the bona fide, real thing!

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You dig?

I'm much the same way inclined mate. I'm not allowed to smoke in the house though. I do keep popping out for a sly cig and blowing the smoke over the body. Its helping a bit.

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No no and no

there was this guy that had a thread and what he did was pretty smart...i dont know how it will replicate the nicotine look but just food for thought...


he took his nitrocellulose and put in a mason jar and left it out in the sun until the sun naturally tinted the nitro...he had like 5 jars out so that he can vary the level of shading in the nitro...he'd remove one after one week...another after week 2...etc...and got varying shades of nitro that he then used to finish the guitar...maybe this idea can help???

good luck

but i heard the coffee/tea trick works too

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07 American Vintage '62 Re-Issue Strat
(olympic white)
07 Gibson Les Paul Vintage Mahogany
(cherry red)
07 Gibson Melody Maker
(vinatge sunburst)
01 Gibson L-00 Acoustic
(vintage sunburst)
Mid-90's MIM P-Bass
(sunburst)
Little Martin Acoustic

another suggestion??

why dont you take some smokeless tobacco products...(dip...snuff...whatever) and wring out all the oil onto a rag and brush the tobacco-laden rag all over the guitar...i think using real tobacco "juice" might give you a truer tone than old yellow paint...just an idea...i'd be curious to know what you ended up doing

_________________
07 American Vintage '62 Re-Issue Strat
(olympic white)
07 Gibson Les Paul Vintage Mahogany
(cherry red)
07 Gibson Melody Maker
(vinatge sunburst)
01 Gibson L-00 Acoustic
(vintage sunburst)
Mid-90's MIM P-Bass
(sunburst)
Little Martin Acoustic

good idea. I may try soaking a couple of cigs.

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No no and no