I have a Mexican strat that I wanted to refinish the neck and headstock black. On the headstock I would like the Fender decal to remain. Is this possible and is there anyone in Syndey or Australia that could put another decal over the black headstock if the original has to come off in the refinishing process?

Hi adam266001: it is perfectly possible to re-fin a neck in black or any other colour. A good luthier will do it well, a less good one less so. It would help if your neck has a rosewood fingerboard so that the old lacquer doesn't need removing and replacing between the frets. A maple 'board would make the job quite a bit more fiddly.

'Fraid I don't know about luthiers in Sydney though I know good ones exist in Australia (the home of Maton Guitars, after all). There are Australian users on this Forum: perhaps they have some thoughts. Or there's Google.

Far as new decals are concerned: you'll find many on this site hostile to the thought of rebranding a neck with a fake logo, even if it's already a Fender neck. I'll leave you and them to argue that one out between you. Fender won't supply you with a replacement genuine decal for a job like this.

Cheers - C

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Yeah, getting a Fender decal is tricky. I just got done with a Strat build with a Warmoth neck. Warmoth decals are pretty lame, so I didn't use one. But the guitar looked kinda sad without a logo on it.

There are a few people advertising on ebay for custom decals. I just ordered mine from a company called Rothko & ??????...can't remember for sure but happens to be in England. They'll make a decal that looks just like a fender decal with the sparkly gold ink in the logo, etc. Very nice.

I like cats, so mine says FELINE (instead of Fender). CATOSTRASTER, Bred in the U.S.A., and on the round end of the peghead where it sometimes says "original contour body", mine says "original fuzzy body". Okay, pretty weird, but from a few feet away it looks like a stock Fender logo....til you really look.

So, if you're willing to be a little creative, you can do it. Because you're doing a black headstock, none of the black lettering will show up, so you'll just need the "Fender" portion. Or at least something of your choosing that's close to "Fender". Or not...it'll be in the Fender style script so it'll look good no matter what.

It's a water transfer decal, so you just soak it, slide it in place, get the wrinkles out of it and let it dry for a day. Then clear coat it with spray poly. MAKE SURE your poly is compatible with your black. I just use Krylon gloss clear coat and built up about six coats. Sanded it with 1000 grit, then with 1500 grit (wet sandpaper), then buffed it up with some rubbing compound. Looks like it just came out of the factory...the "Feline" factory

Thank you so much for your replies. I will try getting the black market Fender decals and use the krylon spray. I'm just wondering, if they refinish the whole neck, will they be covering the black with the glossy finishes that they put on the stock necks? If they do put that gloss finish over the headstock, would it still be possible to apply the decal on top of that finish and just spray it over with the krylon?

Hi siamese: I like your style!



Since as far as I can see they are a legit outfit offering "flavour of" rather than illegal pirate decals let's give 'em a link. Rothko & Frost, here:

http://shop.rothkoandfrost.co.uk/waters ... -s/114.htm

What's useful about these people is they offer the gold and silver inks which most of us can't do at home on our ordinary printers. And that means adam266001 can have a decal which will show up on black lacquer.

After many threads on the subject the Forum consensus is that so long as a decal is clearly not passing a guitar off as genuine factory Fender it doesn't fall foul of the company's legal trade mark rights. Siamese's approach is an excellent example of the cool way to go.

Cheers - C

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By Krylon gloss clear coat, do you mean the Krylon Acrylic Crystal Clear?

Yeah, that's the Krylon I used.

You definitely want the decal UNDER the clear coat. Protects the decal and makes it so you can't see or feel the edges of the decal.

If you're having someone do the black finish for you, why not have them apply the decal and do the clear coat too? Assuming they know what they're doing with the black finish, the decal, taping, spraying, and polishing of the clear coat should be easy for them. Then, too, you have no concerns about whether the clear coat is compatible with the black finish....it's their responsibility.

So I would just spray the headstock with the acrylic gloss, then spray the back of the neck with the satin finish? Would the satin make the black look whiter or just duller?

Why would you spray the back of the neck with the acrylic? Aren't you painting that black? Are you doing it yourself or having it done?

Finish the neck with the black paint of your choosing, and clear coat only the front of the headstock. Tape it off.

It would help if you could be clear about how you're doing the black finish on the neck. Materials and method.

What I meant was, should I be spraying the krylon satin finish over the black finish on the back of the neck for the smooth feel or would the black finish on its own be sufficiently smooth?

Well, ya see, that's just it.....you won't say who's applying the black finish, and you won't say what kind of paint is being used for the black finish, and you won't say how the black finish is being applied. Professional with a spray booth or a chimpanzee with a rattle can under a shade tree?!?! Cuz I don't know any of that, I can't possibly comment on any benefit of spraying over your mystery black finish. I can tell you that if the black finish is done properly, then no clear coating is necessary on the back of the neck. It's up to the materials and the skill of the technician whether it's a satin or gloss finish. If it's not done properly, and if the same guy does the clear coat, then no amount of clear coating is going to make it any better. I give up.