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Post subject: guitar neck finishing one piece maple.
Posted: Fri Feb 06, 2015 6:26 am
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I've been building a guitar for some time now now and I'm just about up to the finishing stage.I can only do a wipe on finish.
After some research I've decided to finish the body with tru oil and I was wondering would it be ok on a one piece maple neck as well. I also thought about about satin poly as but I thought the tru oil might wear better.
I know that nitro is the best but I wanted to avoid that for now.
Thanks for your help


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Post subject: Re: guitar neck finishing one piece maple.
Posted: Fri Feb 06, 2015 6:58 am
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Hey Chris, is the neck newly constructed, already finished or somewhere in between?

A buddy of mine did what you're describing and got a fantastic result.

He had a block of Ash cut and sculpted an unfinished Strat body, then sanded down a previously finished neck.


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Post subject: Re: guitar neck finishing one piece maple.
Posted: Fri Feb 06, 2015 7:45 am
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Thanks looks great,
yes its newly constructed, I just wasn't sure what to do because I know with rosewood boards you can put finish the back and lemon oil on the finger board. With all maple I've found it difficult to find much information.


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Post subject: Re: guitar neck finishing one piece maple.
Posted: Fri Feb 06, 2015 8:16 am
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You have to seal a Maple fretboard or it will turn gray.

I'd recommend a satin urethane finish on a Maple fretboard, like I did on a Jimmie Vaughan neck.

It had to be refinished because of dust captured in the finish at Fender Ensenada, a rare occurence.

I used spray cans, gloss for the headstock and satin for the rest. It turned out nicely.

Don't wait longer than a week to clean it off your frets or it gets really hard to remove.

The fingerboard before:

Image


After:

Image

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Post subject: Re: guitar neck finishing one piece maple.
Posted: Fri Feb 06, 2015 8:31 am
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Superb looking guitar. (/s - both of the above)

I would be very reticent to use an oil finish on Maple. Maple is very dense and is no where near as absorbent as ash.

Oil based finishes are absorbed into the surface where as lacquer finishes create a hard coating on the surface. The advantage of a lacquer is any wear is to the surface material not the wood beneath and, if you muck up lacquering (or change your mind) you can sand it down and start again.

If you muck up an oil based finish you have nowhere else to go as it will have impregnated/contaminated the timber. This is why such finishes are used on woodwork which might get wet as it isn't reliant on the integrity of the surface to provide protection from water ingress - water cant get in because the wood is already filled with oil.

Any surface finish which an oil based treatment provides is likely to be soft, or certainly softer than a lacquer.

When touching an oiled wood you are generally touching the wood impregnated with treatment not a surface skin of the material. Lacquered finishes you are touching the lacquer not the wood.

You know where you stand with a lacquer finish. Impregnated finishes are far less predictable. How much material has the wood absorbed? Has that material cured? Has it created oil filled voids below the surface which may sweat out at a later date?

It is, no doubt, a great material for gun stocks as they get wet and bashed and neither is going to effect the finish or protection adversely. Pretty fair for a guitar body because it wont show knocks. However, while it doesn't show knocks it also doesn't protect against knocks. A lacquer creates a hard shell which will, to some extent, protect against the wood surface being dented or bruised.

In summary, I wouldn't personally use it on a maple neck.

I probably wouldn't use it on a body either because, once applied you are totally committed to that finish. Lacquer, if you change your mind, or you muck it up, you can change the colour etc, to your hearts content. And the lacquer will shield the wood from knocks.

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Post subject: Re: guitar neck finishing one piece maple.
Posted: Fri Feb 06, 2015 9:25 am
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Thanks for the comments ,very helpful. thats a great looking guitar.
It looks like the easiest way would be to seal the would then then put on some wipe satin poly.But the best would be the lacquer. I've got very little experience of spraying so I'm a bit wary. I'll have to have a think.
I thought I'd put a picture on and yes I know its got three dots at the twelth. I made a mistake when I was marking them out and it was too much work to start again. Brian May's got three so I thought if its good enough for him.lol

Image


Last edited by chrisH60 on Sun Feb 08, 2015 7:14 am, edited 1 time in total.

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Post subject: Re: guitar neck finishing one piece maple.
Posted: Fri Feb 06, 2015 9:34 am
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John Sims wrote:
Superb looking guitar. (/s - both of the above)

I would be very reticent to use an oil finish on Maple. Maple is very dense and is no where near as absorbent as ash.

In summary, I wouldn't personally use it on a maple neck.

I probably wouldn't use it on a body either because, once applied you are totally committed to that finish. Lacquer, if you change your mind, or you muck it up, you can change the colour etc, to your hearts content. And the lacquer will shield the wood from knocks.

+1 - What John said :D

Lacquer is more protection than Oil, but not much. You have to baby it or accept dings &/or chips.

The good news is, it's fairly easy to fix those things. Easiest in Black, of course.

My new Fender 50's Hot Rod Re-Issue body is Nitro finish and at the end of a laborious build, needs a lot of attention. I should have been more careful, but my guitars will always show signs of use. :roll:

The longest lasting and most durable finish is polyurethane, like the Jimmie Vaughan neck above. It will take Decades to age, if ever, and dings and chips are somewhat tough to fix. :)

You can also get Lacquer finish in the "rattle cans". Whatever you use, you need patience and you have to sand between coats and wipe well, because you will pick up flying contaminants.

This is my Hot Rod Brownie build, re-fretted 12 y/o Clapton Neck & his Mid Boost, Ash 2tsb Nitro body, 2 pt trem, P/P Tone 2 for "Bridge On" effect, DiMarzio Area sgl. Humbucker Pups.


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Post subject: Re: guitar neck finishing one piece maple.
Posted: Fri Feb 06, 2015 9:49 am
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That finish is really good. Whats the best thing to sand with between coat's? I've got some 0000 wire wool.


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Post subject: Re: guitar neck finishing one piece maple.
Posted: Fri Feb 06, 2015 10:37 am
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chrisH60 wrote:
I've got very little experience of spraying so I'm a bit wary
Don't touch that neck before you've practiced on scrap wood till you feel ready.
chrisH60 wrote:
Whats the best thing to sand with between coat's?
280 and/or 400 grit wet sandpaper, and be meticulous to the limit of insanity with removing the dust.
No need to sand between every layer, and be careful not to sand through to bare wood.
Practice sanding, too, on that scrap wood.

Just my 2c...


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Post subject: Re: guitar neck finishing one piece maple.
Posted: Fri Feb 06, 2015 11:21 am
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chrisH60 wrote:
Thanks for the comments ,very helpful. thats a great looking guitar.
It looks like the easiest way would be to seal the would then then put on some wipe satin poly.But the best would be the lacquer. I've got very little experience of spraying so I'm a bit wary. I'll have to have a think.
I thought I'd put a picture on and yes I know its got three dots at the twelth. I made a mistake when I was marking them out and it was too much work to start again. Brain May's got three so I thought if its good enough for him.lol

Image


I quite like the three but you could replace the middle one with maple if it was annoying you.

While I haven't seen it myself you can get nitro in a spray can which would certainly be the way to go. Can based polyurethane isn't necessarily going to be as hard as that used in the spray shop which is a two pack product. Commercial spray paint supply firms will often sell aerosol can based versions of their products so, if you have problems sourcing materials, they might be worth a go - this doesn't apply to two pack obviously as it has to be mixed as you need it.

After spraying the main recipe to success is to leave to "dry" in a warm well ventilated place. Well ventilated as the whole point is to get rid of the solvents in the material. Without the ventilation they just lurk reducing further evaporation.

Many thin coats is better than thick and it doesn't need to be completely hard between coats unless you are de- nibbing (sanding). While you can apply several coats don't put on loads before allowing it to harden or you could get orange peel and other nasties through shrinkage.

Without using two pack the process is going to take many days. This is to be expected. Don't rush it.

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Post subject: Re: guitar neck finishing one piece maple.
Posted: Fri Feb 06, 2015 11:39 am
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thanks for all the help,
It seems to be lacquer is the way to go.
I have seen some brush on lacquer but I don't know what that's like. I've got some off cuts I can use, so I'll try to get lots of practice.


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Post subject: Re: guitar neck finishing one piece maple.
Posted: Sat Feb 07, 2015 2:03 pm
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My personal experience of spraying a neck (done it 3 times ) is....
Start off with a"ghost coat" (just enough to barely coat the neck, so the remaining coats have something to bite to)
Go have a coffee
Do another coat, a little tiny bit heavier
Repeat about 4 or 5 times
Put a piece of soap in a bowl of water and swirl it round , then put some 1200 wet and dry in there and leave everything overnight

The following day, get the 1200 paper and rub it on the slushy soap bar and start to GENTLY sand the lacquer , wiping frequently till it looks matt...I switched to 2000 paper which really smooths it down and almost polishes it
Make sure you dry the neck off and again spray several light coats (don't go "heavy"or you'll get orange peel) and leave each coat about 20 minutes

Leave to dry for a few days then attack it with the wet and dry again, this time staying with the 2000 grade , till it is matt all over with no shiny spots , then polish (I used metallic T Cut on cotton wool ) finishing off with a duster . You can repolish a few times until you get the finish you want .

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Last edited by ted j on Sun Feb 08, 2015 2:47 am, edited 1 time in total.

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Post subject: Re: guitar neck finishing one piece maple.
Posted: Sat Feb 07, 2015 5:52 pm
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The important thing is to take your time and do not rush any stage. Nitrocellulose lacquer can be obtained in aerosol if you don't have a spraying facility and will give you the best results. If you are using nitro, make sure that you apply a compatible sanding sealer. A couple of thin coats is usually sufficient on a maple neck. Make sure that the neck, once sprayed with its final coat, gets a couple of weeks drying time before final sanding. I use 1500 and 2000 grit wet and dry paper before a cutting compound, then I finish off with a hard wax polish.

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Post subject: Re: guitar neck finishing one piece maple.
Posted: Sun Feb 08, 2015 7:12 am
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Thanks, I've ordered the sealer and some brush on satin lacquer which I'll try to apply these methods to.
I've done some painting so I thought that might be the best for me at the minute and maybe have at go at spraying when I've got more experience of how it behaves.
There's so much good information here. I'm going to print this thread and put it into a book.


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Post subject: Re: guitar neck finishing one piece maple.
Posted: Tue Mar 10, 2015 7:43 am
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bump......any progress chrisH60 :?: :lol: :?:

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