Ever make your own guitar?

[JGundry]

I would make a guitar but I don't have a big enough bench! Here is a violin I made a few years ago and one I am working on. I have had very little time to make violins lately, kind of a bummer. I learned from my grandfather and some other great makers. Like most fanatical violin makers I don't use any sandpaper on the white wood. Only razor sharp gouges, files and scrapers do the finish work. On the varnish and fingerboard, sure sandpaper and micromesh when needed, but don't tell anyone!

[John_H]

[ATTACH=CONFIG]20750[/ATTACH][ATTACH=CONFIG]20751[/ATTACH]

first guitar i have finished in 5 years- delivering today

Gorgeous! I'd love to build an archtop. Maybe sometime soon...

[David Schwab]

i even cut the tree down the maple came..

Show off!

You know what really disturbed me lately, was seeing these old large maple trees come down during the hurricane, and then they get chopped into small pieces and run though a wood chipper! It makes me sick to see that. What a waste of some beautiful old growth wood.

[David King]

Jason,

5 years is way too long between projects. Is your success is getting in the way of your passion? (we should all be so lucky.) I hope you still have time to play now and again. The guitar looks really nice, well worth the wait I'm sure.

[StarryNight]

I'm always curious about luthier's choices of finish. I know the choice depends on many factors but I wonder what builders prefer and what they consider a compromise?

[David Schwab]

I'm always curious about luthier's choices of finish. I know the choice depends on many factors but I wonder what builders prefer and what they consider a compromise?

I like a finish that is durable and looks good. Nitro is easy to rub out, but takes a while to cure. When I was building more regularly I used catalyzed nitro from Sherwin Williams. It had that nice warm nitro glow and was tough as nails. I've also used acrylic lacquer, both clear and in colors.

[David King]

So much of what luthiers do these days in influenced by the market. If it's a classical guitar it *has* to be French polish. If it's a retro electric it obviously *has* to be nitrocellulose.
Meanwhile the finish industry is being revolutionized but environmental concerns and legislation. Unfortunately for all of us guitar players will be the last to find out where the state of the art has moved to.
I'm using a newish finish from Canada that's as hard as polyester, has 0 shrinkage and nearly 0 VOCs. It's brush-able and cures in under an hour in sunlight. Suddenly I can compete with factory UV finishes at home without even a spraybooth. That's pretty incredible after wasting years on Bull-S waterbased finishes, spending thousands on spraybooth, supplied air breathing apparatus, HVLP sprayers, compressor and UV curing light.

[Peter Naglitsch]

So much of what luthiers do these days in influenced by the market. If it's a classical guitar it *has* to be French polish. If it's a retro electric it obviously *has* to be nitrocellulose.
Meanwhile the finish industry is being revolutionized but environmental concerns and legislation. Unfortunately for all of us guitar players will be the last to find out where the state of the art has moved to.
I'm using a newish finish from Canada that's as hard as polyester, has 0 shrinkage and nearly 0 VOCs. It's brush-able and cures in under an hour in sunlight. Suddenly I can compete with factory UV finishes at home without even a spraybooth. That's pretty incredible after wasting years on Bull-S waterbased finishes, spending thousands on spraybooth, supplied air breathing apparatus, HVLP sprayers, compressor and UV curing light.

I totally agree. I have been using water based lacquer for the last 15 years as I'm concerned about the environment and my own health (maybe in the opposite order). Always meeting that "why don't you use nitro, thats much better" attitude from guys that have no clue about finishing alternatives apart from what they read on forums. BTW David, mind sharing what finish you are using. Is it available in Europe?

[jack briggs]

Problems I've always had with water based finishes is first, the look. They just don't have that warm look of either nitro or shellac. Second - the feel. Water based and polyurethanes feel more "plasticky" to my hand. Nitro is more familiar. A lot of my clients are the same and insist on nitro. I would love to have an alternative with the qualities mentioned above that is enviro-friendly. Until such time, I'm using nitro.


Cheers,

[StarryNight]

Does tung oil appeal to anyone? I've seen pics of some surprisingly high gloss buffing with tung oil.

David K you're not referring to Canadian maple syrup? That stuff is good on just about anything!

[David King]

Hi Peter, the stuff in question is called Duo.V FS. -not much of a name. You might want to wait until summer to experiment with it unless you already own UV curing equipment.
StarryNight, Tung oil is a mess, it picks up dirt like nobody's business and take years to cure. A lot of that's called "Tung oil" is actually something else entirely.

[Chuck H]

Does tung oil appeal to anyone? I've seen pics of some surprisingly high gloss buffing with tung oil.

David K you're not referring to Canadian maple syrup? That stuff is good on just about anything!

I have a guitar that I finished in tung oil about twenty years ago. I wanted a real diy, natural wood look and feel. These many years later it has held up very well (though not much dent resistance) and the back of the neck has polished up from use to just under a high gloss. Still feels silky smooth though. Real tung oil requires a lot of time to get a gloss. Not only are many coats required but the dry time is loooong. I can imagine waiting as long as two weeks in good drying conditions for the last couple of coats to dry hard enough to lightly sand with 2000G wet or dry and buff. New fangled oil finishes that dry faster may harden up better also. Even if they're called "tung oil finish" they may only have a trace of tung oil. Not that it's a problem. I've been using Daly's Teak Oil lately. It dries harder, faster and I actually like the end result better than the old tung oils.

And it may be that Canadian maple syrup is good on many things. But I've found it disappointing on pancakes.

[StarryNight]

A lot of that's called "Tung oil" is actually something else entirely.

Would that be polymerized tung oil? I've never tried it but I believe it has a faster cure time, and it seems to come in a high lustre version.
Lee Valley Tools - Finishing with Tung Oil

[Chuck H]

That article is excellent information from a finishing standpoint. Though there are some implications that are suspect. One that stands out for me is that at the end they tell us how to handle our tung oil. Lumping all the discussed incarnations together. This isn't entirely accurate since they are very different finishes. As different as boiled linseed oil and polyurethane. Incidentally... A good way to be sure you have an air tight seal is to store your containers upside down. Something no one would do with a leaky container (eliminating laziness...guilty) and if there is a pinhole leak it will resolve itself in short order. If a little spilled finish on your finish storage shelves is a problem then you may just want to buy new stuff for every project and evaporate the leftovers.

[Peter Naglitsch]

Thanks for the info David, I will look if up.

Does tung oil appeal to anyone? I've seen pics of some surprisingly high gloss buffing with tung oil.

David K you're not referring to Canadian maple syrup? That stuff is good on just about anything!

I've used Tru Oil on two guitars and it works out fine creating a medium to high gloss. Tung oil seems to be far to much work to get a good film on the instrument. However it is my go-to for oiled necks. A nice, smooth feeling.

A trick for getting warmer appearance when using water based finished is to start with a few coats of Shellac and then switching to the water based lacquer for building up the finish. That will really bring out the natural look of the wood.