Need advice on pine body finish

[samdjr74]

Hi all,

I have a nice knotty pine tele body. I'm looking for a worn old finish like an old floor board. The problem is the pine body is pretty new looking.

What options do I have to get that old waxy look and feel of 100 y/o pine without having to wait 100 years?

Sam

[samdjr74]

Here's the body in question

http://i16.photobucket.com/albums/b34/samdjr74/Guitars/IMG_0182-1.jpg

And here are some examples of what color I'm after

http://i16.photobucket.com/albums/b34/samdjr74/Guitars/041a05b2.jpg

http://i16.photobucket.com/albums/b34/samdjr74/Guitars/pine04_big.jpg

[wemedge]

Don't know if it would be close to what you're looking for, but I sealed the knots with (non-wax) shellac and finished with a few coats of Minwax wipe-on-poly (satin). I don't think you'll have to wait long for the pine to look worn-in. I've just finished assembling mine in the last 2 weeks and it's starting to wear in already with normal use. And I'm trying to keep it looking new (sort of). ha.

cheers,
wemedge

http://i570.photobucket.com/albums/ss146/wemedge/Pinecaster%201/MCaster113cropped.jpg
http://i570.photobucket.com/albums/ss146/wemedge/Pinecaster%201/MCaster117.jpg

[Axis29]

Amber Shellac and a little bit of work....

https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-OSkT1p5BewY/TckdcxxJdAI/AAAAAAAAEFI/feN7auno1B4/s964/_DSC2766.jpg

[wemedge]

Amber Shellac and a little bit of work....



So nice! Maybe I can get my next one to look like that!

to OP, good luck!

[samdjr74]

This is it.

Ok so amber shellac and I'm all for some work, any tips?

Amber Shellac and a little bit of work....

https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-OSkT1p5BewY/TckdcxxJdAI/AAAAAAAAEFI/feN7auno1B4/s964/_DSC2766.jpg

[cardamonfrost]

That red stain is nail polish. I know as I made an identical stain on a set of pine stairs. Thats the only info I have :).

C

[Axis29]

The secret to amber shellac is putting it on in very thin coats. If you buy a can of premixed shellac, buy a can of denatured alcohol too. Grab a glass jar (with a good lid) like an applesauce jar or something... Mix up the shellac so it's about one part shellac to two or three parts alcohol. It should be very thin, almost as thin as water. This is especially important if you bought a can of premixed shellac... The thinner mixture helps it to dry harder and faster. Also, the thinner mix will keep you from building it up too fast and turning it gummy or going too dark too quickly.

Find a nice soft cloth, that won't shed lint (I like the microfiber polishing cloths I grabbed at the warehouse store). Dip it in the shellac... but just get a little bit on, you don't want it dripping off everywhere and making a mess. Wipe it on gently. Do a nice even coat over everything and let it dry for a couple of hours. If you wait a good two hours, you can put another coat on without too much worry of taking it right back off... but don't rub too much, or you will wipe it right back off... I wipe with the grain, and go gently.

I like the finish a little more satin, less gloss. So, I didn't worry about shining it up or polishing it too much. But,. if it got too thick in places, I did sand it back a little. To sand shellac the easiest, use wet/dry paper and some turpentine.

Usually three, maybe four coats will add a nice mellow amber color. On the guitar above I probably have five, maybe six extremely thin coats. If you wanted it shinier without going too dark, you could always use some clear shellac coats or mix the clear in with the amber... I like it looking smokey and old.

I will say the shellac is not polyurethane nor even a thick Nitrocellulose coat... so between the pine and the shellac, it's getting pretty beat up. I kinda like it that way. It's definitely not a trailer queen! LOL

But, it feels as soft and silky as it looks. It feels like velvet and doesn't get sticky the way my Gibson LP does....

My newest Strat also has a shellac finish on the neck at the headstock and heel, with most of the neck raw... It looks nice and dark. I need to snap some pictures, but I am not done and want to fade some more dark on the face of the peghead... Anyway, what i was getting at was that I really love the feel of shellac on my guitar necks now. I may not ever go back to anything else if I have the choice.

[Axis29]

Oh, a couple more photos for your review:

https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-T013ZkHIdm4/TckdeOiqXMI/AAAAAAAAEFo/Y-AosfCOiDU/s964/_DSC2756.jpg

https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-N1RNTBaU7uY/TckdeYQLbLI/AAAAAAAAEFw/IgyrEAxr6Z8/s964/_DSC2755.jpg

https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-oNNeCjMC8vg/Tckde7go3SI/AAAAAAAAEGA/yH5C8CedQrE/s964/_DSC2751.jpg



Oh, I forgot to mention... I made the body out of 160 year old pine floor joists from a buddy's house.... So, the super tight grain is crazy, the sap is all crystallized as well... Love working with this stuff too.

[Whiskeyrebel]

http://forum.canadianwoodworking.com/showthread.php?30087-Create-Barnboard-finish

[samdjr74]

Thanks for the info, this helps a lot. Looks like I have a project this weekend.

Oh, a couple more photos for your review:

https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-T013ZkHIdm4/TckdeOiqXMI/AAAAAAAAEFo/Y-AosfCOiDU/s964/_DSC2756.jpg

https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-N1RNTBaU7uY/TckdeYQLbLI/AAAAAAAAEFw/IgyrEAxr6Z8/s964/_DSC2755.jpg

https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-oNNeCjMC8vg/Tckde7go3SI/AAAAAAAAEGA/yH5C8CedQrE/s964/_DSC2751.jpg



Oh, I forgot to mention... I made the body out of 160 year old pine floor joists from a buddy's house.... So, the super tight grain is crazy, the sap is all crystallized as well... Love working with this stuff too.