Best way to make this Koa pop?

[jtg116]

This top looks much brighter in this shot than in reality. Any ideas for popping out the color and depth? Danish oil as a base?
Also the back is Basswood. Anyone know of a good, hard wipe on finish that may act as a shell? thanks much

[murkat]

I have used minwax pecan stains that made the koa "pop"... a little stain, some sanding, more stain, more sanding... etc.

[jtg116]

Thanks, I'm really looking forward to making this top come alive.

[rooster]

Teak oil works very well. It goes on VERY thin, so you can use quite a few coats. This oil is made for the decking of sailboats, and much lighter than most oil finishes. The grain seems to come out very nicely on any guitar I've used it on, and it dries hard. Just polish it in thoroughly.

rooster.

[Thomas D]

Any drying oil (teak, boiled linseed, tung) will work well. I prefer the look of oil over the stain/dye and sanding techniques which tend to look a little too unnatural for me. Arm-R-Seal makes a a good wipe on tung oil and urethane finish so it would be compatible with any other drying oil you used. Can be applied on very thin, polishes up well and is very durable.

[Drak]

When one is trying to 'pop' a top, one is usually trying to maximize the 3-D effect of any quilted or curly figure present in the wood.

To be honest, unless the pic is just from a bad angle, I don't see any quilted or curly figure to 'pop', so you don't have to do anything special, just use any product you like and are comfortable using.

As far as something hard to protect the Basswood, no wipe-on oil-based product will offer much at all in the way of any real protection. I would look into BOAT VARNISH. I don't use them, I shoot lacquer primarily, but I know they are brick hard and are applied with a brush. That is a very tough finish.

There is no 'wipe-on' product out there that will protect Basswood to any great extent that you wouldn't have to apply 30+ coats to get any real build-up or any -real- protection. And even after 30 coats, I'm not sure it would really offer anything much in the way of protection anyway.

Wipe-on products and Basswood are sort of uncomfortable allies any way you cut it.

Koa is generally pretty hard tho, and has a built-in protective measure just in the toughness of the wood itself.

[blueguitar]

There's "pop" in that top! Anything leaving a wet look will bring it out. Oils will be okay for a while but fade as they evaporate. I've had pretty good luck with a danish oil then letting it dry for a few days/weeks and applying a Deft or Poly on top to preserve the look of oil. A nitro would really make it spank but you need to stay in your wheel-house of knowledge and materials so....

[PB Wilson]

Tru-Oil is an excellent product that is basically a wiping oil varnish blend. It's easy to apply and once you get some coats on your guitar, you can buff it out to a great shine.

[candh]

wipe on poly will get you there.