Whats on your work bench?

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Partscaster
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Inspired by Mossman's recent SunKing strat finishing, and having too many natural finished strats in my herd,
today i started refinishing an alder natural partscaster to a 2 tone sunburst finish.

I sanded down the few old Tru Oil layers it had, and started rubbing in linseed oil based artisan oil paints. First, Lemon Yellow everywhere.
Then Burnt Umber around margins. I may want to sand back front side lower bout "hips" a bit before continuing. I think I may have brought in the brown to much down there. Anyhow, here's pics.

Once sanded
DSCN2559.jpeg
Once yellow was spread everywhere
DSCN2557.jpeg
After some brown
DSCN2563.jpeg
DSCN2565.jpeg
DSCN2569.jpeg
I want the sides to be dark brown to black, and I only want it spilling over to front and back an inch or two.
The yellow i used is almost too yellow. "Lemon Yellow" but i want to adjust for the likely amber tint of Tru Oil that I'll put over it all.
I dont want the center to be darker yellow/amber if i can avoid it.

Tomorrow, I'll rub on brown mixed with black on edges.
"The man that hath no music in himself, nor is not moved with concord of sweet sounds, is fit for treasons, stratagems, and spoils. The motions of his spirit are dull as night, and his affections dark as Erebus. Let no such man be trusted."
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andrewsrea
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Gearlist: 28 Guitars: (2) basses, (2) acoustics, (3) hollow bodies, (3) Semi hollow, (1) Double-neck, (17) Solid-bodies

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Mossman
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Looks good!
Finally escaping the People's Republic of Kalifornia!

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Partscaster
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If only I could get back to the way it looked in those pictures. Ha ha. I could, but its morphing.
Epic battles between me and myself. Snatching defeat out of the Jaws of Victory, then stumbling into Victory at the brink of defeat. I like where it is at now. I did darken the sides of the body considerably. Rolled more brown into margins. Need to let it dry, and then blend in the black into the brown margins.
I think it'll have a lot of grain showing through the darker colors, even. I'm going for an Abe Lincoln Burst.
"The man that hath no music in himself, nor is not moved with concord of sweet sounds, is fit for treasons, stratagems, and spoils. The motions of his spirit are dull as night, and his affections dark as Erebus. Let no such man be trusted."
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Mossman
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That's the trouble with doing bursts like this. It's always morphing and changing in subtle ways that you don't notice until one day you realize (if you've been taking pictures) that you're now 10 miles away from where you started. Or that somehow, the burst that you were unsatisfied with last week was better than what you have now! :lol:
Finally escaping the People's Republic of Kalifornia!

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Partscaster
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Mossman wrote: Sun May 02, 2021 2:31 pm Or that somehow, the burst that you were unsatisfied with last week was better than what you have now! :lol:
Oh yeah. The days of the amber burst option are a long sand away now. Fear is my best motivator though. I just ran downstairs to basement again to stare at it. I do still like it, and once I get the black rolled onto front again, it should have the old wood grainy Abe Lincoln look I saw in it earlier today. I shoudnt touch it for a few days, but I'll probably jump back into it tonight. Theres always plenty of time for regrets, later.
"The man that hath no music in himself, nor is not moved with concord of sweet sounds, is fit for treasons, stratagems, and spoils. The motions of his spirit are dull as night, and his affections dark as Erebus. Let no such man be trusted."
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LancerTheGreat
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Location: Where the Bluegrass Grows
Gearlist: -Guitars-
Gibson Dave Mustaine Flying V EXP
ESP LTD DV8R Dave Mustaine Signature Model
ESP LTD V401DX
Agile AL3100
Kit Explorer
Jackson JS32RR
TWANG Tele
Samick Strat
Firefly Semi-Hollow Tele
Globe Dove Copy

-Amps-
Orange OR-15 (Head)
EVH 112 (Cabinet)
Bugera 1960 Infinium (Head)
Bugera 412 (Cabinet)
Peavey VTX Classic 212 (Combo)
Laney Mini-ST Lionheart Practice Amp

Well, just got a desk put together and some wall hangers mounted on the wall.
I'll try to get pics soon.

But now primarily on my workbench is my AL3100 needing the joint at the headstock repaired. No clue when or how it happened but I noticed it today, it's not extreme, but it's definitely split enough to notice and see into the crevice. Gonna pick up some titebond tomorrow and fill it full and then clamp that bad boy shut, probably pick up some sandpaper so I can clean everything up decently. Kinda bummed about this one though.

But after that, it's back to trying to get the tools for the fretwork on my explorer, needa find a locking nut for my rr still, touch up some wiring, basic maintenance and cleaning on the whole harem.

I need to fix my pedalboard too, or just buy a decent one. Wouldn't mind picking up a decent tube screamer but that's another topic for another thread lol.
~Formerly LookingDownTheCross~
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LancerTheGreat
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Location: Where the Bluegrass Grows
Gearlist: -Guitars-
Gibson Dave Mustaine Flying V EXP
ESP LTD DV8R Dave Mustaine Signature Model
ESP LTD V401DX
Agile AL3100
Kit Explorer
Jackson JS32RR
TWANG Tele
Samick Strat
Firefly Semi-Hollow Tele
Globe Dove Copy

-Amps-
Orange OR-15 (Head)
EVH 112 (Cabinet)
Bugera 1960 Infinium (Head)
Bugera 412 (Cabinet)
Peavey VTX Classic 212 (Combo)
Laney Mini-ST Lionheart Practice Amp

About to head to the hardware store and grab some glue and clamps so I can get this baby stable. It doesn't have much give or wiggle to it, but there's more than there should be or it wouldn't have split.

But here's the pics I promised, uhhh, gore warning for the squeamish.
20210507_121917.jpg
20210507_121857.jpg
20210507_121845.jpg
I didn't realize how tightly zoomed those were, but it's above the nut towards the headstock.
~Formerly LookingDownTheCross~
SamIV
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Ounch. Good luck with that.
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LancerTheGreat
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Location: Where the Bluegrass Grows
Gearlist: -Guitars-
Gibson Dave Mustaine Flying V EXP
ESP LTD DV8R Dave Mustaine Signature Model
ESP LTD V401DX
Agile AL3100
Kit Explorer
Jackson JS32RR
TWANG Tele
Samick Strat
Firefly Semi-Hollow Tele
Globe Dove Copy

-Amps-
Orange OR-15 (Head)
EVH 112 (Cabinet)
Bugera 1960 Infinium (Head)
Bugera 412 (Cabinet)
Peavey VTX Classic 212 (Combo)
Laney Mini-ST Lionheart Practice Amp

Well I glued it up this morning, just decided to clean off any excess dried glue and do a little light sanding to clean up the wound. Doesn't look too bad now, feels good. Got it sanded down and there's a spot where the finish is a hair deeper than the wood so it looks like there's a little deep crack but you can't even feel it with a nail now, tiny little chunk of missing wood that I can feel with my nail, might try to fill it, probably not as it's also negligible.
Anyway, got it clamped back up to keep steady pressure on it til tomorrow, I'll probably take the opportunity to deep clean it, maybe sand a little more, then string it up and hope it's more stable than before.

Scratched off excess glue:
20210507_214151.jpg
After sanding:
20210507_215557.jpg
The spot where the tiny missing chunk of wood and small line of finish I couldn't sand off:
20210507_215801.jpg
Funnily enough the small patch of finish in there is from the top piece of the break, I guess I set it better than I thought when I glued and clamped it earlier.
~Formerly LookingDownTheCross~
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Partscaster
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LancerTheGreat wrote: Fri May 07, 2021 10:23 pm Well I glued it up this morning, just decided to clean off any excess dried glue and do a little light sanding to clean up the wound. Doesn't look too bad now, feels good. Got it sanded down and there's a spot where the finish is a hair deeper than the wood so it looks like there's a little deep crack but you can't even feel it with a nail now, tiny little chunk of missing wood that I can feel with my nail, might try to fill it, probably not as it's also negligible.
Anyway, got it clamped back up to keep steady pressure on it til tomorrow, I'll probably take the opportunity to deep clean it, maybe sand a little more, then string it up and hope it's more stable than before.

Scratched off excess glue:
20210507_214151.jpg

After sanding:
20210507_215557.jpg

The spot where the tiny missing chunk of wood and small line of finish I couldn't sand off:
20210507_215801.jpg
Funnily enough the small patch of finish in there is from the top piece of the break, I guess I set it better than I thought when I glued and clamped it earlier.

Nice going. My mind goes to a tiny Frankenstein sticker above the repair, and not trying to recolor it.
"The man that hath no music in himself, nor is not moved with concord of sweet sounds, is fit for treasons, stratagems, and spoils. The motions of his spirit are dull as night, and his affections dark as Erebus. Let no such man be trusted."
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Partscaster
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Partscaster wrote: Sun May 02, 2021 2:46 pm
Mossman wrote: Sun May 02, 2021 2:31 pm Or that somehow, the burst that you were unsatisfied with last week was better than what you have now! :lol:
Oh yeah...... Theres always plenty of time for regrets, later.
To continue with my burst finish: I'm the guy who exemplifies what not to do. But ends up usually liking it well enough.

While coloring the 2 tone sunburst, I got myself very worked into a corner I didnt like. The black/brown margin was too uniform. It wouldnt flow into whispy mix with the more brown area like I wanted. I had tried tru oil as a thinner and swirling technique to poor result that would bleed toward the yellow area too much, etc. Looked too swirly. Straight brush strokes sucked. Used coffee filters mostly. Several attempts didnt look good. I was getting disappointed.

Predictably, I next went into a "f-it "mode (thats when disappointments often get better), and I started aggressively wiping away the black outer...it was then when I achieved a zone of heavily wiped back black that I really liked. Transparent darker smudges remained across earlier brown highlighted grain areas. Thats what I was shooting for in the transition. Like cannon smoke clearing from the battle field.
I still coudnt immediately reproduce it. I then resorted to finger painting in the transition areas after waiting for areas to get tacky. I'ld push thin smudges around. It was a hot mess. But I like where its at now. Still need to let it sit for another week in warm room before trying very light sand and the straight Tru Oil coats. There are a few shiney Tru Oil test areas in pics. Its bound to look a bit rough when I'm done, texture wise as well as artistically. But i think it suits an Abe Lincoln/Civil War Strat era reproduction fairly well.
DSCN2606.jpeg
DSCN2600.jpeg
DSCN2604.jpeg
"The man that hath no music in himself, nor is not moved with concord of sweet sounds, is fit for treasons, stratagems, and spoils. The motions of his spirit are dull as night, and his affections dark as Erebus. Let no such man be trusted."
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mozz
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I see nothing wrong with that at all. Every burst is different. Maple neck?
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Partscaster
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mozz wrote: Sat May 08, 2021 12:58 pm I see nothing wrong with that at all. Every burst is different. Maple neck?
Yup.I got an Allparts SMO-V at Stratosphere and have been putting layers of tinted Tru Oil on it the past few days. Started out with a straw-yellow tint base layer, then burnt umber, then burnt sienna, then lemon yellow. All well diluted and fairly subtle, but they add up. I looked at some vintage 50's necks for reference.

Early dark tints gave it some age. Thin lemon tint gave it all some pop without looking "yellow". I'm letting it look blotchy to lend an aged look. Although, I did wipe off a few frets harder than others and it shows. So I need to bring those back to match better. I'm not looking to relic, or replicate a used vintage neck look, just to give it some correct color character. The untinted maple with tru oil wouldnt fit the body so well.
I'll do a little more than add some pics.
-----------------
Still can see rub marks in some frets. I'm not going to chase it all out. Neck looks old and dirty well enough to match body better, IMO.
See below for untinted, and 1985 neck comparison
DSCN2611.jpeg
DSCN2612.jpeg
DSCN2613.jpeg
(left to right/ or bottom to top, as displayed) 1985 MIJ worn poly neck, New Tinted Tru Oil, 6 month old untinted Tru oil
DSCN2626.jpeg
"The man that hath no music in himself, nor is not moved with concord of sweet sounds, is fit for treasons, stratagems, and spoils. The motions of his spirit are dull as night, and his affections dark as Erebus. Let no such man be trusted."
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tobijohn
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Actually, this just made it off my workbench (aka kitchen table) after laying disassembled on the dining room table since last fall:

SX SST Ash MN NA. It got a set of Fender Fat 50s, a new harness and black knobs and P/U covers. The fret ends needed some attention too.


https://www.rondomusic.com/sstashleft.html
Attachments
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Delightful mix of insolence, arrogance and narcissism
Proud RINO trapped in a heavy metal chassis
Growing up, only kid in the neighborhood with an Uncle Ahkbar
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tobijohn
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Also moving from the dining room table to the kitchen table, a Davison Strat which will get a set of Tonerider Alnico II Blues and a fresh harness. Hopefully, it will only be there for a week as I've got a couple LP Deluxe treatments scheduled for a P90 AD-3200MCC GT (DeMarzio PG-13s) and an old P90 AL-2000 CSBF ( Epi Probucker minis):
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20210516_160115.jpg
Delightful mix of insolence, arrogance and narcissism
Proud RINO trapped in a heavy metal chassis
Growing up, only kid in the neighborhood with an Uncle Ahkbar
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Partscaster
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Well, I've got it done enough for my patience to dry up. It's assembled and has about 5 coats of Tru Oil over front. Back side has only about 3 coats.So there is a porous aspect to the finish.
Although the finish is thin, there are still plenty of finish blemishes. Most dont show up in a distant view. But there are cat hairs in the finish, paint thickness discrepancies, etc. None of that bothers me. I really like the general look.
Anyone trying to exactly duplicate these colors may need to include a hint of canned cat food left in the mixing can, but only noticed after application of that layer of stained tru oil.
DSCN2632.jpeg
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I have two other "natural" alder builds. One is left with my mother, who is a good artist and I wanted her to paint a winter mountain scene in acrylic. That may take a few weeks, or months. I'll post it when its ready.

My other "natural" I think, will get the yellow/brown burst that occurred half way through this finish project, and appears at top of page. An amber burst of sorts. I may brand the front and back with some buffalo and horse emblem branding irons I picked up a while ago.

----------------------------

I gotta say this guitar's sound is blowing me away. Klein Epic 1958 pups, in 4.0 lb. alder body, with maple soft V-contour neck. Wow. Good recipe. Plus, bridge pup has reverse slant which i now generally prefer in strats. Maybe its cause its the first time I've coupled these pups with a one piece maple neck.
"The man that hath no music in himself, nor is not moved with concord of sweet sounds, is fit for treasons, stratagems, and spoils. The motions of his spirit are dull as night, and his affections dark as Erebus. Let no such man be trusted."
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Partscaster
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DSCN2651.jpeg
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DSCN2655.jpeg
"The man that hath no music in himself, nor is not moved with concord of sweet sounds, is fit for treasons, stratagems, and spoils. The motions of his spirit are dull as night, and his affections dark as Erebus. Let no such man be trusted."
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Rollin Hand
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Partscaster wrote: Wed May 26, 2021 11:31 am DSCN2651.jpegDSCN2654.jpegDSCN2655.jpeg
Username checks out... :D
"I'm not a sore loser. It's just that I prefer to win, and when I don't, I get furious."
- Ron Swanson
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Perfect Stranger
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My lawn mower...

Edit~ FaRK it. I just bought another one. Too stupid to fix a mower.
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Even great harmonica players suck half the time! :roll:
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LancerTheGreat
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Location: Where the Bluegrass Grows
Gearlist: -Guitars-
Gibson Dave Mustaine Flying V EXP
ESP LTD DV8R Dave Mustaine Signature Model
ESP LTD V401DX
Agile AL3100
Kit Explorer
Jackson JS32RR
TWANG Tele
Samick Strat
Firefly Semi-Hollow Tele
Globe Dove Copy

-Amps-
Orange OR-15 (Head)
EVH 112 (Cabinet)
Bugera 1960 Infinium (Head)
Bugera 412 (Cabinet)
Peavey VTX Classic 212 (Combo)
Laney Mini-ST Lionheart Practice Amp

So the bar of the Floyd on my Ltd v401dx has been loose for years, that's usually how I keep it. But I used to be able to tighten it up if I needed it tight. So I was curious about it and checked it out.
20210529_001957.jpg
20210529_002444.jpg

Anyone got a fix, or recommendation?
I'm not trying to get it to be tight all the time, or I could figure something out, not sure if the little plastic cuff is replaceable or not, and if it is I don't know how to lol.
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Rollin Hand
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https://www.axcessories.com/products/Fl ... emolo-Arms

You can also buy the push-in arms, but if you have a Floyd special, the OFR arm is an upgrade.
"I'm not a sore loser. It's just that I prefer to win, and when I don't, I get furious."
- Ron Swanson
bc rich
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LancerTheGreat wrote: Sat May 29, 2021 5:30 am So the bar of the Floyd on my Ltd v401dx has been loose for years, that's usually how I keep it. But I used to be able to tighten it up if I needed it tight. So I was curious about it and checked it out.

20210529_001957.jpg
20210529_002444.jpg


Anyone got a fix, or recommendation?
I'm not trying to get it to be tight all the time, or I could figure something out, not sure if the little plastic cuff is replaceable or not, and if it is I don't know how to lol.
Try a cheap oring or two . i adjure any trem arm sloppiness.
image_19949.jpg
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Chocol8
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Tonight’s project was a StratoBlaster for the ash Strat. It is all assembled and working, now I need to fabricate a new jack plate to house it. The plate will have a straight in jack, boost pot, and a bypass switch. The battery is in back with the springs where it is easier to change. I swear the components keep getting smaller as I get older!
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Chocol8
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Jack plate template #1 is done. Still deciding if I want to go plastic, wood, or metal.

I was thinking raw copper and let it develop a corrosion look, or maybe gold leaf bling. Polished brass? Aged bronze? Nickel or chrome? Or should I stick with GE lightbulb box cardboard?
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