help with first build

[sixstringhook]

hey everyone, working on my first build, it is going to be a poplar build with a maple mighty mite neck. have a few questions for anyone who is willing to help me out. I plan on buying one of the ron kirn tele templates for this, but i was wondering this. does poplar need to be grain filled? what would anyone suggest for the best finish on it (no paint)? should i go with a clear laquer finish? or a rub on poly? i tried to do a search for poplar tele builds on here and didnt come up with much for results, if anyone has any pics of the build process or compeleted poplar builds, i would appreciate it if you could point me in the direction of the thread or the pics. thanks in advance!

[PixelMover]

http://www.reranch.com/basics.htm

In the Wood Dyes section is paragraphs for wood prepping.

[guitarbuilder]

Poplar is a closed pore timber. You will not have to fill it in like mahogany or ash. You will find that it is used in woodworking because it takes paint so well. Use care in selecting the wood. I'd avoid a one piece body as it could have a tendency to warp. I have a one piece poplar potato chip in the basement that started out dead flat. This was a kiln dried hardwood to boot.

[sixstringhook]

thanks for the quick responses. i went with poplar because i dont want it to be picture perfect. i actually want it to look like...well basically what it is. a guitar that sombody built themselves on a budget, lol. i saw a pic on here of somones poplar build and it looked amazing with the different shades of wood grain going thru it. my question is a wipe on ploly going to be a good enough finish that will protect the guitar? will it be hard enough? or should i go with a clear laquer?

[sixstringhook]

any other suggestions/tips from anyone?

[bingy]

This is the first partscaster that I put together...
The poplar body sure had some color variations.
I had good luck with tinted Formbys Tung Oil.
The tint was "Honey Amber" color from Target Coatings.(ordered from the web)

[Colt W. Knight]

Yes wipe on poly will be a good enough finish to protect your guitar, and yes it will look like you built it in your basement. Ignore any comments you read about finish altering the tone of a guitar. Here is the skinny on finishes. Keep in mind that there are a bunch of exceptions, and many varying opinions.

Polyurethane is a tougher finish than a nitro based lacquer. It will hold up better to changes in temperature and humidity. However it is harder to spray, and much more difficult to get a mirror finish from a wipe on can.

Nitro lacquer in my opinion buffs out easier and makes a much more brilliant luster when completed. Nitro has an almost sticky feel, but wears or ages beatifully with the guitar. Kinda like cowboy boots, beatiful when you first buy them, but as they start getting older and showing wear and tear, they are comfortable, and you dred the day you have to replace them. Most poly finishes will not wear out like a nitro lacquer finish will. You will keep a like new look much, much longer. Nitro will crack in sudden temperature changes and melt if it comes into contact with things it doesnt like (bug spray, alcohol, rubber, and other commonly used stuff).

How shiny do you want your finish? Do you want it to look like glass, or do you just want to throw on a rough protective layer.

Shiny finishes do not come from one type of finish or another. They come from countless hours of precise application, wet sanding, and buffing.

Wipe on finishes are easier to mess with in my opinion, but spray on finishes give a better cosmetic result.

Though you don't need to apply grain filler to poplar, I strongly reccomend using a sanding sealer. If not, you will fight finish absorbtion into the grain. It seems like an extra, unneccessary cost, but believe me. Two coats of sanding sealer will save you countless coats of wipe on poly.

You'll need alot of sand paper, 000 steel wool, acan of minwax sanding sealer, a can of minwax poly, and a lot o patience to get nice results from a wipe on poly. Just follow the directions on the can.

[sixstringhook]

well, i dont really want to get a "shine" out of it. my goal is to make it and have it show all the possible wood grain it can, be a guitar that looks like it is ready to take some abuse, not be put up on a wall and just looked at. is wipe on poly somthing that can be buffed to get some shine out of it?

[Hollmanp90]

Originally Posted by bingy

This is the first partscaster that I put together...
The poplar body sure had some color variations.
I had good luck with tinted Formbys Tung Oil.
The tint was "Honey Amber" color from Target Coatings.(ordered from thre web)

Really nice looking build.

[Mark-00255]

Originally Posted by sixstringhook

well, i dont really want to get a "shine" out of it. my goal is to make it and have it show all the possible wood grain it can, be a guitar that looks like it is ready to take some abuse, not be put up on a wall and just looked at. is wipe on poly somthing that can be buffed to get some shine out of it?

No - you can't buff wipe-on poly. I made the mistake of trying to wetsand and buff once and went right on through to the wood with just a few strokes! After the fact I think it was Ironwolf who said, yeah dude you can;t do that with wipe-on poly. It's too soft and thin to buff. That said, I've used it for all three of my builds and love the result. Very shiny and lustrous, but not mirror flat, entombed in plastic/paint. Here's my latest one:


Colt is right on about sanding sealer - my first one I didn't use any and it took 9 coats of poly; this last one above I used two coats of sanding sealer and about 4 coats of poly. I used Zinnser Shellac Sanding Sealer and love the warm tone it gives the Ash that I used.

[sixstringhook]

this is all great info from you guys, between you guys and mr ron kirn, i should have this thing built in no time! presonally i have never liked playing on guitars that look "too nice" because i just wanna play the ***** out of it

[jay1970]

Great looking guitar.

[sixstringhook]

so with a wipe on poly finish, after putting it on, is it just rubbing it down with steel wool to get a more uniform finish?

[Colt W. Knight]

You can buff out wipe-on poly, but I haven't ever tried to wet sand it. The thing with wipe-on poly is that you need to apply an annoying amount of coats, with an annoying amount of drying time between coats.

The steel wool acts like a fine grit sandpaper that will smooth out all the aplication streaks and ridges that come with wipe-on finishes. Plus rough up the surface for better next-coat adhesion.
I much perfer Tru-oil to polyurethane for guitars. It's easier to apply, and I like the results better.

[sixstringhook]

dont you have to re-apply tru oil over time?

[Colt W. Knight]

Originally Posted by sixstringhook

dont you have to re-apply tru oil over time?

No. Truoil is a hard finish manufactured by Birchwood Casey for use on gun stocks. Actual oil finishes do need to be reapplied over time.