Ever built a Tele with absolutely no finish on it?

[Tuxedo]

I'm thinking about it.

[boris bubbanov]

Nope.

I've seen what happens to a piece of Home Depot whitewood, tossed on the ground here for a couple days.

Even in November.

Wood is doomed. You gotta slow its disintegration if you can.

[Tuxedo]

Originally Posted by boris bubbanov

Nope.

I've seen what happens to a piece of Home Depot whitewood, tossed on the ground here for a couple days.

Even in November.

Wood is doomed. You gotta slow its disintegration if you can.

D'you think there's a finish on these? Okay, definitely sealed.

[Runn3r]

yup

(well...technically it is not a Tele ...i wouldn't disagree...:D)

[Tuxedo]

Runn3r, those are beauties! How do they sound?

[Nick JD]

Yup.

[Tuxedo]

Originally Posted by Nick JD

Yup.

WTF?

[tacodog]

Ah, the burlap and epoxy 'caster from the $100 challenge at mimf.com That build is fascinating.

[fordfanjpn]

My Pinecaster doesn't have any finish on it. I just rub some Howard Feed-N-Wax on it once in a while. Still smells like pine!

Bill

[Runn3r]

Originally Posted by Tuxedo

Runn3r, those are beauties! How do they sound?

...it is a very powerfully sounding guitar ...

...it makes me play with more dynamics as a result cos the dynamic range is huge

...it sounds more like a strat than a tele on the neck pu but more tele than a strat on the bridge pickup...and the extra two inbetween sounds are suitably stratty

...there is a lot of 'treble' on this guitar heh...

i like it a lot

[Ronkirn]

No finish?? Why.. the only viable reasons I know of are Laziness, or some one hopelessly lost in the realm of Finish mythology.

Ron Kirn

[Runn3r]

Originally Posted by Ronkirn

No finish?? Why.. the only viable reasons I know of are Laziness, or some one hopelessly lost in the realm of Finish mythology.

Ron Kirn

...there is a sensuality to highly polished raw rosewood tht i find ....super sexy

[otterhound]

Originally Posted by Runn3r

...there is a sensuality to highly polished raw rosewood tht i find ....super sexy

Why , oh why did you have to post that photo ? It is my understanding that some woods do not require a sealing or finish . Let's see , no need to be concerned with the thickness or crazing/cracking of a guitar made from wood that requires no finish . I love the idea ! Wood that is not allowed to remain wet after being wet does not rot . I am living in proof of that . In time , it becomes even harder and stronger . That is a gorgeous piece of Rosewood . Where do I get some of that ? Will you send some to me ? I can even pay you in Australian dollars that I still have from my trip in 2000 . Now , just exactly where did I put them ?

[Runn3r]

Originally Posted by otterhound

Why , oh why did you have to post that photo ? It is my understanding that some woods do not require a sealing or finish . Let's see , no need to be concerned with the thickness or crazing/cracking of a guitar made from wood that requires no finish . I love the idea ! Wood that is not allowed to remain wet after being wet does not rot . I am living in proof of that . In time , it becomes even harder and stronger . That is a gorgeous piece of Rosewood . Where do I get some of that ? Will you send some to me ? I can even pay you in Australian dollars that I still have from my trip in 2000 . Now , just exactly where did I put them ?

...tht is cocobolo and i got it from USA

...it should be easily available and far cheaper for you i imagine cos the cost of sending heavy wood like this across a few oceans by air is as much as the wood itself@!

...get a sample first to see if you are sensitised to working it ...espc sanding

...if not ...i highly recommend using it as it polishes up to a very fine sheen using only sandpaper

...it is also super oily and basically WATER PROOF :D

...if u are sensitised to this cocobolo ...i would recommend the other types of rosewoods available tht are less 'toxic' ...they all polish up to high sheen/chatoyance without the 'aid' of an artificial finish ...which can itself be 'toxic' to perform...

here a pic of the fingerboard surface of the guitar sanded/polished to 1200 grit only...

[allen st. john]

Originally Posted by boris bubbanov

Nope.

I've seen what happens to a piece of Home Depot whitewood, tossed on the ground here for a couple days.

Even in November.

Wood is doomed. You gotta slow its disintegration if you can.

Take a look at an acoustic. The inside of the guitar is completely unfinished.
So is the bridge (either ebony or rosewood) and the fretboard.
I've seen 100 year old acoustics in which the wood is anything but disintegrated.
I've handled a Stradivarius violin, 300 years old, worth $2 million and unfinished inside.
It's handling the instrument that makes it deteriorate.
That said, I don't see any reason *not* to finish an instrument, at least with a light sealer coat.

[BigDaddyLH]

Originally Posted by allen st. john

So is the bridge (either ebony or rosewood) and the fretboard.

To be fair, there is a basic difference between oily woods like ebony or rosewood (cocobolo is a type of rosewood) and non-oily wood, right? I remember reading about non-oily woods absorbing sweat -- I think Warmoth has some disclaimer saying there are not responsible if a raw maple neck warps.

[jkingma]

I would not recomend it.

[treadwm]

*shrug* Match your finish to your wood and intended use.

Hard exotics like cocobolo, I sand to as high a grit as possible, hit it with polishing compound and then a layer of hard wax (both via finishing wheel).

Everything else gets shellac or lacquer (poly if its furniture or something thats gonna get beat on ). And only shellac for little kids stuff I make.

[stevieboy]

I sort of want to do it sometime, just for fun, because I'd like to see how it looks as it "weathers" over time.

I do wonder if not at least sealing it might allow the wood to slightly change with variations in humidity or other factors that I don't even know about, certainly it wouldn't be much, but it might not take much to mess with the neck joint. I'm not much of a wood expert though, or guitar building expert either. Anyone?

[mcgeorgerl]

Harrison and Lennon got two Epiphone Casinos in sunburst finish then promptly stripped them to "improve" the sound. Not sure what Epiphone was using then to finish (Nitro?) or if they had another finish applied. Bowie's guitarist Ronson stripped the finish off the top of his Black Les Paul Custom to improve the sound.

How much finish is left on a heavy relic? I dunno but it looks like a lot of bare wood to me.

Some acoustic instruments do have inside finishes. Bogdanovich shellacs the inside top and sides but only the braces of the back. It's an ongoing debate with acoustic luthiers. Most say no but some swear by it.

[toadman]

here's a few shots of my partscaster. taken last time it was on the bench. it's an unfinished Mighty Mite body that some body totally HACKED to cram some humbuckers and gibson hardware in there. the red stains in the bridge PU rout is sombodys blood! serves him right whoever did that! you can see the oak plugs that i put in there just so's a tele bridge would work.
anyhoo the only finish on there is sweat, beer, and cig smoke! ok...maybe a little drool in there too!
so you can see by the pickguard shadow line how an ash tele will age with frequent use!

[hackworth1]

the only finish on there is sweat, beer, and cig smoke! ok...maybe a little drool in there too!
so you can see by the pickguard shadow line how an ash tele will age with frequent use!

Sweat, beer. smoke and drool and time have created a fine patina. There is oil on that axe too. Sweat from suderiferous glands and sebum (oil) from the sebacious glands.

[SixShooter]

That's bad!

If you handle it alot the oil from your hands will transfer to the wood. Proly wouldn't give it water resistance but great for patina.

[Donnie55]

I put it together and set it up . It played so good I never got around to finishing it.
Maybe one day I will. Maybe copper. It Basswood.

[wazupwiopiii]

I may have to try this.

[City Sirens]

Originally Posted by Tuxedo

Who's the hack who built this piece of junk?!

[Groovey Records]

Raw Wood with just hand rubbed oil on both these custom handmade guitars made by Stuart Spector

[Hiker]

Hey, my luthier built a Tele for his gigs-recently, and all he did was seal the wood. It looked natural, for sure! No extra finish or shine.
His comment was-the wood will sound better...

[guitarbuilder]

I have a pine LP Jr body on a guitar with no finish. I don't play it a ton, but the areas that come in contact with skin absorb the sweat oil and that picks up the dirt. That area feels gummy compared to the non-contact area of wood. The rest of the body just gets darker from UV. It's not a particularly good look in my opinion.

[Teleblaster_1]

This just in:
Oil actually IS a wood finish, and therefor does not qualify as "unfinished raw wood"

For rosewood or other "oily" woods it would work, but I would not advise it for pine, alder, etc......

[Al Watsky]

Many violins and acoustic guitars are in fact finished on the interior.
Not all but many.
On fiddles it was done to make bug and worm infestation less likely.
Strads are finished on the interior , a sort of sizing that is the same as the base finish.
Many classical guitar builders also do wash coat of spirt varnish on the interior. Its not very easy to see. It slows wood movement as well as keeps the interior clean.
My fiddle guy calls it a "wood treatment". When he buys fiddles at auction the presence or absence of the "treatment" as he calls it is one indication that an un-labeled instrument is of a quality that warrants restoring.
I've always put "something" on raw wood. At least wax. Its hard for me to resist finishing.

[Doug 54]

NICK JD:

THAT is VERY nice!!!!