How to do relic shading on body?

JerryG · May 26th, 2008, 09:41 PM

Working on blackguard tele, and I want to shade the finish a bit darker where the arm wears in order to make it look like this one - an actual 52 model.

How to do this? (already have nitro BSB)

Can I use a stain or something to simulate this?

Any suggestions?

mellecaster · May 26th, 2008, 10:37 PM

"Can I use a stain or something to simulate this?"....Pretty much, but go easy, it don't take a whole lot...Brown Shoe polish will also work.

tonewoods · May 27th, 2008, 01:34 AM

I have a bunch of the Stew-Mac pigments, and add darker color as needed, and spray to get that effect....

jaydawg · May 27th, 2008, 07:48 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by tonewoods

I have a bunch of the Stew-Mac pigments, and add darker color as needed, and spray to get that effect....

Bruce, did you do that relic job? If so then congrats, it looks great. Could I talk you into giving a brief overview of your process?

reddogbass · May 27th, 2008, 07:52 AM

If that came out of the "relic shop," it's the first I've seen that I liked. Nice job!

JerryG · May 27th, 2008, 07:52 AM

Thanks for the tips. I really like the look of the sprayed shading, but I don't have compressor rig (yet).

I'll try the shoe polish I believe.

My body has a white primer coat that shows through in this "arm wear" area. I would like it to be darkened too - I feel like the shoe polish would do that.

Does it penetrate the actual finish? Or just sit on top?

any tips on getting a natural feathered edge w/ the polish? (that's a nice thing re spraying obviously)

mellecaster · May 27th, 2008, 08:19 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by JerryG

Thanks for the tips. I really like the look of the sprayed shading, but I don't have compressor rig (yet).

I'll try the shoe polish I believe.

My body has a white primer coat that shows through in this "arm wear" area. I would like it to be darkened too - I feel like the shoe polish would do that.

Does it penetrate the actual finish? Or just sit on top?

any tips on getting a natural feathered edge w/ the polish? (that's a nice thing re spraying obviously)

You can try the Kiwi Brown or Tan, under the pickguard to get a feel for it, and it actually does penetrate the finish to a certain degree..not just sitting on top...There are also some Antique waxes that Woodworker Supply Catalogs carry that will impart a slight staining effect.

tonewoods · May 27th, 2008, 10:51 AM

"Could I talk you into giving a brief overview of your process?"

Sure...!

This was my first attempt at using something other than the ReRanch rattlecans, and I kinda like the way it turned out.

It's a copy of Bill Hullett's old Nocaster in the Blackguard Book, so the shading kinda tries to correspond to how #0514 is worn....

Anyway, I got the Stew-Mac lacquer and 2 pigments--yellow and brown. I worked up a bottle-full of lacquer that looked like the color of #0514 when held up next to the Blackguard Book, then shot the guitar.

I sorta half-ass masked off the large worn areas, but if I had to do it again, I'd xerox the book and mask it off exactly the shapes of the wear patterns...

I then added brown to the bottle till I got an approximation of the darker areas on the guitar, and shot it.
I then blended them together using water with a few drops of detergent, and some 400 grit sandpaper...

The wear patterns were "aged" using this process (highly recommended), and various dings were applied using a variety of implements...

Dust collected from the bottom of a vacuum cleaner mixed with kerosene was rubbed into the dings and wear patterns--another cool trick....

I still haven't come up with a method for achieving authentic looking heavy wear patterns on the neck.
Love some tips if anyone has any....

May 26th, 2008, 10:37 PM	#2 (permalink)
mellecaster Friend of Leo's Join Date: Dec 2004 Location: Maryland Posts: 4,274 17 Photos	"Can I use a stain or something to simulate this?"....Pretty much, but go easy, it don't take a whole lot...Brown Shoe polish will also work. __________________ Let's Not Forget the Other 75% of The Tone Equation...It's Called an AMP

May 27th, 2008, 01:34 AM	#3 (permalink)
tonewoods Tele-Holic Join Date: Jun 2007 Location: Orcas Island, Washington Age: 57 Posts: 595 18 Photos	I have a bunch of the Stew-Mac pigments, and add darker color as needed, and spray to get that effect.... __________________ Bruce "Mangler of Bluegrass" "Mandolin Graffiti"

May 27th, 2008, 07:52 AM	#6 (permalink)
JerryG TDPRI Member Join Date: May 2008 Location: Austin Tx Age: 48 Posts: 13	Shading On Body Thanks for the tips. I really like the look of the sprayed shading, but I don't have compressor rig (yet). I'll try the shoe polish I believe. My body has a white primer coat that shows through in this "arm wear" area. I would like it to be darkened too - I feel like the shoe polish would do that. Does it penetrate the actual finish? Or just sit on top? any tips on getting a natural feathered edge w/ the polish? (that's a nice thing re spraying obviously) __________________ Thanks! Jerry _________________________ There are no "B" strings in Heaven.

May 27th, 2008, 10:51 AM	#8 (permalink)
tonewoods Tele-Holic Join Date: Jun 2007 Location: Orcas Island, Washington Age: 57 Posts: 595 18 Photos	"Could I talk you into giving a brief overview of your process?" Sure...! This was my first attempt at using something other than the ReRanch rattlecans, and I kinda like the way it turned out. It's a copy of Bill Hullett's old Nocaster in the Blackguard Book, so the shading kinda tries to correspond to how #0514 is worn.... Anyway, I got the Stew-Mac lacquer and 2 pigments--yellow and brown. I worked up a bottle-full of lacquer that looked like the color of #0514 when held up next to the Blackguard Book, then shot the guitar. I sorta half-ass masked off the large worn areas, but if I had to do it again, I'd xerox the book and mask it off exactly the shapes of the wear patterns... I then added brown to the bottle till I got an approximation of the darker areas on the guitar, and shot it. I then blended them together using water with a few drops of detergent, and some 400 grit sandpaper... The wear patterns were "aged" using this process (highly recommended), and various dings were applied using a variety of implements... Dust collected from the bottom of a vacuum cleaner mixed with kerosene was rubbed into the dings and wear patterns--another cool trick.... I still haven't come up with a method for achieving authentic looking heavy wear patterns on the neck. Love some tips if anyone has any.... __________________ Bruce "Mangler of Bluegrass" "Mandolin Graffiti"

May 27th, 2008, 07:52 AM	#5 (permalink)
reddogbass Tele-Holic Join Date: Aug 2006 Location: Portland, Oregon Age: 61 Posts: 572 5 Photos	If that came out of the "relic shop," it's the first I've seen that I liked. Nice job!