Thinking About a Refin

Such pretty grain! Is it a Fender or a partscaster?

I kinda like the current finish but I get what you say about the unevenness. If you don't mind a little sanding, I say go for it.

Applying a great finish, especially a see through one, is not easy though. Do you have experience with spraying lacquer? I believe a good BSB/white blonde finish is best achieved with tinted lacquer.

In the past I have bothered with stains and dyes to get a blonde finish, but with no luck. I don't know about others though. These days when I finish a guitar body I want it as easy as possible. In your case, I would just sand it and finish it with Danish oil (or true oil). A nice natural look that will get a little yellow/aged in time.

Good luck!

 

yeah.. that deserves a better finish

 

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Do a brown/black burst rim on that guitar to try for a while before going completely different.
Something like these guitars.




Otherwise, just scuff sand and over-spray with a butterscotch or TV-Yellow 'transparent' that lets some grain through.

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heres 3 I did this year due to extra time on my hands. StewMack has color tints that mix with shellac and lacquer. I've done a few with both as a base. for me, the lacquer was a better carrier. you can mix your own tints or go one color. you can tint the wood, then sand it so that the grain pops a bit. then mix color clear to spray on top. shellac is hard to spray because it evaporates too fast. for black I use automotive paints. once done, I clear coat the works. I mostly use PPG, sometimes Dupont.

but, you can do it all with brush & wipes too (well, prolly not the blend for a burst, but maybe). I have several spray guns but also use an airbrush. you can rub on the color coats and then Trueoil over the top... all with wiping.

 

btw... those tints also mix with water and alcohol which can be used to apply color straight to the wood. they are really strong dyes and a little goes a long ways

 

Sure. That looks easy enough!

OP - strip the finish and try a some butterscotch blonde from StewMac or Reranch followed by clear lacquer topcoats to practice your rattle can chops first.

 

Hey, you’re pretty good at that.

 

That grain would look awesome in BSB!

 

In addition to the aforementioned butterscotch and white blonde, I'll throw mocha in the mix -- even if it may not be as big a departure from what you have now.