Do you have any idea how the Custom Shop gets the worn, dirty look on the Relics necks?
I´ve sanded on of my 57RI´s but the wood is very light in color (do you think they tint them somehow - or should I just start playing it to get it dirty?)
Guzz
Do you have any idea how the Custom Shop gets the worn, dirty look on the Relics necks?
I´ve sanded on of my 57RI´s but the wood is very light in color (do you think they tint them somehow - or should I just start playing it to get it dirty?)
Guzz
Age and alot of playing is always the best way. Some guys can get a pretty good relic effect goin.. but I think its much more fun to get to that point naturally...
"Are we gonna do 'Stonehenge' tonight?"
My Homepage / Bands / Projects / Studio (Be warned.. I never could take myself seriously)
That's just it. That dark coloring is the wood absorbing mosture and dirt and darkening naturally. So, you can sand down to the wood, and rub it with a moist dirty rag. I'd suggest ash, rather than dirt, and take no responsibility for any damge you cause.
I think Fender sprays on some dark tinting on those relics.
You can do the shoe polish trick and that seems to work for some folks. Use brown...wipe it on...rub it off.
Not sure how the fender relics get those gound in marks between the frets.
Have any of you tried the "shoe polish trick" and if so, what kind of shoe polish? (I´m only thinking about the back of the neck)
I think (disclaimer=don't know for sure) that the bare wood after sanding needs to be rubbed with something like bore oil (something used for guns?) to seal it from moisture & humidity, and may also darken the color--shoe polish may not do this vital sealing!
Shoe polish turns it amber. better for the finished part of the neck. An oil would do better. or just play it a lot in a hot room. Kiwi brown is the color.
Better yet, take it to an open mic and play it. You will sweat enough in no time to color it. :hee
The Best Guitar Photos On The Net!
Photoweborama
Do you think I can do it any harm if I just start playing the bare wood - without any treatment?
Bare wood is going to be very tempermental to any temp changes / humidity changes. Your going to want something to protect and seal the wood.
"Are we gonna do 'Stonehenge' tonight?"
My Homepage / Bands / Projects / Studio (Be warned.. I never could take myself seriously)
Do you know where I can get gun oil (or some other oil for the neck)?Originally Posted by Alpine86
My relic came with no finish on the back of the neck. My original '66 strat has been worn off for years. I play it all the time and nothing else feels as good.
I've also bought other guitars and stripped the finish off the back and never had a problem.
When I bought this recent relic a few months ago, the store said Fender doesn't put anything on it, and I asked them if I should do any kind of oil periodically or anything and they said no, it'll be fine. Store was Fat Sound and they sell a lot of them with unfinished backs.
You know, when there's a finish on that neck, it's like sex with a condom. I like it natural!
How do you get that old neck look when there's still laquer. I mean old headstocks are quite dark compared to the new ones....also the shoe polish trick ??
:toobad :rl play the damned thing. it will get old all on it's own,,,just like you will.
they can kill ya, but they can't eat ya.
I have sanded the finish off of the back of two of my guitar necks. I then sealed it with tung oil, it still feel's like a bare neck but it is sealed. I have had no problem at all with etiher one of the necks after doing this. This was done many years ago.
LK
Or you could do the same as Tonemonkey and just play the shit out of it. :)
Eat a bunch of fried chicken then play with the grease on your hands. Smoke a lot. Drink some beer and don't be afraid to dribble some on the pickups.
The guitar will age almost as fast as you will.
Everyone sings about Memphis, but no one ever does anything about it.
sand your neck to bare wood --- finish with 600 grit. wipe a combination of brown and black shoe polish - it will give identical results. email me for a pic if you like. :)
Still on this relic kick are we? Just kidding. I know this facination with antiquing guitars isn't about to die (sadly)...here's my tip O' the day. Sand it, change your oil in your car...wipe it down with the dirty oil....seriously...just a few thin coats as if you were hand oiling furniture. It'll protect the wood and look like it was played by an aspiring blues player that worked days in a garage.
Dwell, you and I are about to make our fortune...we'll make up a stew of friend chicken, boiled in beer with some secret BBQ sauce tossed in for color...strain it through cheese cloth and sell it as a Strat Marinade...just fill the ol bathtub up with it, sand down the Strat with 80 grit wet/dry paper and soak it overnight. Let it dry THOROUGHLY before plugging it in. Ther ya go! Instant vintage vibe!
PS....drink the marinade while watching videos of Clapton, Buddy Guy and JV playing pristine new Strats.
See my post on used motor oil...30 weight non-detergent is vintage stuff. The newer 10/40, 10/30 is too modern.
Same way you get to Carnegie Hall.
"No harmonic knowledge, no sense of time, a ghastly tone, unskilled vibrato, and so on. Chuck is one of the worst guitar players I know" -Gravity Jim
Nothing beats Natural wear and tear, but if you want to make it look old;get a can of ReRanch Neck Amber and reshoot the neck to the colour you want, you'll need to spray some Nitro to seal it as well as a few Nitro finish coats. It's not that hard a job.
I wouldn't put any Tung Oil on bare wood, it seeps in and permeates the wood, will make refinishing a nightmare later on.
I've read on another forum where some punter dipped his fingers in Lacquer Thinner then played his neck, trying to simulate fret wear. He claims it worked, but I'd like to see a pic.
I could not imagine touching a guitar with car oil and chicken grease funk on the neck. puke.
How often do you change the neck oil then?
The Best Guitar Photos On The Net!
Photoweborama
About every 12000 licks! :bwa
I have to sit back and laugh. We restore old cars to a glistening, better than original shine. We relic guitars by painting goop on them, shoe polishing the necks, putting dings into them because it's cool to see a beat up guitar?
Cars and guitars wear naturally...the process doesn't need much help. What's better than an old guitar that plays like a dream, and is absolutely gorgeous?
Guzzio, don't piss around with these half baked ideas. Custom Shop makes a fortune on Wannabes that have an itch for an "old" looking guitar. The advice here has been good. Just play it.
Making anything look "weathered" is an art form. I remember when I was a kid and had a train set how long it took me to figure out how to get even passable results on little model buildings and boxcars.
s'all goof.
Posting Permissions
Reply With Quote