Bareknuckle Super Strat - Grain Filling & Colour

I found an hour today while the wife walked to dog to actually get some building done in a makeshift man-cave that I've set up. There's no lighting, but I've got some rubber mats and some carpet down on a temporary bench.  I got the body sanded down to 360 grit, with a few water wipes to raise the grain and 400-grit cutting back. Pretty happy with the smoothness - this is a nice piece of wood! With the surface prepared, and time running out (is that the patter of dog feet I hear?) I slapped on a slurry of ebony timbermate to fill the grain.

Ebony Timbermate applied. Just gotta let it dry completely.

Fast forwad one weekend hence, and it was time to sand the Timbermate back and get some colour on. After agonising over the flames idea, I've turfed it into the too-hard basket and decided to go with straight black stain. I sanded off the Timbermate with 400 grit, and the body is now smooth as a baby's wossname. It might be even too smooth to take colour. Hmm.

Timbermate sanded off, and grain filled nicely.

I got out the Colortone black dye and applied a first stain coat. I've been tossing around colours for the last fortnight, but trans black finally won out. I'm certainly a creature of habit! The stain is drying as I type and soon I'll be able to apply a second round. It's starting to look good, although there's a couple of spots where the dye hasn't taken as well as I'd like. Always seems to happen with black dye (well mine anyway). Too much sanding I'll wager. I may need to hit these with a stronger dye soluton, or add some Colortone to the Tru-Oil when the time comes.

First coat of Colortone Black dye

Ash Stratocaster: Finally Got the Blues

Well, finishing and assembly is finally completed on the Ash Stratocaster build. The Colortone blue and Acrylic finish has come up a treat, especially with the ebony Timbermate to pop that gorgeous ash grain. To be honest I couldn't be happier with how she has come out.

A few people out there have questioned the choice of a Vintage Amber neck, and if I had my time again I'd probably go a natural neck with the blue body colour. But all in all, I still think the amber and blue combination works well.

Despite issues with pin holes in the Acrylic clear coats, the finish finally came up beautifully. The pin holes were caused by the ash grain not being completely filled and completely sealed before the lacquer went on. While I solved the problem in the end with repeated application, it's a lesson to be learnt for next time.

I still need to do a complete setup before I can call her 100% complete. This includes a fret level, adjustment of bridge saddle height, and the filing of a brand new bone nut. She already plays very nicely indeed - straight out of the box as it were. The Tru-Oiled neck is so smooth! With a fret job and new nut I'll be able to dial the action in and she'll be a real joy under the fingers. Stay tuned for more updates!