singlecoilpickup Posted December 17, 2009 Share Posted December 17, 2009 So I recently acquired a 2004 Les Paul Studio Vintage Mahogany and it has some odd finish issues. Basically, you can see the natural wood color through the finish, almost like the top is covered in hairline cracks. I'm guessing the original owner let it get to dry or too cold or something. It's not a huge deal since I got it excessively inexpensively, but I'm wondering if there's any good way to touch up the finish a bit or if I should just sand it down and start from scratch. Please have a look at these photos and let me know what you think. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ItsForrest Posted December 17, 2009 Share Posted December 17, 2009 Have you taken a look at the worn finish Studios? That finish looks very similar (adding a few years age and wear) to my worn cherry studio with the mahogany top. It starts out with the mahogany top as opposed to maple or other woods used for tops in many of the glossy finish LPs. For the worn and vintage finishes they also do not fill the porous grain before finishing so it will always have that course finish. They also intentionally use a thin finish so it wears faster to produce an aged look. From what I can tell from the photos, aside from some dirt and dust it looks pretty much normal for that finish. If it were mine I would clean it up with your favorite wood or guitar cleaner and play it. But that's why I bought my Studio, I like the rough finish. I bought it to play it, not look at myself in the glossy finish. Take the strings off, use a firm brush to get the dust out of the cracks and crevices, then take some guitar cleaner and a terry cloth rag and wipe it down. Then plug it in and crank it up! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kelv_w Posted December 17, 2009 Share Posted December 17, 2009 It looks pretty dirty around the pickup rings. The grain is pretty normal on the VM although yours looks quite prominent. A quick brush and a few application of the Gibson pump polish should do the trick. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
singlecoilpickup Posted December 17, 2009 Author Share Posted December 17, 2009 Yeah, I know it was pretty dirty. I took care of that after I took the photos, actually, so it's not dirty any longer. However, ItsForrest could be right. This may just be how this finish looks after a few years of the nitro aging. I'd only played this guitar new in stores prior to buying this one. Since it's a few years old, that could well be just the nitro aging. Though I may give kelv's suggestion a shot and try to polish it up a bit with the Gibson bump polish. Thanks guys. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pohatu771 Posted December 17, 2009 Share Posted December 17, 2009 If you really don't like it, $40 worth of supplies from Stew-Mac can give it a smooth satin finish with no texture. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
singlecoilpickup Posted December 17, 2009 Author Share Posted December 17, 2009 Would it be a solid finish or would you still be able to see the wood grain? I don't mind seeing the wood grain in general, it's just the hairlines of lighter color through the cherry color that I'm not so sure about. Which supplies would I be looking for? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pohatu771 Posted December 17, 2009 Share Posted December 17, 2009 You'd still see it. There are three routes you could take: Smooth finish - apply grain filler, sand smooth. Spray sanding sealer, sand smooth. Spray with clear lacquer. Sand and buff. Darker cherry - spray with sanding sealer, sand smooth. Spray with cherry lacquer, sand smooth. Spray with clear lacquer. Sand and buff. Smooth dark cherry - apply grain filler, sand smooth. Spray sanding sealer, sand smooth. Spray with cherry lacquer, sand smooth. Spray with clear lacquer, sand and buff. You'd need these: Clear satin or Clear gloss Sanding sealer Gloss cherry Grain filler How much of each you need is all dependent on what kind of finish you want in the end. I'm in no way suggesting you should do this, I'm just saying it's an option. I'm not much for the worn finish. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
singlecoilpickup Posted December 17, 2009 Author Share Posted December 17, 2009 Thanks for the input! I'll definitely consider it, though I'd probably have someone a bit better with these sorts of things do it for me. I think if I tried that myself I'd end up making a gigantic mess, haha. But I think I might go for the smooth dark cherry in the long run. I do like the sound of that. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
burgerinacan Posted January 9, 2010 Share Posted January 9, 2010 I know this thread is kind of old, but I thought I would pipe in. It looks to me like the open mahogany grain on your guitar has been clogged with wax. In my own experience with my vintage mahogany, I've learned that using a carnuba wax on this particular guitar is a bad idea, and it looks like the previous owner might have done so. This might sound strange, but I treated mine with some extra virgin olive oil- I rubbed it in and then buffed it out. It leaves a pleasant, slightly oiled finish on my guitar that won't damage anything, and is easily re-applied whenever I feel the need. Proceed at your own risk, but I think it might solve your problem too. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KL Posted January 9, 2010 Share Posted January 9, 2010 I would say DON'T sand it down!!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lowdown Posted January 10, 2010 Share Posted January 10, 2010 Well personally I like it. And yeah,I think it is one of the faded studio models. You don't sound too put off by it so leave it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cookieman15061 Posted January 10, 2010 Share Posted January 10, 2010 I agree with the wax in cracks theory. I've seen that happen because there is no filler applied on these and the grain is very pronounced. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dvir Posted January 10, 2010 Share Posted January 10, 2010 It looks pretty dirty around the pickup rings. The grain is pretty normal on the VM although yours looks quite prominent. A quick brush and a few application of the Gibson pump polish should do the trick. what do you prefer from all of youre guitars? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Archived
This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.