Ibanez RG7321 Refinish (work in progress)

[Josh_Conlee]

Hey, guys. I started doing a refinish on my old boring looking 7321 today. I figured I'd make a little build diary here for you folks

So far I've taken her apart and gotten the body sanded (and inhaled pounds of dried paint and clearcoat). I'll be finish sanding and checking out the stains tomorrow.

'

And the back

 

[Mordecai]

what do you have in mind?

 

[Josh_Conlee]

what do you have in mind?

I actually know what I'm doing already. I'm basing it off of another mod I saw on the forum a while ago. I'm staining the top a really cool cherry blossom purple I found and staining the back a nice dark walnut color to match the stripes in the neck. I'm also going to sand the gloss from the neck and refinish it with Tung Oil.

 

[skeels]

+1 for tung oiled necks!

Also, +1 for Wisconsin!

 

[Josh_Conlee]

+1 for tung oiled necks!

Also, +1 for Wisconsin!

Haha fuck yeah, man. I'm not too happy about the cold season setting in. But there's always plenty of beer to help deal with that ...

But yeah dude. I'm too poor to buy a new guitar now and I seriously love the neck-my only gripe being it's too glossy. Sand that finish off (and maybe rough the grain up a bit) and seal it with Tung Oil and it's going to feel incredible!

 

[JPMike]

I really want to see, how this will turn out.

I am thinking refinishing my 7321 too.

 

[Josh_Conlee]

I really want to see, how this will turn out.

I am thinking refinishing my 7321 too.

Keep an eye on the thread if you want, man. I'll be posting updates until it's done!

 

[Josh_Conlee]

If a mod wants to move this to the luthiery/modifications board that's fine. I don't know why I posted it here.

Anyways here's what I've done thus far today:

I got all of the paint off of the headstock and remaining clearcoat from the body. I also wet sanded with a 220 grit sandpaper to help make the body super smooth.

It's hard to tell by this picture, but I also took a 220 grit sandpaper to the back of the neck to remove Ibanez's slippery gloss finish. It feels much better now and I can't wait to oil her up and

I still have a couple more layers to do, but I started on the purple stain for the top. When that's done I'll be doing a dark walnut stain (think the neck stripes for color reference) on the back, sides, and headstock.

I also ordered a replacement Ibanez logo in gold which should be here in a few days

More pics when I have them!

 

[NUTSguitarchannel]

like a boss.

 

[noUser01]

Can't wait to see the finished product, always fun to see RG7321 refinishes.

 

[AvengedESP]

Wow- I'm looking for ideas for my 7321, can't wait to see how this turns out

 

[JPMike]

Looks amazing so far, I want to see the final product.

 

[Josh_Conlee]

Thanks, guys. The purple is looking pretty wild so far. I'll probably smooth it out with some 0000 steel wool and add one last layer. I think I'm going to get started on the Walnut tonight as well. I can't wait to see how it looks done with satin polyurethane.

 

[JosephAOI]

You should get gold hardware too! Gold + Purple =

 

[Josh_Conlee]

You should get gold hardware too! Gold + Purple =

That was actually my intention . Once I can afford it I'm going to grab a gold Hipshot 7 bridge and Gold Planet Waves Autotrim tuners.

I ordered a gold replacement Ibanez logo today.

 

[MikeSap]

That purple looks great!! I did a refinish on my 7321 and it looked so bad lol. But yours looks great! Can't wait to see the finished product!!

 

[GRIZ]

you know i always liked the look of natural wood..i think i might just sand all the paint off mine as well and stain it

 

[Josh_Conlee]

you know i always liked the look of natural wood..i think i might just sand all the paint off mine as well and stain it

Nice, man. I'll upload a picture in a bit. The darker Walnut colored stain on the back is done and it looks absolutely gorgeous! The sides of the guitar are going to prove to be a challenge though.

 

[Josh_Conlee]

That purple looks great!! I did a refinish on my 7321 and it looked so bad lol. But yours looks great! Can't wait to see the finished product!!

Thank you, man! It's looking pretty awesome thus far. I can't wait to get done with it!

 

[Josh_Conlee]

Just one more pic for you guys tonight. I got the back stained and this Walnut color is looking absolutely outstanding