My Ibanez RGA restoration project

[dmchannelitaly]

I've bought this guitar in 2014, and this mid summer I've finally pulled the trigger on restoring this RGA121H-CDO. I've never been a fan of the original sparkling green color, but it didn't hold me back from buying this awesome sounding guitar. From sanding, to wood staining, from applying the matt coat to installing the DiMarzio D-Activator after shielding the cavities with copper sheets, it was a worthwhile experience. Now this guitar is a one-of-a-kind, and I'm very happy about how it came out so far! So.. if you find an 'ugly' but great sounding gem, don't give up on it, get it instead, and let your custom restoration project begin!
I hope this project will inspire you to resurrect your ditched guitars in the closet!

 

[77zark77]

Way better, nice job !

 

[Snarpaasi]

Looking great! A step towards JBM What kind of matt coat did you use?

 

[AkiraSpectrum]

Whoa, that's awesome! I have an RGA121H-CDO myself, but am happy with the sparkle green-blue (even though I recently put a big chip in the finish near the arm rest --got a tech to do a cover-up on it and somehow some white paint or something got mixed in so there is a white spot in the cover-up work-- -- Oh well.)

I really like the 'burst' opening up to the matte finish wood-grain!!!

 

[AirForbes1]

That looks great. Amazing job!

 

[Defyantly]

Nice!!! Sexy black and white tuxedo look!!

 

[Jarmake]

Neato! I love the matte look with white pups.

 

[TheUnvanquished]

Nice! Very classy.

 

[dmchannelitaly]

Looking great! A step towards JBM What kind of matt coat did you use?

Yeah, I really like what Ibanez is doing these years! As far as finishing, it was really challenging, I've tried several brands and I had to start from scratch many times, but I ended up using 5-6 layers of Motip matt clear coat (yes, they are spray cans, but it was really easy to apply after I did some practice! ) using 400-600 grit paper between the layers

 

[dmchannelitaly]

Whoa, that's awesome! I have an RGA121H-CDO myself, but am happy with the sparkle green-blue (even though I recently put a big chip in the finish near the arm rest --got a tech to do a cover-up on it and somehow some white paint or something got mixed in so there is a white spot in the cover-up work-- -- Oh well.)
I really like the 'burst' opening up to the matte finish wood-grain!!!

Road worn guitars are fine! Like John Bohlinger says "High mileage!"
I couldn't skip the burst! The wood grain on RGAs is beautiful!

 

[BTS]

Looks great, well done!

 

[bubucci]

Great job, man. It has JBM meets Majesty vibe.

 

[noise in my mind]

Looks amazing! Nice work!

 

[BrailleDecibel]

Hot damn that is nice! Happy RGD! Wait, I mean RGA...I think?

 

[Wolfhorsky]

Yeah, dude - awesome job. It looks killer now.