My modded Ibanez RG8 !!!

[Lemonheadfr]

Hi everyone ! I'm proud to show you the result of my hard work on my RG8 ! I really like this guitar, it's well made, the stock playability is good, but it looks and sounds really boring. So I decided to turn it into an 8-string that could be used in every kind of project (other than metal), with a more "classic" look and sound. I did everything myself !
List of the mods:
-New paint (I chose orange, because most of my guitars are blue or green, so I wanted something very different, and uncommon. It's also a good match for the rosewood fretboard and black hardware.)
-New pickguard I built from a blank sheet of pearloid material
-New electronic (Dimarzio Ionizer with 1 volume and 1 switch to change the pickup from parallel to series)
That's it, I love it now, I hope you will too !!

Before:

After:

 

[NickS]

Looks great! Way better than the stock setup.

 

[GRIZ]

that orange looks sick. good job! how hard was it to strip the black?

 

[Lemonheadfr]

It was hard, these thick glossy finish are a nightmare to remove. I didn't made it to the wood, I just sanded the top layers, it was enough.

 

[Kyle01]

Nice job man! That finish looks awesome, and I really dig the single pickup layout.
I'm about to embark on a similar project myself, what am I in for with removing the stock finish? Did you sand by hand or with a power sander?

 

[AkiraSpectrum]

looks wicked, nice mods!

 

[Lemonheadfr]

Nice job man! That finish looks awesome, and I really dig the single pickup layout.
I'm about to embark on a similar project myself, what am I in for with removing the stock finish? Did you sand by hand or with a power sander?

Thanks ! I used a power sander for the big flat surfaces (front and back), and I did the smaller parts (like the inner parts of the "horns" and the sides) by hand. But I didn't really planned it, it was by feeling

 

[NickS]

Did you do something to the fretboard too? Oil it, or dye it? It looks darker than in the original pic (which I like).

 

[Lemonheadfr]

Did you do something to the fretboard too? Oil it, or dye it? It looks darker than in the original pic (which I like).

I cleaned and oiled the fretboard. I always (and you may find it weird) rub my rosewood fretboards with olive oil (not much of course, and I remove any excess), it gives it a nice shine, and a darker tone. Some people believe it's bad, but I never had any problem with it. I use Dunlop lemon oil too.
I think it's also a matter of contrast. with black paint, rosewood always has that kind of unappealing brownish color. It always looks better with lighter colors. In this case, the bright orange and white pickguard.

 

[KnightBrolaire]

looks great.

 

[Shoeless_jose]

looks awesome, has a bit of a Charvel vibe now, enjoy!!

 

[Backsnack]

Classy styling! Great work, love that orange

 

[M3CHK1LLA]

looks great...love the color

add that to the rg8 mod thread when you get time ---> http://www.sevenstring.org/threads/let-the-rg8-mods-begin.220004/

 

[Lemonheadfr]

looks great...love the color

add that to the rg8 mod thread when you get time ---> http://www.sevenstring.org/threads/let-the-rg8-mods-begin.220004/

Cool, I will !