Suggestions on tweaking a flame maple top

[mikah912]

Hey there, all.

I just got back a custom build from a local luthier for a BM-ish super strat. It has a flame maple top on a black limba body. He finished it with English Chestnut oil and then Tung oil to seal it.

Still, I think wanna tweak this and create a sexier, more interesting top that lines up better with all of the exotic tonewoods in the neck, back and fretboard. Not sure which direction to go in or how to do it once I get there.

I attached pics of the front and back. I'd love suggestions as well as what sort of sanding/stripping/priming needs to be done to achieve whatever you suggest.

You're the gurus. Help, please.

 

[mikah912]

Almost forgot...I'm open to exotic wood pickguards for HH guitars as well. If any of you make those for this style of guitar, hit me up.

 

[Deegatron]

Unfortunately a dye job is now out of the question.
Once a top is oiled you wont be able to get dye to penetrate properly.

If I were you I'd replace those pickup rings with black.
I'd also try to dowel the holes and move the bridge pickup ring 1/16" back to cover the gap there.
otherwise it looks aiet to me.

 

[Shane Sanders]

Seems like a lot of air in that neck pocket on all three sides...and the string ferrule holes are haphazard, too. How much did he charge you for this, if you don't mind me asking?

 

[mikah912]

Actually, it was a trade for something I was no longer using, so no cash out of hand. But I appreciate the comments. Any other flaws that look off?

 

[Shane Sanders]

Actually, it was a trade for something I was no longer using, so no cash out of hand. But I appreciate the comments. Any other flaws that look off?

Personally, I kind of like the overall impact of the finish. It has a worn in but elegant look that appeals to me. The darkness around the edge of the bevels looks cool, imo. The back looks nice, too.

I wouldn't put much money into dressing this up with the apparent flaws. But that's just me. The only other thing I see is that the area on the neck that reveals the truss adjuster seems a little on the hand carved side of things rather than a clean route. And there's a clear bump in the pocket route where his bit moved across the line a little.

 

[Renkenstein]

If you were able to sand the top enough, I'll bet you could get back down to raw wood. You may have to take off quite a bit, which could affect the max height of your bridge. If your saddles aren't near max height and have plenty of adjustment room, this may be possible.

When I built my Sig Siren, I messed up the top finish over the dye by sanding through. The bevels, back, and sides were just fine and didn't need refinishing. What I did was use a perfectly flat sanding block with 80grit sandpaper to remove only the top surface. Once I was back down to plain maple(you'll be able to tell, it'll be quite a bit lighter than the bevel), you'll need to sand up through the grits, stop at 220 or 400, then you can attempt a dye.

I used a water based dye and made sure to wipe off anything that hits the finished area. I had used shellac to mask the bevels, and the dye was unable to penetrate the areas I wanted to avoid. The oil finish on this guitar could do the same thing, but it could still be stained by any spill-over, so I'd probably mask the areas further with some pinstriping and masking tape.

After you're all sanded flat and masked off, you can proceed with dye.

Now if you're looking to go with water based dye under oil, you may have some unexpected results. Even though water and oil don't mix, the moisture of the oil will reactivate the dye and move it around. If you're wanting any kind of natural maple bursting into a color or black in my case, you won't really be able to keep it down. That is why I switched to a poly for a topcoat.

Read through that thread I PM'd you and if you have any questions post them here and I'll holla.

 

[mikah912]

Thanks for the suggestions, all. I talked to the luthier, and he's going to build me another with a lot more attention to detail and the type of top I want right off the jump.