Official Luthiers Forum!

Greetings,
I recently did a neck with Tru-Oil over a Z-Poxy fill and it worked out great. I really love it. Now I'm doing one where I want a darker neck.
Can you actually tint the Tru-Oil itself to get a darker color or should you satin the wood directly.
Thanks
Terry

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It's not what you don't know that hurts you, it's what you do know that's wrong.

Terry...I use Danish Oil on my necks. It comes in several shades ranging from reddish to brownish. While I haven't used the colors on necks, I have used the cherry for a furniture application. I can't say what, if any difference True Oil vs. Danish Oil is, but I have been very happy as well with DO as a neck finish on my last 3 guitars.

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JJ
Napa, CA
http://www.DonohueGuitars.com

Terry--

I've done a couple of Tru-Oil necks and I do like them. I've not tried to add tint to the Tru-Oil. My schedule is to seal with shellac after sanding to 320. Then I stain to get the color I'm looking for, ususally just using MinWax stains, sometimes mixed together to get the right color. Then its Tru-Oil and 0000 steel wool time -- around a dozen coats, sometimes more. I don't pore fill mahogany necks (the headstock is the exception). I like the hint of pores on the neck after using Tru-Oil -- just my preference and I have the luxury of only building to suit me.

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Jim Howell
Charlotte, NC

I would recommend you stain the neck first to the desired shade and the finish the same way you did before.

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Peter M.
Cornerstone Guitars
http://www.cornerstoneukes.com

I think Tru-oil is tung oil based like a lot of varnishes, maybe I'm wrong. I've tinted some Rockhard varnish with cocobolo and/or bloodwood diluted in an an alcohol/acetone solution. Works great.

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Laurent Brondel
West Paris, Maine - USA
http://www.laurentbrondel.com/

Thanks for the tips guys, I'll let you know what I wind up doing and how it turns out.
Terry

_________________
It's not what you don't know that hurts you, it's what you do know that's wrong.

My Tru-Oil process was very simple and effective:

Sand to 320
Stain ( wait 24-48 hours to ensure stain is fully cured and DRY)
Z-Poxy
Light shot 0000 steel wool
12 applications of Tru-Oil (1 a.m. 1 p.m.) with light sanding (0000 steel wool) in between coats.

This is what I have done for a couple of necks and it worked nicely for me.

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Guitar Building = Continuous Improvement Process