Official Luthiers Forum!

Any one here like the natural look over
gloss , I find myself drawn more to just an organic guitar. (almost unfinished look).

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Nehemiah Covey
www.coveysacoustics.com

I like it and it kind of has the Dolphin lines thing happening. Very cool guitar.

What is happening with the bridge - I can see a darker, reddish strip down the middle?

And even though it's been said here often I'll say it again - who ever decided that guitars need to be shiny should be dug up and shot......

My sentiments exactly, Hesh!Don't like to see
my reflection in a guitar. The woods are what inspire me.

-Purple heart ribbon and back strip, bout wedge and I inlayed a purp.heart dash to the center of the bridge.
(see photo)

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Nehemiah Covey
www.coveysacoustics.com

I keep a guitar in my shop for my personal use with only two coats of wooled shellac on it!!!!(steel wooled)

I love it!!!!
Everyone who plays it says WOW!!!
this guitar is so alive!!!!
of course -it's not dipped in plastisized finish!!!!!!!


Mike

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Mike Collins

Personally I prefer a bit more bling.
If you don't mind me saying, your bridge looks a bit heavy.

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

Speaking strictly as a player who loves the look of the wood, IMHO a good gloss finish enhances the look of the wood grain, giving it a deeper, richer look. MHO.

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Mike

The only thing nescessary for evil to thrive is for good men to do nothing.

I think it looks sweet. There is plenty of room in the world for both satin and glossy.

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Gabriel Regalbuto
Carlsbad, California
Freedom 35!

I tend to prefer a satin finish over a glossy one. I think it tends to give the guitar a much more natural look overall.

Depends on my mood, and on the guitar in question. Fender style electrics, for instance, look Plain Wrong with satin finishes. You want that glossy, mass produced, industrial design aesthetic. But nobody can look at a Lowden and claim the satin finish 'hides' the wood; it just ain't so.

My 'woodiest' looking instruments are my oil finished electrics.

I tend to choose the finish that best suits the instrument I'm building.

As a woodworker who loves the look of wood, I think a satin finish enhances the look of the wood grain, not hiding it under a layer of plastic. There is nothing more natural and beautiful than a oil finish. You see the grain and a bit of texture of the wood, not looking through a film. As a furniture maker I don't use stain and don't use film finishes. People coming at things from different perspectives. To me a guitar is a piece of woodwork. I don't have a long history with guitars so I am not influenced by what is the norm or usual so I view them as any other piece of woodworking. The satin finish looks less mass produced. IMHO When did guitars become so glossy ? Have they always been that way, like a piano. Anyway I think this guitar looks great. ]
This is the beauty of custom guitars, you can have one anyway you want.


Link

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Cut to size.....Beat to fit.....Paint to match.

I'm a big fan of both gloss and satin finishes. I think both in their own ways bring out the natural beauty of the wood. Gloss tends to give the wood amazing depth and makes figuring absolutely sparkle. Satin on the other hand sort of just brings out the colour and lets the wood speak for itself.

My preference as a builder is satin because it's a much more efficient process to spray and time is money. As a player I prefer the feel of satin. Even on a fully gloss body I'll do a satin neck because it feels much nicer to play.

Oil finishes to me look great but to me don't afford the sort of protection one wants out of a finish.

As I think I've said before, it's interesting that in the US and Europe it seems that gloss is the norm, while in Australia, it seems that satin is quite often the preferred finish.

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Richard
http://www.guitarmaker.com

And fuelled by that thought, I just went downstairs into my workshop, where I have a shiny shellac finished natural light coloured unstained mahogany ukulele body finished.... and I spent a few minutes going all over it with fine micromesh on a cork sanding block.

The result was a superb looking fine satin finish with just a hint of shine. I feel that I am now looking at naturally polished wood rather than gloss. The sort of finish that you can get by just fine sanding hardwood. I can see the wood better without reflections getting in the way as a distraction.

It has the protection of the shellac, but the look of natural wood.

Thank you Mike!
I'm sold.

Rod

Here is my take if a wood has a high contrast in color and a fine grain like Macassar Ebony or a very nice set of high contrast Brazilian rosewood or a high figure like a quilted Maple, Sapele and so forth I think a gloss adds depth and a wow factor to the wood. If the wood is a more mono toned, light grain texture and I am going for a more utilitarian type look than a satin finish is great.

I love Cedar tops with satin finish. I love quarter sawn Mahogany in satin finish.
I really like very spider webbed Ziricote in a high gloss.

You expect Craftsman style furnishings to have a satin finish. You expect Deco furnishings to be high gloss.

The idea that one or the other finish detracts from the wood is just silly in my opinion. A gloss finish allows more lightwaves to penetrate and reflect in a straight line. This leads to the depth elusion that can show off the figure and contrast in the wood. A satin or low gloss finish refracts the light waves at obscure angels and gives a warm but less detailed look at the wood.

Nothing is wrong with either. In a punish play on words each show the beauty of the wood but in a different light. in either case unless the wood is stained!!!!!!! Don't they both show the beauty of "Natural Wood" ?.

I love a nice satin finish. Most satin finishes on production guitars are done to save money. This is a mediocre finish and gives satin a bad name. Lowden guitars are an example of a nice satin finish. To me, a nice satin finish never distracts or diminishes a guitar. I don't feel the same about a gloss finish. It seems the market is pretty well established on gloss finishes. At least to me, that's a shame. YMMV

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"An adventure is only an inconvenience rightly considered. An inconvenience is an adventure wrongly considered." G. K. Chesterton.

I love a nice satin finish. Most satin finishes on production guitars are done to save money. This is a mediocre finish and gives satin a bad name. Lowden guitars are an example of a nice satin finish. To me, a nice satin finish never distracts or diminishes a guitar. I don't feel the same about a gloss finish. It seems the market is pretty well established on gloss finishes. At least to me, that's a shame. YMMV

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"An adventure is only an inconvenience rightly considered. An inconvenience is an adventure wrongly considered." G. K. Chesterton.

To my eyes, the most interesting thing about your guitar is everything BUT the finish!

Can you tell us more about the design?

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http://www.PeakeGuitars.com

I also prefer satin finishes. To my eye it makes the wood appear more natural. On my next I think I'll do a satin varnish just to try it. I'll probably use Pratt & Lambert Satin on top of a shellac base. I'll have to do some testing first. But good job, and love the finishes!

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Tracy
http://www.luthiersuppliers.com

I don't really give a Flirk'in Schmidt either way!

I'm kind of partial to satin, but nobody ain't gonna tell me "Shiny....Ain't....Pretty" !! One sees very few satin git's posted though, I wonder why that is

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Billy Dean Thomas
Covina, CA

"Multi famam, conscientiam, pauci verentur."
(Many fear their reputation, few their conscience)

90% of BUYING CUSTOMERS want high Gloss That is the reason 90% of guitar photos shown are high gloss. pretty simple really. basic market demand

This is the guitar that prompted my last thread " Individual interpretation of a build
request".
It is my version of an "OM", with my favorite type of cut-away.
W.R. Cedar/EIR, flame maple neck , RW fret board, maple bound. ebony bound body.
Reduced soundhole, with side port. Braced fairly light . Small head with gold gotohs.
The photos are bad I know, here are a couple more finished. Wonderful rich tone
I'll try to post sound samples.--N.C.

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Nehemiah Covey
www.coveysacoustics.com