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Hi all; I am almost finished with my second reso. It is looking really nice, but I have no idea how to finish cherry. My first reso was ma-Hogan-y, and I used tongue oil. It was really a chore to get the pores to fill in. I had to wet sand with 400 grit and apply 6 coats to get it to look good. I understand that cherry is a closed pore wood, but I would like your suggestions on the best finish. The cherry is light pink in color, with a few white streaks along the outer edges.

Welcome aboard Hogan. I recently finished this set of cherry closets and used the following recipe: Two coats of boiled Linseed oil, two coats of garnet shellac, and two coats of wipe on poly, followed by two coats of wax applied with steel wool. Keep in mind that this was a closet and not an instrument so I wasn't worried about oil penetration into the wood affecting the sound. You might consider a seal coat of shellac before the oil to minimize prenetration. Test on some scrap first to get things right and good luck.

Try the sanding in method with Tru-Oil. It will come along much faster on the cherry because, compared to mahogany it almost has no pores. It will have some effect on the color because it is a varnish, but not much, and most feel it lends richness to the wood. You can rub it out to whatever level of gloss you desire.MT

Hogan
Tru-Oil should work fine on cherry.

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Beautiful and unusual tone woods at a reasonable price.
http://www.rctonewoods.com/RCT_Store
The Zootman
1109 Military Rd.
Kenmore, NY 14217
(716) 874-1498

Oops Mike and I must have posted at the same time.

_________________
Beautiful and unusual tone woods at a reasonable price.
http://www.rctonewoods.com/RCT_Store
The Zootman
1109 Military Rd.
Kenmore, NY 14217
(716) 874-1498

I finished a parlor guitar in KTM-9 and was very pleased with the results. Even though it is a non-porous wood, I applied several coats of Zpoxy and sanded between each coat. It seems to really pop the figure in the wood. I then applied a light coat of shellac before spraying with KTM-9.

Here are a few pics of the finished guitar. This is some of The Zootman's finest wood I've ever seen.

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

Robbie... Great looking cabinets

JJ Sweet guitar my friend!

Hogan.. I'd stick with KTM9 if it was me. It is pretty easy to use, durable and looks great. But then I've never tried oil.

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Joe Beaver
Maker of Sawdust

I know I'm getting off tract here but...

JJ

The more I look at your guitar the more I like it. What is the B&S wood? And how about the binding? Also, did you put a little amber in the KTM9? I don't see any blue at all.

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Joe Beaver
Maker of Sawdust

I've just finished one guitar so far (cherry pic in the avatar). I french polished and I couldn't be more pleased with the results. Cherry is fantastic to work with. I just pumiced a very little bit and it started to shine at that point.

I used super blond 100% dewaxed shellac because I had anticipated spraying KTM-9 over it. I decided against it after seeing the way it started to shine.

I know FP is not as durable as other finishes (well not for the first 70 years or so...), but it looks and sounds great. It's cheap and you don't need any kind of fancy equipment to lay it on. Just my 0.02$...

By the way, JJ that's a very sweet looking guitar. I'll bet she sounds amazing too! I love the tone of my cherry dread.Alain Desforges38893.6029166667

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I'd like to be able to prove, just for once, that money wouldn't make me happy...

[QUOTE=Joe Beaver] I know I'm getting off tract here but...

JJ

The more I look at your guitar the more I like it. What is the B&S wood? And how about the binding? Also, did you put a little amber in the KTM9? I don't see any blue at all.[/QUOTE]
Joe the wood is curly cherry.

_________________
Beautiful and unusual tone woods at a reasonable price.
http://www.rctonewoods.com/RCT_Store
The Zootman
1109 Military Rd.
Kenmore, NY 14217
(716) 874-1498

I love the look of that Curley Cherry and got me a set from BobC not long ago. Thanks for all the input helpful to all on options. Keep them coming.

Mike
White Oak, Texas

Joe...The binding as well as the butt wedge is Eucalyptus...also from The Zootman.

No tint. I was very pleased with the natural color of KTM-9. No bluish cast whatsoever. I also used it on walnut with no hint of blue.

Alain...That guitar was made for my brother. I visited him last week in Texas and was astounded with the sound...actually sounds much bigger than a parlor guitar. BTW, the finish still looks great and the cherry wood is taking on a reddish patina after a year. It seems to be aging well. I'll definitely use cherry again.

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

Thanks Bob & JJ.

Curly Cherry, Nice stuff. Guess I'm backin the market for wood, luckly I already have some zootman eucalyptus.

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Joe Beaver
Maker of Sawdust

Joe, keep an eye on the Zootman's site, I think he still has a few sets of the Curley Cherry at great pricing.

Mike
White Oak, Texas