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Topic: The Last One,,,(maybe literally!) |
Sonny Jenkins
From:
Texas Masonic Retirement Center,,,Arlington Tx
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Posted 18 May 2021 9:33 am |
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Well, it took a while, but I finally finished the last one,,,between the finger joint replacement surgery and the ongoing arthritis,,,it was very slow going. However, I will say that I finally achieved the finish I've been searching and struggling for (ala Tom Pettingill)for many years. Tom was a master of a tru-oil finish. This is not a coat of lacquer or poly,,,this is literally polished wood,,,that has been impregnated,,and impregnated,,and impregnated with shellac using tru-oil as a vehicle,,,wet sanded to the point of being water repellent,,waxed with conservators wax (the same stuff they use at the Smithsonian to preserve old documents). This finish really has to be "touched/felt" to be appreciated,,,it feels like my glass top coffee table!!!
I actually have 2 more guitars in progress, that I had started before I had the hand surgery,,,,questionable if and when they will ever be finished.
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David DeLoach
From:
Tennessee, USA
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Joe A. Roberts
From:
Seoul, South Korea
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Posted 18 May 2021 10:17 am Re: The Last One,,,(maybe literally!)
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Looks great! Amazing, stunning craftsman ship. I have always loved blonde maple.
However, I was never a fan of tru-oil because on the maple neck Strat I had it seemed to wear fairly quickly (and not in the same, cool way as the 50s lacquer fretboard Fenders). On steel this probably does not not matter as much, though i would be worried about fingerpicks scratching the finish unless the strings were quite high.
What tuning are you using on that bad boy? You sound doubtful but I surely hope to see more of them in the future!! Awesome work! |
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Sonny Jenkins
From:
Texas Masonic Retirement Center,,,Arlington Tx
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Posted 18 May 2021 11:06 am
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For many years I thought it necessary to "leave" the polished last coat of tru-oil on. Kinda difficult to explain, but basically the tru-oil on this guitar was just used as a carrier to impregnate the already VERY dense grain of the maple,,,lastly everything is sanded (if you can call 2000 grit sanded,,,,a slurry is formed,,over and over again) or polished a very dense surface,,,much like a stone. Then waxed,,,,not with carnuba or bees wax,,,,but the most highly micronized wax available.
Back in the 70s I made a lot of turquoise jewelry,,,and even had an interest in a turquoise mine. There was such a demand for turquoise back then that a product called "stabilized" turquoise was marketed. This was actually turquoise (a rock if you will) that was too soft or porous to be polished,,that was impregnated under very low vacuum with a hard resin so that it would polish,,,most turquoise that was marketed back then was stabilized turquoise because there was just not enough good hard stone available,,,of course today most of it is plain old plastic of some kind from China,,,LOL. Anyway,,that's basically the idea behind this finish,,,,sorry for such a long blog,,LOL |
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Bill Hatcher
From:
Atlanta Ga. USA
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Posted 18 May 2021 2:08 pm
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| Just fabulous. |
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David Ball
From:
North Carolina High Country
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Posted 18 May 2021 2:16 pm
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Looks great!
Tru Oil is great stuff. I've finished a lot of instruments with it. What I've always done for final rub out after the last coat is to rub it down with a piece of burlap. No wax or anything else. The burlap leaves a really rich looking semi-gloss finish.
Dave |
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Rob DiStefano
From:
New Jersey, USA
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Posted 21 May 2021 3:11 pm
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| Wonderful! Love the tiger wood grain! |
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Mike Ormsby
From:
Ontario, Canada
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Posted 22 May 2021 3:47 pm
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| looks great.... |
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James Knox
From:
Phoenix, Arizona, USA
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Posted 24 May 2021 5:18 am
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You have discovered and developed an amazing “Old World†finishing process - so beautiful!
There are probably Guys out there that would love to learn how to achieve the finish you do. Have you considered doing a written, step by step, or YouTube Tutorial? |
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Gene Tani
From:
Pac NW
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Posted 11 Jun 2021 1:29 am
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Wow. Really really beautiful, the unicorn steel. (I should mention, it looks just like mine!)
Have you thought about taking on an apprentice? Surely there's a guitar/violin builder or Roberto Venn student or somebody that wants to build the world's best console steels!
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- keyless Sonny Jenkins laps stay in tune forever!; Carter PSG
- The secret sauce: polyester sweatpants to buff your picks, cheapo Presonus channel strip for preamp/EQ/compress/limiter, Diet Mountain Dew |
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Billy Gilbert
From:
Texas, USA
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Posted 16 Jun 2021 10:07 pm Sonny's new creation
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| It looks great Sonny. It makes mine look like it shaped with an axe and a chainsaw. |
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Gene Tani
From:
Pac NW
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Posted 27 Jun 2021 6:13 am
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Family portrait, I guess these would be called semi Pettingill finish!
I consider these the perfect musical instruments, beautiful, great playing and great sounding, easy to carry around with a battery powered amp like Katana Mini,
_________________
- keyless Sonny Jenkins laps stay in tune forever!; Carter PSG
- The secret sauce: polyester sweatpants to buff your picks, cheapo Presonus channel strip for preamp/EQ/compress/limiter, Diet Mountain Dew |
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