Guitar finishing shops

[chopper45hd]

i am still fairly new to painting guitars but have been painting bikes for a while now. while i wouldnt compare myself to gmw i do think i am pretty good [img]images/icons/grin.gif[/img]

[xxxcreaturexxx]

Re: Guitar finishing shops

Jeremy at LGM Guitars does a great job. I have worked with him a couple of times and he has always been a pleasure to deal with.

Pete

[straycat]

Re: Guitar finishing shops

rsguitarworks.net Roy and Scott are great guys and refins are a big part of their business.They refinned my star flame top and back sun burst finish all nitro paint.They ain't cheap but their work is worth it.These guys have customers all over the world if that says anything.Les Pauls are their forte and let me tell you they they do the best finish I have ever seen.VERY CLASSY.

[Jim Shine]

Re: Guitar finishing shops

Check what finishing materials the shops are using. If you want a bulletproof Jackson style finish, you want polyester. Most shops spray lacquer, which is delicate and does not hold up as well.

[sully]

Re: Guitar finishing shops

...or urethane.

how i hate urethane.

i can't stand urethane.

urethane makes me irritated.

sully

[Shawn Lutz]

Re: Guitar finishing shops

what is the average costs for a single color paint job? I like the nitrocellulose and did a few refins myself.. but oh how I hate the time it takes and the manual labor...

[Jim Shine]

Re: Guitar finishing shops

Originally posted by Shawn Lutz:
I like the nitrocellulose and did a few refins myself.. but oh how I hate the time it takes and the manual labor...

<font size="2" face="Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif">I like nitro on some guitars I want to gain a patina, but I like my Jacksons slick and shiny. I have a few Jacksons I refinished, one nitro, a couple in acrylic and a year later they already look non-stock (the acrylics aren't that bad though).

As far as the labor is concerned, that is the driving factor in my laying off doing refins. Due to having global competition, I had to keep my prices low to keep a steady flow of business. In 10 years I think I have only able to raise my rates $25-40 without noticing a drop in interest. Meanwhile lacquer is going up in price, UPS charges way more to ship it, add in inflation and I make less on each finish today compared to 10 years ago. Fuck that. I will do it for builders when the stuff is ready to go and virgin wood (how I hate hacked strip jobs) or for buddies on occasion.

[wodka]

Guitar finishing shops

Apart from GMW or Roxy, are there any other painters that anyone here would recommend? Just curious what good alternatives are out there.

[speed monkey]

Re: Guitar finishing shops

Ty @ Roxy does awesome work - he's sprayed 4 bodies for me and they were all immaculate...since he's relocated to Minnesota from Wa. I don't know whats up...the other guy in the NW who does great work is Bill Nash, but he shoots only nitrocellulose and I know some people aren't really into it, but his finishes are great, cool guy too.

Steve E

[chopper45hd]

Re: Guitar finishing shops

Originally posted by jsullysix:
...or urethane.

how i hate urethane.

i can't stand urethane.

urethane makes me irritated.

sully

<font size="2" face="Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif">sully, why do you hate urethane?

here is a new one for yall : gel-coat. i have had alot of success doing motorcycle helmets in a gel-coat finish. very high gloss,durable and easy to care for. i will be getting a warrior body soon to refin in the gel-coat so i hope to have pix of that soon.
Jim i can understand the reasons you stated, a good refin is not cheap or easy. this is why i guess i am just strange, i enjoy the labor involved. i make decent money doin bikes helmets jackets and such and am doing guitars for the enjoyment of it.

[straycat]

Re: Guitar finishing shops

Hey give us some info on the gel coat you speak of.I'd like to know more. [img]graemlins/scratchhead.gif[/img]

[chopper45hd]

Re: Guitar finishing shops

did i say it was water proof also? [img]graemlins/laugh.gif[/img] the gel coat is the type used in the production of boats. i will post some pix of the warrior when i get it done.

[sully]

Re: Guitar finishing shops

so far i don't like urethane, it's been hard to work with on a refin that i'm working on.

lee could have biased me on it as well; i was at gmw a few months ago and saw one of rob witte's refins (returning one of robbin's firebirds back to its original color), and he was telling me what a pita it can be to work with. the clear had a ton of lines in it; it almost looked like layered waves or something. and yeah, it was wetsanded. i know that i'm not describing it well, but it's something you'd have to see.

anyway, i plan on only using polyester in the fututre whenever i can.

sully

[Jim Shine]

Re: Guitar finishing shops

Originally posted by chopper45hd:

<font size="2" face="Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif">sully, why do you hate urethane?

Jim i can understand the reasons you stated, a good refin is not cheap or easy. this is why i guess i am just strange, i enjoy the labor involved. i make decent money doin bikes helmets jackets and such and am doing guitars for the enjoyment of it. [/QUOTE]

I put a huge rant in here, but I can see where it was going. I will spare you all the agony of my library of Congress sized post. Boiled down, yes, it is great fun when it is something you can do as a hobby or part time on the side for money. It is a different thing when it becomes a product. It becomes more of a process rather than an art when you find yourself taking on enough work to put food on the table.