What about paint/finish quality?

[MakeAJazzNoiseHere]

What's up with the finishes on new Charvel/Jacksons?

Maybe it's just because my buddy used to paint show cars and I know how to spot orange peel and such, maybe I'm just picky...

It seems like the Japanese factory lays it on pretty thick in terms of sealer, finish, and clear coat. Not a bit of wood grain showing on my Fusion HH. It's mahogany, that's got a lot of grain to fill. Common to show grain after some time, yet it looks like glass after 15+ years. My "Sam Ash" Japanese SL2H carved-top is the same, though it's not very old.

On the other hand, the USA guys seem to put it on really thin. Its got a nice gloss, but it shows wood grain here and there and some body joints. It's not just one guitar, but, well pretty much ALL OF THEM...

3 Production Model San Dimas
1 Custom Shop Charvel
1 '96 SL2

And finally, my new SL1. The only USA guitar I've got that doesn't show this is my '02 DK1 Black Ghost Flames which I suspect is because there's a black base coat, plus 2 layers of flames and enough clear to level all that out.

Do you guys just not notice/care about this? Or do I somehow get the "grainy finish guitars"?

I imagine that a huge thick layer of poly is detrimental to tone and maybe that's why they go sparingly but it's odd to look at my Fusion HH which could be used as a shaving mirror and compare it to my two USA Soloists which are a little... grainy.

[paige]

I believe your last statements are correct. I also paint show cars, and have painted a couple of my own guitars for giggles and shits, and it seems the tone just dies with urethane build. I had a peavey v-type that just sang, color was a little on the "soft" side for me, so I repainted it. It looks better, but doesn't sparkle with tone now. I have painted 4 guitars and they all seem to do this.

[ulijdavid]

Some of the guitars you will never see the seam lines. There are a lot of guitars where the manufacturer will put a veneer on the top and bottom of the guitar. The veneer is a single piece of wood (real thin about 0.03" thick). This will "mask" the seam lines. I also believe many manufactures are sealing the wood with a Polyester sanding dealer. This polyester sealer was initially used on boat hulls. It is extremely strong and fills and levels even the most porous woods like mahogany and ash. And yeah, the manufacturers are putting on extra thick coats of clear. Extra thick coats mean less chance of burn through - which also means they can use less skilled finishers. Just my two cents and observations from painting well over 50 guitars.

[gmbob22]

took me three days to sand the finish off the back of my kelly pro's neck, ridiculous, they didnt want it EVER coming off obvisously

[Jacksonguy666]

Yeah, I have a gibson USA and you can see the grain, and I had an epiphone which you couldnt see the grain. Seems like a USA thing. I personally like it though.

[MakeAJazzNoiseHere]

I'm getting used to the idea in the sense that I'd rather see a little wood grain and have a great tone than a "dead" tone and a thick mirror-like finish.

I'm sure it's very thick in part for "bad" reasons (lower-grade wood with knots/heavy grain, and as it was pointed out, it's easier to finish it out when there's tons of clear) and also that a thick finish whether it's epoxy or poly or even nitrocellulose lacquer will deaden the tone somewhat.

It just seems strange to see a "better" finish on the cheaper guitars, though.

[SweOak]

My Japanese RR24 seems to have really thick paint. The trem cavity plate won't go on properly since the edge 'notch' has been filled with paint in some places. Needed to make the plate thinner to fit better... :-(

[DonP]

Some of the guitars you will never see the seam lines. There are a lot of guitars where the manufacturer will put a veneer on the top and bottom of the guitar. The veneer is a single piece of wood (real thin about 0.03" thick). This will "mask" the seam lines.

Jackson should do this. My Bengal SL2H you can see the seams if you look closely. I guess they felt the paint would hide it.

I have a JB Player / Aria with a veneer top like that on a 4 piece maple body. If cheap MIJ guitars can get it, why not USA Jacksons?

[Disturbing Manor]

Thick finish = less vibrations = dead tone.

[ulijdavid]

Jackson should do this. My Bengal SL2H you can see the seams if you look closely. I guess they felt the paint would hide it.

I have a JB Player / Aria with a veneer top like that on a 4 piece maple body. If cheap MIJ guitars can get it, why not USA Jacksons?

Jackson does do it on a lot of the guitars. Check out pics of the "Natural" guitars. The KV2 has a flamed veneer on top. Look at the bevels for the different type of wood. Also, you can see the maple neck thru, the alder wings, and the flamed veneer. I had thought that Jackson did this on most of the guitars. Someone could probably check back through old shop pics and see alot of the veneers. I don't know how they decide which ones will get it. I would also assume that all of the transparent colored tops are veneers and that is why they are extremely dark at the bevels to hide the veneer / body transition.

[Oblivion99]

I believe that all the USA model Jacksons don't have veneers on the transparent tops, but rather a 1/8 inch of figured maple, which isn't a whole lot, but is of quite better quality than a veneer. I could be wrong, so correct me if I am, but I know that the spec sheets all say 1/8 inch for the USA models.