I don’t even own a guitar but I was looking around to see what crazy stain work I could do to a set of ball point hammers nd came across this work of art. Great video man
What a great and easy to understand tutorial. There are so, so many high speed tutorials that have little to no explanation and only give you the end result. Good job! Peace.
Coming for sure. I'm about to do hey purple into red empty yellow triburst on a Stratocaster using the trans tint dyes. I have several 12 by 12 pieces and maple that I can perfect the technique on first very helpful video cuz it's close to what I'm going to do except I'll probably start from the outer edge and then work towards the center purple into red into yellow. Thanks for posting this video
oops ...'Coming' was supposed to be Stunning. Also ... just curious why you didn't user TansTint for the whole job? I have several colors of TransTint.
That is awesome! It went from my favorite drink to my favorite guitar finish. I may have to try this on one of the kits I am about to build. Maybe paint a little drunken worm at the bottom, lol
Thanks! These are special order guitars mostly. I don't have pre-fabbed stuff unfortunately. Most of my time is spent building custom orders. I typically handle quotes and orders through Facebook messenger, email or text.
Maybe. Never tried it, though. The primer would have to be stainable. If not, it will just reject the color. It's worth trying on some scrap pieces for sure.
@@NorthstarGuitars yeah,always is good to test before .. I'm looking a way to raise the embellishment of my strat. I sanded the sides and i noticed that is made of two different blocks. Two colors, too. When i sand the full body in going to figure out how to do it..
Wow that was a fast 10 min. That top is gorgeous. Do have any experience/comments that you can share of using alcohol vs water? It seems most people go for the alcohol
Garry not Linda. This comment is late to the party but for those reading this at a later time I offer this. Alcohol will not raise the grain nearly as much as water will and it also will dry faster. When working with veneer the less sanding the better.
I'm just getting started with my first Telecaster style kit guitar and I've watched a number of finishing videos and I think finsih rivals or beats any of them including the PRS factory floor finishes! I also decided to go with Keda Dyes and I recently ordered a bunch of them, probably much more than Ill need for the next few years. I was wondering if you can give any tips/suggestions on what grits of sandpaper you used prior to applying the finish and also what type of clear coat finish you might suggest and how many coats etc. I think I bought a can of spray on clear laquer. Also, can you give a more precise mix I think you said a spoonful of dye, is that a precise teaspoon, 1/4 teaspoon, sounds silly maybe but I just don't want to mess it up! Thanks
you have a new sub! amazing job! and great explanations! i do have few questions if you have time to answer. 1. what size of veneer do you order from this shop? i am preparing to start a project for my 88 strat , and i want to re paint her with the keda dyes , and since the body is made out of alder , i want to apply veneer top on it. 2. do you use the "super soft 2" from veneersupplies on the veneer before you glue it to the guitar body? 3. do you have any tips on how to glue the veneer on the guitar body? thank you so much for the videos and tutorials you make !
Thanks Jobi! Sizing depends: if you want a 1 piece top I would sugest 25" x 15" min. or 25" x 7" min. for bookmatching. I use a product called veneer tamer but super soft will do the same thing. I highly recommend using it also. It will save you a ton of time and headache if you insure your veneer is flat before gluing. Pressing the top to a strat will be challenging but not impossible. You will have figure out what you are going to do about the round over edges. I typically press veneer to a flat top and then add binding to help hide the line. If you are careful you could probably sand it to match the outer curve of the guitar. You'll want to use a vacuum bag to get it to conform properly to the forearm curve. Hope that helps some. Good luck and have fun!
It looks so, so beaultiful. Congrats! I'm having problems to blend red and black aniline dye and get this type of burst. I've tried 100% alcohol, 50-50 with water, 100% water (which is the worse due to the bad mixing), and no matter what I do, I can't get it to blend nicely. It always get a hard line of the black, no blending, and when I try to use the red rag, It gets kinda "dirty". Maybe its the brand of the aniline. But where I live, there is no much options.
I would recommend the 100% alcohol mixture. Try starting with the black edge first and work fading it inwards until any hard line dissappears. Then add the red working from the center outwards. Push it into the fade and then use a clean rag saturated with alcohol and work the outer black edge into the red. You will probably have to go back and forth with the alcohol rag, red rag and possibly the black one as well. If you get a good blend you can then use another clean rag with alcohol and pull some of the over all color back out. That can help with the blend and clean things up. The color is usually going to get darker over you start adding the clear coat. Hope that helps. Sometimes it's hard to get a good thin burst with dyes. That's just the nature of the medium. Practice on some scrap. It took me a while to get a feel for it as well.
Love the bland binding against the colors in this fade. I have the alcohol based keda dye set but i’m not sure what the ratio is or if there’s a difference between alcohol, lacquer thinner, and acetone for a mixer in the finished result. I’ll probably use the denatured alcohol. If you have any suggestions on ratios, let me know. It’s unlikely to be the same as the powders. Figured you might have tried them is why i ask
I used to mix water and isopropyl alcohol 50/50 but I switched to 100% isopropyl. I like the saturation of color and the quicker drying time. It's what works best for me. Your results may vary. My best advice is get some scrap and practice. Try different things and see what you like the best. Good luck and happy building!
@@NorthstarGuitars i ended up looking everywhere but the bottle where the instructions actually were for the alcohol dyes. Whoops! But got it all done. Need to find some bottles for the leftover dyes now.
Beautiful job! What you said about mahogany making colors dark struck a chord with me as I have just started a diy kit and the body is mahogany. So is it impossible to do something close to your colors on mahogany?
Almost anything will work. Preferably something that won't fall apart though. I typically go back and forth with them so they need to hold up for the entire process.
Hi again ... what clear coat are you using? Also is there any reason why I can't use Trans Tint for red and yellow. I already have these/ And are you adding ISO to the Trans Tint ?
Spraymax 2K High Gloss. You should be able to use Trans Tint and Keda together as long as they blend properly. I've been using combinations of both with no problems. I use ISO for all of my dyes.
That it what I use. Your results may vary. You can also use water or denatured alcohol or combos of any of them. The liquid is mainly the carrier for the dye. I like the ISO because it drys fast. You have to work fast though as well.
@@NorthstarGuitars Thank you again for your response. So to summarize ... I can use Trans Tint for all colors ? What is the ratio of Trans Tint to ISO propyl I checked out your Facebook pictures. Some amazing finishes !!
Did you use the powdered, or the alcohol, pre-mixed keda dyes? I seem to be having an issue where I can't tell if my ratio is off (I'm using about 80% alcohol, 20% water as the directions specified?) I end up with it going on uniform, and then patchy small specs coming through that are about 1mm in diameter circles of darker spots as it dries. These aren't an issue when the dye goes on, nor for about the first hour of drying, and only show up after I leave it out over night. As the mix is mostly alcohol, I wouldn't expect open pores to be an issue, but perhaps that is where I am mistaken? I've also tried raising the grain and then lightly sanding with 300 grit, but this didn't seem to have an effect either. Also concerned temperature could be an issue (I'm leaving them in about 60 degrees, but no idea the ideal temperature range to toss these on?)
Hey Eric! I am using the keda in powder form. I don't bother with ratios anymore and just use isopropyl alcohol. As far as the spots go, does it happen every time or has it just been on that one project? I've never had spotting issues, other than glue spots where I didn't sand well enough. Could you send me a pic? grazhoper@gmail.com
Question, what is your recommendation for darker woods like mahogany and limba when trying to get a fade like that? Do you apply a white stain, then sand down?
@@jasonnguyen562 I would suggest looking up some guitar finishing videos. There are quite a few steps that involve application, temperature, sanding, buffing and polishing. Too much info for me to walk you through it in a comment reply. This finish had some trial and error for me so I don't feel quite confident in trying to teach it just yet.
firstly❤, I don't like the body shape way too pointy, I don't like master vol, master tone layouts if there are 2 pickups there should be at least a vol for each! but most guitar makers do it?? my local tech converts any guitar I buy! right that's just my preferences out the way! 1 you didn't do it black 1st to pop the flame, it isn't always necessary, 2nd it's STUNNING! SO VIBRANT! THAT PURPLE SETS IT OFF!
@NorthstarGuitars fyi, only annoying because I can't hear what you're saying as easily. Not a comment on the quality of the music, just that any music is annoying in this situation. And remember that half your audience has some degree of hearing damage 😊
Question, what is your recommendation for darker woods like mahogany and limba when trying to get a fade like that? Do you apply a white stain, then sand down?
Darker woods will most likely not yield results like this. A white stain underneath would dissolve into whatever color you put on top of it. Color options with lighter color woods are wide. With darker woods you need to find colors that can enhance it. Your results may vary. Best thing to do is experiment on some scrap wood. Good luck and happy building!
I don’t even own a guitar but I was looking around to see what crazy stain work I could do to a set of ball point hammers nd came across this work of art. Great video man
Well done sir! I live in a place with an ocean view.... you nailed the colors of sunrise, and the whole look is smooth.
Non-combative comment:
Thanks for posting this. I want to try something like this myself, so I am grateful for your explanations.
What a great and easy to understand tutorial.
There are so, so many high speed tutorials that have little to no explanation and only give you the end result.
Good job! Peace.
In bigd guitars you even listen the scratches when he's applying the dye with the rags.. But this tequila sunrise is magnific,and cheaper to do..
That figure is unbelievable, really compliments the shape of the horns and the angles of the body
It's beautiful. I want that guitar.
Nicely done sir looks really good. Nice smooth transitions.
Best dye job I’ve seen!
Looks fantastic.
Right before the application of the black, that finish looked like a photoreal water surface at dawn or dusk. Amazing.
Very nice work. Great craftsmanship. NOW I know how they do that!
Cool sunrise!
The finish is so gorgeous 👍👍👍
Just like you are doin some magic when I watch u did all the process. Awesome bro
Great video. I’m about to start my first fully water based stain and finish on a mahogany tele body. Some great tips.
beautiful!
Good job mate!
Coming for sure. I'm about to do hey purple into red empty yellow triburst on a Stratocaster using the trans tint dyes. I have several 12 by 12 pieces and maple that I can perfect the technique on first very helpful video cuz it's close to what I'm going to do except I'll probably start from the outer edge and then work towards the center purple into red into yellow. Thanks for posting this video
oops ...'Coming' was supposed to be Stunning.
Also ... just curious why you didn't user TansTint for the whole job? I have several colors of TransTint.
That is awesome! It went from my favorite drink to my favorite guitar finish. I may have to try this on one of the kits I am about to build. Maybe paint a little drunken worm at the bottom, lol
Absolutely beautiful!
BEAUTIFUL ! Thank you for sharing this !
Absolutely. Thank you!
Very cool
Amazing
Spectacular video…. Where do you buy these guitars??? And, do you sell the pre-fabbed “ready to paint” blanks?
Thanks! These are special order guitars mostly. I don't have pre-fabbed stuff unfortunately. Most of my time is spent building custom orders. I typically handle quotes and orders through Facebook messenger, email or text.
@@NorthstarGuitars Gotcha....thanks for the reply. You do beautiful work.
Non-combative comment here, the purple looks sick 😍
10:00 uk time excellent tutorial (not too much talk) I am attempting this myself, does the stain go on to the wood without wood sealer first ?
With darker woods,maybe if we add a light primer to wood maybe will solve the problem?
Maybe. Never tried it, though. The primer would have to be stainable. If not, it will just reject the color. It's worth trying on some scrap pieces for sure.
@@NorthstarGuitars yeah,always is good to test before .. I'm looking a way to raise the embellishment of my strat. I sanded the sides and i noticed that is made of two different blocks. Two colors, too. When i sand the full body in going to figure out how to do it..
That looks awesome man! You do good work!
You just got a new subscriber!
🤘🤘
Stunning!
this looks so good wtf
nice
Wow that was a fast 10 min. That top is gorgeous. Do have any experience/comments that you can share of using alcohol vs water? It seems most people go for the alcohol
Garry not Linda. This comment is late to the party but for those reading this at a later time I offer this. Alcohol will not raise the grain nearly as much as water will and it also will dry faster. When working with veneer the less sanding the better.
thats a nice fade! how many practice runs did you try on scrap until you could get it to this level?
I think I did 4 or 5 runs before I was happy with the process. Fades can be tough but when you nail it, it feels really good!
Opinion on using boiled linseed oil over that stain job, please.
Awesome job!!!
you make this on isoprolylic alchol with dye ?
Correct.
@@NorthstarGuitars what type of dye?
@@reimo2336 Keda Wood Dyes
Nice i really apreciate youre tips!thats my first burst
You should apply at PRS. Great job.
Great video.. thank!!
Looks so good! What was your sanding prep for the veneer top before going in with the dyes?
Very lightly with 320 a few times. There wasn't any blade marks or scratches on this veneer so prep was pretty simple.
Definitely subbing
what you put over the top? Lacquer, Polyurethane ? Oil base, water base?
Looks terrific.
I'm going to start experimenting.
Thanks! I used SprayMax 2K Clear Glamour for the clear coat.
I'm just getting started with my first Telecaster style kit guitar and I've watched a number of finishing videos and I think finsih rivals or beats any of them including the PRS factory floor finishes! I also decided to go with Keda Dyes and I recently ordered a bunch of them, probably much more than Ill need for the next few years. I was wondering if you can give any tips/suggestions on what grits of sandpaper you used prior to applying the finish and also what type of clear coat finish you might suggest and how many coats etc. I think I bought a can of spray on clear laquer. Also, can you give a more precise mix I think you said a spoonful of dye, is that a precise teaspoon, 1/4 teaspoon, sounds silly maybe but I just don't want to mess it up! Thanks
Hi. Thanks for sharing
This Keda powder dye completely dissolving in isopropyl alcohol ?
you have a new sub!
amazing job! and great explanations!
i do have few questions if you have time to answer.
1. what size of veneer do you order from this shop? i am preparing to start a project for my 88 strat , and i want to re paint her with the keda dyes , and since the body is made out of alder , i want to apply veneer top on it.
2. do you use the "super soft 2" from veneersupplies on the veneer before you glue it to the guitar body?
3. do you have any tips on how to glue the veneer on the guitar body?
thank you so much for the videos and tutorials you make !
Thanks Jobi! Sizing depends: if you want a 1 piece top I would sugest 25" x 15" min. or 25" x 7" min. for bookmatching. I use a product called veneer tamer but super soft will do the same thing. I highly recommend using it also. It will save you a ton of time and headache if you insure your veneer is flat before gluing. Pressing the top to a strat will be challenging but not impossible. You will have figure out what you are going to do about the round over edges. I typically press veneer to a flat top and then add binding to help hide the line. If you are careful you could probably sand it to match the outer curve of the guitar. You'll want to use a vacuum bag to get it to conform properly to the forearm curve. Hope that helps some. Good luck and have fun!
It looks so, so beaultiful. Congrats!
I'm having problems to blend red and black aniline dye and get this type of burst.
I've tried 100% alcohol, 50-50 with water, 100% water (which is the worse due to the bad mixing), and no matter what I do, I can't get it to blend nicely.
It always get a hard line of the black, no blending, and when I try to use the red rag, It gets kinda "dirty".
Maybe its the brand of the aniline. But where I live, there is no much options.
Hey Rodrigo! Which color are you putting down first?
@@NorthstarGuitars I use to start with red, then the black.
I would recommend the 100% alcohol mixture. Try starting with the black edge first and work fading it inwards until any hard line dissappears. Then add the red working from the center outwards. Push it into the fade and then use a clean rag saturated with alcohol and work the outer black edge into the red. You will probably have to go back and forth with the alcohol rag, red rag and possibly the black one as well. If you get a good blend you can then use another clean rag with alcohol and pull some of the over all color back out. That can help with the blend and clean things up. The color is usually going to get darker over you start adding the clear coat. Hope that helps. Sometimes it's hard to get a good thin burst with dyes. That's just the nature of the medium. Practice on some scrap. It took me a while to get a feel for it as well.
@@NorthstarGuitars okay! I'll definitely try this way. It really makes more sense now. Thank you so much for the attention!
Love it man. Great work. No rude comment on the purple from me!!! :)
Love the bland binding against the colors in this fade. I have the alcohol based keda dye set but i’m not sure what the ratio is or if there’s a difference between alcohol, lacquer thinner, and acetone for a mixer in the finished result. I’ll probably use the denatured alcohol. If you have any suggestions on ratios, let me know. It’s unlikely to be the same as the powders. Figured you might have tried them is why i ask
I used to mix water and isopropyl alcohol 50/50 but I switched to 100% isopropyl. I like the saturation of color and the quicker drying time. It's what works best for me. Your results may vary. My best advice is get some scrap and practice. Try different things and see what you like the best. Good luck and happy building!
@@NorthstarGuitars i ended up looking everywhere but the bottle where the instructions actually were for the alcohol dyes. Whoops! But got it all done. Need to find some bottles for the leftover dyes now.
Beautiful job! What you said about mahogany making colors dark struck a chord with me as I have just started a diy kit and the body is mahogany. So is it impossible to do something close to your colors on mahogany?
That Is So Righteous 👍
What type of rags do you use when applying the dye? Does any type of rag work or do you use a specific kind?
Almost anything will work. Preferably something that won't fall apart though. I typically go back and forth with them so they need to hold up for the entire process.
I feel like wood just dyes better with warmer colors too because most woods are naturally brownish
Hi again ... what clear coat are you using?
Also is there any reason why I can't use Trans Tint for red and yellow. I already have these/
And are you adding ISO to the Trans Tint ?
Spraymax 2K High Gloss. You should be able to use Trans Tint and Keda together as long as they blend properly. I've been using combinations of both with no problems. I use ISO for all of my dyes.
@@NorthstarGuitars so I could use all trans tint dies if I wanted to with isopropyl alcohol?
That it what I use. Your results may vary. You can also use water or denatured alcohol or combos of any of them. The liquid is mainly the carrier for the dye. I like the ISO because it drys fast. You have to work fast though as well.
@@NorthstarGuitars Thank you again for your response.
So to summarize ... I can use Trans Tint for all colors ?
What is the ratio of Trans Tint to ISO propyl
I checked out your Facebook pictures. Some amazing finishes !!
Did you use the powdered, or the alcohol, pre-mixed keda dyes? I seem to be having an issue where I can't tell if my ratio is off (I'm using about 80% alcohol, 20% water as the directions specified?) I end up with it going on uniform, and then patchy small specs coming through that are about 1mm in diameter circles of darker spots as it dries. These aren't an issue when the dye goes on, nor for about the first hour of drying, and only show up after I leave it out over night. As the mix is mostly alcohol, I wouldn't expect open pores to be an issue, but perhaps that is where I am mistaken? I've also tried raising the grain and then lightly sanding with 300 grit, but this didn't seem to have an effect either. Also concerned temperature could be an issue (I'm leaving them in about 60 degrees, but no idea the ideal temperature range to toss these on?)
Hey Eric! I am using the keda in powder form. I don't bother with ratios anymore and just use isopropyl alcohol. As far as the spots go, does it happen every time or has it just been on that one project? I've never had spotting issues, other than glue spots where I didn't sand well enough. Could you send me a pic? grazhoper@gmail.com
Looks incredible! What percentage of iso do you use? They sell 50, 70 and 90 where I'm at.
Any clue how to do the prs northern lights finish?
I had problems with 91% Isopropyl so I switched to denatured ethanol alcohol. Any comments or recommendations?
I am trying to upload a photo but there is no apparent way to include a photo so I will try emailing it.
I love your ability to teach but I love the simplicity, creativity and colors.
Question, what is your recommendation for darker woods like mahogany and limba when trying to get a fade like that? Do you apply a white stain, then sand down?
what do you use to finish the guitar out, do you use a lacquer or some kind of oil to seal it
This guitar was finished with Spraymax 2K clear glamour. I did not use any filler or sealer.
@@NorthstarGuitars so after you stain it you just apply the spray max do you wax it afterwards or anything to get it to be shiny?
@@jasonnguyen562 I would suggest looking up some guitar finishing videos. There are quite a few steps that involve application, temperature, sanding, buffing and polishing. Too much info for me to walk you through it in a comment reply. This finish had some trial and error for me so I don't feel quite confident in trying to teach it just yet.
Hi ~ can I custom
Make guitar ?
Dig the Evertune
Why your sooo underated sad
Great video except for that background noise music.
Thanks! I've never had my songs referred to as "noise music". I'll add that to the sub-genre. =)
You clearly have invented a new color. As you said, blue and red make purple so it clearly has to be something else.
6:48
firstly❤, I don't like the body shape way too pointy, I don't like master vol, master tone layouts if there are 2 pickups there should be at least a vol for each! but most guitar makers do it?? my local tech converts any guitar I buy! right that's just my preferences out the way! 1 you didn't do it black 1st to pop the flame, it isn't always necessary, 2nd it's STUNNING! SO VIBRANT! THAT PURPLE SETS IT OFF!
Combative comment. Music is annoying AF. otherwise, video is awesome! that finish is amazing
Thanks for watching! Your opinion of my song is duly noted.
@NorthstarGuitars fyi, only annoying because I can't hear what you're saying as easily. Not a comment on the quality of the music, just that any music is annoying in this situation. And remember that half your audience has some degree of hearing damage 😊
Question, what is your recommendation for darker woods like mahogany and limba when trying to get a fade like that? Do you apply a white stain, then sand down?
Darker woods will most likely not yield results like this. A white stain underneath would dissolve into whatever color you put on top of it. Color options with lighter color woods are wide. With darker woods you need to find colors that can enhance it. Your results may vary. Best thing to do is experiment on some scrap wood. Good luck and happy building!
@@NorthstarGuitars thank you for the quick response! Much appreciated!