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OLFers,

I'm applying shellac to a guitar that has mahogany back/sides. The mahogany is nice, but quite pale in color, and I want to darken it some more. Quite a bit more, actually. Here's a pic:



I've given it at least four applications of garnet shellac already. I know the garnet stuff will darken it a bit more with more applications, but I was hoping for something darker than this.

I haven't used any kinds of dyes yet on my builds. Can I mix a dye with shellac? I would prefer a more reddish brown color. Assuming I can mix a dye with shellac, what type of dye would most likely achieve the sorts of darkening results I'm after?

Best,

MichaelMichael McBroom38859.3891435185

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Live to Play, Play to Live

Yes you can use most any wood dye with shellac I would use something like StewMac's Trandlusent Colortone Concentrated Liquid Stain it is a metal complex stain and is easy to control and comes in many hues

Thanks, Michael, I'll check into the stewmac stuff. I just took a look over at LMI's site, and noticed that they sell alcohol-soluble aniline dyes. They have both brown and red, and I'm thinking maybe I could mix the two in a ratio with the garnet shellac to get the coloration I want. Sounds doable?

Best,

Michael

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Live to Play, Play to Live

that will work as well but Y take a look at the colortone first simular chimistry buy pre mixed to common colors

Hi Michael, yes you can certainly use Stewmac's aniline liquid dyes with shellac, I have used it this way to do sunbursts. I can't advise you what colors you should get, but you will find that a little goes a long way, the stuff is highly concentrated.

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Rian Gitar og Mandolin

Thanks Arnt. Wish I knew what their red mahogany looked like. Can anyone comment on its color?

Best,

Michael

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Live to Play, Play to Live

Beautiful mahogany Michael, good luck with the dyes, i can't wait to see what you'll come up with!

Serge

Michael,

I think that that mahogany looks fabulous as it is. Also I find (at least with the Cuban that I use that looks similar) that it darkens on exposure to light - you see quite a difference after a month or so.

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Dave White
De Faoite Stringed Instruments
". . . the one thing a machine just can't do is give you character and personalities and sometimes that comes with flaws, but it always comes with humanity" Monty Don talking about hand weaving, "Mastercrafts", Weaving, BBC March 2010

[QUOTE=Dave White] Michael,

I think that that mahogany looks fabulous as it is. Also I find (at least with the Cuban that I use that looks similar) that it darkens on exposure to light - you see quite a difference after a month or so.

[/QUOTE]

Indeed. The finished mahogany I've got has darkened over time, and the rough boards (not even exposed to huge amounts of light, per se) are much, much darker than freshly planed. Not a big fan of tinted mahogany, m'self.

Michael,

I'm another one who thinks the guitar looks beautiful the way it is. Let the wood speak for itself. Either way, its a very nice looking guitar.

Philip

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aka konacat

If you think my playing is bad you should hear me sing!
Practice breeds confidence and confidence breeds competence. Unfortunately, I'm stuck in practice.

I'm with Dave and Philip on this.
They beat me to the punch, but let me also say that I think your guitar looks grand as is. Of course, that's a steel string builder talking....(But also a lover of Mahogany.)

SK

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From Nacogdoches...the oldest town in Texas.

http://www.stephenkinnaird.com

Thanks for all the feeback, guys. I have decided to place the final decision in the hands of my client, expressing all the pros and cons I could think of. I also mentioned the forum and the majority concensus of the builders here. Your views may indeed sway his decision toward the natural look, warmed with the garnet shellac. Personally, I was leaning the same way, but sometimes a customer is more interested in the stereotype over the individual.

Best,

Michael

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Live to Play, Play to Live

Leave it! Leave it! Leave it!

It will darken over time!
Nice work as is either way!

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Billy Dean Thomas
Covina, CA

"Multi famam, conscientiam, pauci verentur."
(Many fear their reputation, few their conscience)

Welp, my client was indeed swayed by the comments here. I'm glad. I wasn't really looking forward to adding dye to the shellac anyway.

Best,

Michael

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Live to Play, Play to Live

Michael,

Result

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Dave White
De Faoite Stringed Instruments
". . . the one thing a machine just can't do is give you character and personalities and sometimes that comes with flaws, but it always comes with humanity" Monty Don talking about hand weaving, "Mastercrafts", Weaving, BBC March 2010

Hi Michael,

Back when I worked as a cabinet and furnituremaker, I was always amazed when some client (or the architect they hired) insisted on obscuring the natural color and beauty of wood with stain. Other than quartersawn Oak, where the stain darkens the background, "popping" the medullary rays (flake), I like my wood natural. The most stain abused woods to me have been Cherry and Mahogany, which we so often had to stain to a deep brick-red-brown color that I used to call "shoe polish."

That's a beautiful instrument, and your client has shown good taste by allowing it to naturally age.

Dennis
p.s. Raise your prices!

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Dennis Leahy
Duluth, MN, USA
7th Sense Multimedia

Hehe, Dennis, all in good time. First comes the reputation, then comes the higher price. I've got to build the former before I can command the latter.

Best,

Michael
Michael McBroom38862.6380208333

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Live to Play, Play to Live