do i need to get rid of the paint already on there? do i need a base coat? what kind of paint? what kind of top coat? would this process fuck up the guitar?
― sunny successor (katharine), Thursday, 16 June 2005 18:58 (twenty years ago)
Paul Simonon of the Clash used to pour paint all over his bass inna Jackson Pollack stylee and it didn't seem to fuck it up.
Of course, he also later did this with it....
http://img.iskon.hr/kl/2002/01/24/0002088s.jpg
― Alex in NYC (vassifer), Thursday, 16 June 2005 19:07 (twenty years ago)
kinda depends on the paint. if it's just paint, it will come off relatively easily. if it's the super thick polyurethane stuff they have on newer guitars, it'll be a lot harder. shit's virtually indestructable. it might be safer to sand that off first, then get to the paint.
― AaronK (AaronK), Thursday, 16 June 2005 19:15 (twenty years ago)
I don't know much about this process, only that you do need to take the old paint off. Otherwise, the new paint will just flake off.
― Rick Massimo (Rick Massimo), Thursday, 16 June 2005 19:16 (twenty years ago)
I'm no expert on this but it really depends on a) what's on there now and b) what you want it to look like when you're done.
If it's currently bare wood or something matte, the new paint MAY stick to it. If it's glossy and slick, though, you might have to sand it off (as others have noted). And the new paint won't necessarily stay on there--that is, some paints will rub off unless coated with varnish or lacquer or some such.
A lot of D.I.Y. paint jobs look cool for about a week (like that Strat that George Harrison had), but then once they've been played for a while they look dingy and sad.
About sound. Generally, when a guitar has a lotta paint on it, the wood is less resonant (assuming we're talking solid-body electric). But that's probably okay for most people's purposes. Nearly any substance will resonate enough for the strings, pickups, effects, and amp to do their jobs and make some kind of sound. (Witness all those novelty guitars made out of toilet-bowl lids and snowshovels and whatnot.)
If we're talking about a normal guitar here, the likelihood is that you wouldn't be able to notice the difference--pedals and amps and styles of play will make vastly larger differences in sound.
The bottom line is that you could pour housepaint onto a guitar and (assuming the electronics are okay) it will be okay, but it might look stupid and amateurish. Model paint painstakingly applied with a dozen thin coats, then covered with a clear coating will look more professional. If that's what you're going for.
http://fender.demonweb.co.uk/images/georgeharrisonstrat.jpg
― The Mad Puffin, Thursday, 16 June 2005 19:32 (twenty years ago)
This site should have all of the info and supplies you need:
http://home.flash.net/~guitars/
― walter kranz (walterkranz), Thursday, 16 June 2005 21:24 (twenty years ago)