How are PRS SE guitars finished?
- Thread starter Drastion
- Start date
My new SE 245 in Tobacco burst looks stunning. Equally as good as the burst on my Gibson Les Paul Studio Deluxe 60's. That one is finished in nitro.
Not sure what your issue is with the maple "quasi binding". The USA PRS's are finished in the same style. My Gibson studio is as well.
Not sure what your issue is with the maple "quasi binding". The USA PRS's are finished in the same style. My Gibson studio is as well.
No I don't have a problem with it at all. I think its a great touch. I am no carpenter and haven't worked with wood much other than building stairs and a porch.
Its just how do you put stain on top of a bright peice of maple and not have it penetrate into the wood one bit. Only way I see that being possible is if they put a clear coat to keep that from happening.
Maybe I came off negative I was more curious as to how it was done. It looks good its just the color does not interact with the wood at all. Its just this perfect blend of color. No unevenness you would see in a natural material like wood.
I am not expecting to see the stain sand stain sand stain method they use in the custom shop to make the colors really pop like they do. $700 isn't a cheap guitar but I hardly justifies that kind of labor intensive finish.
Don't get me wrong if there is a clear coat over the veneer with the color on top of that. That would be perfect for me. Then I would not have to worry about sanding down the veneer to be able to refinish my guitar.
Its just how do you put stain on top of a bright peice of maple and not have it penetrate into the wood one bit. Only way I see that being possible is if they put a clear coat to keep that from happening.
Maybe I came off negative I was more curious as to how it was done. It looks good its just the color does not interact with the wood at all. Its just this perfect blend of color. No unevenness you would see in a natural material like wood.
I am not expecting to see the stain sand stain sand stain method they use in the custom shop to make the colors really pop like they do. $700 isn't a cheap guitar but I hardly justifies that kind of labor intensive finish.
Don't get me wrong if there is a clear coat over the veneer with the color on top of that. That would be perfect for me. Then I would not have to worry about sanding down the veneer to be able to refinish my guitar.
I assume they do the Korean guitars the same way they do the USA made PRS and also the way Gibson does their Studios. They use masking tape on the areas they don't want painted or stained and then when they are ready to clear coat them they scrape the excess colour off by hand using a blade. There are videos on You Tube of the process that PRS and Gibson use.
Once scraped to expose the "natural binding" they lacquer them.
Still labour intensive but we all know the Asian labour isn't as expensive as the US labour, hence why these guitars are made over there.
Here you go -
http://youtu.be/oOX2jlQxiXY
http://youtu.be/9lhsKYY13p8
http://youtu.be/kx5tg0FcafI
Once scraped to expose the "natural binding" they lacquer them.
Still labour intensive but we all know the Asian labour isn't as expensive as the US labour, hence why these guitars are made over there.
Here you go -
http://youtu.be/oOX2jlQxiXY
http://youtu.be/9lhsKYY13p8
http://youtu.be/kx5tg0FcafI
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garrett
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Bursts are not dyed. The color is suspended in the finish. This has been the case for probably as long as there have been bursts.
Ok this was my first burst finish. So the veneer is stained tobacco and then there is a sealer coat with the burst on top of that.
Sounds good to me I will have another guitar on its way to me soon. Its not a burst but its the closest thing to the one I really wanted.
Sounds good to me I will have another guitar on its way to me soon. Its not a burst but its the closest thing to the one I really wanted.
Sorry, I don't follow. What you are saying seems to be at odds with what I have seen on the PRS factory tour vids as well as the Gibson factory tour vids, unless I am misunderstanding what you are saying.
The vids show the base wood being stained, then the "burst" finish being painted on with a spray gun and then finally the clear coat being sprayed over the top.
Can you please explain what you mean by "the color is suspended in the finish"?
Thank you
garrett
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What you said is what I meant. The maple is stained. The burst is a colored top coat. Then clear is applied.
I took the OP's post to mean they didn't like how the burst layer looked. The burst layer will always appear to be suspended on top of the base color (because it is), and that effect is probably exaggerated by the visual depth added from dying the flame maple.
It's possible the SE's do something different with the maple veneers to save money, though. And as I understand, spraying a burst is a bit of an art. If it isn't done just right, the transition won't be smooth, which might be what the OP has noticed.
Okay cool. We are on the same page! :top:
Cheers!
And OP, can you post some pics of your guitar so we can see it and so you can point out what you mean?
Thanks!
Not sure if you will be able to see it in the pic. Just looked strange to me how none of the grain showed through the burst. Though that may be the point of a burst.
I had thought a burst would be a dark stain around the edge. Sould have phrased it differently. Didn't mean to say it looked terrible. Just that it didn't look like the burts was done with stain at all more of a paint on the edge. At least that is what it looks like to me.
I had thought a burst would be a dark stain around the edge. Sould have phrased it differently. Didn't mean to say it looked terrible. Just that it didn't look like the burts was done with stain at all more of a paint on the edge. At least that is what it looks like to me.
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That pic looks perfectly normal for a burst finish.
As I explained previously the maple cap is stained then the burst is painted on around the edge. That's why you get the feathering or lightening of the colour as you move from the edge of the guitar towards the middle.
Did you see the PRS videos I posted earlier? They show the process perfectly.
All sunburst finishes will look something along the lines of how your PRS looks.
As I explained previously the maple cap is stained then the burst is painted on around the edge. That's why you get the feathering or lightening of the colour as you move from the edge of the guitar towards the middle.
Did you see the PRS videos I posted earlier? They show the process perfectly.
All sunburst finishes will look something along the lines of how your PRS looks.
garrett
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Yeah dude, that's gorgeous!
Couldn't get those links to work earlier. They do now though. Thanks for posting that. It gives me a lot more confidence for when I go to refinish one of my SE guitars.
I think it looks great. Im hoping my se custom has a bit of an ugly finish on it when I get it. That would decide what guitar goes under the knife. I got a bunch of ideas for the custom 24. Since itsl looks more like a rock guitar I think it would look good in lots of different looks. The 245 just look right. I am having a hard time deciding what would look better. When I first got it I just kept staring at it since it has more of a tigr strip rathe than that thin pin stripped look I don't like so much.
I think it looks great. Im hoping my se custom has a bit of an ugly finish on it when I get it. That would decide what guitar goes under the knife. I got a bunch of ideas for the custom 24. Since itsl looks more like a rock guitar I think it would look good in lots of different looks. The 245 just look right. I am having a hard time deciding what would look better. When I first got it I just kept staring at it since it has more of a tigr strip rathe than that thin pin stripped look I don't like so much.
Mikegarveyblues
Cream Crackered
Nice looking burst.. I don't see an issue at all.
The burst on my Bernie is much more subtle than on my C24, but both are nice. I've seen poorly done bursts on some other (None PRS) guiotars but the one on yours looks great to my eyes!
The burst on my Bernie is much more subtle than on my C24, but both are nice. I've seen poorly done bursts on some other (None PRS) guiotars but the one on yours looks great to my eyes!
