I recently purchased a walnut bass body from warmoth:

http://www.warmoth.com/showcase/sc_...&subMenuItem2=0

And now I have to finish it. I've looked around the web and some of the forums here but there isn't much past the basics on natural finishes that I've found.

I was wondering what techniques any of you guys may have used that you would care to pass on. My old body is a warmoth walnut explorer that I finished with tung oil and butcher's wax polish. That finish has been fine for the last ten years but I want something to really bring out the warmth of the wood AND make it shine on my new bass.

I don't have access to a sprayer and I don't know shit about them so I need a hand applied finish.

I'm considering using: water base grain filler>bulls eye french polish>minwax hand rub poly - but I'm totally open to any suggestions.

For those that have looked at this, a stew mac technical rep told me that grain filler is not neccessary for bullseye french polish and that poly is not at all recommended.

Also, a guy from Arizona hadwoods told me that the french polish should look really nice especially if applied in multiple layers and that a poly finish can look cloudy on dark wood and should not ever be considered. He said the french polish with perhaps a manufacturer recommended polish over that would would bring out the warmth of the walnut, protect it and keep it natural looking.

Ok, so I spent a week layering on french polish (shellac) - as far as 6 coats with three applications per coat- and in the end I had a finish with swirls and marks in it. I followed the directions in Bullseye's pamphlet to the letter but the finish still looked like shit. I'm not saying this stuff doesn't work - I'm just saying it's probably not for a beginner. Also, there was an ashy pallor to the wood that wasn't noticable before finishing. Fortunately, shellac is easily removed with denatured alcohol. So I removed all the french polish I had applied and got ready to start over.

At this point I thought I would cut my losses - tung oil and wax it and be done. I found Mike Mahoney online who sells walnut oil he uses to finish salad bowls. I thought walnut oil might make a tough finish for a bass that's always handled. I spoke with him and he recommended a poly finish. He said only water based poly will appear cloudy when applied in layers. This may be true but this wood finisher had this to say:

"I will use the high gloss poly even if I don't want a final gloss luster. The semi-gloss and other polys contain particulate matter that bends the light striking the surface giving the satin or semi-gloss finish. But these particles also have a tendency to blurr the wood grain when several coats have been applied. You can get the same effect by using several coats of high gloss to build to the thickness you desire, then break the gloss with 0000 steel wool or equivalent."

Both this site and Mike Mahoney gave some good advice - rub off the poly as soon as you brush it on.

If you want to know more about what I did and see my results you can check here:

http://www.matterthief.com/bass.html

Tru-oil works great too man,I finished my guitar with it....and it's a Warmoth too! Here is a thread about it:

http://p102.ezboard.com/funofficial...picID=118.topic

__________________

Looks pretty good. Nice job!

What about using Danish oil with a mixture of natural coloured dyes? I've seen a couple of knife handles finished that way which look amazing.

tung oil works pretty well. just apply some to a cloth, and wipe until you cover the entire body. wait 6 hours, sand with very fine paper, then do another coat. do like 4 or 5 coats and it will look pretty good.

__________________

[QUOTE=Grindchord]Tru-oil works great too man,I finished my guitar with it....and it's a Warmoth too! Here is a thread about it:
QUOTE]

Holy deva vu! Here's my old tung oil finished explorer bass...

http://www.matterthief.com/IMG_0496.jpg