# Jackson DK-7 COW....Naturalised.



## TheSixthWheel (Jul 18, 2009)

Recently the headstock of my COW took a nasty bump on the back of a chair, seen here:






I figured enough was enough. I wanted to see the mahogany neck and body under the paint. It's resurfacing time. 

Started this afternoon with this:





and got stuck in:

















Didn't expect to see the thin 1.5mm ply of what appears to be basswood over the top, but closer inspection of the string ferrules suggests that it's the same story on the back of the body. Either way, it'll be satin tung oiled mahogany neck and body. Plans involve routing a neck pickup cavity for it, and installing 2 x Seymour Duncan Blackouts and adding a 3 way toggle switch. Basically the same schematic as the Loomis.

Regular updates over the next few weeks. Stay tuned 


***UPDATE Sunday 19/7/09***

Here's today's progress:












































































***UPDATE 20/7/09***
Started on the headstock thisafternoon. I went snap happy with the progress, trying to document it all. This is starting to get a bit pic heavy, but I've resized them all. And whoever's using 56K anymore needs a head check. 


























































































































I'm interested in feedback regarding the COW signature on the back of the headstock...Should I sand it all off completely, or would it be a good idea to leave a small patch of the paint left on the headstock, displaying the signature. It'd definitely help identify it if needed later on in its life, at least. Opinions? 

***UPDATE 21/7/09***

Thanks people, for the feedback on the COW sig on the back of the headstock. It's been decided, and the sig has been removed. The Jackson logo will be replaced with something appropriate, but not necessarily another Jackson logo. You'll see. In the meantime, here's a bunch of pics I took today while removing the last of the sanding sealer on the headstock and stripping most of the neck.






















































































 

***UPDATE 23/7/09***

I spent thisafternoon very carefully sanding the rest of the clear cote from the sides of the ebony fretboard, and the overlapping clearcoat which remained on the neck. I also got stuck into the back of the body, getting rid of most of the paint and subsequent pale timber laminate on the back, which now looks like it has substantial figuring, and along with other peoples suggestions of which kind of wood it is, leads me to believe that it's maple, as opposed to my earlier suggestion that it appeared to be basswood. It's definitely harder than the basswood I've encountered on my RG bodies.

Anyway, here's the goods:




















































































































































***EDIT 27/7/09***

Rather than add to what is already over 100 pics in this post, I thought I'd add the updated pics to post number 54 in this thread, seen here: http://www.sevenstring.org/forum/1595397-post54.html 

***EDIT 4/8/09***

Next updated post can be seen here in post #72 in this thread: http://www.sevenstring.org/forum/1604857-post72.html

***EDIT 8/8/09***

Next update - post #93 - http://www.sevenstring.org/forum/1611173-post93.html


----------



## caughtinamosh (Jul 18, 2009)

The basswood laminate probably serves as a "palette" for the paint to go over. Basswood is easily finished, unlike mahogany, which takes has open "pores"(?).


----------



## TheSixthWheel (Jul 18, 2009)

caughtinamosh said:


> The basswood laminate probably serves as a "palette" for the paint to go over. Basswood is easily finished, unlike mahogany, which takes has open "pores"(?).



I totally agree, but found none of it when I resurfaced my Ibanez SF470 which was paint/primer/mahogany and took a LOT of sanding to remove the primer. It was very thick. I'm quite glad they used the laminate.


----------



## caughtinamosh (Jul 18, 2009)

Basswood isn't hard to sand through either, so you shouldn't have too much trouble. 

Are COW bodies one-piece slabs?


----------



## TheSixthWheel (Jul 18, 2009)

This one's 3 piece, I could see the joins/seams in the finish before I even started sanding. It's stamped 2005, so maybe the ones before or after could be different. Can't attest to that. Worst case scenario, if there's something seriously wrong or weird looking about the top, I'll put on a flamed maple laminate and trans green the bastard.


----------



## Harry (Jul 18, 2009)

Can't wait for the updates


----------



## Apophis (Jul 18, 2009)

looks good so far, but you have much work to do yet


----------



## TheSixthWheel (Jul 18, 2009)

oh for sure. Cheers


----------



## Scar Symmetry (Jul 18, 2009)

can't wait to see it finished!


----------



## mat091285 (Jul 18, 2009)

Seriously Can't Wait! ... not sure why ... but for Jackson the woods they use chip and dent easily ... but for Ibanez ... they are tough as hell .. and both are made in Japan ...


----------



## Sebastian (Jul 18, 2009)

TheSixthWheel said:


> Plans involve routing a neck pickup cavity



Congratulations You're on my List now


----------



## djpharoah (Jul 18, 2009)

Looks good - keep us posted. I hope you are still keeping the arched top?


----------



## technomancer (Jul 18, 2009)

Very cool project... glad to hear you're routing a neck pup, lack of one was one of the reasons I sold my COW7


----------



## wannabguitarist (Jul 18, 2009)

That should look great when you're finished, good luck



Sebastian said:


> Congratulations You're on my List now



Does he get a de-motivational poster too?


----------



## Sebastian (Jul 18, 2009)

wannabguitarist said:


> Does he get a de-motivational poster too?



Of course he will 

And you are also on the List


----------



## cow 7 sig (Jul 18, 2009)

better add me sebi double 707d one of my black COWS


----------



## Sebastian (Jul 18, 2009)

cow 7 sig said:


> better add me sebi double 707d one of my black COWS



A sad day... a sad day 

I will never post here again


----------



## TheSixthWheel (Jul 18, 2009)

mat091285 said:


> Seriously Can't Wait! ... not sure why ... but for Jackson the woods they use chip and dent easily ... but for Ibanez ... they are tough as hell .. and both are made in Japan ...



Agreed. even though I don't go round bashing them purposefully, I'm rather uncoordinated, but the headstock of my COW has definitely seen less bumps than each of my Ibanez RG7421, SF470, RG350...they've worn it and taken it in their stride easy enough. The Jackson paint and wood seemed to dent easier.



Sebastian said:


> Congratulations You're on my List now



...You've heard it before. But I'm saying it again. Having one pickup is extremely limiting to anyone who wants to do more than one thing on one guitar. I really give a shit about general warmth in clean tones and thickness in lead tones, and a fully mahogany guitar with one ACTIVE bridge pickup only spelt bad things for the various types and styles of music which I wanted this guitar to be able to handle. The distortion will sound close to identical (or better now that the paint's going) and the clean tone on the neck pup will actually have some warmth and depth, I'm really looking forward to hearing it. The addition of a tone knob will only assist in this guitar being a versatile instrument which can handle many different styles of rock, metal, ambient, progressive and experimental.. *Having options is not a bad thing.* Don't sacrifice your guitar's potential for your guitar's image.



djpharoah said:


> Looks good - keep us posted. I hope you are still keeping the arched top?



Cheers dude, I'm absolutely keeping the arch top, but I'm also adding a _ very_ slight forearm contour on the shoulder of the body. What can I say? I miss it when I'm not playing my RG's.



technomancer said:


> Very cool project... glad to hear you're routing a neck pup, lack of one was one of the reasons I sold my COW7



 After seeing James' (wannabguitarist) efforts with his silverburst COW a few months ago, this just had to be done. Plus I get some more experience routing. Never a bad thing.


----------



## Mattmc74 (Jul 18, 2009)

Looks good so far. I think its going to look really sweet natural!


----------



## XeoFLCL (Jul 18, 2009)

TheSixthWheel said:


> ...You've heard it before. But I'm saying it again. Having one pickup is extremely limiting to anyone who wants to do more than one thing on one guitar. I really give a shit about general warmth in clean tones and thickness in lead tones, and a fully mahogany guitar with one ACTIVE bridge pickup only spelt bad things for the various types and styles of music which I wanted this guitar to be able to handle. The distortion will sound close to identical (or better now that the paint's going) and the clean tone on the neck pup will actually have some warmth and depth, I'm really looking forward to hearing it. The addition of a tone knob will only assist in this guitar being a versatile instrument which can handle many different styles of rock, metal, ambient, progressive and experimental.. *Having options is not a bad thing.* Don't sacrifice your guitar's potential for your guitar's image.


I agree with you on this word by word. I filled in the neck pickup on my Washburn WG587 and to an extent I regret it. I never play it now eversince I started using a neck pup thanks to the C7 and experimenting with complex leads along the lines of sweeps and economic picking and such, but I DO have plans to re-route that out a single coil and put a blaze single in there. I absolutely LOVE neck single coils, and my current main sixxer is a h/s/s with the middle single coil disconnected (Since I never really use the middle pickup, I just disconnected it and turned that spot to the bridge and removed the springs/foam under the middle single so it didn't get in the way of my picking)


----------



## ryzorzen (Jul 18, 2009)

this all started out as quite the unfortunate event, glad you're turning it around! i loved my jackson 6 string dinky, the cow looks like the big brother 7 string equivalent, would love to play one of those!

keep updating with pics


----------



## Rick (Jul 18, 2009)

That's gonna look killer.


----------



## Adam Of Angels (Jul 18, 2009)

I think it'll look great, dude, but I think it would look even more amazing with the flamed maple top and trans green finish. But then again, if you did that same thing to ANY guitar, I'd start to drool


----------



## TheSixthWheel (Jul 19, 2009)

thanks guys. More pics tonight.

Correction on earlier theory: The body is actually a 4 piece. Doesn't have completely different grains though, so it looks decent.


----------



## Wi77iam (Jul 19, 2009)

Awesome!, now.. naturalise the Loomis?


----------



## TheSixthWheel (Jul 19, 2009)

...uh, no. It's got everything it needs. Just slapped a 2nd Blackout in it. Sounds immense.

btw - Bump for updated pics on page 1.

Wooooo bump for updated pics


----------



## Sebastian (Jul 20, 2009)

Great pictures on page....  1


----------



## TheSixthWheel (Jul 20, 2009)

Sebastian said:


> Great pictures on page....  1



Cheers 

More tomorrow


----------



## Mindcrime1204 (Jul 20, 2009)

IMO, sand the name off. I think it will look more complete and smoother that way. Nice job so far man!


----------



## mat091285 (Jul 20, 2009)

Mindcrime1204 said:


> IMO, sand the name off. I think it will look more complete and smoother that way. Nice job so far man!



+1  put ur signature on it ..


----------



## HumanFuseBen (Jul 20, 2009)

why most manufacturers insist on painting mahogany bodies instead of simply tung oiling them is beyond me! a buddy and i just stripped his AX7521 and oiled it down, and it looks like a million bucks. i'll soon have a mahogany Sims Custom Shop body that will also be oiled. huzzah! good work so far, man, keep it up!


----------



## conorreich (Jul 20, 2009)

HumanFuseBen said:


> why most manufacturers insist on painting mahogany bodies instead of simply tung oiling them is beyond me! a buddy and i just stripped his AX7521 and oiled it down, and it looks like a million bucks. i'll soon have a mahogany Sims Custom Shop body that will also be oiled. huzzah! good work so far, man, keep it up!



its too bad you couldnt "transfer" the sig from the paint to the wood haha. i think it would look cool over a natural finish but i think if you leave a splotch of paint on it its gonna take away from the beauty and the project.


----------



## Rich5150 (Jul 20, 2009)

Id say lose the Sig its not gonna be a COW sig when your done with it. And find a black Jackson logo for the headstock


----------



## TheSixthWheel (Jul 21, 2009)

Thanks for your information and opinions, guys.

Bump for updated pics on page 1


----------



## HumanFuseBen (Jul 21, 2009)

as a side note, i wouldn't lose sleep over sanding off that signature. meh.

and yeah, a black jackson logo would look nice! are you going to use Tung Oil or Tru Oil? i've seen AMAZING results of tru oil on top of mahogany... if you use lots and lots of thin coats and polish it like all hell, you can get a great shine out of that stuff!


----------



## TheSixthWheel (Jul 21, 2009)

HumanFuseBen said:


> as a side note, i wouldn't lose sleep over sanding off that signature. meh.
> 
> and yeah, a black jackson logo would look nice! are you going to use Tung Oil or Tru Oil? i've seen AMAZING results of tru oil on top of mahogany... if you use lots and lots of thin coats and polish it like all hell, you can get a great shine out of that stuff!



I didn't lose any sleep over losing the COW sig, I guess I just had to sleep _on_ it, if that makes any sense. I've never used Tru Oil before, so I wouldn't use it on something like this before I got to experiment with it. I'm actually after a satin finish on the guitar as well, although if I were after a shine/gloss, I'd ultimately go a sanding sealer with a nitrocellulose lacquer on top as opposed to any rubbing/buffing/finishing oil like Tung oil, Tru oil or Scandinavian oil.


----------



## TomParenteau (Jul 21, 2009)

I'm about to paint a mahogany body!


----------



## HumanFuseBen (Jul 21, 2009)

so what are you going to use for a finish, then? 

on that buddy of mine's ax7521 i was just talking about, we used Formby's Low Gloss Tung Oil, and it looked great! very satiny, not high gloss at all. if that's still too much for you, though, i bet you could hit it with some 0000 steel wool and knock it down.


----------



## TheSixthWheel (Jul 21, 2009)

TomPerverteau said:


> I'm about to paint a mahogany body!



Huzzah! 



HumanFuseBen said:


> so what are you going to use for a finish, then?
> 
> on that buddy of mine's ax7521 i was just talking about, we used Formby's Low Gloss Tung Oil, and it looked great! very satiny, not high gloss at all. if that's still too much for you, though, i bet you could hit it with some 0000 steel wool and knock it down.



All I'm using is the tung oil. Nothing else. I'll sand between coats with a worn piece of 1200 grit wet & dry sandpaper, doing between 5 and 10 coats or maybe even more, depending on how it feels after each coat has fully cured. I've also found through experimentation that you can get an oiled wooden surface much MUCH smoother using very fine grades of wet & dry sand paper/emery paper, using grades between 1200 and 2000 grit. 0000 grade steel wool can be as fine as people want to believe, but if the finished product isn't silky smooth to the touch, then that's a finishing issue IMO. I worked that out really quickly the first time I tried the steel wool approach when I had a really smooth Ibanez S series body and after one of the coats of tung oil had dried, I tested out the 0000 grade steel wool...I'm glad I only did a small patch because it took the satin finish back to what would have been the equivalent of close to 400-600 grit in sandpaper terms. So FWIW, I'd recommend you go higher in sandpaper grits to get the smooth you're after, and finish with a higher grit count, at least being 1200 grit. 

I'd even go so far as recommending not using steel wool at all. The reason being is that every wood has its harder and softer areas of fiber, or grain. You know how trees have rings? The rings themselves are of a more compact, dense fiber than the wood fibers in between. So when you use steel wool, rubbing along the wood grain with downwards pressure, there's more chance that you'll end up with an uneven surface than when you use a much flatter, more consistant piece of sand paper/emery paper. This is purely from my own experience and while I'm aware many people have achieved acceptable finishes with steel wool, I prefer the sand paper method. It's much more consistant IMO, and woodwork is ALL about consistancy.


----------



## troyguitar (Jul 21, 2009)

This is exactly what I intended to do if I ever found a cheap COW-7. Great job!


----------



## Andrew_B (Jul 21, 2009)

caughtinamosh said:


> The basswood laminate probably serves as a "palette" for the paint to go over. Basswood is easily finished, unlike mahogany, which takes has open "pores"(?).


 
i am going to assume that the ply is the method they have come up with to combat the lines in the finish that occur when multiple piece bodies are painted a solid colour...... 


since your in australia...
im going to sugest you try minwax wipe on poly....
i love the stuff and use it on a majority of my builds....
can find it at bunnings... comes in gloss and matte
i use gloss, i have a tin of matte but havnt had the urge to test it yet...


----------



## TheSixthWheel (Jul 21, 2009)

troyguitar said:


> This is exactly what I intended to do if I ever found a cheap COW-7. Great job!



Cheers dude. And if you do, make sure you document it and post it on ss.org 



Andrew_B said:


> i am going to assume that the ply is the method they have come up with to combat the lines in the finish that occur when multiple piece bodies are painted a solid colour......
> 
> since your in australia...
> im going to sugest you try minwax wipe on poly....
> ...



Agreed with the ply, but it was so thin you could still see the join lines on the surface of the paint. Not that I care, but you think they'd do it more professionally, right? Also, while I will take your recommendation on the minwax, I'm going to stick with a product I'm familiar with for this one, which is the straight up satin tung oil. I will grab some minwax from Bunnings though(only a few mins away, woo!) when I get the chance, to test out later on a sample or something. Recommendation appreciated though.  Cheers.

EDIT: Andrew, I just noticed that we're still both on here at 4:50 AM...


----------



## Andrew_B (Jul 21, 2009)

lol nothing else to do at this time of the morning.... 
not really intrested in sleeping 
just watching police rescue on abc lol

i gotta find some tung oil around here!
iv had problems sourcing it locally,
thats the reason i started using the minwax....

the ply is interesting... especially on a carved top


----------



## TheSixthWheel (Jul 21, 2009)

Police Rescue rules. I loved Gary Sweet in that underground caverning episode where there'd been a flash flood and people died, and were just floating randomly in deep underground caverns. But then again, I have a strange sense of entertainment.

I'd post you some Tung Oil if it weren't totally combustable and illegal to send through the post.


----------



## Wi77iam (Jul 22, 2009)

Andrew_B said:


> i gotta find some tung oil around here!
> iv had problems sourcing it locally,
> thats the reason i started using the minwax....



Yeah me too, I was down at the bunnings looking for some Tung Oil, but it only came in like giant cans like 2L  So I got some Danish Oil instead, worked pretty well on my RG7 (neck and body).


----------



## Andrew_B (Jul 22, 2009)

TheSixthWheel said:


> Police Rescue rules. I loved Gary Sweet in that underground caverning episode where there'd been a flash flood and people died, and were just floating randomly in deep underground caverns. But then again, I have a strange sense of entertainment.
> 
> I'd post you some Tung Oil if it weren't totally combustable and illegal to send through the post.


 
hahaha i remember that episode!
it had me and the missus bickering over whether or not he was alive lol
but ofcourse he was alive, its only like 20episodes into the series lol

yep thats the problem... you cant post the damn stuff.... 




Wi77iam said:


> Yeah me too, I was down at the bunnings looking for some Tung Oil, but it only came in like giant cans like 2L  So I got some Danish Oil instead, worked pretty well on my RG7 (neck and body).


 
they do have 2L tins????????
are you sure about that?
if so, looks like im going to bunnings to get me a big tin of tung oil,

unless its that tung oil infused ooutdoor furniture finish? lol


im off to put some more minwax wipe on poly onto a bass  haha


----------



## MF_Kitten (Jul 22, 2009)

the laminate was probably maple. it's hard enough to stay put, ya know?

my RG had, surprisingly, a QUILTED maple veneer under the finish, and it looked great. too bad there was no way i could save it when removing the paint


----------



## TheSixthWheel (Jul 23, 2009)

Bump for updated pics on page 1.


----------



## Andrew_B (Jul 24, 2009)

looking good....

im impressed by your sanding work....


----------



## TheSixthWheel (Jul 24, 2009)

cheers. My father was a painter and signwriter around Sydney for many years. A lot of my experience with sanding was from my older brother and I being asked to just randomly sand down boats, vehicles, signs, theatre scenic backgrounds etc. Pretty much slave labour...


----------



## Andrew_B (Jul 24, 2009)

TheSixthWheel said:


> cheers. My father was a painter and signwriter around Sydney for many years. A lot of my experience with sanding was from my older brother and I being asked to just randomly sand down boats, vehicles, signs, theatre scenic backgrounds etc. Pretty much slave labour...


 
LOL slave labour 


now finish it


----------



## CrushingAnvil (Jul 25, 2009)

Bump for win


----------



## wannabguitarist (Jul 25, 2009)

I was just playing my COW and the heel kept getting in my way so I thought of this thread.

You should definitely make the heel scallop deeper. It honestly doesn't feel that different from a standard Fender square heel with the way it is now


----------



## TheSixthWheel (Jul 26, 2009)

If it were for a customer, then I'd do it without question. But it's for me, so I'd have to ask myself a few questions first...What about the solid metal square plate on the heel? Or that the heel is of no issue to my playing? Or how it would significantly decrease the strength of that part of the body?
That'd stop me from trying to alter the neck pocket/heel in any way.

***EDIT 27/7/09***

Here's 4 additional pics from the other night when I did some more work on the body:



















Also, before you check out the following pics I'd like to mention that I have somewhat of an interest in traditional and antique woodworking tools and methods, such as the Spokeshave, early versions of the wood plane we now electric versions of, and so on. So to the people who believe that you _absolutely need_ to use a router to create a pickup cavity, I used nothing more than a hammer and chisel...and of course the odd bit of patience  

































































































































Of course a router when used professionally will be neater, faster and will have more appropriate curved corners instead of harsh 90 degree corners. But I like manual woodwork, so I figured I'd just go for it and if anything crazy happened I'd just fill it. So yeah, everything fits and it's right where I wanted it. I can't wait to hear the clean tones coming from the neck pup when it's all together.


----------



## CrushingAnvil (Jul 26, 2009)

THAT.LOOKS.SICK dude!


----------



## mat091285 (Jul 26, 2009)

Neck Pickup FTW!


----------



## ralphy1976 (Jul 27, 2009)

man, that hammer & chisel work was absolutely spot on, fantastic crafstmanship!!! +1 for the neck pickup !!!


----------



## CrushingAnvil (Jul 27, 2009)

I'm soooo looking forward to the update


----------



## loktide (Jul 27, 2009)

nice work man 

couldn't you have used a small radius round rasp to get round corners on the route, though?


----------



## drmosh (Jul 27, 2009)

I cannot wait to see this one finished, love the neck pickup work


----------



## Apophis (Jul 27, 2009)

that is really nice  you did it using harder way, but result is really nice


----------



## TheSixthWheel (Jul 27, 2009)

Thanks guys, I'm really looking forward to it myself!



loktide said:


> nice work man  couldn't you have used a small radius round rasp to get round corners on the route, though?



Yes, I easily could have used any of my files here to do the job. But something about the hammer and chisel job just really feels awesome with square pickup cavities. It's different, and hard to describe. At Dave's (Noodles) recommendation I'm also going to do the same to the bridge pickup cavity


----------



## Sebastian (Jul 27, 2009)

This actually turned out really cool


----------



## Benzesp (Jul 27, 2009)

This is great work. I was hoping Id see people do this to their COW's. Seems like a good candidate for mods because it is such a simple guitar.


----------



## thedonutman (Jul 27, 2009)

You chiseled out a pickup cavity - that's insane!

Good job though


----------



## wannabguitarist (Jul 27, 2009)

TheSixthWheel said:


> If it were for a customer, then I'd do it without question. But it's for me, so I'd have to ask myself a few questions first...What about the solid metal square plate on the heel? Or that the heel is of no issue to my playing? Or how it would significantly decrease the strength of that part of the body?
> That'd stop me from trying to alter the neck pocket/heel in any way.



Didn't think about it that much. Looks great, I honestly think I'm gonna like this more than my butchered COW. Natural mahogany=



Benzesp said:


> This is great work. I was hoping Id see people do this to their COW's. Seems like a good candidate for mods because it is such a simple guitar.



That's why I bought your's


----------



## -TheWickerMan- (Jul 27, 2009)

woah man really nice work, looks like it was hard


----------



## TheSixthWheel (Jul 27, 2009)

Thanks guys, more pic updates soon. Sanding the last of the paint from around the outside of the body, then it's on to final sanding and the Tung Oil process. Drying times will be crap, we're in winter here currently. Expect delays and indoor drying...if my housemate permits 



wannabguitarist said:


> I honestly think I'm gonna like this more than my butchered COW. Natural mahogany=



Then c'mon, let's see it. Get the sandpaper out, let's go!


----------



## Piro (Jul 27, 2009)

Just go get some tung oil from the hardware store and rub that guitar down. Then go over the whole thing thoroughly with extra fine steel wool. It'll feel super nice. It's what I did to the neck of my Gibson (same type of wood as the COW) and I can't say I've ever felt a better neck. It also brings out the grain.


----------



## TheSixthWheel (Jul 28, 2009)

Piro said:


> Just go get some tung oil from the hardware store and rub that guitar down. Then go over the whole thing thoroughly with extra fine steel wool. It'll feel super nice. It's what I did to the neck of my Gibson (same type of wood as the COW) and I can't say I've ever felt a better neck. It also brings out the grain.



Have you read _any_ of my posts in this thread?  Thankyou for the advice, but I've got it sorted.

http://www.sevenstring.org/forum/1589961-post39.html


----------



## AeonSolus (Jul 28, 2009)

I *LOVE* Butchered cows  Yes, i'm a bloody bastard  No really, the neck pickup Adds a great look/tonal range to the cow that i guess Christian can't see. Kids, That's what you get from just chugging and palm muting everything  it renders neck pickups useless.


----------



## TheSixthWheel (Aug 3, 2009)

*** UPDATE 4/8/09***

Bump for updated pics!

Here's a few shots taken last week:



















































And here's a bunch taken tonight, getting towards final sanding:










































































Found some nearby hardware, here's how it'll look with pups:


























It's getting there...


----------



## troyguitar (Aug 3, 2009)

Perfect. Let me know when you want to sell it


----------



## TheSixthWheel (Aug 3, 2009)

Thanks, but no thanks. Also, before you say that maybe you'll wanna find out what I've got in store for the headstock...


----------



## Rick (Aug 3, 2009)

Man, that looks great!


----------



## Benzesp (Aug 3, 2009)

Swirl it!!!!!



Just kidding... Even though its a 4 piece body it looks really good.


----------



## s_k_mullins (Aug 3, 2009)

Looks damn good man!! 
Can't wait to see this thing finished!


----------



## awesomeaustin (Aug 3, 2009)

where are you putting the toggle switch? looks fancy


----------



## TheSixthWheel (Aug 3, 2009)

Cheers guys  austin - The toggle is going in a similar position to where it is on my Loomis. Out of the way, but not too hard to reach.


----------



## Andrew_B (Aug 3, 2009)

screw the neck plate and use neck ferrules? 



looking good 
nice work on the pickup cavity... brings back memories lol


----------



## dewy (Aug 3, 2009)

brewtal.


----------



## mat091285 (Aug 3, 2009)

badass! badass pickup combo!


----------



## bibz (Aug 5, 2009)

Dunno if its been mentioned, but the wood you encountered before the mahogany was probably a small veneer of maple/basswood/whatever that they put on so the finish doesn't sink into the joins of the mahogany. I think it looks great!


----------



## MF_Kitten (Aug 5, 2009)

the veneer is usually maple, because it's so tightly grained. basswood guitars often have maple veneers too, because basswood is so damn soft.

oh, and to the OP, try filling the pores with something black, like maybe black shoe polish or something, then wipe it off and sand it down so the wood is bare again. this will leave the pores black, but the surface wood natural, and you end up really bringing out the grain of the wood


----------



## Emperoff (Aug 5, 2009)

4 piece body on a 1000$ guitar? Oh-man... 

Looks cool in natural finish though, I always wanted to se a COW like that


----------



## matttttYCE (Aug 5, 2009)

TheSixthWheel said:


> All I'm using is the tung oil.




What brand of tung oil are you using or can you recommend one for a similar project? I've heard that some are not 100% pure tung oil, while some are and that may or may not be better . Any help would be greatly appreciated!


----------



## GazPots (Aug 6, 2009)

Emperoff said:


> 4 piece body on a 1000$ guitar? Oh-man...
> 
> Looks cool in natural finish though, I always wanted to se a COW like that




I agree it was a bit shocking seeing the body construction like that on a pricey guitar.


----------



## Fred (Aug 6, 2009)

Ah man! Natural guitars are like natural tits - don't get why anyone would see the appeal behind anything else, haha. 4-piece or not, that looks fucking beautiful and _massive_ respect for doing the whole thing by hand!


----------



## Andrew_B (Aug 6, 2009)

Fred said:


> natural tits


 
i like 



i reckon we need updates on this.....


----------



## s_k_mullins (Aug 6, 2009)

Did someone say tits?? 





Where???

And yes we need new pics!!!


----------



## pirateparty (Aug 6, 2009)

Oh my god that is so hot.

You are a brave man, you are also really good with woodworking so it balances out, but still!


----------



## BurialWithin (Aug 6, 2009)

dude woah....i love that and i'm jealous


----------



## TheSixthWheel (Aug 8, 2009)

Ok guys, time for an update. 

I buffed the body again today to get rid of the pale powdered wood in the open Mahogany grain produced from fine sanding and applied the first coat of tung oil to the body. The neck as you can see still needs a tad more sanding towards the heel to have the paint neatly out of sight. I also shaved down part of the body where it bolts on to the neck. You can see the area which has been removed in the first few pics with the pencil markings.


----------



## Zeromancer (Aug 8, 2009)

Wow, this has turned out so awesome. Really good job!


----------



## Fred (Aug 8, 2009)

Beautifully clean work, man! Can't wait to see this all put together.


----------



## Despised_0515 (Aug 8, 2009)

Hawttttt

and it's gonna look even sicker once it's all done and put back together!
can't wait to see it man, great work so far!


----------



## Harry (Aug 8, 2009)

Wow man, excellent work!


----------



## CrushingAnvil (Aug 8, 2009)

SCHWINGG!!!


----------



## Andrew_B (Aug 8, 2009)

looks good man....

is that a two piece neck? or is that a grain line im seeing?


----------



## Adam Of Angels (Aug 8, 2009)

Beautiful - if they sold it like this but with passives, I'd have one.


----------



## TheSixthWheel (Aug 9, 2009)

MF_Kitten said:


> the veneer is usually maple, because it's so tightly grained. basswood guitars often have maple veneers too, because basswood is so damn soft.
> 
> oh, and to the OP, try filling the pores with something black, like maybe black shoe polish or something, then wipe it off and sand it down so the wood is bare again. this will leave the pores black, but the surface wood natural, and you end up really bringing out the grain of the wood



Cheers for the tips, and I'm sure it's worth experimenting with. I'll try that somewhere along the line and let you know how it goes.



Zeromancer said:


> Wow, this has turned out so awesome. Really good job!





Fred said:


> Beautifully clean work, man! Can't wait to see this all put together.





Harry said:


> Wow man, excellent work!





Adam Of Angels said:


> Beautiful - if they sold it like this but with passives, I'd have one.



Thanks guys  More pics real soon. Not to sound like too much of a hippy, but it's all the modded guitars I've seen which belong to you guys and fellow members on this site which motivate me to do these experiments and modifications. 



CrushingAnvil said:


> SCHWINGG!!!







Andrew_B said:


> looks good man....
> 
> is that a two piece neck? or is that a grain line im seeing?



Thanks dude. It's a 3 piece neck with a scarfe joint. The lower 2 pieces of the neck are nearly identical in colour and grain. Hard to see up close.


***EDIT 13/8/09***

Ok, after a few coats of tung oil on the neck and body I thought I'd throw a few pics up on here as an update for those interested. This thing is close to being reassembled, at least temporarily. I plan doing a slight extension of the corners of the bridge pickup cavity and the Jackson ebony headstock inlay is still in the works. But enough of that, have some pics.


----------



## Andrew_B (Aug 12, 2009)

finished yet ?



its looking goood

(i just thought id bump this so i dont have to spend 20 min searching for it again lol)


----------



## Izebecool (Aug 12, 2009)

Haha sorry I was looking at the pics and this struck me and and I had to do it!

Looks sweet tho! Cant wait to see it put back together completely!


----------



## MTech (Aug 13, 2009)

ANybody see C.O.W's new LED Custom?


----------



## xtrustisyoursx (Aug 13, 2009)

looking great man. this is inspiring/tempting me to do the same thing to my battered gibson sg, but i'm reluctant to give up all the awesome road scars


----------



## Empryrean (Aug 13, 2009)

^ C.O.W. stands for someone's name?


----------



## MTech (Aug 13, 2009)

Empryrean said:


> ^ C.O.W. stands for someone's name?


Where've you been?


----------



## jakeofthumbs (Aug 13, 2009)

Dude, you've got balls. Maybe it's just the fact that I'm left handed, and no good at woodwork, but I'd be shaking like a bitch if I even attempted something like that on one of my guitars!

Looking incredible though, can't wait to see it when it's done!


----------



## matttttYCE (Aug 16, 2009)

matttttYCE said:


> What brand of tung oil are you using or can you recommend one for a similar project? I've heard that some are not 100% pure tung oil, while some are and that one may or may not be better . Any help would be greatly appreciated!



Sorry to ask again, but I found little info on the net, I wasn't sure if you saw my original post or not, and I'm a tung oil n00b. Any info you could give me would be awesome! Thanks


----------



## TheSixthWheel (Aug 17, 2009)

matttttYCE said:


> Sorry to ask again, but I found little info on the net, I wasn't sure if you saw my original post or not, and I'm a tung oil n00b. Any info you could give me would be awesome! Thanks



Hey dude, I'm not going to recommend any specifically because I myself am a tung oil n00b. I've still only used one kind of tung oil. The brand of mine is TimberCare Tung Oil and it's not tru oil or anything amazing. It's good enough for what I want to do for the moment. I've still gotta try a stack of other products until I find one I'm ultimately happy with. One thing I would definitely recommend though is trying a few finishing oils on woods which are similar to the body you're refinishing. That way you'll have a fair idea. You can listen to as many reviews and testamonials as you want, but you'll still need that hands-on experience to know how the products compare. In other words - get out there any try them for yourself!

***FINAL UPDATE - PROJECT COMPLETE 18/8/09***

Well, here it is. I'll let the pics speak for themselves. I'd change a couple of things like the tools and processes used, but I know I'll keep learning stacks of stuff each time I undertake a mod job or start a body or neck in the future. I'm really looking forward to making a few guitars entirely from scratch.


----------



## willybman (Aug 17, 2009)

hell yeah, great job my friend


----------



## Despised_0515 (Aug 17, 2009)

Thats fucking GORGEOUS man!



Now put some more milage on that bitch!


----------



## Andrew_B (Aug 17, 2009)

came up great man 

i still reckon you should send it to me 


now you can start on a build from scratch!


----------



## Izebecool (Aug 17, 2009)

Very nice! I must say that looks 10 times better than the boring black.


----------



## C-PIG (Aug 17, 2009)

looks very cool good job man!


----------



## RawrItsRaptor (Aug 17, 2009)

Reminds me of a KXK


----------



## Konfyouzd (Aug 17, 2009)

that's lookin' good. and i say screw the signature...


----------



## matttttYCE (Aug 17, 2009)

Thanks for the info man! I'll definitely give some different ones a try before I use one on my mahogany s470L. In any case, the guitar looks utterly AMAZING! Kudos on some excellent work and for one less boring black guitar in the world!


----------



## mat091285 (Aug 18, 2009)

OMG Sweet Mods!


----------



## sol niger 333 (Sep 5, 2009)

You have awesome taste dude. So much better than stock its not even funny. Why do they paint them in the first place!! Wood is beautiful and timeless


----------



## shadowlife (Sep 5, 2009)

Looks completely badass- great job.


----------



## da771 (Sep 6, 2009)

Nice !!!


----------



## Purist (Sep 6, 2009)

sol niger 333 said:


> You have awesome taste dude. So much better than stock its not even funny. Why do they paint them in the first place!! Wood is beautiful and timeless



+1


----------



## CrushingAnvil (Sep 6, 2009)

Very cool dude.


----------



## hubbell1202 (Sep 6, 2009)

Very, Very nice. I'm in total envy...


----------



## hufschmid (Sep 6, 2009)

thats very nice, 1000000x better looking then when it had the ugly paint


----------



## TheSixthWheel (Sep 7, 2009)

Cheers guys 

I'm not sure if anyone's interested but this might just appear in the FS section before too long...


----------



## TheSixthWheel (Sep 12, 2009)

This is now up for sale, guys. http://www.sevenstring.org/forum/guitars-for-sale-trade-wanted/95632-natural-jackson-dk-7-cow.html


----------



## Storm_Shadow (Jan 17, 2010)

This is fuckin' great!!!

i wish i can finish my own handmade guitar soon...


----------



## youheardme (Jul 4, 2010)

Awesome picstory man... impressive


----------



## Rick In Pa (Jul 4, 2010)

I know I'm really late on this, but I just wanted to say that you did a great job on this. It looks fucking amazing! Cheers!


----------



## TheSixthWheel (Jul 4, 2010)

Woah, bump 

Cheers guys. It was a fun project, and recommend anyone else to do the same to plain boring guitars which are lacking versatility.


----------



## ncbrock (Jul 4, 2010)

looks 1000x better, I hate solid colored guitars, especially black.


----------



## Rick In Pa (Jul 4, 2010)

TheSixthWheel said:


> Woah, bump
> 
> Cheers guys. It was a fun project, and recommend anyone else to do the same to plain boring guitars which are lacking versatility.




I actually did the exact same thing to the back of my Agile PS900 Blue Flame. Not sure if I'd have the balls to do it to a $1000 guitar though. Here's the one I did:


----------



## TheSixthWheel (Jul 5, 2010)

Ah yeah, interesting.


----------



## Sang-Drax (Jul 6, 2010)

I don't know how I didn't see this before. It looks a *lot* better now than before. How much a difference tonewise could you notice after you removed the paint? I'm aware you also swapped pickups, so it's probably hard to tell, but Idk if you tested it before the pickup swap or something (didn't read through the whole thread).


----------



## TheSixthWheel (Jul 6, 2010)

It's been a while since I owned the Jackson in question, but I seem to remember it really opened it up, tonally. I think I did try it again with the EMG and while the tone was changed, I was pretty set on the idea of Blackouts, so I don't think I really gave it a proper test. I did the same naturalising process to some others;

Ibanez SF470 - http://www.sevenstring.org/forum/standard-guitars/82175-naturalising-ibanez-sf470.html

Ibanez RG7421 - http://www.sevenstring.org/forum/sevenstring-guitars/69109-rg7421-resurfacing-underway.html


----------



## xRANDY_SAVAGEx (Jul 7, 2010)

That COW is one of the most beautiful things i have ever seen IN MY LIFE....
great job, man.


----------



## morbider (Feb 6, 2011)

My attempt at adding the neck pickup

http://www.sevenstring.org/forum/lu...4-jackson-cow7-dk-7-camo-neck-pickup-mod.html


----------

