# LTD MH-1000 Naturalised. Pics + Work in progress.



## TheSixthWheel (May 5, 2011)

Hey guys, Nick here with another naturalisation thread. About 12 months ago my MH-1000 suffered a rather unsightly ding on the front of the body, seen here:











I immediately thought of ways to repair the ding, only to be met with the clear solution every time of just going for it and naturalising the whole thing.

No idea why it took me so long to start, but I stripped it of all hardware tonight and will update this thread accordingly (and hopefully regularly!) with pics of the process, much like my other naturalising threads in the past, the Ibanez RG7421, SF470 and Jackson DK7 COW.

Plans are to apply tung oil, being that I've had some great results with it in the past. Now to decide on satin or gloss tung oil. Here's to finding some half decent mahogany under all that tone draining paint.

Oh, here's some pics mainly to show people who aren't too familiar with the LTD Deluxe's bare bones construction. Nothing too interesting here for people who've seen it all before - just stripped of hardware, ready for mods.

Please excuse iphone pics, my digital camera is both MIA and now obsolete.










































































More pics below VVV


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## TheSixthWheel (May 5, 2011)




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## TheSixthWheel (May 5, 2011)




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## Curt (May 5, 2011)

can't wait to see it! should look killer.


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## toiletstand (May 5, 2011)

love this guitar. cant wait to see more


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## jordanky (May 5, 2011)

I'm stoked to see how this turns out!


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## cwhitey2 (May 5, 2011)

i want finished pics now!!!!!


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## Scar Symmetry (May 5, 2011)

This makes me a saaaaaaaad panda.

Looking forward to seeing it finished though!


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## MrMcSick (May 6, 2011)

Wondering what your gonna do about the body binding and abalone?


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## cwhitey2 (May 6, 2011)

MrMcSick said:


> Wondering what your gonna do about the body binding and abalone?


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## TheSixthWheel (May 6, 2011)

MrMcSick said:


> Wondering what your gonna do about the body binding and abalone?



Seemingly, lots of people loathe the excessive abalone binding on the deluxe LTD's. I'm not too bothered about it, and as a result, don't give a shit about if it stays or goes. I'll have to see how deep it is, and what depth the wood is under the inlay and binding. Will definitely field suggestions, but for the moment I'm cool with whatever. If the inlay is very deep into the wood, might leave some of it in there.

I'm not going for the world's most incredible refinish with this, I just want it to look different, and not have a dirty great big blem in the paint on the front.


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## Pikka Bird (May 6, 2011)

^You might get some nasty green patches in the abalone if it turns out to be abalam.


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## BlackMastodon (May 7, 2011)

I'm one of those people that loathe the excessive amount of abalone on those guitars. I can handle a bit of abalone, but jesus ESP, did you have to cover 40% of the guitar with it? This should be exciting though.


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## TheSixthWheel (May 16, 2011)

Looks like the abalone's being removed from the body, maybe the headstock too.

Started sanding on the weekend, here's the last pics of it being properly white.


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## TheSixthWheel (May 16, 2011)

No turning back now...


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## TheSixthWheel (May 16, 2011)

So, 4 piece body with a separate mahogany cap to create the archtop, making a total of 5 pieces. Not surprised being that this one got painted instead of stained/clear. I guess I was just hoping for a nice surprise.  Looks like a veneer job. Goodbye abalone. Hello flamed maple.


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## MrMcSick (May 16, 2011)

Interesting.


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## turenkodenis (May 16, 2011)

there really 5 pieces? hell, I have LTD EC-1000 in Snow White finish
and now I began to wonder what to do!!!!


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## s_k_mullins (May 16, 2011)

Very curious to see how this one turns out!


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## jordanky (May 16, 2011)

I thought these guitars were neck through for some reason. Looks killer though dude, keep up the good work!


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## SavM (May 19, 2011)

Take it off, take it all off baby


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## Pengu (Sep 20, 2011)

mmm I have a blue one of these. Going to be interesting to see it without the abalone, and how your going to go about taking it of  Looking good so far man!


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## FACTORY (Sep 25, 2011)

I love what your doing with this guitar, get"R done and continue to post lots a pics!


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## Pikka Bird (Sep 25, 2011)

My curiosity is centered around how you're veneering it. Sand bags?


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## TheSixthWheel (Sep 25, 2011)

FACTORY said:


> I love what your doing with this guitar, get"R done and continue to post lots a pics!



How appropriate that today of all days is when this thread gets revived. For tomorrow, I start holidays and will be working on this (on and off) for probably the next 2 weeks.



Pikka Bird said:


> My curiosity is centered around how you're veneering it. Sand bags?



I've pondered upon this myself and after some thought, I'm definitely rethinking the idea of a veneer. The veneer would be the most time consuming, whereas I could just seal the body wood up, prep it all ready for spraying and coat the body with flat white or even another colour. 
My more recent ideas include bright colours, which could really go either way.  I'll go see dad for some paint mixing advice, but I'm thinking a possible fluorescent green with chrome hardware, or fluorescent yellow with black hardware. Suggestions are welcome, I'd love to hear what everyone would like the see this with finished with. Don't be shy!


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## iRaiseTheDead (Sep 25, 2011)

This is a beautiful guitar to start with.


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## TheSixthWheel (Sep 26, 2011)

This afternoon I sanded the back of the body and neck, and discovered a SHIT load of clear sanding sealer underneath, which has really slowed progress and is even more of a reason to leave it and coat the thing fluorescent green or yellow. I also reshaped the heel to be slightly similar to a Jackson set neck heel. You'll know what I mean when I post a few pics later on tonight. Reason why I haven't yet - I'm at the doctors because I've had something in my eye for close to 2 weeks and have finally had enough. Got a question though, anyone know how much wood there is between the bottom of an LTD truss rod channel? I plan on taking a couple of mm off, reshaping the neck contour as well as the heel and really don't want to be sanding away and discover truss rod cavity.



iRaiseTheDead said:


> This is a beautiful guitar to start with.



Cheers buddy! Lets hope it turns out ok.


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## sessionswan (Sep 26, 2011)

I too am curious about the abalone binding removal from the body. I have an M-1000 as well as a UV777BK that I would love to sand down and remove the binding from both, and seeing your progress would help greatly. Looking good so far though man, keep going!


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## ZXIIIT (Sep 26, 2011)

sessionswan said:


> ..UV777BK that I would love to sand down and remove the binding from...


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## Opion (Sep 26, 2011)

ZOMB13 said:


>


 
 I can understand wanting to refinish a cheap LTD...hell my M200FM is utlra customized...but a UV? Unless it turns out looking super awesome I'd be too scared to touch it 

On topic however, this project looks pretty neat, it's always fun to see underneath the clear coat for a little surprises like that 5 piece body and what not...hope things go swimmingly!


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## sessionswan (Sep 26, 2011)

> I can understand wanting to refinish a cheap LTD...hell my M200FM is utlra customized...but a UV? Unless it turns out looking super awesome I'd be too scared to touch it



It's just a guitar - a nice one but still just a guitar. I'm more concerned with the playability and sound than the looks, and I like to tinker. Besides, that would be my tinkering UV, my silver dot will remain unmolested 

Totally not trying to thread jack so back to your regularly scheduled LTD sanding...


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## TheSixthWheel (Sep 27, 2011)

Here's some pics from yesterday which I totally forgot about on 4 hours sleep:


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## TheSixthWheel (Sep 27, 2011)

Reshaping the heel:


























Ooh, my pickups showed up. Thanks Chris!





That's it for the day, then. Soldering time.


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## Konfyouzd (Sep 27, 2011)

sessionswan said:


> It's just a guitar - a nice one but still just a guitar. I'm more concerned with the playability and sound than the looks, and I like to tinker. Besides, that would be my tinkering UV, my silver dot will remain unmolested
> 
> Totally not trying to thread jack so back to your regularly scheduled LTD sanding...


 



@OP - What did you use to reshape the heel?


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## TheSixthWheel (Sep 27, 2011)

Konfyouzd said:


> @OP - What did you use to reshape the heel?



Could have but did not use a rasp. Just good old elbow grease and a combination of rough 60 and 80 grit sandpaper, rough as hell for shaping. No sanding blocks, just fingers. Easier to feel your way and create contours.

Note for any beginners: Be wary when using rough grits, it causes deep scratches in the grain of the wood, especially when going across the direction of grain. One or two wrong passes with a rough grit can sometimes mean hours of careful sanding, trying to remove the obvious gouges. I was shaping the heel here so I was comfortable with going against the grain, knowing that I still have a lot of sanding left to get it where I want. It's not pretty to look at, but it certainly gets the job done quickly. When you're hand sanding, you want to be making effective passes with the paper, not necessarily sticking with the grain 100%. Depending on what finish I decide on, I'm not sure where I'll stop with the sanding. I'm thinking about leaving the thick sanding sealer on the back of the neck, finely sanding down to 1200 or 2000 grit. I love the look of the 3 pc maple neck on this, it's definitely one of the best features of this guitar. Plus, nearly everyone loves a nice slippery matte/sanded finish on the back of the neck.


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## sessionswan (Sep 27, 2011)

Did you use the 60 and 80 grit on the neck as well or did you start with something lighter?


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## TheSixthWheel (Sep 27, 2011)

sessionswan said:


> Did you use the 60 and 80 grit on the neck as well or did you start with something lighter?



80 on the neck, just to get a lot off quickly. The paint was quite thin, but the sealer is much thicker. I still haven't broken through the sealer on the neck as you can see, but from here on out, I'll use 120, then 400, then 800, then 1200, then 2000. It'll be ridiculously smooth when it's finished.


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## sessionswan (Sep 27, 2011)

TheSixthWheel said:


> 80 on the neck, just to get a lot off quickly. The paint was quite thin, but the sealer is much thicker. I still haven't broken through the sealer on the neck as you can see, but from here on out, I'll use 120, then 400, then 800, then 1200, then 2000. It'll be ridiculously smooth when it's finished.



Badass, thanks man! I can't wait to see the rest of this when it's done.


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## Pikka Bird (Sep 27, 2011)

Now that you're at it, how about blending the belly contour into the outline? Perhaps making scoops in the cutaways.


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## Floppystrings (Sep 27, 2011)

Pikka Bird said:


> Now that you're at it, how about blending the belly contour into the outline? Perhaps making scoops in the cutaways.



This.

Clooney scoop that thang.


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## scherzo1928 (Sep 27, 2011)

Looks so much better without al that paint...


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## peagull (Sep 27, 2011)

Looking forward to seeing this finished, I've got a h-1001 in black, and I am sick of black guitars!


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## BlackMastodon (Sep 27, 2011)

Floppystrings said:


> This.
> 
> *Clooney* scoop that thang.


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## TheSixthWheel (Sep 28, 2011)

Pikka Bird said:


> Now that you're at it, how about blending the belly contour into the outline? Perhaps making scoops in the cutaways.



Not sure about the blending of the belly contour, but I plan on doing what I did to my old Jackson COW 7, and adding the additional bevels inside the cutaways. Both sides on this one, too. Here's the Jackson for those who haven't seen it: http://www.sevenstring.org/forum/sevenstring-guitars/91051-jackson-dk-7-cow-naturalised.html



peagull said:


> Looking forward to seeing this finished, I've got a h-1001 in black, and I am sick of black guitars!



You never know what's under the paint. It's always gonna be a bit of a gamble, just be ready for anything to avoid disappointment.


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## Pikka Bird (Sep 28, 2011)

That COW ended up great! Really cool project.

No love for this line?


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## Augury (Sep 28, 2011)

that looks so damn nice


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## JPMike (Sep 28, 2011)

You sir, have talent and a great amount of patience. 

2 Virtues!! 

Looks awesome!!!


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## TheSixthWheel (Sep 28, 2011)

Pikka Bird said:


> No love for this line?



I'll be doing any changes to areas like that on the fly. I'll be eyeballing the contours and adjusting things which I like the look of. I don't know yet if I'll be changing that line, but it might be one of the things I adjust last minute. Thanks for the suggestion, I'll take it on board.



Augury said:


> that looks so damn nice





JPMike said:


> You sir, have talent and a great amount of patience.
> 
> 2 Virtues!!
> 
> Looks awesome!!!



Thanks fellas, I'm pretty confident with this one, we'll see if the makeover is worth the work.


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## Frank_Domine (Sep 28, 2011)

Nice work! Waitin' for news!


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## MF_Kitten (Sep 28, 2011)

Pikka Bird said:


> That COW ended up great! Really cool project.
> 
> No love for this line?



i am also looking at the heel there. i really want to get in there and complete te line from the insides of the horns, making that nice curve!


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## TheSixthWheel (Sep 28, 2011)

MF_Kitten said:


> i am also looking at the heel there. i really want to get in there and complete te line from the insides of the horns, making that nice curve!



That's the sort of Jackson-esque heel contour that I mentioned earlier. I'm not finished shaping the heel or the neck contour, but the outcome will be what's most comfortable for me. That top line of the belly contour isn't a modification I need, but the heel is a must.


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## CD1221 (Sep 30, 2011)

You, sir, are one crazy mofo.


Looking forwards to seeing it finished.


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## Daemon (Oct 8, 2011)

Yes damn, Can't wait to see it finished !


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## Jonisbrutal (Nov 5, 2011)

IMO Keep the abalone.

You should also try reshaping the pickup cavities so you can have body mount pickups. The paint should cover it up.


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## chipsta21 (Nov 5, 2011)

cant wait to see how this turns out


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## GuitaristOfHell (Nov 5, 2011)

Keep us posted. Looks good so far.


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## TheSixthWheel (Nov 29, 2011)

Been a while since I updated this thread with new pics, there shall be more soon. I've been busy with a combination of other projects and just life in general...and maybe some skyrim if I'm being completely honest. Hope to have this guitar mostly done if not completely finished before xmas. More pics within the week.


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## BlackMastodon (Nov 29, 2011)

*Some* Skyrim?


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## teleofseven (Nov 29, 2011)

BlackMastodon said:


> *Some* Skyrim?



that's actually a good reason for any delay 

...it's why my project is also kinda halted. 

can't wait to see some pictures!


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## Nautilus (Nov 29, 2011)

sweet! Makes my Agile's naturalisation look totally amature. Epic job


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## Ironbird (Nov 30, 2011)

I usually like white guitars, but this...this one needs to be in a natural finish of some sort!


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## spadz93 (Dec 7, 2011)

i remember the first sanding stroke on my damien 6 fr lol. but damn, this is coming along much nicer than mine did! cant wait to see the finished product. although i think the hole in my syn custom mightve been worse than your ding haha


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## estabon37 (Jan 16, 2012)

I realise I'm bumping an oldie here, but I'd love to know how much progress you've made on this one dude.

PS I'm back in Australia in about a week and back in the Dong as soon as I'm through the worst of the jetlag. Strangely one of my most interesting tales of the trip to Amsterdam involved visiting Dirk Witte instruments and walking out with a T-Rex Mudhoney II.  The other tales are . . . difficult to recall.


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## liar (Feb 26, 2012)

PLEASE  Update photo, I'd like to see the natural guitar  (and how much is the mahogany)


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## TheSixthWheel (Feb 26, 2012)

Hey friends, you'll have to wait a little bit longer for updated pics. Good news though, as soon as I'm done with this one, it's most likely gonna go straight up for sale. Need cash!


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## rcsierra13 (Feb 28, 2012)

Looking forward to seeing the outcome! May well do the same with mine. I have it in see through black. Not sure what I'd do to restain though?


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## TheSixthWheel (Feb 28, 2012)

rcsierra13 said:


> Looking forward to seeing the outcome! May well do the same with mine. I have it in see through black. Not sure what I'd do to restain though?



To restain properly you have to get back to bare wood, getting under the thick sanding sealer. After you've applied your new stain you gotta decide between oil finish (matte or gloss) or a basic nitro/poly/spray finish (matte or gloss). Actually you might wanna decide that first


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## TheSixthWheel (Mar 9, 2012)

Tomorrow will yield new progress pics! Because it's an archtop, If I was to keep it natural, I'd have to use a shitty thin laminate top. I don't want it to have a shitty thin laminated quilt/flame top so I've decided I'm going to paint this one, which is a first. Looks like bright green or yellow. Maybe both? Swirl? Stay tuned.


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## EpicFlail (Mar 9, 2012)

About damn time, man!


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## TheSixthWheel (Mar 9, 2012)

EpicFlail said:


> About damn time, man!



Yeah, yeah, go work on your SC-607B 


Might as well dump some new pics in this post:



















































There WAS a large amount of sealer on the back, most of it's gone now. I'll be leaving the back of the body AND the neck and back of the headstock natural/oiled while the top + sides of the body and top + sides of the headstock will be painted. Think I'm gonna go for a similar green as the new Ibanez SXXV1's, but would like to hear some other suggestions from you guys.


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## TheSixthWheel (Mar 10, 2012)

Had a really interesting conversation with Mark, a Jehovah's Witness who came round after lunch and was up for a chat. Anyway, back on with the progress.


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## TheSixthWheel (Mar 10, 2012)

Some final shots before packing up:


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## Nag (Mar 10, 2012)

this looks epic, man.


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## TheSixthWheel (Mar 10, 2012)

Nagash said:


> this looks epic, man.



Cheers! Everything's going according to plan so far. We'll see what happens.


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## Scar Symmetry (Mar 10, 2012)

Looking forward to seeing this finished


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## Invader (Mar 10, 2012)

Looking good so far! I would probably do a painted top with natural or maybe stained oil finish for the sides and back.


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## turenkodenis (Mar 10, 2012)

About green as the new Ibanez SXXV1's - good if black binding, not white...
Do it! Rebind the top!!!!


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## TheSixthWheel (Mar 10, 2012)

Invader said:


> Looking good so far! I would probably do a painted top with natural or maybe stained oil finish for the sides and back.





turenkodenis said:


> About green as the new Ibanez SXXV1's - good if black binding, not white...
> Do it! Rebind the top!!!!



I'll be leaving the binding and painting over it, but will mask off most of the sides and leave as natural. No binding will be visible any more.


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## iRaiseTheDead (Mar 10, 2012)

Still not finished?


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## TheSixthWheel (Mar 10, 2012)

iRaiseTheDead said:


> Still not finished?



HEY! I've only just started on this one again, and have other guitars I'm working on, I'm going slow with those too.


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## ibanezcollector (Mar 10, 2012)

awesome job so far cant wait to see it finished, also nice to see LTD using some nice wood under the paint, this is the 3rd I have seen and all had nice wood.


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## TheSixthWheel (Mar 11, 2012)

My mission this afternoon was to 1) further contour the inside of the lower horn, 2) remove the paint from both cutaways, and 3) remove the sealer from the back of the neck. Success was achieved.


Bunnings actually had what I wanted for once.






Here's a before shot, note the paint inside the cutaways.





It fits!





















Check the weird fracture in the wood grain here. I hope and suspect that it'll be far less noticable once the finish is applied. Either way, it's not like the guitar's about to split down the middle.....





























That's all for this weekend.


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## liar (Mar 11, 2012)

i know i'm stupid but i can't find Ibanez SXXV1


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## TheSixthWheel (Mar 11, 2012)

Sorry, model name should be S1XXV:


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## liar (Mar 11, 2012)

you have worked hard to emerge the wood grains, i think is better something like this 













or any other color you like.
This is the esp signature rob caggiano  maybe the grains aren't exactly the same but is an idea.


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## TheSixthWheel (Mar 12, 2012)

Cheers for the suggestion, but the wood grain in the front of the guitar is FAR from acceptable for a stained finish I'd be pleased with. That arched 'cap' they put on this guitar (and many others I can only assume) looks really awful. I can't do the natural stain on the front unless I buy a flamed or quilted maple top, which will really increase the amount of work/time before this is finished. I just want it done in a flat colour so I can just have it finished already.


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## Pikka Bird (Mar 12, 2012)

^Yeah, the mahogany they use for these isn't the most exciting. No ribbon figure or anything like what you'd see on those low mid-range mahogany RGs to make it look stunning with a natural finish.

Also, the Rob Caggiano guitar has an ash body, which has lots of grain lines running in wonderful waves all over the place, whereas mahogany basically always has small, inconspicuous and straight grain.


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## liar (Mar 12, 2012)

Well you're right. I say this because I like the most natural stained guitars. But if you have an awful result, better to go your way .


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## TheSixthWheel (Mar 12, 2012)

Spoke to my dad earlier tonight to see if he had any suggestions for the colour. I gave him a few 'loud' examples of colours similar to what I'm after, like the green and yellow on both the Ibanez S1XX's and the original Road Flare Red which he called loved. He's got 25 yrs of signwriting/scenery painting experience so he'll be giving me some real paint mixing pointers. He also has a compressor, and a really nice spray gun. With a few tester examples on junk bodies I have here, I'll be able to make sure I get the finish I'm after, or as close to that as possible. Might be as soon as the coming weekend.


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## TheSixthWheel (Mar 17, 2012)

More pics from today.


















































































Progress is slow, got loads of other shit to do, other guitars to mod, new guitars incoming, etc. Surprised I got as much time as I did on this today. Hopefully I can squeeze in some more time tomorrow (sunday)


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## SenorDingDong (Mar 17, 2012)

Really looking forward to the finished product. I think that LTD's look so much better without all the binding and extra glimmer.


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## BlackMastodon (Mar 17, 2012)

JWGriebel said:


> Really looking forward to the finished product. I think that LTD's look so much better without all the binding and extra glimmer.



Agree 100%, especially for the Horizon shapes.
Glad to see you are stripping all of it instead of leaving the sides, this thing should look really damn good when it's done.


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## 9voltchicken (Mar 18, 2012)

Careful not to sand the heel down too thin. Having no heel is nice but since it is glued it can lead to structural issues if there isn't enough wood to hold the joint together. Other than that, it looks good so far. That binding must go.


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## rcsierra13 (Mar 28, 2012)

Can't wait to see this done dude! Depending on the outcome I'll either sell or do this to mine


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## Prostheta (Mar 28, 2012)

I can't lie - it looks a bit of a mess. I would have repaired the ding by steaming the wood fibres up and out and doing a little touchup work. White is an easy colour to repair. Painted guitars get paint-grade wood, usually mismatched and slathered in nuclear-proof sealer as you have found.

Advice. Too soon?


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## tommychains (Mar 28, 2012)

loving this thread. I've seen a lot of these kinds of threads lately, and i'm considering buying one for cheap and doing this kind of project. Any suggestions?


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## TheSixthWheel (Mar 28, 2012)

Thanks guys. I'm free this weekend, so I'll be completing the rest of the sanding, and tung oiling the back and sides. This leaves the front free for quilted maple veneer, which I've decided to go with. It'll be the least fucking about (no nitro needed) in terms of work and time, and I think it'll be the best the body can look too. Either going to stain the QM veneer a similar Carvin style 'Dragonburst' or I'm quite find of yellow, green, purple, blue, etc. Either way, it'll be something pretty loud.

MODS AHOY!



Prostheta said:


> I can't lie - it looks a bit of a mess. I would have repaired the ding by steaming the wood fibres up and out and doing a little touchup work. White is an easy colour to repair. Painted guitars get paint-grade wood, usually mismatched and slathered in nuclear-proof sealer as you have found.
> 
> Advice. Too soon?



I find it hard to not take slight offense to this, you're telling me what _you_ think I should have done with my guitar, and then talk down to me as if I foolishly expected to find an AAAAA grade figured maple cap on top of the body? 

Haha, it's not like it's anywhere close to finished. I did NOT expect to find amazing wood underneath, just didn't expect to find the slap-on arch top. As soon as I saw that, I knew what had to be done.

You'd have steamed it? Lucky it's not your guitar, then. I knew this guitar had potential, and didn't want it simply going back to gloss white with abalone. Besides, it's not like it's an insane PRS or EBMM body which needs tender care with chips and dents, I just wanted to mod the christ out of this guitar and the chip was a good excuse. Looks a bit of a mess?  no shit, how else am I going to strip it back and make cosmetic and structural love to it? Unlike the guys who post up glamorous, impressive and carefully selected progress pics without showing the nasty ones involving fuck ups, mistakes, surprises, etc, I like to show all the dirty stuff in the hope that others see it and will learn as I learn. I'd like to think that I assist people who are planning to make similar mods to their guitars. Whether I encourage them or deter them from commencing said mods, so be it. It helps them make a more informed decision.

Don't get me wrong, I appreciate input and I know this is the internet, but it's like you saw only the pics and didn't read any of my bullshit talking about how different I'm going to make this guitar, and how excited I am to see it finished.


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## Pikka Bird (Mar 29, 2012)

I think the glued on top is a pretty genius move, since that saves the proper thick body blanks.

I like where you're going with it, and I love that the back is going natural. Have you decided how you're going to apply a veneer to the top with those carves? I have a plan for my Cort where I'm going to make a clay mold of the top and use it for clamping since I don't have a vacuum press.


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## TheSixthWheel (Mar 29, 2012)

Pikka Bird said:


> I think the glued on top is a pretty genius move, since that saves the proper thick body blanks.
> 
> I like where you're going with it, and I love that the back is going natural. Have you decided how you're going to apply a veneer to the top with those carves? I have a plan for my Cort where I'm going to make a clay mold of the top and use it for clamping since I don't have a vacuum press.




Yeah the top makes sense, just screwed my plans  The maple I'm applying is simply a thin veneer which can be rolled up to post in the mail or laid flat on a guitar. Fitting it to the shape of the MH shouldn't be a problem due to how thin it is. Good luck with your Cort, let me know how it goes!


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## Pikka Bird (Mar 30, 2012)

^Trust me, it's not all that easy to bend veneers across a carved top. It doesn't adjust to a three dimensional surface very well unless you can clamp it with something that has the same shape (usually a vacuum press). That's why I'm experimenting with the clay.

I'm sure you'll let us know how your adventures play out. Looking forward to it.


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## noUser01 (Apr 1, 2012)

As much as I truly believe you are committing one of the worst sins ever...







... I can't wait to see this thing.


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## Sebastian (Apr 1, 2012)

Great work so far! can't wait to see some more pics


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## BlackMastodon (Apr 1, 2012)

ConnorGilks said:


> As much as I truly believe you are committing one of the worst sins ever...
> 
> 
> 
> ...


I personally see the amount of abalone that ESP/LTD uses on those things to be a sin, but to each their own.


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## noUser01 (Apr 1, 2012)

BlackMastodon said:


> I personally see the amount of abalone that ESP/LTD uses on those things to be a sin, but to each their own.



Fair enough!!


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## Prostheta (Jul 7, 2012)

Sounds like this "project" is well and truly dead, much like it deserves to be.


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## bob123 (Jul 7, 2012)

Prostheta said:


> Sounds like this "project" is well and truly dead, *much like it deserves to be*.




huh?


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## MrHelloGuitar (Jul 7, 2012)

Prostheta said:


> Sounds like this "project" is well and truly dead, much like it deserves to be.



Wat a h8er.


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## TheSixthWheel (Jul 8, 2012)

This project is still alive. Waiting on an OFR, and some very specific paint.



Prostheta said:


> Sounds like this "project" is well and truly dead, much like it deserves to be.



haha thanks for the vote of confidence.  I have 4 other guitars I'm working on in stages so I'm doing what I want, and taking as long as I want with it. It's not a popularity contest, and I couldn't give a shit what the end result is now, as I've been able to replace this guitar as my main teaching guitar with a new ESP Horizon FR in snow white. I'll just be taking my time with the mods on the LTD.


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## Vicious7 (Jul 8, 2012)

I love loud guitar colors, whatcha using for your guitar? Still going with a dragonburst-ish finish?? <3 Considering you've done this before is even cooler, love the heel and the contours you're adding!! \m/


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## TheSixthWheel (Jul 8, 2012)

Vicious7 said:


> I love loud guitar colors, whatcha using for your guitar? Still going with a dragonburst-ish finish?? <3 Considering you've done this before is even cooler, love the heel and the contours you're adding!! \m/



Cheers mate, I'd rather not mention what I've decided on. You'll all see soon enough. Have patience, check back regularly.


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## TheSixthWheel (Jul 18, 2012)

Front is getting paint. Back and sides are getting oil.

After fine sanding:






















After 2 coats of tung oil:


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## turenkodenis (Jul 18, 2012)

Fuck, 4 pieces body!!!!! And great look BTW!! Love this idea


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## spilla (Jul 18, 2012)

I really like how you can see the set neck now and the mahogany look great with the tung oil and white binding!


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## MrHelloGuitar (Jul 18, 2012)

Lookin' good!


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## themike (Jul 18, 2012)

Absolutely gorgeous man. Can't wait to see the rest!


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## Konfyouzd (Jul 18, 2012)

Lookin' sexual...


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## Polythoral (Jul 18, 2012)

That body looks wonderful now!


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## maximummetal288 (Jul 18, 2012)

Reminds me of a Mayones! Looks great.


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## rcsierra13 (Jul 19, 2012)

Looking absolutely killer, can't wait to see it done!


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## TheSixthWheel (Jul 19, 2012)

Thanks all, more pics in the coming weeks.


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## Kapee (Jul 19, 2012)

coming weeks, u srs?


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## TheSixthWheel (Jul 19, 2012)

Well I've gotta spend 8 more days applying coats of tung oil. During that time I'll be modding both pickup cavities to be direct mount. Then will seal, undercoat and spray the front of the body and headstock. Then I've gotta hand paint all trim/binding. All this will be done while maintaining my full roster of students, keeping my wife happy, and maintaining some semblance of a social life. Yeah I'm srs, lol.


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## tasteslikeawesome (Jul 19, 2012)

I've been waiting sooooooo long to see this finished. Keep up the good work!


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## Tones (Jul 19, 2012)

Looks great man..
you're just like me. If there's a decent sized ding in a guitar, sand the whole fricking thing!


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## Saber_777 (Jul 20, 2012)

turenkodenis said:


> Fuck, 4 pieces body!!!!! And great look BTW!! Love this idea



Thought we all agreed earlier it was 5 due to the top?


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## simonXsludge (Jul 20, 2012)

This is shaping up to look much better than I expected when you started. Good work, that back is sexy with the tung oil.


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## Cannibalbritney (Jul 20, 2012)

TheSixthWheel said:


> Front is getting paint. Back and sides are getting oil.
> 
> After fine sanding:
> 
> ...




I wanna see the front of this bad boy... so far looks 1000x better... I hate that M&M candy shell paint they use... IMO it ruins the guitar. they should just use tung oil, save money, time and the guitars would sound better... 

 on the work so far...


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## TheSixthWheel (Jul 29, 2012)

More pics, after 4 coats of tung oil:

(No pics of front until it's painted. It looks awful still)


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## MrHelloGuitar (Jul 29, 2012)

Looks good!


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## thatguy87 (Jul 29, 2012)

that's some damn nice wood ya got there.


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## bob123 (Jul 31, 2012)

looks great so far man!


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## MiPwnYew (Aug 1, 2012)

This is relative to my interests..


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## TheSixthWheel (Sep 17, 2012)

Yesterday and today I taped off the oiled back and sides of the body, the whole neck and fretboard, and the back of the headstock and sprayed down a couple of coats of flat white undercoat. Looks like it'll be staying white for the moment, but with the option of making it a bright colour if it needs it. 

Now before you go thinking "Wasn't it already white? What's the point?", take into consideration that ALL body and headstock binding has been covered, leaving only the fretboard inlays visible, and I might have plans for those in the future. Also the whole back and sides of the body (excluding the shitty cream binding, which has now been painted white) is natural, as well as the back of the neck and back and sides of the headstock (again, excluding the now white binding).

Pics soon. Loads more painting to do.


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## 8track (Sep 17, 2012)

lookin good!


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## gordon_mlz (Sep 17, 2012)

I have an the exact same guitar...youre making me want to consider refinishing it!


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## RickSchneider (Sep 17, 2012)

I only just tuned into this thread now, WOW! The oiled back and neck looks so fabulous, and i'm glad to see that the little minor crack on the heel doesn't look too bad. Also, speaking of the heel, the work you did on that is perfect. Cannot wait to see new updates


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## EpicFlail (Sep 18, 2012)

I'm in love with that lower horn. This is sick, dude!


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## TheSixthWheel (Sep 18, 2012)

Here's some pics!



















As you can tell, it still needs many more coats of paint, and more work with filling small inconsistencies in the wood grain with bog/filler, then sanding, then more paint. So it's getting closer but it's still a fair way off finished.

Note the fibrous streaks of the mahogany cap archtop reaching up towards both cutaways on the front - I really tried hard to get rid of these, but they just kept waving back and forth without buggering off. Tried with all grits of sandpaper, too. I'll be shaving them off with a razor blade tomorrow (might even have a go now) and painting right over the top.
I also need to transform pickup cavities to direct mount, and fill the pickup ring holes before adding more paint.

Got 2 weeks holidays just around the corner. Unforeseen circumstances aside, I can pretty much guarantee I'll have it completed in about a week from now.

Cheers for the compliments, really looking forward to seeing how this shapes up now that I have sight of the finish.


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## TheSixthWheel (Sep 18, 2012)

Today I got the squirts:






Here's a freshie, paint's still wet.






I'm really liking the way the finish on the headstock is coming up.






A few finish imperfections corrected with filler/more paint later, and I'll be set.






Getting closer.


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## BlackMastodon (Sep 19, 2012)

TheSixthWheel said:


> Today I got the squirts:


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## darren (Sep 19, 2012)

Really nice work on the heel and cutaway!


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## gordon_mlz (Sep 19, 2012)

Sooooo sick dude


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## bob123 (Sep 19, 2012)

Please tell me you grain filled the mahogany....


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## TheSixthWheel (Sep 19, 2012)

darren said:


> Really nice work on the heel and cutaway!



Cheers Darren.


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## TheSixthWheel (Sep 19, 2012)

bob123 said:


> Please tell me you grain filled the mahogany....



Nope ....if it were an expensive guitar, and I wanted a pro finish, then I might have given a shit. I just want it roughly presentable, sealed from the elements, and playable.


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## bob123 (Sep 19, 2012)

TheSixthWheel said:


> Nope ....if it were an expensive guitar, and I wanted a pro finish, then I might have given a shit. I just want it roughly presentable, sealed from the elements, and playable.




grain filler would have cost you 10 bucks and given you a filled paint job. May be cool having the grain show through. You did a LOT of work to it, and it shows, just may as well do it right imo.


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## TheSixthWheel (Sep 19, 2012)

I really like the wood grain coming through too. It's not that I'm settling for less than what I wanted, the guitar will definitely be looking neat and tidy when finished. You'd be spot on, however, if I wanted the pro gloss finish and had neglected to use a sealer. I'm using flat white for the final finish, after all.


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## blaaargh (Sep 19, 2012)

Yeah, imo it looks really cool when you've got a finish that's sunk into the pores like that. Keep in mind though that it will sink more over time...


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## Wretched (Sep 19, 2012)

Yeah, seems like a shame given the hours and hours you put into the woodwork not to spend 10mins filling the grain and laying down a handful of primer coats first... 

...as long as you're happy


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## Kapee (Sep 20, 2012)

White guitar - Sand to wood - Paint white


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## Jackrat (Sep 20, 2012)

This whole thread has been like watching a train wreck. I would have just left the fuckin ding. I mean if this is truly what you were going for sure, but.....






Note that this is only opinion.


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## MaxAidingAres (Sep 20, 2012)

i think it looks beast but looked sooooo much better before.... idk I just love abalone binding on a white guitar


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## AwakenNoMore (Sep 21, 2012)

I see grain through the top of the guitar, either you didn't seal the gain well enough with wood filler, or you didn't at all. Should strip the top and fix it


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## chancemkizzar (Dec 17, 2012)

Finished yet? I wouldn't mind seeing it.


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## Neilzord (Dec 11, 2013)

Sorry for the mega thread revival....... But did this ever get finished?!?!?? :O


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## thisismrfrenzy (Feb 23, 2014)

Any updates?


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## TheSixthWheel (Feb 27, 2014)

Sorry to a few of you I left hanging, well the few of you who maintained any genuine interest and who weren't here to just tell me it looks bad, everything I was doing was bad, and to just stop  It's worth experimenting, it teaches you things. It's worth trying new things, you'll learn from it. And in many instances, it's worth attempting mods where the odds are stacked against you, due to lack of experience, lack of knowledge, professional equipment or otherwise. That, and by the way some of the more dramatic posts in this thread sound, you'd think I was pushing a mint custom shop instrument through a band saw  It's an LTD, people. Calm your shit.

Late in 2012, I was accepted into a course of study at university and the degree meant that any hobbies took a back seat. This guitar kinda sat around in pieces until a few months ago, when I reassembled it over the holiday break. I didn't want to spend any money on it, because a) I'm a student, and b) that's what new guitars are for.

-Removed the tone pot, moving the volume to the tone position (with plans to fill the volume hole), 
-Picked up some EMGs and direct mounted them as planned, and 
-A Gotoh floyd + locking nut + all accessories was donated to me as well, after a customer had no further use for it. 

My plans for any professional/creative paint work have long since been put aside, as I can't justify the cost, especially while studying. I plan to keep this for some time, and do something fluorescent to the top. Either that or I'll end up donating this to one of my students who can't afford an electric guitar any time soon. It still plays really well.


FWIW, I know I could have done this better. Had I known the archtop was an ugly, fibrous piece of shit I probably wouldn't have touched the finish. But I'm glad that I learned things all the way through this experience, and glad that I reduced the lurid inlays on this instrument by a sizable margin.


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## BlackMastodon (Feb 27, 2014)

Looks 100x better without the eye-burning amounts of abalone imo. Great job!


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