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i'm am starting to think about how i am going to finish my first build. i don't really care for the high gloss look. what are other options?

i work in a cabinet shop and have access to a spray booth. french polish seems intimidating, but then so much of this process has been.

thanks!
-patch

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Watco danish oil is pretty nice. It's hand applied and gives a soft look. Or it can get a glossy look if you apply multiple coats. Wipe on satin polyurethane by Minwax will also can give a softer look.

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thanks! i'll sample both on some scrap.

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Give French polishing a try. Actually, lately I haven't been doing "proper" FP (as in high gloss padded on shellac). Rather, a wipe-on shellac finish, with optional pumice filling of open pored woods.

Use a scraper to smooth the surface, then wipe on shellac. If any grain raises, give it another light scraping to smooth that out, and wipe on more shellac. Then wait a few days for it to shrink into the wood texture, wipe on another coat or two, and call it done.

Makes a nice feeling and old timey looking finish. Not high gloss, but not satin either. Feels smooth to the touch, but not grippy like gloss lacquer. Sort of "flat" looking, rather than "deep" like a thicker shellac layer as is done in the normal French polishing style. Best feel I've found for necks, provided there's near zero runout on the back of the neck so the pores are long, rather than having sharp edged pinholes all over the surface. Of course you can fill the pores if necessary, but I prefer the open pored feel.

For open pored back/side woods, I do prefer the look of having them filled. Pore filling is difficult and time consuming so I'd suggest skipping it for the first one unless you just want to practice.

Here's an example of one finished that way, with pumice filled back and sides: http://www.luthiersforum.com/forum/viewtopic.php?p=480126#p480126. There's an explanation of my current pumice filling process in that thread, too.

dennis, that looks and sounds great! i am definitely going to give that a try.

looks like there will be lots of experimenting in the next few weeks.

thanks all!

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An oil varnish, or a wiping varnish is low gloss and very beginner friendly. Just wipe on and wipe off and apply as many coats as you want. More coats higher sheen. Try Liberon Finishing Oil or Formbys Low GLoss Tung Oil. I used Liberon on my first 5 and they all turned out great. These type of finishes are not nearly as durable as the film finishes however. But look great.

Also if you want to Laquer get satin like Filippo said or rub it out to satin.

Tru-oil, shellac, satin wipe-on poly can all work

I usually use shellac and sand it to a level finish, then wipe on a couple coats of satin poly for protection.
Tru-oil is great stuff too but kinda slow for my level of patience