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I finally finished my 2nd guitar this past Thursday and delivered it to it's owner. Here are a couple photo's, the quality isn't great but I was in a bit of a rush.

The specs
Red spruce top
Sitka braces,w/ one tone bar
African mahogany back and sides
Sipo neck
East indian rosewood fretbroad and bridge

Pretty sweet. I like the burst!

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http://www.CostaGuitars.com
PMoMC

I also like the burst - looks hand rubbed. Care to share your process? I want to also try a hand rubbed burst on my next L-00/Nick Lucas build.

Thanks!

Glenn

Looks nice. Only one tone bar? Hope you're using light strings

Sweet burst

Thanks for the comments on the sunburst! I used alcohol soluble aniline dyes that I bought from LMI about 10 years ago. I hand rubbed the dyes starting with the yellow in the centre and working my way out, blending the lighter with the darker as I went along. On the dark outer edge I applied the brown with a cheap airbrush gun hoping to get more even penetration as spruce seems to absorb the dyes differently on different parts of the top. The airbrush method didn't really help that much. I hand rubbed it all after the airbrush as I found I could get a better blend that way.

This video was very help full and I followed this method with the exception of using the airbrush.

I actually strung the guitar up with .13-.56 EJ17's. I liked the sound of them and so far the guitars owner seems to enjoy them as well. I wasn't concerned about the single tone bar and the tension on the top because the area below the bridge isn't that significant. I'm actually more concerned about the area above the sound hole. The owner understands that this is my second complete guitar and that everything is an experiment for me at this stage as a builder.

The binding channels and finish were the hardest parts for me. The finish is combination sprayed and french polished shellac, which was then level sanded and buffed to a gloss. I like this finish as the materials are easy to obtain and its not overly harmful, although I make sure I wear a respirator while spraying.

Here is a picture of the bracing