Finish on 80's Hollowbodies

[riverwork]

I've been trying to pin this down. I've "heard" that sometime in the 80's finishes went from nitrocellulose to poly. Anything specific? Were there exceptions in later years?

Thanks

 

[fronobulax]

I've been trying to pin this down. I've "heard" that sometime in the 80's finishes went from nitrocellulose to poly. Anything specific? Were there exceptions in later years?

Thanks

Three posts so I guess I can say "welcome".

80's would have been Westerly and I thought there was a discussion of acoustic finishes that said that Westerly lacked the equipment to do a poly finish. If my memory is correct then what you "heard" was wrong but don't go correcting anyone until someone else agrees with me.

 

[riverwork]

Would there be a different finish schedule/policy for acoustics vs hollow body electrics during that time period? My information came from investigating X500, X175, etc (should have been more specific).

 

[fronobulax]

Would there be a different finish schedule/policy for acoustics vs hollow body electrics during that time period? My information came from investigating X500, X175, etc (should have been more specific).

Dunno. I was making the assumption that finishing an acoustic, a hollow body electric and a solid body electric were similar enough processes that if the facilities did not exist to do poly finishes on one type then they did not exist to do poly finishes on all types. I'm thinking of stuff like clean rooms, air filters, the right kind of spray equipment, curing lights and so on. Like I said though, I'm making conversation and not definitive statements. It usually happens that someone comes along to correct me. If that doesn't happen soon, I'll nudge some of the usual suspects.

If your investigation came from catalogs then you might be more right than I am but it is also true that there are may things in Guild catalogs that never actually were produced and many variations around today that are unmodified but were never in a catalog.

 

[kakerlak]

My '94 X-700 sure seems like lacquer

 

[riverwork]

Well, when I find a little more spare time, I'll dig up the comment - that would be a good starting point.

The point about the physical set-up to do a certain process is a good one, though as a former autobody guy (who's forgotten as much as I learned). Some spray/prep area can handle a variety of mediums, some can't and some mediums are so sensitive you just don't want a microbe of anything else around. ...well, just conversation until I find out where I heard what started this quest for information.

 

[adorshki]

I've been trying to pin this down. I've "heard" that sometime in the 80's finishes went from nitrocellulose to poly. Anything specific? Were there exceptions in later years?
Thanks

Three posts so I guess I can say "welcome".
80's would have been Westerly and I thought there was a discussion of acoustic finishes that said that Westerly lacked the equipment to do a poly finish. If my memory is correct then what you "heard" was wrong but don't go correcting anyone until someone else agrees with me.

Welcome aboard from here, too!!
For sure Westerly acoustics were nitro-finished all the way through the end of Westerly production, end of 2001. A couple of exceptions were the hand-rubbed models, but I forget exactly what that material was, some kind of gel.
We have a memeber, Hideglue, who actually worked at Westerly, and my memory is pretty close to Frono's that he said poly lacquer was considered in Westerly but never implemented. However I seem to recall reports of poly actually being used on some of the Westerly electrics. Maybe they tried it on some solidbodies?
I'm pretty sure member AlohaJoe reports his X150 Savoy is poly, but it's a Corona CA build ('01-'04) and another member, Yettoblaster reported on his Savoys:

My Corona made Savoy is a great guitar and equal to the single pickup Westerly version I had before it. Used they go for about half what the retail new was (A new Godin 5th Ave Kingpin II is slightly less than a used X-150D around here). My Westerly made Savoy was FMIC before the move, and lacquer. This one is poly.

There has been speculation that one of the reasons Corona Guild production was moved to Tacoma was that California air quality laws made nitrocellulose lacquer prohibitively expensive.

 

[adorshki]

oops. :lol:

 

[AlohaJoe]

Yes, my Poly X150 is a Corona guitar, but when I was shopping for a lacquer finished Westerly X170 and/or Starfire reissue I had a conversation with Hans on this subject. Anyway, I seem to remember that he said Poly was phased in at Westerly in the very late 80's. The few Westerly Starfire reissues and X170s I've seen looked like Poly to me but I haven't seen very many.

 

[hideglue]

We have a memeber, Hideglue, who actually worked at Westerly, and my memory is pretty close to Frono's that he said poly lacquer was considered in Westerly but never implemented...

Well, here's where I correct memory:
I've said Guild regularly used polyurethane as a finish for quite a few solid, semi-solid and archtop models.
The experimentation, and subsequent lack of implementation, was with a UV cured finish, ala Taylor.

 

[adorshki]

Well, here's where I correct memory:
I've said Guild regularly used polyurethane as a finish for quite a few solid, semi-solid and archtop models.
The experimentation, and subsequent lack of implementation, was with a UV cured finish, ala Taylor.

THANKS Hideglue!~