@@benburnett8109 Meh. It wouldn't have been my approach, especially with the checking. Barn door over subtlety, but in Bun's defence, the subtle approach to checking is a) not brilliant for video and b) quite hit and miss without careful control. The closest to proper age-checking you can easily achieve is enforced cold-checking, and cold-checking tends to be linearly extended. In order get properly distributed checking reflecting seasonal micro-changes in dimension that results in age-checking, you need very controlled but disparate heat control, usually involving slowly warming the whole body and then cold-shocking the lacquer in very small regions, to keep the checking from extending as far as the cold-checking you get from loading out of a hot club into a cold transit van in the Alps in the middle of winter. It's part of why I feel like artificial aging is a bit daft, now I've had time to analyse it. Sure, the look of the thing, but just play your guitar shitloads and haul it around to gigs and it'll look like that. Building in wear never looks like wear, it looks like flummery. Call me old-fashioned, but a guitar is a tool. It's nice that it looks pretty, and there's an aesthetic to wear, but that's really in the history. I remember every scratch on my luthier-built main instrument. I know where each of them came from, and they do indeed tell the entire story of the instrument, but that's because it has a history of real wear in the real world. Have to say, I first encountered the notion of artificially aging a guitar on this very channel, and I was largely ambivalent. I wouldn't take a pall-peen hammer to my new shiny snap on toolkit. Why the hell would I do it to a precision instrument? Nope. I don't get it. This is just flummery, and really quite stupid. Build a guitar to look old, sure (I just built a P-bass to look like a church pew that's had thousands of arses across it). Dick around with a built guitar that really didn't need any dicking around? Nope, ya lost me. There's no good reason to do any of this other than poor thinking.
I think the main reason the checking looks wrong is because the finish is so glossy. Usually by the time that sort of checking happens, the lustre of the finish is a bit more dulled.
Coffee! Soak your scratch plates and other plastic accessories in some coffee for a couple hours, quick rinse, and a light wipe away will create a really nice subtle yellow and allow a gritty surface to scratch with a pick to create contours.
Today I woke up to this video. My mom passed away 16 years ago today. It's been tough but I'm getting by just fine. She was the one person early in my life that supported my love of making music. My love of Les Pauls came from that. Two years ago, I finally bought an Epiphone LP and everything but the neck and pickups lived up to my expectations. My eyes have turn toward Gibson in hopes the neck is more C and less D shaped. Thank you for giving me happy thoughts to go to work with today.
Hey Ben, when I do scratch plates I use a scotch pad for the matte effect and when I go for the yellowing effect you can stain it, you can use coffee or you can just leave it in the sun/ uv. I also use heat as in a torch sometimes if I really want to age things like plastics or metals. Make sure you age the screws and where the strap button goes...
Yeah Ben... I do think the scratch finish is just a tad too defined, but I get the finish you're after. I'd probably knock back the scratches a bit with car scratch remover, and then use a cloth dipped in cold tea to dull the reflected scratch edges. I'd also use cold tea to age the plastic, as I think yours looks a bit too yellow rather than an aged colour. Personal tastes, I know. Good effort though. I'd also add a bit of wear to the upper bout? Personally, I'd be trying all this out on a cheapo Squier or something, rather than a nice Les Paul, until I got my technique down. 😎👍🏻
Re: the pick guard, a brown tone stain works better to slightly darken the plastic. Further Iwould also say that you should have significantly dirtied up and then cleaned the entire instrument. It still looks new.
I haven’t reliced a guitar but I’ve built a lot of furniture that people wanted to look old and reclaimed. One of my favorite things to do is thin out either black or brown stain and brush it all over and wipe it off immediately. It gets in the cracks and grain to give an aged dirty look. Doing that over the finish cracks you added might help bring them out a bit and make them look a little more aged. Or perhaps the yellow stain like you did on the pick guard might add a bit of subtle yellowing to the finish.
If the finish is cellulose you could dull the scalpel work down by first cleaning it with alcohol and then using a aerosol of blending thinners from a automotive paint spray supplier .It's used for blending and melting in a paint blend edge to the original finish . The harsh scalpel cuts would soften depending how wet you sprayed it . The aged damage on a guitar is down to cellulose not being UV light stable .We stopped using cellulose to paint cars because it was not UV stable .A silver clear coated finish eventually turned a very pale gold . Try simply using a UV lamp to age the finish .
I don't know about how cold it is over there on the isles in the winter. Here in Scandinavia you just leave your guitar in its case in the boot one night in the winter months and bring it in into a warm kitchen in the morning and open the case and voilà insta nitrocellulose crackle. :) That's how I by accident "effed up" my fender highway one many years ago now. I have no idea if you could do the same with a cold storage room or something. Might be worth to experiment with (temp diffs and so on). Peace and ty as always.
I have a feeling that future generations will think it as crazy to relic a guitar was we do looking back at some of the horrendous mods inflicted on guitars in the 1970’s. Each to his own and it’s only an opinion.
Hats off to you for having a go. The scalpel work was ok, if a little heavy. But to get the rest you really have to use nickel plated hardware, the chrome stuff just won’t age like an old burst. The plastics can be bought aged (so can pickup covers and hardware and it’s probably worth the money) I would have also rubbed down the body as it still looks too shiny against all the checking. But yeah, entertaining!
While being slightly more against than for artificial aging, I do like the look of the guitar- the pickups look just right to me. Just one criticism though- the finish on the wood looks too shiny and new- perhaps a little light treatment with a few grades of fine sandpaper? Or even fret rubbers- that might work!
he did use fret rubbers in the first part, to dull the finish a bit, and work some dirt into the cracks, having white edges does make them a bit glaring
I've give using the strong acids & now only use White Vinegar in conjunction with scuffing the parts to remove the plating off the edges & area of parts like you have done . i find Vinegar works better . i would remove that container of open acid solution from you shop if you don't want lovely tools to rust . good job overall Ben ... love you show 🙂🙂🙂
Ok, you asked for our opinions, and as much as I like what you have done so far, I have to say, I would make it look more worn myself. I have a 5 year old acoustic guitar with more wear on the fretboard (it's a cheap guitar, so probably not the most durable) , so some sanding here and there to make it not just look aged , but properly worn, like where your picking arm moves across the body, and on back of the neck. And add more scratches on the pickguard. As I have only watched the video I'm obviously not sure how the guitar feels, but my dad used to have an old semi-acoustic where the lacquer looked almost exactly like this guitar looks after you aged it, but you couldn't feel any of the cracks, like it had cracked from the inside out (I don't know much about guitar finishes or aging techniques tbh, but I do love putting fake patina and rust on plastic scale models).
I've successfully yellowed overly white plastic pickup covers by exposing them to a few weeks of direct sunlight. Maybe not an option in England and at this time of year, but maybe a UV lamp would work (and be more controllable).
For nickel and chrome to work well with white vinegar, you have to break the plating first; I use a Dremel with a fine polishing wheel first, then vape in vinegar for a day or so. For plastics, I soak them for 30 mins in a mixture of hot water, coffee (slight amount) and turmeric.
Thank you again for your videos Ben! In my humble opinion (I'm not a master luthier, even a luthier), by relicing a guitar is more than do some scratches here and there. It's an art. If you want to achieve a great relicing job I think you must study how to do ir properly first. How it would relict if it had been used for real, in which places and how, etc. Most of the 90% of the relicing jobs looks artificial, very artificial or no sense jobs... even the Murph's Lab Gibsons. To me, don't get me wrong please, this two videos are about how to scratch and ding a guitar not about how to propoerly relic a guitar (the ghost of the PRS relic video is knocking at my door). But hey this is fine too. This is your guitar and if you are happy with your relicing job, this is what it counts. Cheers!!
Would some of that black coloured car wax dull the marks on the headstock and make it look more natural ? I used some red on a recent build and it worked a treat.
Relicing is fine when it’s your own instrument or possession, other peoples opinions don’t matter but they are welcome to voice them. It doesn’t mean that they are right or that we have to listen to them. This works both ways. Enjoy yourself Ben!
Relic fan here. I'm loving all of this. Ignore the naysayers. I will admit, those scalpel lines are looking a little thick and deep. One thing I noticed while using the hair dryer and compressed air method was, the cracks sort of fill themselves back in when you go over it with the heat from the hair dryer. You might be able to run a little bit of heat along those scalpel lines to give them a little more of a natural look/feel. Also, now that you have long thick starting points, it might be worth using a can of compressed air to see if you can get some mild splitting of the finish between the lines you've already created. Just some food for thought.
Just my two cents, as an amateur guitar player and enthusiast - You mentioned everything that happens during the process “adds to the story of the guitar”. To me, that story reads as follows; “My owner didn’t want to put in the time naturally aging their instrument through years of honest, hard work”. Nevertheless, good effort. Not a fan of the checking, love the aged hardware!
Needs a historic truss rod cover and a few little dings around the edge of the headstock. maybe some dark contrasting material in the lacquer cracks. lovely work you did with the scalpel!
Thank you Ben, I agree.. though watching a rig rundown with Joe Bonamassa and he had another musician dremel their name into his 50's strat.. that hurt :( I suppose there are levels?
19:43 despite the heavy play wear, the binding and nibs are still pretty square... I round those over pretty heavily with fine grit sanding paper. makes for an extremely comfortable worn feel.
i found out use old used sand paper, old like almost smooth, all the sand and grip almost gone, especially that sandpaper used on metal, then use those old sandpaper sand the finish, it make finish checking even better especially for razorblade moth, that make all the checking line randomly show in different angle, sorry for my poor english, not sure how to describe, very good relic finish checking, not supposed show all the checking line in one angle, i think is about the blade cutting angle,the blade how you hold and every cut in different angle, when the light hit on finish, because the refraction, that make the checking line show in difference angle , it make finish checking even better especially for razorblade moth finish checking, that make all the checking line random show in different angle, i think that little detail make whole thing even convince,again sorry for my poor english, english not my first language, so hard to describe in english.
Plastics-I have had great success in darkening and aging with a mix of paste shoe polish, old English furniture oil, and heavy brewed coffee if you have the luxury of baking them in direct sunlight or a UV light after treatment, it works better. Caution, practice makes perfect with this one. For “post scalpel” or cracking of the finish, I have also used grease, and grime, with some shoe polish again, and an old t shirt. Just buff the heck out of it. It adds a touch of age, takes some of the gloss off too. Might work nice for you on the headstock. maybe a bit beyond what you were doing for here. I have found that nickel ages better with that vinegar method compared to the chrome, but I do like what you did there.
to create micro scratches on my pieces I use a stone wash finish (this is used a lot in cutlery) and frankly the result is not bad after a little polishing
The only thing i would suggest is heating the lacquer and using a 6000 grit micromesh to take some of the luster away from the finish. the checking looks nice but on a nice shiny guitar it doesnt really fit. Also rub some nasty into the checking to accentuate them after its dulled...
Id say do a top wrap and aggressively agitate the strings behind the bridge than set it back up. A 59 would definitely had been top wrapped at some point of its life. Also using the wrong size screw driver to adjust the tailpiece posts for that chewed out look would be the go.
Bring the scratch plate close to a heavy smoker and leave it under artificial sun for a few days to get an authentic "smoker yellow" tint and used look.
I would submit a couple of things; the lack of “play wear” on the back of the neck feels unrealistic for a guitar with that much buckle rash and to look the age you’re trying to give it. And the overall lister of the clear coat is still very shiny for that same level of checking and aging. The shine would be dulled down a fair bit from tiny amounts of abrasion from players hands, tee shirts, even the case liner, etc. All that stuff takes the shine down to somewhere between a gloss and a satin. It’s one of those details that when you see it you know it.
👍 I'd really like an episode 3 on this. It's the small and less obvious things that would really sell it. Some ideas: Taking the shine off the top, getting "dirt" in the cracks/make them look less fresh cut, heavy wear on where the arm would be like you did on the back, bang up the headstock edges and heavier wear in places where the player touch the guitar a lot... Also some general random nicks and dings. A funny thing would be to make it look like it had a headstock repair... 😁
I think the checking looks pretty convincing overall considering how it was done and the pickup covers came out cool. My issue is really more with what you left out than what you did. There aren't any incidental marks that imply years of playing... Did you turn too quick and bang the headstock on something? Did you lean it up against the front of your amp and have it fall over? Did you miss the input jack a bunch over the years and scrape up the plate? Did someone do a repair on the fly and have to use a non-matching screw here and there? Did you rub off the gold paint on the switch plate over the years? etc. etc. IMO those little details really sell the idea that it was someone's workhorse for years.
Yes, the checking tends to propagate from those weakened points, so it really helps to have them there to work from. I would also suggest rubbing some muck into the body whilst the checking is fresh (it should partially heal over time if the finish is nitro)
Ben when you want to age plastic parts that are a light or bright color soak them in good old fashioned coffee pick up rings knobs switch tips pick guards etc soak them in coffee for about 24 hours
Hello Ben, for whatever reason I've only recently came across your videos and channel, great stuff mate! So my question, I had thought about an attempt such as yours with relicing hardware on my Les Paul through abrasives such as sandpaper, wheels ect, but ultimately made a purchase, in which I believe caustics were used, but the parts were authentic Gibson or whatever preferred vendor that I chose and I was satisfied with their results. I'm doing the same thing to another identical LP Traditional, this time I also changed out the plastics as well. So back to the question, I'm going your route with abrasives on the chromed hardware and tuners, but this time I'm adding a Bigsby B7 and Vibramate, of which I'll need to relic as well. I could probably buy a new one that has been reliced, but it's easily within my level of aptitude to do myself. I'm probably going to go with a roller bridge as well as I'm not overly concerned about not using an ABR-1, and didn't expect any tuning issues if I had chosen to go that route, but I thought that I would go the fail safe mode with a Tone Pros System II roller bridge. Obviously much more surface area on my B7 and it's components, and after looking at dozens of examples in all of the lovely books containing period examples of naturally aged Bigsbys, I'm not sure what route to go, maybe a combination of both abrasives and caustics. The Bigsbys always have a grey haze to their aging patina that isn't on a tuning peg, bridge or tailpiece, obviously because of the metallurgy and actually being handled much more than the static components mounted to the body. What are your thoughts on the Bigsby B7 relicing, it should look pretty awesome when finished! Thanks Ben!
There were instances where N stood for new, but I think that was in 2013 or so, but if they still did that, Les Paul New Standard Plus (for plus top) maybe.
I really like it my friend. Thanks so much for being brave enough to let us watch your first attempt. I love it and hope to win it. Keep up the good work and chasing those dreams brother. Gods Blessing to you.
Pretty reasonable relicing! It's looking well loved! It won't actually fool anybody but I truly don't see how it would offend ANYONE either if they're being perfectly honest. I like to see a little dishing out of the frets etc. Maybe you could put some of the hardware in a rock tumbler if that hasn't been considered. The coolness factor hasn't been harmed at all, everybody loves the old Pauls but there is a limited supply of old guitars naturally, I say do what you like to a new guitar, it's an homage as watch collectors are fond of saying and not a fake - it's important to remember you're not trying to pass it off to someone as old (therefore truly rare) and jacking the sale price or anything so who cares? No regrets! In fact the opposite. I just tend to leave some conspicuous dirt on them and call it good just my opinion but this is exceptionally tasteful, I like the description tasty!
My biggest issue with it, far to shiny. Old guitars seem to have a natural satin finish from years of wear. My guitar teacher had a 1964 strat he'd play during lessons, had all the checking and chunks of finish missing and it was super dull looking. There was also no finish left on the back of the neck, nothing but dirt and grime.
I think it looks fabulous. I would love to have seen you drop a cigarette end onto the body, the old cherry bomb! But I guess thats easy to say when it's not my guitar 😊
off topic, I purchased a 79 strat in Morocco Red color from a lady today. it belonged to her brother since new. when I opened the case it was laying on some bubble wrap and yes the bubble wrap pattern transformed onto the lacquer, bummer. is the repairable? or am I screwed!
The best thing for authentically ageing plastics is tobacco smoke. It's probably why guitars from the 50's, 60's and 70's look the way they do. I once loaned a Strat to someone without realising how heavy a smoker they were. When I got the guitar back after about a month, the scratch plate and pickup covers had aged about 40 years. I probably should have been pissed off, but it looked incredible. The stink goes after a while, but the stain lasts forever.
It will most likely smell like an old ashtray. I got that thick tar stuff all over an old home Phone, it is just coated in that stuff people breathed into their bodies. YUCK.
Relicing anything but especially Guitars puts me in mind of John and Sylvia, protagonists from Zen and the Art of Motorcycle maintenance. Robert Persig. Well worth a read.
I like the scalpel work. Do you think it would enhance it if you made the overall finish a bit more satin? I’m wondering if that would be more complimentary and enhance the overall reliced look. It looks a bit too glossy.
What would I have done? Fix up the buckle rash, that's what I would have done. Personal opinion obviously, but I think relicing guitars is a form of vandalism.
Is that a Hakko Soldering station? I actually like the sound of unpotted pickups too but I wouldn't want to play a live gig with them! Especially if I was playing really loud through a big amp. In the studio though, all is well. Nice guitar Ben. I love the unstained or close to natural top! I wonder if wiping the pickup down with isopropyl alcohol or wax and grease remover before applying the Ferric chloride would help with the pooling? I'm just curious because of the buffing compound left on the wheel of the buffer. I really need to try this.
Rilicing guitars is an art in its own right... much like forging classic art. Those who are masters at the forgeries are rarely masters at the creation of them in the first place, and vice versa. When I see old vintage guitars and relics, I mostly just think about how I could restore them! Just the way my aging brain works. Great little series, thx.
I have loved this relic series but the faux cracking still looks like it's been scratched. Over time there would be dirt in there and it wouldn't be so rough. It needs a faux dirt wash and a light polish to un-square the cracks
wipe the whole thing down with some dark stain of brown shoe polish. It will slightly accentuate the craze lines. Might want to add some strumming scratches above the strings and more heavily on the pick guard. The hardware looks great.
agree with the comments regarding shoe polish/ dark wax rubbed into the finish. buff that off and it should make the checking less harsh i have used some Monty's Montyspresso on an aged partscaster body to good effect
regarding the scratch plate - chucking it is an option, never urt Gary Moore's tone? and grime up the underside of the knobs; and maybe mismatch them? there are some decent videos on the 8bomb YT channel regarding aging, etc th-cam.com/users/8BombCustom for those who dislike artificial aging, nothing wrong with an opinion either way. just remember - only the Sith deal in absolutes
i think i would just put the hardware in a bucket of bolts and screws and shook it around to get that random scratch pattern on them ... that and maybe buff down the finish a lil after cutting in the checking ... and maybe rub some oil and grease into the finish and try to clean it back off
Cool to watch you do it because I'm not touching mine I do enough on accident or drinking then take a ambien while playing = oops it knocks you out without a warning I didn't break the headstock I got lucky lesson learned
Ben, I love your videos. You are a true craftsman. I never understood why you would make a guitar look old. It is old and it shows, or it is new. I like new. And when I buy a second hand one it should look new, when I sell a guitar I bought new it still looks new, or mint. Nevertheless there is a big market for fake old.
Surely for full authenticity you need to snap the headstock off? :)
Welp, this guitar has finally removed my ambivalence about relicking, and brought me down firmly on the side of really against.
I like it on old single-color strats where you can see the wood underneath after the relic job. Les Pauls, not so much
This was not relicing. This was cutting on a Gibson with a Razor Blade. There are other real relicing videos out there. This was very poorly done.
@@benburnett8109 Meh.
It wouldn't have been my approach, especially with the checking. Barn door over subtlety, but in Bun's defence, the subtle approach to checking is a) not brilliant for video and b) quite hit and miss without careful control.
The closest to proper age-checking you can easily achieve is enforced cold-checking, and cold-checking tends to be linearly extended. In order get properly distributed checking reflecting seasonal micro-changes in dimension that results in age-checking, you need very controlled but disparate heat control, usually involving slowly warming the whole body and then cold-shocking the lacquer in very small regions, to keep the checking from extending as far as the cold-checking you get from loading out of a hot club into a cold transit van in the Alps in the middle of winter.
It's part of why I feel like artificial aging is a bit daft, now I've had time to analyse it. Sure, the look of the thing, but just play your guitar shitloads and haul it around to gigs and it'll look like that.
Building in wear never looks like wear, it looks like flummery. Call me old-fashioned, but a guitar is a tool. It's nice that it looks pretty, and there's an aesthetic to wear, but that's really in the history. I remember every scratch on my luthier-built main instrument. I know where each of them came from, and they do indeed tell the entire story of the instrument, but that's because it has a history of real wear in the real world.
Have to say, I first encountered the notion of artificially aging a guitar on this very channel, and I was largely ambivalent.
I wouldn't take a pall-peen hammer to my new shiny snap on toolkit. Why the hell would I do it to a precision instrument?
Nope. I don't get it. This is just flummery, and really quite stupid. Build a guitar to look old, sure (I just built a P-bass to look like a church pew that's had thousands of arses across it). Dick around with a built guitar that really didn't need any dicking around? Nope, ya lost me. There's no good reason to do any of this other than poor thinking.
As above, I don't get it at all.
I'm all for genuine wear, I hate relic guitars
I just had a thought in years to come it gets sold a few times and someone re lacquers it and puts new chrome hardwear on it
I think the main reason the checking looks wrong is because the finish is so glossy. Usually by the time that sort of checking happens, the lustre of the finish is a bit more dulled.
like a VOS finish
Coffee! Soak your scratch plates and other plastic accessories in some coffee for a couple hours, quick rinse, and a light wipe away will create a really nice subtle yellow and allow a gritty surface to scratch with a pick to create contours.
I think you guys have been spammed?
Today I woke up to this video. My mom passed away 16 years ago today. It's been tough but I'm getting by just fine. She was the one person early in my life that supported my love of making music. My love of Les Pauls came from that. Two years ago, I finally bought an Epiphone LP and everything but the neck and pickups lived up to my expectations. My eyes have turn toward Gibson in hopes the neck is more C and less D shaped. Thank you for giving me happy thoughts to go to work with today.
If I win it, any chance of a full re-fin before it's sent to me?
Hey Ben, when I do scratch plates I use a scotch pad for the matte effect and when I go for the yellowing effect you can stain it, you can use coffee or you can just leave it in the sun/ uv.
I also use heat as in a torch sometimes if I really want to age things like plastics or metals.
Make sure you age the screws and where the strap button goes...
Ben: "you don't need to watch me standing at the buffing wheel" - next shot: *stands at buffing wheel* 😂
Yeah Ben... I do think the scratch finish is just a tad too defined, but I get the finish you're after. I'd probably knock back the scratches a bit with car scratch remover, and then use a cloth dipped in cold tea to dull the reflected scratch edges. I'd also use cold tea to age the plastic, as I think yours looks a bit too yellow rather than an aged colour. Personal tastes, I know. Good effort though. I'd also add a bit of wear to the upper bout? Personally, I'd be trying all this out on a cheapo Squier or something, rather than a nice Les Paul, until I got my technique down. 😎👍🏻
Hmmmm.. think the type of tea would make a difference? Earl Grey.. Ceylon,.. Lapsang.. PGTips?? LOL!
@@Lisa-rg4fp 🤔🤪
my guess is the people that pay top dollar for relics, buy jeans with holes in the knees, then never wear them.
Re: the pick guard, a brown tone stain works better to slightly darken the plastic.
Further Iwould also say that you should have significantly dirtied up and then cleaned the entire instrument. It still looks new.
I haven’t reliced a guitar but I’ve built a lot of furniture that people wanted to look old and reclaimed. One of my favorite things to do is thin out either black or brown stain and brush it all over and wipe it off immediately. It gets in the cracks and grain to give an aged dirty look. Doing that over the finish cracks you added might help bring them out a bit and make them look a little more aged. Or perhaps the yellow stain like you did on the pick guard might add a bit of subtle yellowing to the finish.
If the finish is cellulose you could dull the scalpel work down by first cleaning it with alcohol and then using a aerosol of blending thinners from a automotive paint spray supplier .It's used for blending and melting in a paint blend edge to the original finish .
The harsh scalpel cuts would soften depending how wet you sprayed it .
The aged damage on a guitar is down to cellulose not being UV light stable .We stopped using cellulose to paint cars because it was not UV stable .A silver clear coated finish eventually turned a very pale gold .
Try simply using a UV lamp to age the finish .
I don't know about how cold it is over there on the isles in the winter. Here in Scandinavia you just leave your guitar in its case in the boot one night in the winter months and bring it in into a warm kitchen in the morning and open the case and voilà insta nitrocellulose crackle. :) That's how I by accident "effed up" my fender highway one many years ago now.
I have no idea if you could do the same with a cold storage room or something. Might be worth to experiment with (temp diffs and so on).
Peace and ty as always.
Same happened to my MiM Strat
I have a feeling that future generations will think it as crazy to relic a guitar was we do looking back at some of the horrendous mods inflicted on guitars in the 1970’s. Each to his own and it’s only an opinion.
FOR AGING METAL I SLAP IT WITH A NECKLACE CHAIN and other things to gouge it for realistic random extra details ( including a knife)
it actually dents the metal instead of scratch
Thanks, this is a good technique.
Hats off to you for having a go.
The scalpel work was ok, if a little heavy. But to get the rest you really have to use nickel plated hardware, the chrome stuff just won’t age like an old burst. The plastics can be bought aged (so can pickup covers and hardware and it’s probably worth the money)
I would have also rubbed down the body as it still looks too shiny against all the checking.
But yeah, entertaining!
You really need muriatic acid to age chrome properly but it's horrible stuff.
While being slightly more against than for artificial aging, I do like the look of the guitar- the pickups look just right to me.
Just one criticism though- the finish on the wood looks too shiny and new- perhaps a little light treatment with a few grades of fine sandpaper? Or even fret rubbers- that might work!
he did use fret rubbers in the first part, to dull the finish a bit, and work some dirt into the cracks, having white edges does make them a bit glaring
I've give using the strong acids & now only use White Vinegar in conjunction with scuffing the parts to remove the plating off the edges & area of parts like you have done . i find Vinegar works better . i would remove that container of open acid solution from you shop if you don't want lovely tools to rust . good job overall Ben ... love you show 🙂🙂🙂
Ok, you asked for our opinions, and as much as I like what you have done so far, I have to say, I would make it look more worn myself. I have a 5 year old acoustic guitar with more wear on the fretboard (it's a cheap guitar, so probably not the most durable) , so some sanding here and there to make it not just look aged , but properly worn, like where your picking arm moves across the body, and on back of the neck. And add more scratches on the pickguard. As I have only watched the video I'm obviously not sure how the guitar feels, but my dad used to have an old semi-acoustic where the lacquer looked almost exactly like this guitar looks after you aged it, but you couldn't feel any of the cracks, like it had cracked from the inside out (I don't know much about guitar finishes or aging techniques tbh, but I do love putting fake patina and rust on plastic scale models).
I've successfully yellowed overly white plastic pickup covers by exposing them to a few weeks of direct sunlight. Maybe not an option in England and at this time of year, but maybe a UV lamp would work (and be more controllable).
For nickel and chrome to work well with white vinegar, you have to break the plating first; I use a Dremel with a fine polishing wheel first, then vape in vinegar for a day or so. For plastics, I soak them for 30 mins in a mixture of hot water, coffee (slight amount) and turmeric.
Thank you again for your videos Ben!
In my humble opinion (I'm not a master luthier, even a luthier), by relicing a guitar is more than do some scratches here and there. It's an art.
If you want to achieve a great relicing job I think you must study how to do ir properly first. How it would relict if it had been used for real, in which places and how, etc.
Most of the 90% of the relicing jobs looks artificial, very artificial or no sense jobs... even the Murph's Lab Gibsons.
To me, don't get me wrong please, this two videos are about how to scratch and ding a guitar not about how to propoerly relic a guitar (the ghost of the PRS relic video is knocking at my door).
But hey this is fine too. This is your guitar and if you are happy with your relicing job, this is what it counts.
Cheers!!
Age the pickup rings to match the scratch plate?
The comments are already heated enough to keep your workshop warm all winter! 🤣
Would some of that black coloured car wax dull the marks on the headstock and make it look more natural ? I used some red on a recent build and it worked a treat.
Relicing is fine when it’s your own instrument or possession, other peoples opinions don’t matter but they are welcome to voice them. It doesn’t mean that they are right or that we have to listen to them. This works both ways. Enjoy yourself Ben!
Scammer?
@@PG-ex3kl yes
Relic fan here. I'm loving all of this. Ignore the naysayers. I will admit, those scalpel lines are looking a little thick and deep. One thing I noticed while using the hair dryer and compressed air method was, the cracks sort of fill themselves back in when you go over it with the heat from the hair dryer. You might be able to run a little bit of heat along those scalpel lines to give them a little more of a natural look/feel. Also, now that you have long thick starting points, it might be worth using a can of compressed air to see if you can get some mild splitting of the finish between the lines you've already created. Just some food for thought.
In line with accentuating the buckle rash and all on the back, I think you should also scratch up the pickguard a bit to mimmic pick scratches.
Just my two cents, as an amateur guitar player and enthusiast - You mentioned everything that happens during the process “adds to the story of the guitar”. To me, that story reads as follows; “My owner didn’t want to put in the time naturally aging their instrument through years of honest, hard work”. Nevertheless, good effort. Not a fan of the checking, love the aged hardware!
ye. such bullshit
I think the word that springs to mind is 'Ruined'
Needs a historic truss rod cover and a few little dings around the edge of the headstock. maybe some dark contrasting material in the lacquer cracks. lovely work you did with the scalpel!
I firmly believe that you should do whatever you want to your guitars. It's okay to take a hobby knife to your finish.
Thank you Ben, I agree.. though watching a rig rundown with Joe Bonamassa and he had another musician dremel their name into his 50's strat.. that hurt :( I suppose there are levels?
19:43 despite the heavy play wear, the binding and nibs are still pretty square... I round those over pretty heavily with fine grit sanding paper. makes for an extremely comfortable worn feel.
3:39 and this is why I love you Mr. Ben Crowe! You're a madman.
i found out use old used sand paper, old like almost smooth, all the sand and grip almost gone, especially that sandpaper used on metal, then use those old sandpaper sand the finish, it make finish checking even better especially for razorblade moth, that make all the checking line randomly show in different angle, sorry for my poor english, not sure how to describe, very good relic finish checking, not supposed show all the checking line in one angle, i think is about the blade cutting angle,the blade how you hold and every cut in different angle, when the light hit on finish, because the refraction, that make the checking line show in difference angle , it make finish checking even better especially for razorblade moth finish checking, that make all the checking line random show in different angle, i think that little detail make whole thing even convince,again sorry for my poor english, english not my first language, so hard to describe in english.
Put some shoe polish or dark briwax in the checking. Will make it look less obvious on the headstock but more aged on the body.
Plastics-I have had great success in darkening and aging with a mix of paste shoe polish, old English furniture oil, and heavy brewed coffee if you have the luxury of baking them in direct sunlight or a UV light after treatment, it works better. Caution, practice makes perfect with this one.
For “post scalpel” or cracking of the finish, I have also used grease, and grime, with some shoe polish again, and an old t shirt. Just buff the heck out of it. It adds a touch of age, takes some of the gloss off too. Might work nice for you on the headstock. maybe a bit beyond what you were doing for here.
I have found that nickel ages better with that vinegar method compared to the chrome, but I do like what you did there.
Paper/cardboard is great for finishing an edge. I use Brown cardboard instead of a leather strop for finishing my knife edges
Learned a lot and the comments have some VERY useful tips.
You should absolutely rotate the neck pickup 180 degrees a la the Green/Moore/Hammet “Green Meanie” Les Paul.
to create micro scratches on my pieces I use a stone wash finish (this is used a lot in cutlery) and frankly the result is not bad after a little polishing
The only thing i would suggest is heating the lacquer and using a 6000 grit micromesh to take some of the luster away from the finish. the checking looks nice but on a nice shiny guitar it doesnt really fit. Also rub some nasty into the checking to accentuate them after its dulled...
wow those files SOUNDED high quality. Ill be getting some of those for sureeeeeeeee
Id say do a top wrap and aggressively agitate the strings behind the bridge than set it back up. A 59 would definitely had been top wrapped at some point of its life. Also using the wrong size screw driver to adjust the tailpiece posts for that chewed out look would be the go.
I took 20 air duster cans to my Les paul. It is wicked. It came with VOS so, I just had to check it!
Bring the scratch plate close to a heavy smoker and leave it under artificial sun for a few days to get an authentic "smoker yellow" tint and used look.
If I were to win this guitar in the raffle, would it be bad to hand it back to Ben for a 'Restoring a reliced guitar' video?
I would 100% be up for that! We are currently setting up to spray proper nitro too so we actually could do it for you!
@@CrimsonCustomGuitars Consider it a done deal ::crosses fingers and toes::
I would submit a couple of things; the lack of “play wear” on the back of the neck feels unrealistic for a guitar with that much buckle rash and to look the age you’re trying to give it. And the overall lister of the clear coat is still very shiny for that same level of checking and aging. The shine would be dulled down a fair bit from tiny amounts of abrasion from players hands, tee shirts, even the case liner, etc. All that stuff takes the shine down to somewhere between a gloss and a satin. It’s one of those details that when you see it you know it.
👍 I'd really like an episode 3 on this.
It's the small and less obvious things that would really sell it.
Some ideas:
Taking the shine off the top, getting "dirt" in the cracks/make them look less fresh cut, heavy wear on where the arm would be like you did on the back, bang up the headstock edges and heavier wear in places where the player touch the guitar a lot...
Also some general random nicks and dings.
A funny thing would be to make it look like it had a headstock repair... 😁
The body contour wear looks like a burning city, great job as always !
I think the checking looks pretty convincing overall considering how it was done and the pickup covers came out cool. My issue is really more with what you left out than what you did.
There aren't any incidental marks that imply years of playing... Did you turn too quick and bang the headstock on something? Did you lean it up against the front of your amp and have it fall over? Did you miss the input jack a bunch over the years and scrape up the plate? Did someone do a repair on the fly and have to use a non-matching screw here and there? Did you rub off the gold paint on the switch plate over the years? etc. etc. IMO those little details really sell the idea that it was someone's workhorse for years.
Yes, the checking tends to propagate from those weakened points, so it really helps to have them there to work from. I would also suggest rubbing some muck into the body whilst the checking is fresh (it should partially heal over time if the finish is nitro)
Ben when you want to age plastic parts that are a light or bright color soak them in good old fashioned coffee pick up rings knobs switch tips pick guards etc soak them in coffee for about 24 hours
12:26 the trick is to lay the tissue paper on the cover and THEN add the liquid...
Hello Ben, for whatever reason I've only recently came across your videos and channel, great stuff mate! So my question, I had thought about an attempt such as yours with relicing hardware on my Les Paul through abrasives such as sandpaper, wheels ect, but ultimately made a purchase, in which I believe caustics were used, but the parts were authentic Gibson or whatever preferred vendor that I chose and I was satisfied with their results. I'm doing the same thing to another identical LP Traditional, this time I also changed out the plastics as well. So back to the question, I'm going your route with abrasives on the chromed hardware and tuners, but this time I'm adding a Bigsby B7 and Vibramate, of which I'll need to relic as well. I could probably buy a new one that has been reliced, but it's easily within my level of aptitude to do myself. I'm probably going to go with a roller bridge as well as I'm not overly concerned about not using an ABR-1, and didn't expect any tuning issues if I had chosen to go that route, but I thought that I would go the fail safe mode with a Tone Pros System II roller bridge. Obviously much more surface area on my B7 and it's components, and after looking at dozens of examples in all of the lovely books containing period examples of naturally aged Bigsbys, I'm not sure what route to go, maybe a combination of both abrasives and caustics. The Bigsbys always have a grey haze to their aging patina that isn't on a tuning peg, bridge or tailpiece, obviously because of the metallurgy and actually being handled much more than the static components mounted to the body. What are your thoughts on the Bigsby B7 relicing, it should look pretty awesome when finished! Thanks Ben!
🎼🎵"Don't go out into the rain you're gonna melt, Sugar. . . "🎶
Yes, I sang that at the video. 😎
did you know heat can distroy the magnetic properties of the pickup magnets?
UV light on the scratch guard.
Maybe a grey or black wax rub and buff to highlight the check marks to simulate dirt
id love to see this guitar again , in my house ,fingers crossed for the raffle
A little splodge of washing up liquid in the ferric would break the surface tension. Don't know if it would bugger up the ferric.
There were instances where N stood for new, but I think that was in 2013 or so, but if they still did that, Les Paul New Standard Plus (for plus top) maybe.
I really like it my friend. Thanks so much for being brave enough to let us watch your first attempt. I love it and hope to win it. Keep up the good work and chasing those dreams brother. Gods Blessing to you.
What was that square box that was like a wrench used on the toggle switch?
Pretty reasonable relicing! It's looking well loved! It won't actually fool anybody but I truly don't see how it would offend ANYONE either if they're being perfectly honest. I like to see a little dishing out of the frets etc. Maybe you could put some of the hardware in a rock tumbler if that hasn't been considered. The coolness factor hasn't been harmed at all, everybody loves the old Pauls but there is a limited supply of old guitars naturally, I say do what you like to a new guitar, it's an homage as watch collectors are fond of saying and not a fake - it's important to remember you're not trying to pass it off to someone as old (therefore truly rare) and jacking the sale price or anything so who cares? No regrets! In fact the opposite. I just tend to leave some conspicuous dirt on them and call it good just my opinion but this is exceptionally tasteful, I like the description tasty!
My biggest issue with it, far to shiny. Old guitars seem to have a natural satin finish from years of wear. My guitar teacher had a 1964 strat he'd play during lessons, had all the checking and chunks of finish missing and it was super dull looking. There was also no finish left on the back of the neck, nothing but dirt and grime.
I think it looks fabulous. I would love to have seen you drop a cigarette end onto the body, the old cherry bomb! But I guess thats easy to say when it's not my guitar 😊
I'm fine with the color on the scratch plate...suggest you do the pickup surrounds to match.
Finishing crowning file? YESSSSSS!!!! I've been using my fret end dressing file so too much haha
I'd definitely keep the pickguard off - not so much because of the colour, but because of the look of that top.
off topic, I purchased a 79 strat in Morocco Red color from a lady today. it belonged to her brother since new. when I opened the case it was laying on some bubble wrap and yes the bubble wrap pattern transformed onto the lacquer, bummer. is the repairable? or am I screwed!
The best thing for authentically ageing plastics is tobacco smoke. It's probably why guitars from the 50's, 60's and 70's look the way they do. I once loaned a Strat to someone without realising how heavy a smoker they were. When I got the guitar back after about a month, the scratch plate and pickup covers had aged about 40 years. I probably should have been pissed off, but it looked incredible. The stink goes after a while, but the stain lasts forever.
It will most likely smell like an old ashtray. I got that thick tar stuff all over an old home Phone, it is just coated in that stuff people breathed into their bodies. YUCK.
Relicing anything but especially Guitars puts me in mind of John and Sylvia, protagonists from Zen and the Art of Motorcycle maintenance. Robert Persig. Well worth a read.
I like the scalpel work. Do you think it would enhance it if you made the overall finish a bit more satin? I’m wondering if that would be more complimentary and enhance the overall reliced look. It looks a bit too glossy.
What would I have done? Fix up the buckle rash, that's what I would have done. Personal opinion obviously, but I think relicing guitars is a form of vandalism.
Agreed - some graffiti is ART but 99% is vandalism - this is the same
I need to do this the other way round! I have an Epi LP where someone has scratched the top with a scalpel, how do I get rid of it?
Is it possible to obtain a less bright finish ?
Is that a Hakko Soldering station? I actually like the sound of unpotted pickups too but I wouldn't want to play a live gig with them! Especially if I was playing really loud through a big amp. In the studio though, all is well. Nice guitar Ben. I love the unstained or close to natural top! I wonder if wiping the pickup down with isopropyl alcohol or wax and grease remover before applying the Ferric chloride would help with the pooling? I'm just curious because of the buffing compound left on the wheel of the buffer. I really need to try this.
Ben, is there any form of accelerated ageing process that can be performed, instead of checking and the like?
The pickup ring on my main guitar has a spot that looks melted from my finger pivoting/resting on it
Great job Sir! the only thing I would have done extra would be to scuff up the sides and top of the headstock edges.
Did you de-grease the hardware before applying the ferric chloride?
You should polish the guitar to take away the harshness of the freshly cut Lacquer! Do the same with the Pickup covers!
Rilicing guitars is an art in its own right... much like forging classic art. Those who are masters at the forgeries are rarely masters at the creation of them in the first place, and vice versa. When I see old vintage guitars and relics, I mostly just think about how I could restore them! Just the way my aging brain works. Great little series, thx.
2:23 LPNSTDP LP: Les Paul N(ew?) STD Standard P: Plus Top... prior cavity TA: Trans Amber
Is the finish on Les Paul Customs in "Ebony" the same as "'Bursts" (apart from the obvious)? It feels different to me... Best, Pete.
And no one mentioned the Burn Marks on the headstock next to the Nut for that Clapton authenticity??
Hey Ben what brand/size buffing wheel do you use for buffing frets ?
I have loved this relic series but the faux cracking still looks like it's been scratched. Over time there would be dirt in there and it wouldn't be so rough. It needs a faux dirt wash and a light polish to un-square the cracks
wipe the whole thing down with some dark stain of brown shoe polish. It will slightly accentuate the craze lines. Might want to add some strumming scratches above the strings and more heavily on the pick guard. The hardware looks great.
Practice makes perfect! I'd love to see this again.
Ben , who's guitar would you like to work on to make it either look better or play better?
agree with the comments regarding shoe polish/ dark wax rubbed into the finish. buff that off and it should make the checking less harsh
i have used some Monty's Montyspresso on an aged partscaster body to good effect
regarding the scratch plate - chucking it is an option, never urt Gary Moore's tone? and grime up the underside of the knobs; and maybe mismatch them?
there are some decent videos on the 8bomb YT channel regarding aging, etc
th-cam.com/users/8BombCustom
for those who dislike artificial aging, nothing wrong with an opinion either way. just remember - only the Sith deal in absolutes
i think i would just put the hardware in a bucket of bolts and screws and shook it around to get that random scratch pattern on them ... that and maybe buff down the finish a lil after cutting in the checking ... and maybe rub some oil and grease into the finish and try to clean it back off
Mad scientist of Guitars.🎸🤺
Cool to watch you do it because I'm not touching mine I do enough on accident or drinking then take a ambien while playing = oops it knocks you out without a warning I didn't break the headstock I got lucky lesson learned
real life relicing is just as cool!
5:45 yea it doesn't work on Chrome. It's great on Nickel though. I heat up the vinegar for more steam.
Ben, I love your videos. You are a true craftsman. I never understood why you would make a guitar look old. It is old and it shows, or it is new. I like new. And when I buy a second hand one it should look new, when I sell a guitar I bought new it still looks new, or mint. Nevertheless there is a big market for fake old.
I like the finish of the work bench, that would look great on the guitar, is it oak?
Ive used your vintage amber /brown spirit stains to age plastic to good effect