SG Tribute Refinish - What Color?

[tifftunes]

Today, I want the translucent TV Yellow... Yesterday, I was convinced the Mojave Gold was it! And, so it goes...

 

[papagayo]

What do you think about a Translucent Turquoise Blue?

 

[Decadent Dan]

Natural Burst

 

[tifftunes]

What do you think about a Translucent Turquoise Blue?

View attachment 47930

I LOVE BLUE!

Just sold a Pelham Blue Standard a couple months ago...

 

[tifftunes]

Still leaning towards the trans yellow...

 

[MR D]

PAINT IT BLACK

 

[MR D]

I own a 2012 SG special with a baked maple fretboard.
The baked maple was a substitute material that Gibson was forced into using... The government had raided Gibson's warehouse and confiscated all their rosewood and ebony (and maybe mahogany) and. accused Gibson of obtaining the wood on the black market.
View attachment 47924
It's possible that the charges were justified. Or not.
Whatever the results of the legal proceedings, I purchased an SG with a maple neck and a baked maple fretboard. I actually loved the concept and wanted one as soon as I heard about it. I still love
this guitar, and the maple neck does stay in tune better.

Other guitarists (including a large vocal section on this forum) actually hated the concept and refused to buy any Gibbies with "substandard"
baked maple fretboards. The response was generally negative...
like "WTF Gibson!" ...and the sales of the 2012 models was slow.
I never ventured over to MLP and checked out the response there
to Les Paul guitars with baked maple fretboards... I'm sure it
was scathing.... but undeserved.

I took advantage of this closed minded bull-taco, and watched and waited while the prices fell. *grins I finally bought my Silverburst SG special when it was about $600. So I got a great instrument at a
really decent price. Nine years later I'm still very happy with this SG.

View attachment 47925
The maple neck is very rigid and strong, and it's very stable tuning wise. Leo Fender figured this out in like 1949, but Gibson has been
trapped by their traditions and has difficulty marketing innovations until recently.

Anyway, the maple neck and baked maple fretboard give excellent
service. Mine has for nine years now. It's a fine choice.

What color do I recommend then? Silverburst, of course.

That is the only two-toned SG I have seen that I like....my two-toned 2015 SG Special in Fireburst Brown is butt-fuglin fugly and just got sold and was nowhere near as SHARP looking as that one in the picture, WOW....!

What is that pictured on Truss-Rod cover ? ........looks like the DEAD's 'Steal Your Face' logo, but it probably ins't (?)

 

[Decadent Dan]

I have 2 "rock maple" Carvins I bought new in the early 80s. I can leave the bass alone for months-to-years at a time, and rarely need to tune it. Same with the guitar, although it may require a tweak or two... The studio humidity varies from 40% to 54%... and that seems to effect the tuning of all guitars except those with maple necks. I've one vintage 60s acoustic guitar with a mahogany neck that is sealed with a poly finish, and it seems quite stable.

Mahogany necks seem to change, as they are played... Warmth and humidity always play a roll. Maple necks seem immune to warmth and humidity. This is my observation over the past 55 years. Think what you want, but this is my experience.

I used to tune a few pre-Ernie Ball Music Man basses on the road. Some maple necks and one graphite. The graphite could go from Indiana to Alabama and not change.

 

[tifftunes]

Still waffling on a color... I like both, and may just flip a coin! Haha! Or, as suggested, get another SG and have both colors!

I'm very tempted to paint my Classic too. I'm not a fan of the bright Cherry. I like the darker Heritage Cherry from 1969, which my first SG Std sported. I believe Santana's P-90 SG was this darker Heritage Cherry as well...

I've got to decide soon! I have the guitar all stripped down and ready for paint. Just need to choose.

 

[duane v]

 

[laza616]

Well, its easy then.
Get another SG and have both colours

 

[papagayo]

Silver finish is cool and this finish is not very difficult to paint.

 

[Col Mustard]

I'm going to suggest that you abandon the idea of refinishing your
beautiful Gibson SG. My suggestion is that you play it.
All your posts on this thread indicate indecision.

So listen to yourself, and do nothing.
Refinishing a beautiful Gibson is a really bad idea.
You have no idea what's under that finish. So don't remove it.
Don't open a can of worms and ruin a fine guitar.

My suggestion is to save your money and time, and rock that sucker.
While you're doing that, look around for a guitar in a color that
pleases you, and buy that.

Your remarks about the neck and fretboard indicate a lack
of knowledge about how these things work. Baked maple is
a fretboard material, which has no effect on tuning stability.
Also, mahogany necks are very traditional with Gibson and many
other makers. Mahogany is a fine wood for guitar necks.

Remember these facts...
Every guitar player needs to tune his guitar before every song.

There is no such thing as any guitar that stays in tune so well
you don't have to do this. Mount a stomp tuner on your pedal board
or buy yourself a clip on Snark tuner and you'll join the rest of us.

Maple necks on Gibsons are not so rare as they used to be.
(but there is no such thing as a "baked maple neck."
If you look, you'll find that there are many Gibson models now
with maple necks. They may have rosewood fretboards, or
something else. Maple necks are excellent too, I love mine.

Baked maple was only used in 2012 for fretboards, when
Gibson was forced to use it.

But there are many Gibsons with maple necks now.
Look carefully and you may find one with a color you like.
In the mean time, rock that sucker... and tune it before each
song. *grins

 

[tifftunes]

DECISION MADE!

The SG Classic (avatar) will become translucent TV Yellow.

The maple neck SG Tribute will become Mojave Gold.

This is per suggestion above some where, that I get a 2nd and paint it the "other" color. Having 2 SGs now, solves that dilemma. I can have both colors!

Thanks for your participation in my little adventure in paint!

 

[TheDixiePig]

Look forward to seeing them. Another member painted his SG a gold color and it looks fantastic.

 

[jtcnj]

Good luck with the projects!
I dig the yellow; I had a somewhat rare cheapy bolt neck EPI SG Jr. in yellow for a few years.
With a bit of upgrades, nut and fretwork, it was a really good playing and sounding guitar.

 

[Col Mustard]

That is the only two-toned SG I have seen that I like....my two-toned 2015 SG Special in Fireburst Brown is butt-fuglin fugly and just got sold and was nowhere near as SHARP looking as that one in the picture, WOW....!

What is that pictured on Truss-Rod cover ? ........looks like the DEAD's 'Steal Your Face' logo, but it probably ins't (?)

my 2012 SG special is a fairly plain guitar... no binding, no pineapple, no deep gloss. I like her that way. I named her Catalina.

I polished her "matte finish" paint with Maguiar's Ultimate Compound
which is for cars normally. That shined her up just enough.

I also bought her a truss rod cover made of ebony and inlaid with MOP and Abalone. The maker, Scott Swirski of Canada calls this design "Tribal Rose." I bought this TRC in like 2013, but it seems he's still in business.

Truss Rod Covers - Decorative and Custom - WEC Inlay

Proudly handcrafting decorative replacement truss rod covers, and decorative pieces in Canada!

www.wecinlay.com

it's a fine decoration for a plain SG special IMHO. On a fancier guitar
maybe not. Beauty is in the eye of the beer holder, eh?
On an SG with all the Gibson inlays and binding, I'd want a plain TRC
that just said SFG.

Here she is next to one of her favorite amps: the Orange Micro Terror
driving a home made cab with 1/10" and 1/12" speaker. Her stock Gibson mini hums sound awesome through this rig. She gets loud enough to rattle the crockery in my house. *grins

 

[MR D]

my 2012 SG special is a fairly plain guitar... no binding, no pineapple, no deep gloss. I like her that way. I named her Catalina.

I polished her "matte finish" paint with Maguiar's Ultimate Compound
which is for cars normally. That shined her up just enough.

I also bought her a truss rod cover made of ebony and inlaid with MOP and Abalone. The maker, Scott Swirski of Canada calls this design "Tribal Rose." I bought this TRC in like 2013, but it seems he's still in business.

Truss Rod Covers - Decorative and Custom - WEC Inlay

Proudly handcrafting decorative replacement truss rod covers, and decorative pieces in Canada!

www.wecinlay.com

View attachment 50489
it's a fine decoration for a plain SG special IMHO. On a fancier guitar
maybe not. Beauty is in the eye of the beer holder, eh?
On an SG with all the Gibson inlays and binding, I'd want a plain TRC
that just said SFG.

Here she is next to one of her favorite amps: the Orange Micro Terror
driving a home made cab with 1/10" and 1/12" speaker. Her stock Gibson mini hums sound awesome through this rig. She gets loud enough to rattle the crockery in my house. *grins
View attachment 50491

The TRC looks damn good ! and if its a one-off, so much the better ! ! ! IIRC, the 2018 SG Special had those block in-lays and all the way to the 1st fret too !!! N E time I can get something that is not an 'everyday' type of GIBSON Guitar I grab it ! BUT BUT BUT, that one time....... the 2018 got away.....I forget if it was colour selection, or what ? but I balked....I'm sure if it had that SILVER finish on it in 2018.........MINE !!!!

That is just about the only two tone SG that I have seen that I really liked ! The SILVER is BAD-A$$ !

 

[Col Mustard]

I had NEVER seen a silver burst guitar of any kind.
So I had to have it. Catalina has baked maple fretboard,
maple neck with volute, block inlays and 2012 mini hums.

>She's got a tone all her own. Reaction to all this innovation
on ETSG was negative... no one was willing to buy these,
so Gibson kept marking them down and down... by 2013
the price was down to about $600. I resisted the G.A.S.
manfully until then, and I had to pounce. No regrets.

>Gibson re-issued this model in 2016 I think, with a rosewood board.
And they sold better. Guys knew by '16 that the mini hums rip.

Sorry to derail the refinishing thread...

 

[tifftunes]

Sorry to derail the refinishing thread...

It's all good. Only thing left for me to do, is get the guitars painted, and post the results. I'm just waiting on my tax return...

This thread needed a diversion for the time being... Right?