What makes guitars shiny

Generally speaking, the thicker the lacquer, the more the sound will be choked by the finish. Matte guitars have a thin coating so the finish will have little affect on the wood, compared with gloss finish guitars. All of our guitars, like all Chinese guitars, are all sprayed in polyurethane. Our acoustic guitars don't have a thick coating so as not to overly choke the resonance. This finish is very weather resistant, and does not require temperature controlled shipping to Australia, part of the reason Chinese guitars are cheaper than American guitars.

But nitrocellulose is very weather reactive and will crack with age, bubble up, are cloud up making it impossible to clean after 30 years if not cleaned every time you finish playing with petroleum based guitar polish like Gibson Guitar polish. But, for the sake of tone you HAVE to live with this.

In the early days, companies tended to spray on polyester in a very clumsy manner, which results in a thick finish that looked unappealing and drained your guitar tone. These also look great on bare wood and enhance the grain nicely. If you want something with a little or a lot more protection, then go for a polyurethane or polyester-based finish.

Additionally, plastic-based coats provide a vibrant, bright aesthetic, which works well with painted guitars. Just remember, this stuff is toxic to work with before and after it has set. As an Amazon Associate, we earn from qualifying purchases. All Rights Reserved. This process eliminates the need to sand between layers.

After full application, the solvent chemicals are left to fully dissolve; leaving a dry resin-like texture. This is then hand-buffed and sanded until a glossy finish is achieved. Although nitrocellulose lacquer may give a guitar an airier sound, its softer texture does make it susceptible to cosmetic damage. This means that dings and scratches are more visible on guitars with nitro finishes, and much easier to inflict.

A nitrocellulose lacquer also wears away over time, causing dulling in areas where you make regular contact with your guitar; such as the lower bout where your forearm rests. Nitrocellulose also yellows with time, especially when exposed to excessive sunlight.

Apart from the above, small cracks can appear in a nitro finish after several years too. This occurs when a guitar is regularly exposed to differing temperatures, as changes in climate causes wood to expand and contract. As these departments mostly produce premium time-honoured instruments, they therefore use nitro finishes to recapture the essence of their older vintage models.

Nitro lacquers are also typically used on more expensive guitars as the application process is time-consuming and requires several layers. They must also be carefully hand-buffed and sanded at the final stage to ensure a consistent, professional quality.

Attempting to relic a poly-finished guitar would not look very convincing at all! This type of finish brings out the grain of the wood on the guitar such as mahogany, cedar, spruce or maple. A gloss finish acts like a sort of lens to let you see the surface of the guitar, especially the wood grain. Some acoustic guitar models are given a high gloss finish and some have a semi-gloss finish. This type of finish does not bring out the wood grain as much as a gloss finish does.

A satin finish also tends to wear off with time, leaving some parts that are shiny. This created a thin and more brittle material that bonded well to the spruce wood while letting the soundboard vibrate freely. That is just one example. Here are some other more common materials used for acoustic guitar finishes.