carlsim Posted July 27 Posted July 27 Hi all, Ā I'm shortly going to be stripping and refinishing a Stingray 5. I picked it up quite cheap as it needed a refinish so I am going to be sanding and stripping it myself and then sending it on to someone for a refinish - unless i sand back to the wood and it has a lovely grain then I may consider a tru-oil finish with a poly top coat for a glossy finish. Ā So basically, the (colour) world is my oyster... what would you have? It has a maple neck and fingerboard, natural headstock and currently sports a black scratchplate. I would like to change the hardware for black lightweight options as I like black on a SR5 and it looks a bit tired. With a fresh finish, I would prefer it to look nice and new. So... i don't want a plain black or white finish, if I go solid colour, something funky could be desirable... I do like the look of the new Kiwi Green colour which is now available... Ā What combinations look good in your book for a SR5? Quote
HeadlessBassist Posted July 27 Posted July 27 The world definitely is your oyster with colour choices. I'd personally go for something like Firemist Gold metallic (like they did the Fender Vintera 1 Jazzes in), with a darkish red tort guard.Ā Ā 5 Quote
BassApprentice Posted July 27 Posted July 27 Shell pink is always a winner for me. Ā Or a racing green could be a cool look. Quote
Jack Posted July 27 Posted July 27 I really like the powder/baby blue that the Sire MMalike basses come in. Purple would also look great.Ā Quote
AlexDelores Posted July 27 Posted July 27 Not Stingrays, but Iāve always thought Mike Lull colour choices are superb. A little scroll through their Instagram/website might inspire something š 1 Quote
Mrbigstuff Posted July 27 Posted July 27 Sparkly teal or purple for me. I used to have a translucent teal SR with a maple neck and black PG and that was a looker. Add the sparkle and it will be unique.Ā 2 Quote
kwmlondon Posted July 27 Posted July 27 MusicMan have sine some really fun sparkly metallic finishes. Iām very much a natural finish fan for my own instrument but I am a sucker for metallic paint jobs!Ā 1 Quote
kwmlondon Posted July 27 Posted July 27 6 hours ago, HeadlessBassist said: The world definitely is your oyster with colour choices. I'd personally go for something like Firemist Gold metallic (like they did the Fender Vintera 1 Jazzes in), with a darkish red tort guard.Ā Ā Oooh how about that rose pink gold metallic shade. Yummy!! 1 Quote
ezbass Posted July 27 Posted July 27 My usual go to for Stingrays is teal, which I love as a colour on most things. However, givenā¦ Ā 7 hours ago, carlsim said: currently sports a black scratchplate. I would like to change the hardware for black lightweight options Iād probably go with some sort of burgundy mist to contrast with the hardware. Quote
The fasting showman Posted July 27 Posted July 27 I really liked the first late '80s SR5s, they did a trans blue with a maple neck and white pickguard; that's what I wanted as a kid so it's etched in my mind. 1 Quote
BillyBass Posted July 27 Posted July 27 As it's a fiver, you can lose the pick guard and go for a spotty finish. Ā Yellow with pink spots. 1 Quote
Mrbigstuff Posted July 27 Posted July 27 34 minutes ago, BillyBass said: As it's a fiver, you can lose the pick guard and go for a spotty finish. Ā Yellow with pink spots. 1 Quote
BillyBass Posted July 27 Posted July 27 Actually, I was only half joking. Ā Mainly yellow, with another colour in there somewhere, perhaps spots. Ā I really love brightly coloured basses, and some of the colours Ernie Ball comes up with for his instruments are great. Quote
Bolo Posted July 27 Posted July 27 Candy Apple red, or put a fancy wood veneer on. Ā Check if a clear poly over tru oil is even possible, most laquers don't take to oil base coats, and Gunstock oil doesn't really need a top coat. Quote
crazycloud Posted July 28 Posted July 28 17 hours ago, carlsim said: if I go solid colour, something funky could be desirable Magenta. Quote
Terry M. Posted July 28 Posted July 28 19 hours ago, carlsim said: unless i sand back to the wood and it has a lovely grain then I may consider a tru-oil finish with a poly top coat for a glossy finish. I would personally hope and pray the grain looks nice so it can sport a natural finish. Failing that I would opt for butterscotch with that maple neck natural headstock and black pickguard. Quote
StingRayBoy42 Posted July 28 Posted July 28 My favourite colour scheme on any Bass is natural/maple/black scratchplate... simple and classic. If you're going for anything else, go all out - glittery pink or purple! 2 Quote
kwmlondon Posted July 28 Posted July 28 31 minutes ago, StingRayBoy42 said: My favourite colour scheme on any Bass is natural/maple/black scratchplate... simple and classic. If you're going for anything else, go all out - glittery pink or purple! Yeah, I like that aesthetic - either low-key and show off the wood or go full on Glam!Ā 1 Quote
kwmlondon Posted July 28 Posted July 28 14 hours ago, Jean-Luc Pickguard said: How about a cool halfords primer grey Ā I see a lot of high-end German motors rocking the primer grey look these days. I can't work out how that marketing worked. May as well bring back British Leyland's mustard yellow and rust brown shades... Quote
Woodinblack Posted July 28 Posted July 28 Just now, kwmlondon said: I see a lot of high-end German motors rocking the primer grey look these days. I can't work out how that marketing worked.Ā Ā Really like that colour (shade?). Another thing is the amount of matt cars, so much better than shiny, need more basses like that too! 1 Quote
ebenezer Posted July 28 Posted July 28 When stripped, if it has a nice wood grain, i would tru-oil itĀ 1 Quote
RichT Posted July 28 Posted July 28 (edited) On 28/07/2025 at 11:01, Woodinblack said: Ā Really like that colour (shade?). Another thing is the amount of matt cars, so much better than shiny, need more basses like that too! Ā A few years ago I saw a (then) premier league footballer driving his matt black Mercedes AMG GT near where I live. I'm not a car person, but it was an amazing looking thing. In that moment I was put in mind of both Ford Prefect and Nigel Tufnel. Ā "It's so... black! Light just seems to fall into it." Ā "It's like, how much more black could it be? And the answer is none. None more black." Ā A stealth bass in that finish would be awesome, but it would also need a dark fingerboard. For this particular SR5, I'd vote for teal š Edited August 3 by RichT clarity 1 Quote
carlsim Posted July 29 Author Posted July 29 Wow! Lots of comments, and some great ideas for the colour.Ā I have been looking at the EB catalogue and I do like the look of what I think they call HD yellow? With the black plate and black hardware, it looks pretty coolā¦ plus a solid colour will be cheaper!Ā although I wonder what that would look like with a metallic finish?? Iām going to strip it first and see what the grain looks like and go from thereā¦Ā I will upload some pics of how it transforms, although wonāt be for a little while as I need it for a few gigs firstā¦ 2 Quote
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