carlsim Posted August 30 Posted August 30 So after a successful strip and refinish using Tru-oil of an Xotic a while back, I recently acquired a very reasonably priced Stingray 5 from @wordsetceteraĀ for the pure reason that the finish was in a bit of a sorry state. It would appear that someone had gone over itsĀ original trans red finish with a solid red rattle can finish (which wasnāt perfect but not too bad) and then lacquered it. Unfortunately, due to some rigorous polishing the lacquer was peeling off and it had started to look a bit sorry for its self. I took a punt for this reason with an original intention to do another tru-oil refinish and job done. But, I started thinking about colours and asked the BC community about ideas of colours and what they think looks good with a stingray. There were some excellent ideas and some of the colours from The new special series are amazing. However, after stripping the guitar I have decided that a natural finish is going to be the way to go. It was originally a trans red finish so I had an idea that grain would be nice, but now itās back to the Wood. I think itās definitely going to be a natural finish. Iām quite lucky that I live quite near a talented luthier and heās going to do a high gloss nitro finish for me. We did discuss the idea of a dirty stain, which involves staining the wood and then sanding back to make a slightly darker look especially on the grain and I think this could be quite cool. I have been painting stripping and sanding over the last few weeks (fitting this in between other jobs) and itās now ready to go off to be finished. I wanted to give it a more modern look as well and I think the black hardware on the new special series look really good. A natural finish stingray with a maple neck, looks great with a black scratch plane and I think this would be aided with black tuners, a black bridge and black knobs. My biggest issue is where to source these! Schaller make some black tuners which would fit nicely and a slightly lighter than the originals. But Ernie Ball donāt allow you to buy replacement bridges in different colours. I can get original music man tuners but they donāt supply and send to the UK. I do have family in America who could buy them for me and post them but I reckon it will be close to 200 quid.Ā My question is this - can I have a chrome bridge changed to black? I donāt think powder coating would work as apparently itās quite a thick coating. I did look into anodising but apparently the biggest problem is getting the chrome off. Anybody tried anything like this? Does anybody have a stingray five Black bridge theyād want to swap for a chrome one? Doubtful, I know but always worth an ask! I do think the black hardware would improve the look no end so I will definitely be doing this. Other than that is a non-original music man bridge but I donāt know which one would fit and I donāt want to drill extra holes.Ā Feel free to weigh in on the colour options as well - Iām not 100% on the natural finish if someone has some other ideas but the grain looks great. Iād rather not cover it! Will post updates when the refinish process startsā¦ Ā Carl. 1 Quote
carlsim Posted August 30 Author Posted August 30 Original paint work - you can certainly see the duff job of the original rattle can jobā¦. Ā Ā 1 Quote
carlsim Posted August 30 Author Posted August 30 Sanded back to the wood - that sealer coat was a b**** to sand through - I was instructed to do the sides by hand to avoid taking too much wood away. That took hours! 6 Quote
carlsim Posted August 30 Author Posted August 30 The guy doing the refinish will be doing further finish sanding so thatās my bit done for now and time to pass it across. Ā 1 Quote
SpondonBassed Posted August 30 Posted August 30 The grain looks interesting enough.Ā What are your thoughts having revealed it? Quote
AndyTravis Posted August 30 Posted August 30 Iād make that natural, great grainy ash. maybe an āagedā tint - but not that awful orange stuff. Quote
AndyTravis Posted August 30 Posted August 30 2 hours ago, carlsim said: The guy doing the refinish will be doing further finish sanding so thatās my bit done for now and time to pass it across. Ā Looks like you did a great job Quote
carlsim Posted August 31 Author Posted August 31 14 hours ago, SpondonBassed said: The grain looks interesting enough.Ā What are your thoughts having revealed it? To be honest Iām 95% set on a natural finish, slightly toned down and high gloss. Iām not a fan of trans colour finishes to be honest, and I think itās too nice a grain to cover up. 2 Quote
carlsim Posted August 31 Author Posted August 31 14 hours ago, AndyTravis said: Iād make that natural, great grainy ash. maybe an āagedā tint - but not that awful orange stuff. ThanksĀ @AndyTravis Ā I think you are on the money, a darker tint to it will bring the grain out a bit. Plus all the other natural stingrays out there are just lacquered so this will make it kind of unique! itās the black hardware issue Iām having trouble with! Quote
Geek99 Posted August 31 Posted August 31 This do? https://www.google.com/aclk?sa=L&ai=DChsSEwituq7_1rSPAxX4lVAGHS5rLT0YACICCAEQIxoCZGc&co=1&gclid=EAIaIQobChMIrbqu_9a0jwMV-JVQBh0uay09EAQYDyABEgJ2ZvD_BwE&sph=&sig=AOD64_0IAu183WAbJd42CDx7NVk3iyBE9Q&ctype=5&q=&ved=2ahUKEwiz6aj_1rSPAxWBWEEAHfKtIW4Qwg8oAHoECAQQbg&adurl= Quote
carlsim Posted August 31 Author Posted August 31 8 hours ago, Geek99 said: This do? https://www.google.com/aclk?sa=L&ai=DChsSEwituq7_1rSPAxX4lVAGHS5rLT0YACICCAEQIxoCZGc&co=1&gclid=EAIaIQobChMIrbqu_9a0jwMV-JVQBh0uay09EAQYDyABEgJ2ZvD_BwE&sph=&sig=AOD64_0IAu183WAbJd42CDx7NVk3iyBE9Q&ctype=5&q=&ved=2ahUKEwiz6aj_1rSPAxWBWEEAHfKtIW4Qwg8oAHoECAQQbg&adurl= i will Double check the measurements - nice one! 1 Quote
tauzero Posted September 10 Posted September 10 Seeing as the routing is quite neat, what about your previous idea of a clear scratchplate like on your Ray35 so the grain isn't covered up by a massive expanse of black plastic? Quote
carlsim Posted September 10 Author Posted September 10 3 minutes ago, tauzero said: Seeing as the routing is quite neat, what about your previous idea of a clear scratchplate like on your Ray35 so the grain isn't covered up by a massive expanse of black plastic? Ā That is a very good idea! I need to see how nice I can make the rout (probably going with copper foil tape) and luckily, I can make one at work with the laser cutter... sounds like a plan. Ā It's gone to the local luthier for it's refinish - he is going to do a very subtle darkening of the grain and wood before it's refinish so will see how it comes out. 1 Quote
carlsim Posted September 18 Author Posted September 18 So, the SR body has been with the luthier for a few weeks and he has been some doing some final sanding and experimenting with stains to take away the stark white of the ash. He has used a very pale brown wash to darken the wood a little and it really helps to make the grain pop! Really pleased with the results and he will shortly be starting on the sealer coat and layering on the clear coat. Ā Pictures show the wash on the body and one half with spirits to show the clear coat should look. Ā I can't wait to see it when it's all buffed and ready to reassemble! 7 Quote
carlsim Posted September 19 Author Posted September 19 So the stingray has had 6 coats of clear coat today and itās being left over the weekend to cure before itās wet sand and buff to a high gloss finish.Ā im really pleased with the dirty stain, the stark white has gone and the grain really pops out. Its certainly going to be different from the usual natural finish stingrays and definitely worth the effort once it is back together. i have suppliers sourcing me a black bridge direct from musicman so once that is here i can reassemble!Ā 7 Quote
carlsim Posted September 23 Author Posted September 23 So the Stingray came back from the shop today, all buffed and polished and I'm loving the new look for it. The brown wash really makes the grain pop and rather than a completely flat polished look which is the standard for Rays in a natural finish, I have opted for a more tactile polished finish with no grain fill to allow the nitro to sink into the grain. It really looks good and feels a lot more natural than the standard polished finish. Ā Not the best photo but I have started added copper foil to the cavities ready for the electronics to go back in and will add some pics when I can which shows the finish a bit clearer. Ā I'm just waiting on a price for the black bridge from musicman and then it can all be put back together! Ā Ā 6 Quote
carlsim Posted September 24 Author Posted September 24 So, a little glimpse into how itās going to look with a scratch plateā¦ I was considering a clear plate, but I actually really like it with the black. Add a black bridge and black tuners with a maple neck, I think itās going to look decidedly cool!! 4 Quote
tauzero Posted September 24 Posted September 24 3 hours ago, carlsim said: So, a little glimpse into how itās going to look with a scratch plateā¦ I was considering a clear plate, but I actually really like it with the black. Add a black bridge and black tuners with a maple neck, I think itās going to look decidedly cool!! Ā At least cut the plate down a bit, like on one of the Variax guitars: Ā Quote
BassTool Posted September 24 Posted September 24 (edited) On 31/08/2025 at 09:45, carlsim said: To be honest Iām 95% set on a natural finish, slightly toned down and high gloss. Iām not a fan of trans colour finishes to be honest, and I think itās too nice a grain to cover up. ^ This ^ was definitely the right choice, great work!Ā š Edited September 24 by BassTool Quote
carlsim Posted September 24 Author Posted September 24 7 hours ago, tauzero said: Ā At least cut the plate down a bit, like on one of the Variax guitars: Ā I like the idea but I just donāt know whereā¦ itās also going to show the screw holes as well - recommendations?? Quote
SpondonBassed Posted September 24 Posted September 24 I can't say the original shape looks out of place.Ā The grain speaks for itself even with that amount of coverage. 1 Quote
carlsim Posted September 25 Author Posted September 25 So, I need some advice. Ernie Ball want Ā£175 for a black bridge and they want the chrome one back as well. That's a no for me.Ā Ā I really want to go black with this as much as I can... would it look weird if I went with black tuners, black scratchplate and knobs, black pup but had a chrome bridge? Ā I thought Ā£175 wouldn't be too bad if I could sell the chrome one to recoup some funds but it's too much for a like for like replacement. Is it worth me trying to spray the original bridge? Chrome sprayed - a lot of people say no... if I scuff up the chrome and it looks crap - I'm in the stink. I have had a look at other bridges but from what I have seen so far, all would leave the brass captive screws showing, it would need to be 110mm wide for it to work. Ā Any advice fellow BC'ers?? Ā Ā Quote
SpondonBassed Posted September 25 Posted September 25 19 minutes ago, carlsim said: Ernie Ball want Ā£175 for a black bridge and they want the chrome one back as well. That's a no for me. Ā I wouldn't have been so polite.Ā If you pay for both you should have them both. Quote
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