Manchester Guitar Tech
1956 Les Paul Gold Top
This Les Paul came to me badly refinished in polyurethane varnish. I completely stripped it (apart from the area around the serial number) and refinished it in nitrocellulose lacquer, using the same bronze powder pigments that would have been used originally.
Goldtop lacquer with real bronze powder is now available in a can – Gold Top Aerosol!
Hi,
What colours did you use for the front? Is it straight “Shoreline Gold Metallic” or a blend of colours or tinted lacquers?
Cheers.
Hi Terry, It’s Crescent Bronze Extra Brilliant Greengold #256 pigment in nitrocellulose lacquer. Unfortunately it isn’t possible to supply it in aerosol as the bronze powder oxidises green in days.
Thanks, Steve.
Done the hard way? Possibly out of my league.
Applied with a spray gun and compressor, yes. I’ve painted a few gold tops and the gold lacquer is not very difficult to spray so long as (like always) you have prepared the surface well. The bronze flake can be very messy though and hard to eliminate from your spray gun. That’s why I have separate guns for metallics, colours and clear lacquer.
Hi Ross, Sorry but it’s actually just clear gloss lacquer and all the colour comes from the 55 year old mahogany!
Aha… I’ll have to try and take some decent colour-matched photos and ask for your expert opinion :)
PS – I”m hoping to do that Sonic Blue Strat re-fin this summer… things have conspired against me thus far! I’ll be sure to take a few pics and (if I make it) bring it to Bury in November.
I wondered how that was coming along. Summertime is spraying time…
Hi Steve,
What colour did you use for the back of the Gold Top? It looks pretty close to my new “acquisition” and, if I go ahead with the headstock conversion, I’ll need some reddish-brown nitro…