Nitrocellulose & polyurethane

[Myst and rain]

Hi,

I've heard that a nitrocellulose finish on your guitar, lets your wood 'breathe', but it feels 'sticky'.

A polyurethane finish, they say, is the opposite in both respects. Which would have a negative impact on the sound, to a degree, because the wood resonates less as it's not allowed to 'breathe'.

What are your thoughts on this? Does nitrocellulose indeed feel 'sticky'? And does it have a perceivable positive effect on the sound, or do you hardly notice a difference?

Kind regards,
Alwin

[Lefty Robb]

Originally Posted by Myst and rain

A polyurethane finish, they say, is the opposite in both respects. Which would have a negative impact on the sound, to a degree, because the wood resonates less as it's not allowed to 'breathe'.


Kind regards,
Alwin

I would think this is totally wrong. If you had a harder material wrapping around a softer material it should allow sound waves to bounce all around the softer material and off the walls of the hard material, just like an acoustic guitar, this increasing the resonance of the guitar. Caparison even claims they have special finishes that actually affect the overall tone of the guitar.

perhaps we should write to Mythbusters to try and prove this... and hopefully this would end with them blowing up a few chibanezs...ahh, one can only dream.

[SeanB]

I've never noticed a difference in paint between any guitars...only if it's transparent, matte or glossy haha.

I'd like to know what to use though as I was thinking about getting my guitar refinished.

So very interested to see the results here.

-Sean

[SeanB]

Originally Posted by Lefty Robb

perhaps we should write to Mythbusters to try and prove this... and hopefully this would end with them blowing up a few chibanezs...ahh, one can only dream.

Best episode idea...ever

petition time!

Hehe
-Sean

[Myst and rain]

Originally Posted by Lefty Robb

I would think this is totally wrong. If you had a harder material wrapping around a softer material it should allow sound waves to bounce all around the softer material and off the walls of the hard material, just like an acoustic guitar, this increasing the resonance of the guitar. Caparison even claims they have special finishes that actually affect the overall tone of the guitar.

perhaps we should write to Mythbusters to try and prove this... and hopefully this would end with them blowing up a few chibanezs...ahh, one can only dream.

That makes a lot of sense, Lefty Robb.

Check out this thread on the Carvin forum, where they talk about nitro vs. poly, as well. It's where I read the info I posted in the first post.

Alwin

[Rodney James]

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[waylay00]

I like nitro better.

[Myst and rain]

So far, most people are going for nitrocellulose... That's interesting.

Is there any reason in particular that you guys like that better? Is it the feel? Or the sound? I'd be interested in your thoughts.

Alwin

[waylay00]

Nitro is thinner and allows the guitar to "breathe" and resonate better. Is it THAT noticeable to everyone? Maybe to some, maybe not so much for others. The downside is that it wears more quickly (and apparently it's harmful to the environment when applied, hence why it isn't used as much today). That's one reason why old Strats that were finished with nitrocellulose look so beat up.

[Myst and rain]

That's super interesting, waylay00. Thanks a lot!

Alwin

[Rotti]

I read an article recently that said Fender has been spraying bodies with fullerplast before paint since the 60's. So even the old Strats with Nitro have a nice thick coast of plastic underneath.

[Rotti]

Here it is. Take it for what it's worth...

http://www.caraguitars.com/fullerplast.asp

[Andy43]

Nitro does indeed sound better, but it's much softer and scratches and dings easily. So basically:

Nitro: sounds better
Poly: looks better

[Myst and rain]

Thanks for your interesting replies, everyone!

Alwin

[Out Of This Swirled]

nitro also discolors, i dont think anyones mentioned that? what the time scale for the yellowing is im not sure. also seems strange that the result says 50 percent for nitro and all your ibaneze's are covered in poly arnt they?