Okay - I searched around here and what I found all related to the interior finish of luan shells.
My question - does anyone leave the luan exposed on the exterior and finish them? If so, with what? I'm curious as I'm redoing my Star kit and when I took off the wrap (it fell off when removing hardware to polish) and underneath the wood looked pretty nice. I immediately got to thinking ...
Thanks for any thoughts and other links to pictures and discussions.
-Doug
Hi, Doug,
A few years ago, I tried it with a Star 15 inch marcher. In this case, I used several coats of tung oil. Each successive coat added more sheen. It turned out just okay.I left it like that for a bit, then had it wrapped in turquoise sparkle to match the rest of my kit. I now use it as a third tom and like it a lot more. Just an opinion.
By the way, your spur which I sent should arrive any day. It was sent a week ago.I'm curious to see how it fits with your kit!!!
Brian
Thanks Brian. Do you happen to have a pic of that finished luan drum? I'm tempted to try it, but not on this kit. I have an old Kent snare shell that is all caved in that might be a good candidate.
Still waiting for the spur. I'll let you know as soon as it lands!
Thanks,
-Doug
I did my old Maxwin toms about twenty something years ago with wood stain and about five coats of floor varnish, light sanding between coats. Worked pretty well. I just gave them a clean the other day and although it's a bit beat-up now, this rack tom still doesn't look half bad. Incorrect muffler though obviously - I'm not actually sure what it is, to be honest, but the drum looks and sounds great.
That does look nice. Did you treat the wood before varnish? Pore fill?
-Doug
Here`s an MIJ set I treated a few years ago with tung oil...I applied 2 coats with a light sanding in between coats...No clear coat...All the shells came out the same shade (flash from camera made them look like different shades) I was pleased with the results...
Cheers
Looks great! How does the tung oil hold up?
I was considering a colored dye/stain, but I like that light color you have Grantro.
Keep 'em coming folks.
-Doug
I sold the set a few months after the restoration, so, I can`t really speak of durability of the tung oil...If that is a worry, a coat or two of clear coat would help...
You can apply more coats of tung oil to achieve the the color/sheen you desire...
Cheers
I sold the set a few months after the restoration, so, I can`t really speak of durability of the tung oil...If that is a worry, a coat or two of clear coat would help...You can apply more coats of tung oil to achieve the the color/sheen you desire...Cheers
Yep, Rod is right! Several years ago, I applied several coats of tung oil to a vintage set of Star bongos with very light sanding in between coats. They are still as shiny as a new penny! Ooops, I forgot, here in Canada, pennies no longer exist. Hmmm...pretty shiny nevertheless!
Brian
P.S. Glad you like the spur, Doug!
That does look nice. Did you treat the wood before varnish? Pore fill?-Doug
No, I didn't treat it, but perhaps I should've. I just filled a few holes with wood filler and hand-sanded the whole thing before applying the stain and varnish. I must try the tung oil one day.
I've noticed on a lot of MIJ drums the outer ply doesn't quite meet it's other edge, and there's often a long gap from top to bottom about 1mm wide. The manufacturers seem to slap on a bit of filler only at the top and bottom of this, which I guess is to even out the bearing edges a bit. But I like to completely fill the whole thing. Anyone else found this?
