Splatter paint looks random, but getting it to look right on a guitar body comes down to three boring things: the consistency of the paint, a test before you commit, and patience between sides. Here is how I got there on the Zora guitar, including the part where it did not go to plan.
Why this guitar is getting splattered
The Zora guitar was my original kit build. I pulled the frets and redid them, but I was never happy with the body color. It is named after a big purple splatter painting that hangs in our house, and in my head the guitar needed to look like that painting. So it is getting repainted to match.
Get the consistency right first
I mix small batches in disposable cups. Put in a little paint, add a little water, and stir until it is thin enough to fly off a brush in drops instead of clumps. Too thick and you get blobs. Too thin and it runs once it lands.
For flicking, I use cheap acid brushes, the little metal handled glue brushes. If you search for glue brushes you will not find them. Search for acid brushes.
Test splatter before you touch the body
Do a practice round on scrap or paper first. It tells you whether the mix is right and how far the drops travel from your hand. It is a lot easier to adjust a cup of paint than to sand a body back down.
Speaking of how far they travel: I put paper down on the floor, and it did almost nothing. The splatter went well past it. My shop floor is getting more Jackson Pollock every week. Cover more than you think you need to.
One side at a time
Splatter one face, then leave it alone until it is fully dry before you flip it. I did the back in blue and left it overnight. The other side waits until tomorrow. Rushing the flip is how you end up with a print of your bench on the finished side.
Do your dusty work first
In the same session I had router work to do on another body. I did all of that before opening any paint. If you are making dust, you do not want wet paint anywhere nearby to catch it.
Keep the clear coat simple
Once the color is done it gets a satin clear. I am using plain Rust-Oleum satin clear on purpose. I had problems with a fancier finish on this same guitar earlier, and the regular stuff has been predictable for me.
Where the “gone wrong” came from
I ran out of blue paint partway through the week. That one is on my grandsons. We had a paint day, and they decided all of the paint belonged on one little canvas. Yes, I am 43 with grandkids. That is sometimes how life works. I restocked and got back to it.
Homemade, for now
Matt Flaherty from Texas Toast Guitars told me there is a difference between handmade and homemade guitars. If I am honest, I am in the homemade camp right now. Paul Richards gave me the other half of that when we talked in Colorado: comparison is the thief of joy, but it can also be fuel for the fire. Seeing work I could not afford is how I got into woodworking in the first place. I am not giving up.
Tools from this session
Links below are Amazon affiliate links. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases, which costs you nothing extra and helps keep the shop running.
- Acid brushes, for flicking the paint
- Small mixing cups
- Rust-Oleum satin clear
Follow along
One guy in a small shop on his father-in-law’s property in Lindsborg, Kansas. IT Director by day, maker by obsession. Equal parts problem solver, craftsman, and curious human. If you’re the kind of person who takes things apart to see how they work, or watches people who do, you’re in the right place.
Uncut shop sessions go up on YouTube and I stream on Twitch. Everything is @carverwoodworking. There is merch in the shop, or you can buy me a coffee.