Using a Stencil to Relic a Guitar - Easiest Way

[@knowledgepablo]

This is BY FAR the best relic attempt I've seen on KZbin up to this point. I was honestly expecting to be let down, but I am pleasantly surprised. Well done!

[@TheToneLounge]

The final product looks awesome. It's something I would have never thought of doing, as it seems a bit counterintuitive but the results speaks for itself.

[@MarkGutierrez]

Sometimes building custom guitars is a drag. Doing these easy little weekend projects brings the fun back into building guitars. Highly recommend just building a kit guitar every once and while. Using a stencil for relicing may seem very hands off but that's far from the truth. You can be highly artistic and still have a unique vision for your guitar with a stencil. Enjoy!

[@Marwatt]

Hi Mark... do you know this guy (austinshaner)? in his channel a method to do a "parametric guitar" with Fusion 360...

[@MarkGutierrez]

@@Marwatt Oh yeah, I know Austin. He is the real deal. Cool guy. The parametric guitar is a sweet idea. I think my custom guitars are just slightly outside the boundaries of what Austin's formulas can handle.

[@DevilAndSons]

I've been working on a set of stencils for around 6 months now, aiming to sell them. I had no idea they already existed. Anyway, mine work in a similar way but the idea is to give the user a bit more flexibility in how they are applied and ability to vary them without needing to get out an exacto blade. I'll have to get them finished and up for sale soon, along with the videos. The best thing about making anything (for me anyway) is seeing how other people use them. Great video as always, thanks.

[@MarkGutierrez]

@@DevilAndSons Awesome! Let me know when they are for sale. I'll pick one up. I dabbled a bit on making one as well (just the digital portion of it) I have an .svg and .dxf file I can share if you're interested. Take care.

[@DevilAndSons]

@Mark Gutierrez will do, and thanks - that's very kind. I could email you a bit more if you don't mind sharing. At the moment I've just been using images I have made from photos of a really cool wooden bench and table I saw in a pub beer garden, the way the paint had peeled and worn remind me of a heavy relic. I've cut them on my vinyl cutter. I only gave one guitar a real go with the first iteration, and have some blanks waiting to be made into bodies to try the next versions on. Just caught up with other jobs, always too much on the go. I'm avoiding ggbo23 for a few months a least.

[@CMC-NFG]

about 5 minutes in, and I've paused it to go and check these kits out. Fantastic video, well done mate

[@MarkGutierrez]

Thanks 👍

[@jimcombra3099]

This video was as relaxing as it was educational !! Great job both on the project, which turned out great, but also the 'chill' way it was presented !!!

[@russiangoose7053]

I know people crap on faux relic guitars but I love them, I think they feel really good especially a well done wone like this. I love how a well aged guitar feels in the hands and as a bonus it looks cool and I don't have to worry about beating it up 😂

[@REM1956]

Nicely done. You have a pleasant, relaxed style that makes a long video seem short. Thanks.

[@ronmorey3475]

Cool stuff! I like your style and presentation. Great channel!

[@leeroyuk45]

So glad to have discovered your channel. I’ve learnt so much from the few videos I’ve watched. Thank you for sharing your knowledge

[@robbyforty-four5092]

Awesome, super helpful, and tremendous video, great editing, and great audio! Thanks so much.

[@DeeTee79]

Very much enjoyed this relic process. Stencil came out great!

[@kkmik5933]

Dude, the tone of your voice is like zen...

[@OldRichieBoy]

This is video gold!! I wish to relic a damaged Strat body, and your technique is the best I have seen. Like wow!! Thanks for your time to do this video!

[@morganbouchaud885]

Killer job as usual 👍

[@richarde3378]

I really enjoyed this video. Very ASMR! Thanks! :)

[@davedavem]

I think stencil relicking makes sense as an additive process rather than Gibson's subtractive process of making a perfect finish first. It save time, finish and money. Which are obviously the main considerations for Fender.

[@HumbuckerBob02]

Very cool! Got a volunteer I'm thinking of doing this on and you just made up my mind! Well done, looks killer!

[@michaelvarney.]

Can’t wait to see in detail what you did to break in the neck.

[@rpmblues7018]

You my friend are an artist.

[@damianantonio764]

Sublime color, delightful result… 🍃thank you for sharing, take care Mark.

[@MarkGutierrez]

Many thanks

[@billyparham630]

i really like this kinda thing, worked out well

[@say_when5988]

Looks outstanding!

[@danrao3707]

Wow! Awesome job. I’ve seen this process before. I’m inspired to go this route myself. So much less work and cheaper in the long run. Thank you for making this video.

[@johnnyxmusic]

I have an LTD base that was done using some kind of stencils. It looks like there was a sticker that was put on and painted around and then the sticker was pulled off. To create or to reveal the “reliced” area. And then the whole thing a clearcoat it there it’s really funny. It’s almost like a piece of pop art. I don’t mind it at all… But it is a little dopey.

[@afkarrashidi]

very satisfying to watch, well done bro!!

[@Therealpaddyice]

Question did you put the aged clear coat over the satin? Thanks!

[@jordan_era]

What did you use to make the food look worn?

[@jjim0437]

Looks great! I was thinking of doing the dark stain first, then clear, then stencil & paint.

[@gmasta06]

Great video. Never knew stencils existed. Didn't see any available on the internet for bass guitars. Do you think the stencil would work on a jazz or p-bass even though the bodies are obviously bigger? I would think it would with a few modifications to the layout. What do you think? Appreciate your thoughts.

[@psnaith1]

Very, very cool dude

[@michaelpence68]

Do they make a relic stencil for a telecaster ?

[@Giant_Guitars]

Love your videos, glad I got recommended your channel bud

[@SweetTGuitars]

Great video Mark. I think you're the only other builder that says "Killer" as much as I do!! I love your videos man and the work you do is do "Killer". Peace & Love brother

[@MarkGutierrez]

You're the sweetest Todd. Thanks!

[@AndreyWowor-i4g]

Hey Mark Where can I get that stencil?

[@billyshelton78]

Who did you get the stencil from?

[@jamesreyes4654]

What an amazing job that really does look killer 🔥

[@1-eye-willy]

beats the hell out of sand blasting

[@slimsantilli4476]

I dabbed butchers wax on my guitar before i painted it. Then rubbed the paint off over the wax with a credit card. Your project came out great.

[@lcglazer]

So you used nail polish remover and 91% alcohol? which one is works slower as you mentioned, for more control?

[@gavendelrio9193]

It seems I saw somewhere the Fender Custom Shop uses a form of stencils for relics. Very cool!

[@MarkGutierrez]

Yeah, I heard the Fender Custom shop got called out for using stencils on 3 thousand dollar guitars.

[@michaelrollins5299]

Very inspiring. Thank you for sharing these videos.

[@soyborne.bornmadeandundone1342]

Very very niiiice. Mine looks even more reliced up but that's because I used your method... And tons of other methods haha.

[@metalliholic]

Damn, that looks awesome

[@adam6ism]

Dude great job!

[@MarkGutierrez]

Thanks!

[@KidronPsalmist]

Great vid! How long did you let the paint dry/cure until you peeled off the stencil?

[@MarkGutierrez]

One day.

[@bjstein4242]

awesome job.. the acetone was a good call for gentle removal of the pink.. curious.. did you shoot the entire guitar after with clear satin lacquer to SET the paint and non painter surfaces where they meet?.

[@MarkGutierrez]

Thanks. No I didn't shoot the guitar with lacquer after.

[@zzrickyricardozz]

Did you shoot the clear satin after you stained the bare wood ?

[@MarkGutierrez]

no, clear satin is just on the color. the bare wood is stained and that's it. nothing else on it.

[@NoLuckTheBand]

Really great video

[@MarkGutierrez]

Thanks for the visit

[@chrisfain3612]

Where did you get the stencil please?

[@michaelaiello9525]

This is fantastic! I’m certain that I’ll have more to comment later. My first impression is that the edging and elbow carve seem less pronounced than an actual Strat. Am I mistaken? How true to original are those Strat bodies? Thx.. more praise coming once I can actual watch in entirety!

[@RobKingRC]

That's how my charvel Henrik Danhage signature was done on the body.

[@martymaker]

Interesting man 🎉 what wbout dents in the body? Cool stuff

[@omarmukhtar6516]

i think you cracked the code👍🏿

[@riverdark5844]

Which template did you use for this relic. I’d like to follow suit and relic along with you. N9

[@MarkGutierrez]

I bought from a Reverb seller. This one: reverb.com/item/7254208-guitarsbydesign-black1-strat-heavy-relict-custom-paint-masking-airbrush-painting-stencil

[@bertonedes]

Ones guitar is with a nitro finished, can anyone says if its 1 or 2 pieaces body under the paint? Im tryint go find out for my partcaster.

[@valley_robot]

I’ve had my Stratocaster for over 12 years , play it everyday, not a scratch on it , still looks brand new , what on earth would cause that much wear in real life

[@rocanrola]

Nitro finished. With modern finishes in polyurethane it is impossible

[@ramencurry6672]

I have similar that I bought used. Guitar is 30 years old. It looks like the previous owner stored it poorly. Maybe he stored it in an outside shed for more than 20 years. It appears to be a real worn guitar without the intention of relicing. It’s still cosmetically in excellent shape due to the modern poly finish but you can still also tell it’s worn from the previous environment conditions

[@AlanTopham2237]

I can't wait to see the finished product... I guess you'll "sympathetically" age the neck to suit?

[@MarkGutierrez]

Yes, neck, hardware, plastic bits and I'll probably replace the electronics.

[@StringStudent]

Looks great, but are you sure this is quicker?

[@MarkGutierrez]

Good question. Maybe not quicker but certainly easier.

[@bulletv1]

What did you use to darken the bare wood?

[@MarkGutierrez]

graphite powder

[@bulletv1]

@@MarkGutierrez I figured something along those lines. Rubbed in similar to dye?

[@MarkGutierrez]

@@bulletv1 Yes, rub it in. If you mess up, it can be removed to some extent with alcohol.

[@johnnyxmusic]

Good job.

[@Heartkiller999]

I’ve been looking to do a relic job on a KnE body for a pre-pro Charvel build I’m doing but never knew the best way to do it. This video was SO helpful in so many ways and I will be using it as a basis! Thanks so much and awesome work! How many coats of nitro satin did you use?

[@MarkGutierrez]

Two coats of satin nitro.

[@ROCKNROLLMODS]

Good work man! I can only imagine the amount of money invested in the aerosol products, especially the "canned air" I cut vinyl for the same purpose, the goo is definitely annoying, to say the least. Seems like they could make a better stencil media. It's odd to me that it's called "removable vinyl" but leaves the mess. Keep em coming!

[@MarkGutierrez]

I used the Goo Gone product. Citrus based. The goo came off extremely easy. I recommend it.

[@prodbyjuneg]

Nice work mate ! Was that "White Vinyl Sealer" that you sprayed first before the Pink? Thx also was it used as a primer basically ?

[@MarkGutierrez]

Yes, it't the Stew Mac White Vinyl Sealer. It's basically a primer.

[@prodbyjuneg]

@@MarkGutierrez thank you ! I’ve been trying to get a white primer / sealer .. you captured the look I’m going for thx again

[@footcandy]

Wow. great stuff!! Why do I suddenly want to do this? I'm off to check stewemac .... BTW, what did you do with this one you made?

[@MarkGutierrez]

I'll finish relicing the whole guitar, neck, hardware, plastic bits and then put it on my site to sell. I'll sell it for same price as the stewmac kit.

[@familyengineering5591]

Did you change the name of your channel? Whats up with your garage?

[@MarkGutierrez]

No, KZbin is just pulling text from the About section. I removed it. New workshop will be built soon. Need to find a contractor.

[@jamesincharlotte]

I'd do a smiley face 😊

[@CaptainVelveeta]

You are a fucking artist dude..stellar work!

[@joshuajkoplin]

Just starting the video. I can usually spot these a mile away and they look weird. Gonna watch the video. Good luck! Hopefully you end up with convincing lines and not soft tape lines.

[@biggstile]

Who sells those stencils?

[@MarkGutierrez]

You can find them on Reverb. Search relic stencil.

[@sunnys3325]

Really enjoyed watching this

[@stonephilips9361]

This is how Fender does it.

[@MarkGutierrez]

Yep. Even the custom shop got called out on using stencils.

[@jesusmachado9087]

for some reason the back seemed to be backwards to me, it has paint where it shouldnt, and its scratched where it shouldnt. but i loved the idea

[@MarkGutierrez]

I believe theses stencils are designed to mimic an extremely heavy relic such as the SRV Strat where the nitro paint just starts to peel off on its own. With these type of relics, 90 percent of the guitar is natural, with very little paint left.

[@diamondmidnightgardener]

Amazing work man… BTW, you’re a little too good with tapping that razor blade on those lines of epoxy… looks like experience 😂

[@MarkGutierrez]

Lol.

[@Ride2Live420]

It’s a repeatable process that could be used to mass produce iconic axes.

[@nimitz1739]

jUsT pLaY thEy gUiTaR fOr 40 yEaRs aNd iT wOuLd lOoK lIKe tHaT! Joking. Nice job

[@soyborne.bornmadeandundone1342]

Lol i hate it when people say that crap. Poly guitars wont look like that after 40 years and even nitro guitars wont look like that after 40 years unless you travel to several gigs with them during that time because it's the elements of temp and humidity changes constantly happening to the wood, paint, and metal parts of the guitar that make it age lik......... And I'm wasting my breath lol. See? That's why I hate people who say that dumb crap. Bottom line? It's your guitar lol do what you want with it!

[@iaminsfiredbytrustfration8502]

@@soyborne.bornmadeandundone1342ikr, just look at brian may’s red special, that thing probably cost less than 800 pounds to craft and it has not signs of relic 60 years later

[@spbmade]

Я всегда думал что стенсил плёнку нужно снимать до того как краска засохла, чтобы край был точным и не откалывался.

[@MarkGutierrez]

the white sealer coat dried for a day, the pink coat and satin clear dried for another day. then I peeled the sticker. the lines were crisp and clean. the only chips came from the paint coming off the vinyl sticker.

[@tongkk994]

👍🤩😁

[@Old-Skull.]

I'm not a relic fan, if I want an old guitar I go after it , the relic business to me summarise one of many problems in the guitar community , but hey I'm not a saint and I'm not here to judge anybody , but if you want an honest opinion what you did there to me is a waste of money , time and job just to obtain a result that in my opinion doesnt seems a battered guitar, it looks to clean and it doesn't makes sense , a decent relic job imitates the distressed look in certain zones where guitars are heavily used , it has a characteristic pattern and look . But thanks for trying new things and show it to us, I'm not hating I love your channel because you always try new things and you will have my thumb always for that, but I have to be honest and respond to you because for me that's not a valid way to do it . Don't go hard on me, just think for a moment what kind of opinion do you want to hear from a friend ? an honest opinion or a fake one that doesn't hurt your feelings ? true friends speak truth , that is not hate , please don't take this as if it were. Peace.

[@gaspas]

you have to give some 'putazos' to the body too

[@bazgaming4155]

You look like you’ve master using a Stanley blade to move stuff around 😂

[@thallrudedjentstorm1756]

How to relic a guitar: play them and give a f about scratches and falls.

[@gavriloprincip11]

now tell me how to scratch up my deck and trucks so people think i can skateboard and do rail slidess and grinds all day..

[@MarkGutierrez]

We use to totally do that back in the mid 80s. we were such posers.

[@metamizol1606]

Relic ASMR

[@rodnyg7952]

I don't get this relic silliness. Guitars largely don't ever look anything like this with regular use and age, with perhaps the exception of very few like SRV's or Gallagher's. The only other possibility is that you allow a family of beavers to have their way with it for a few hours

[@alwaysforget911]

why are you whispering??

[@MrWhiskybreath]

Shh.. the neighbors are home.

[@jayyoung7536]

Why relic a guitar? Just play it enough and you will achieve that look. Also, you'll have a story to tell about every bump and scratch on the thing rather than going on about which nail polish remover you used create an aged look 😂

[@mattrogers1946]

Not if it has a polyurethane finish on it. You'll play it until doomsday, and it'll still look like new. But I'm sure an internet "expert' like already knew that...🙄

[@anthonypanneton923]

I suppose I'm just a grumpy old man, but to "relic" a guitar is just one of dumber things people have come up with in recent years. and I'd bet the people with "relic" guitars also have really heavy duty cases for those guitars - to make sure they don't get scratched up...

[@leroyjenkins3895]

The final product looks like ass! Here is the thing, and this is no judgement on you, the builder at all, but a true old guitar that has that much paint missing would be beat on hard. There is no paint on half the guitar and not a single ding. Other than maybe the arm contour on the front, if there is paint missing, especially on the back and Botton edges and around the jack, there will be damage to the wood as well. Fender does this technique as well and then will charge $4K plus for it and it obvious the used a stencil because paint that gradually wears through to the primer, doesn't have a hard edge. Also, no dings anywhere! If you really want to make it look like a relic, look at real relic guitars and see what their flaws are and find ways to copy them. I wish I could post pictures here....

[@neilritson7445]

Easiest way?? Just use wax to cover the wood!!

[@jonboy8181]

What’s with the creepy quiet voice? 😬

[@somedude5254]

Blegh, looks so cheesy and objectively defies what even makes a guitar 'relic' in the first place. Is this really the point we have reached?

[@NK-nk3xe]

What"s with the whispering man. Kids asleep or something?

[@simaojoseph]

meh

[@kafftum1413]

doo doo

[@mikeforner7797]

relic(ing) a guitar is a clown move

[@BruteforceExplorer]

Why are you whispering?

[@DIM00252]

he’s chill like that

[@eliakuiper4266]

It's a secret, shhh

[@dre4011]

He's the "Bob Ross of Relic Stratocasters"

[@CryptToneMusic]

​@@dre4011 I love his chill vibes

[@Ride2Live420]

Mom’s got work tomorrow.