Thoughts on guitar skins and decals

[Johnnyryche]

My son got Rocksmith for his Xbox for Christmas. So he's been a little more motivated lately to play guitar. I have an inexpensive Aria electric guitar that I picked up a couple years ago and was thinking about letting my son use it for when his friends come over to play. The finish is in good shape but it's an aged creamy white and nothing special. Thought about trying one of the guitar skins on it to liven it up looks-wise. Was wondering if anyone here has installed one of these skins or decals on their guitars. Curious how they look, especially around the edges. Also wondered how they wear. If I don't clear coat the guitar, will the edges peel up or catch on clothing?

Here's a couple sites I was checking out for these skins.

http://inzanedecals.com/designs.php

http://skinyourskunk.com/graphic-menu-navigation-system.php

Let me know if anyone has any experience with either and what your thoughts are on the quality and installation.

Thanks,

John

[murkat]

Vinyl decal with a 3m adhesive application. Done a few while at the GCS (Zakk bulls eyes, a few others).
It is not permanent, can be a mess. And if you fuck it up.... maybe a hair dyer will help.
Its a bitch to do. the how to do section is pretty much how to do it.
If it is important, I guess do it.
But, If your Son wants to play, still knowing it is yours, yet showing interest, in the long run He may well respect Dad's guitar, show interest, and in due time both of you go shopping some day for something that He may like with Dad's awesome insight and guidance

[Johnnyryche]

After doing some research and watching a bunch of videos on applying decals, I finally decided to buy one from Inzane Decals. I didn't want to spray paint the body so I looked for a decal that wouldn't look too odd with the aged white color of the body. As Murkat said, it can be a bitch to do but with a little prep work and taking your time, it actually turned out pretty good. Hardest part is keeping a straight cut around the body, especially around and inside the horns. I ended up with a few jagged areas but overall I think it looks pretty good. Looking forward to getting this wired up now. So check out the before and after - it looks much better than it did.

[Bryan]

Sorry I just saw this. I ordered a graphic from Skin Your Skunk. I wanted to have the Degarmo Warhol guitar made but ESP said no.

So I took the design and used my band's logo in place of the triryche. They did a great job with it.

I was disappointed that the vinyl came as a rectangle instead of pre cut for my guitar. To be safe, I took it to a local wrap company who are putting it on for me. I dropped it off Thursday afternoon. When I get it back I'll post pics.

Yours came out really good!

[Mudlark]

Came out very well.
Is it easily removed or does it stick like hell? In other words, if I accidently positioned it incorrectly, could I peel it up and start over?

I'm tempted to try one, but I'm terrible at anything that requires patience and a light touch.

[Johnnyryche]

Came out very well.
Is it easily removed or does it stick like hell? In other words, if I accidently positioned it incorrectly, could I peel it up and start over?

I didn't have any problems positioning the decal. There are a number of videos that show you how to layout the decal on your guitar and attach one end with masking tape so it doesn't move. Then you work from the opposite end and slowly apply the decal. There were a couple times that I had to pull back the decal a little to get air bubbles out. So you can remove it and move it around if needed. Is it sticky? Yes, but overall it wasn't too difficult to work with. I would imagine if you had the whole decal applied to your guitar and then tried to take it off and move it, it would be a bitch. So best to take your time and make sure it is in place before removing the backing.

The directions I received from Inzane suggested that you make a tracing of your guitar with tracing paper so you can move it around on the decal, which comes as a rectangular sheet. So I had a general idea of where I wanted the graphic to layout based on the positioning of the pickup routes and edges of the guitar. So if you use a detailed graphic, definitely make a tracing and play around with it to see how it lays out. But if you use a simple graphic like a bengal tiger, zebra stripe of something like that, you won't have to be as specific with the layout. But in the end, probably best to take your time and don't rush it.

[Johnnyryche]

Sorry I just saw this. I ordered a graphic from Skin Your Skunk. I wanted to have the Degarmo Warhol guitar made but ESP said no.

So I took the design and used my band's logo in place of the triryche. They did a great job with it.

I was disappointed that the vinyl came as a rectangle instead of pre cut for my guitar. To be safe, I took it to a local wrap company who are putting it on for me. I dropped it off Thursday afternoon. When I get it back I'll post pics.

Yours came out really good!

Can't wait to see your Warhol decal! Good call on getting a wrap company to apply it. Curious how the apply it and how the edges come out. That should be pretty cool though.

I've kicked around the idea of getting a DeGarmo Warhol. Surprised that ESP said no but big companies are goofy when it comes to artist-specific graphics. Sometimes you have to be creative as to how you get a graphic that you want. I've got a project that is getting finished up right now. Both Jackson and ESP would have laughed at me if I would have tried to get this through either of them. You'll see what I mean. So sit tight and check that out when I get the final pics to post.

[Bryan]

I basically took this idea...



And applied it to my band's logo.

Here's the mockup.

[PowerTube]

I used an Axe Wrap several years ago for the purpose of performing the National Anthem in public.

I had some material left over, so I also added some "binding" around the body:



They didn't have a specific Soloist wrap at the time so I just got a rectangular sheet and made a cardboard template for cutting it.

http://www.axewraps.com/

[Johnnyryche]

And applied it to my band's logo.

Here's the mockup.

Very cool!

[Yash]

And how about thoughts on those stickers/decals for the fingerboard, for a different visual effect of the inlays.

[Number Of The Priest]

Inspiring thread. Great results everyone!

And how about thoughts on those stickers/decals for the fingerboard, for a different visual effect of the inlays.

I've noticed Ibanez RG guys online applying Tree of Life sticker inlays on their guitars to make them resemble Ibanez JEMs.

[Mudlark]

I used the shark fin inlay stickers for about a year. I should still have a second set here somewhere.
They held up pretty well, but when I removed them they left serious adhesive residue. It came off, but not easily.

The ones I got from California had a light green appearance more than the MOP they were suppose to resemble.

[Bryan]

Here's the body. They finished it today. Picking it up tomorrow!

[Mudlark]

Nice, Bryan. What type of business is a wrap company? I'm not familiar.