Custom Painted Guitars with Lou Drucker
Lou Drucker may spend his weekend onstage as a professional guitarist, but it’s offstage where Lou gets to be most creative. When he is not performing, Lou is busy in his Long Island workshop, designing and painting one-of-a-kind custom guitars. From project start to finish, Lou uses Krylon products to make his masterpieces.
Two years ago, Lou decided to turn his talent into a business. As the president of Bizzare Guitars, Lou provides each customer with a unique guitar, giving them instant “rock star” status.
Lou works closely with his clients to create the guitar of their dreams. Many customers request vibrant, fluorescent, and reflective colors. Lou says Krylon paint gives him the ability to fulfill his customer’s demands for bright finishes. You can check out all of Lou’s guitars via his online gallery.
How did you first get started creating custom guitars?
I read an article about Eddie Van Halen who in the late 80’s used Schwinn bicycle spray paint to customize his Fender Strat. This revolutionized and set new standards for everything related to rock guitar because no one ever saw a painted guitar. I decided to copy Van Halen’s guitar, so I sanded my guitar down and painted red, white, and black stripes on it. I used Krylon’s Banner Red, Gloss White, Gloss Black and Krylon’s Acrylic Crystal Clear Coating. You can see the final result on my website. The guitar came out so well that I was inspired to do more.
Why is this trend so popular right now?
If you walk into major guitar stores, you see the same old guitars. They have had the same finish for 50 years, and come in stock colors. After a while, it gets boring. If there is any artwork on the guitar, most of it looks like a factory did it. It’s not intricate or colorful.
I take it one step further. I complete custom paint jobs per customer requests with a myriad of colors to pick from. This trend is super hot and it has been a huge hit since the video games Guitar Hero and Rock Band came out.
Who buys your guitars? Have you designed guitars for any famous musicians?
Collectors, musicians, and everyone in between buys my guitars. Right now, I am trying to reach recording artists themselves. I haven’t gotten that far, but I’m working on it.
Where do you get your ideas for each guitar?
In my mind. I just come up with a theme and start from the top left corner of the guitar, (the horn where the strap attaches), and work my way down. I don’t ever draw on paper. It’s paint. I can do it again if I make a mistake.
What has been your favorite guitar you created?
I love all of them. So far, I have made 36 guitars, but I don’t have a favorite. They feel like my second family. Even if someone wants to buy a guitar, I have a hard time selling it.
Why do you use Krylon products for your designs?
Krylon has the largest color selection, period. There is a Krylon product for every need I have: plastic bonding, primers, and clear coats. I can actually do a whole guitar from start to finish using Krylon products, plus the prices are great. Right now, I have the full line of Krylon paints in my workshop.
What do you like most about using Krylon products? What is your favorite Krylon color?
My favorite Krylon product is Triple-Thick Crystal Clear Glaze. It is three times as thick as the other clear coatings and allows me to fill in uneven spaces, making my guitars smooth and polished. I don’t have a favorite Krylon color because I use so many on each guitar. On the Helix guitar alone, I used 23 Krylon colors. It took me six months to finish, but it was all done by hand.
What are the different techniques and materials that you use in your work?
I use Holoflash with Krylon painted over it. I also use special masking tape to get clean lines. When using the Krylon paint, I use as directed. It’s easy.
How long on average does it take to complete a project?
It depends on each guitar and amount of curing time needed. On average, it takes one month to two months depending on the weather (amount of humidity) and how much paint was used on the guitar.
If anyone wants to try to paint his or her guitar what steps do you recommend and what advice do you have for them?
There are two ways to go. They can either spray over existing color or they can sand off the finish. If they want to spray over existing color, they may have trouble, because the finishes may be incompatible with each other and the paint may peel off, depending on the factory finish. I suggest sanding off the old finish, down to the bare wood. When painting, use a Krylon Primer and Krylon paints. When you are finished making your design, use a Krylon Clear Coating.
Don’t be afraid to try it. It’s just paint. You can always re-do it, and you can always sand it off and start over again. Developing a spray paint technique takes time, but you can always practice with scrap wood, masking type, and Krylon products. Go for it!!
For more “Do It Yourself” tips from Lou, click here.
If you or someone you know use Krylon in a unique way, we’d like to feature you in a future column of You Did It! Please click here to email a little about yourself and how you use Krylon. You just might see yourself in an upcoming column.
