216 replies to this topic

[TakeAStepBack]

Bummer! That board seems like it's the crux of excellence in issue. Stay persistent, Cur.

[insolent cur]

they'll send me a proper fretboard after i call. i just got home too late to give them a shout last night.

[insolent cur]

hats off to stewmac! i just got off the phone with them re: the flawed rosewood fretboard. a new one, checked by one of their techs, is going out today via 2-day mail. they didn't even want to see the pictures or have me return the flawed fb. they're just sending it out on my word. i'm a big fan of their tools, components and now, customer service. and, after asking some questions unrelated to the fretboard, i ordered a better 3-way switch to toggle between bridge, neck and both pickups together. they said i should just return the little toggle switches and they'll refund the money or give me credit. thank you stewmac!

http://www.stewmac.com/

https://www.facebook.com/StewMac

[TakeAStepBack]

Excellent. Good customer service goes a long way to creating loyal custeez. Belly up, brahs.

[insolent cur]

Excellent. Good customer service goes a long way to creating loyal custeez. Belly up, brahs.

i've done comparative pricing with other on-line sources, and stewmac comes in with lower prices and better quality components than any other place i've found. this was my first dealing with their customer service and yeah, they won a loyal customer today.

[TakeAStepBack]

[insolent cur]

5/22


finishing the headstock and truss rod cover. this layer will be sanded down.


finishing the back of the guitar. this layer will be sanded down.

[TakeAStepBack]

Moving from the shop I see. Soon, you'll be playing it.

[TakeAStepBack]

Is that Rye's ass I spy?

[insolent cur]

Moving from the shop I see. Soon, you'll be playing it.

i moved it out today so it would dry better as i add more lacquer. that layer will be sanded until almost nothing remains...just a thin residue. then more lacquer and more sanding. then i've got to set up the next fretboard...and add hardware and electronics. it's still a couple of weeks from a strum.

Is that Rye's ass I spy?

yup!

[insolent cur]

5/23


preparing to enlarge the toggle switch hole to fit a different switch than the one i originally planned to use


newly expanded toggle switch hole


scraping the finish smooth, even and flat over the grain flaw on the guitar back


lacquer and sand and lacquer and sand...


bubba wet sanding (600 grit) the body of his guitar build


same dude as before still clutching my guitar


the guitar put away flat and upside down on my project shelf space, waiting for the grain fill to set

[insolent cur]

5/24


the replacement for the flawed fretboard i received on monday, arrived today broken at the 12th fret slot. it appeared as though something fell on the box in transit. the wood is beautiful but useless to me. stewmac is sending a third slotted rosewood fretboard overnight.


today the replacement fretboard arrived broken


broken fretboard


snapped at the 12th fret


still got some more finishing and sanding accomplished


finishing and sanding and finishing and sanding...

[Smiles]

Wow man, you should consider building a guitar without a fretboard. Terrible luck!

Looking good though!

[insolent cur]

Wow man, you should consider building a cheesecutter without a fretboard. Terrible luck! Looking good though!

thanks...that's what i have now (i fixed that for you).

next slotted fretboard is expected sometime today.

[insolent cur]

5/25 - fretboard arrived this afternoon.


cutting edge angles on today's fretboard


double sided tape...the preferred temporary adhesive


dots and edge dot marks


hand drilling side dot holes. a crack, which i later chipped off, can be seen between fret slots 23 and 24. it was glued back on and repaired using a rosewood dust/titebond paste and clamps.


m.o.p. side dots


fretboards and workbench


first clampdown


second clampdown


workbench


looking down the fretboard

[insolent cur]

5/26


after being clamped overnight, here's the repaired fretboard and side dots.


repaired fretboard and side dots


preparing to put the frets on


adding frets


frets on the repair


frets on the repair


routing the top thinner from inside using a dremel freehand


thinned top halfway done


bench layout

[insolent cur]

i can honestly say that this is not a hobby for those who need instant gratification or have a low threshold for frustration.

it's been two and a half months and all the parts are slowly but surely coming together.

[insolent cur]

5/27


5/27 - filing fret sides


5/27 - leveling frets


5/27 - leveling frets


5/27 - truss rod set into the neck


5/27 - preparing to glue the fretboard to the neck


5/27 - gluing the fretboard to the neck


5/27 - fretboard bound and clamped to the neck


5/27 - trusty canine assistant


5/27 - trusty canine assistant


5/27 - trusty canine assistant

[insolent cur]

5/27 continued...


5/27 - fretboard glued to neck


5/27 - fretboard glued to neck


5/27 - fretboard glued to neck


5/27 - fretboard glued to neck

[JBetty]

Looking great, Adam!
I really enjoy watching your progress.

[TakeAStepBack]

Wow. Looks super.

[Col_Sandoz]

Fantastic !!

[insolent cur]

thanks!

here are a few pics from today.

5/28


grinding an allen wrench for the truss rod


dressing frets


sanding and shaping the neck


setting screw threads in the peg head


oops. i broke a threading tool in the body, under where the bridge sits. i used a dremel with a small bit to rout down around the embedded tool.


bubba extracting the threading tool




tailpiece/bridge, volume and tone pots, 3-way switch and cable socket


flush mounted cable socket


control cavity

[insolent cur]

5/28 continued...


headstock back


headstock front


today's shop dogs...barley and her momma, rye.

[Jim]

.You're gonna need to add sound to this thread at some point very soon...

It looks really amazing Adam.


yes, I have been following the progress "lurkingly"

[insolent cur]

heading back today to hopefully finish the lacquer finish/sand/finish/sand/finish/sand cycle.

[Smiles]

Ballin!

Hey whats that black material you used to bind the fretboard to the neck after glueing?

[insolent cur]

Ballin! Hey whats that black material you used to bind the fretboard to the neck after glueing?

it's bubba's brilliant idea for a "clamp" that provides significant, equal pressure to the entire fretboard/neck glue up. they are strips of rubber inner tube wrapped around the fretboard and neck!

[insolent cur]

a few pics from yesterday... .

6/2


heating an alpha-numeric punch


identification numbers burned into the inside of my cavity cover


warming lacquer


workbench


electronics cavity further routed by hand to custom fit the pots and 3-way switch


unsecured cover placed over the cavity

[TakeAStepBack]

Awesome! Looking great, Adam.

Given it the Scottie sand n coat?

That guy never stops. After about 8 sand/coats I usually call it a day, but not Scoot. He'll sand n coat the wood cardboard thin.

[insolent cur]

you can see how thin the top has become by looking at the control holes in the access cavity.

the back and neck are done...but for a light 600 grit sanding. the front still needs another 320 grit sanding; then a final coat of lacquer and a couple of 600 grit passes. and yes...it's received many coats of lacquer which have been sanded back down to wood, though there's no point in posting more pictures of the same.

scottie used poly which actually requires more of the old "coat and sand" than does the nitrocellulous, but i'm still putting in the time and effort to ensure a thin, even finish.

[insolent cur]

6/3 - finishing and sanding... .

[Occifer Boland]

i don't know how i missed the beginnings of this thread.. . reading and looking through all of this has really brightened up a rainy day home with two sick kids.. super talented, dude.. i am dying to see this all stringed up

[insolent cur]

thanks...me too. i stuck the thread here so it would fly a little under the radar, and not constantly be bumped in the family forum with updated pics.

i stole an hour or so today and sanded down yesterday's coat...and then added some more. it's raining and cool today and i used the opportunity to apply a thicker coat after sanding and cleaning.


the sanding part


applying a heavier-than-normal coat of lacquer


yesterday i started working on a new truss rod cover by cutting and laminating together left over wood from the neck.


today i removed the clamps from the now laminated block that will become the new truss rod cover.

[insolent cur]

some shots taken over the last few days...


unfinished new truss rod cover


finished new truss rod cover


pick-ups and pick-up rings ready for wiring


wired pick-ups and rings


wiring the tone pot with a .020 microfarad capacitor


tinning the volume pot


starting to wire the -way toggle


wired pick-ups and rings


electronics workbench

[JBetty]

Hi A Squared!
J Squared is still diggin this thread.

[insolent cur]

thanks j²!


using a sharp, level edge to scrape the finish even and flat. the white residue is already scraped finish.


sanding the finish smooth


wet sanding the finish

[Smiles]

Starting to look smexy!

[insolent cur]

6/13


workbench - underside of tailpiece/bridge sanded through for grounding


adding pieces to the puzzle


wired components


starting to set up the guitar


setting up the intonation


setting up the intonation


playable...though it will be disassembled next week so i can tweak electronics and complete the lacquer finish.

[BHB]

adam.... it's been real cool watching you work through this project here and on FB. Very impressive, thanks for sharing.

[Smiles]

Ballin!

She's a beaut man, great work. It was fun watching it go from wood to woody, that is, I mean to say: Shwing!

[Roasted and Toasted]

Adam

I would like to thank you for this thread. As a career woodworker and a three chord hack of a guitarist, I have very much enjoyed following this project.
Nice attention to detail, really shows in the end result. I would like to hear it sing sometime. Also curious if this is your first.

It is not often that I get to make sawdust without the meter running anymore. Something I need to work on.
Musical instruments are about the only task that I have never attempted in the shop. I have an employee who has completely rebuilt a cello and built a stand up bass from scratch. Some of the most impressive work I have seen first hand.
Thanks again for sharing. Us lurkers appreciate it.

[insolent cur]

thanks for your kind words, ken. this is my first instrument and first major woodworking project, though i did once build a soapbox derby car with my dad and i have an unfinished kayak waiting for me... .

my next projects will be an electric violin for an old and dear friend, and an even lighter guitar for myself, using just a piezo bridge pickup with a single volume control running through a small, on board pre-amp. for the violin, i'll probably try my hand at custom winding my own 4-pole magnetic pick-up.

this guitar weighs in at about 6 lbs, even with the through-body neck...or roughly half the weight of my gibson les paul.

[JBetty]

Nice work, Mr. Luthier!

Will you give us a demonstration at Vibes?

[insolent cur]

Nice work, Mr. Luthier!

thank you! it still needs some tweaks, but it's almost there.

Will you give us a demonstration at Vibes?

you mean like occupy vibes?

[TakeAStepBack]

Looks great, Adam.

[JBetty]

you mean like occupy vibes?

NO!

[TakeAStepBack]

Also, will you be adding the inbedded LED lights in blue or read at any point?

[TakeAStepBack]

They have a special on them right now @ NYBulbs. You can get the diodes at a fraction of the cost of an MR16 IR halogen replacement bulb.

[JBetty]

Definitely gonna need #3s. Definitely.