Electrajet-inspired build

Have you seen the Grosh Electrajet (http://www.groshguitars.com/products/electrajet/ejet.htm)? They are gorgeous
guitars. Guitar Player gave them an excellent review a couple
of years ago.

I'd like to do something inspired by the Electrajet, using
alder as the body wood, a veneer top, and maybe a sunburst
finish.

A couple of months ago I found a plank of alder.

http://lh5.ggpht.com/_zSCTbpjGhns/TKKaXcCttjI/AAAAAAAAAqc/pIES0MAe1FM/s800/alder%20board.jpg

I don't want to give the impression I just found it on
the street. It was a hardwood store, actually.

http://lh3.ggpht.com/_zSCTbpjGhns/TKKaXTVXQSI/AAAAAAAAAqg/daMqOGQVyyE/s800/board%20detail.jpg

There was a nasty knot on one end, but about 34" of good
wood. I think I need about 18" on one side, and 16" on the
other.

http://lh5.ggpht.com/_zSCTbpjGhns/TKKaXaZ1pFI/AAAAAAAAAqk/pfhgX0c_yAc/s800/glued%20and%20clamped.jpg

I'm going to base the body shape roughly on the Electrajet.
Some of the features of the Electrajet that I want are
a belly cut, 2 p-90 pickup config., and simple tele-like controls.

(I've got a couple of other builds in progress, but winter's nearly
here in Chicagoland, and when it is I'm done with routing,
sanding, sawing, and lacquering for 4 or 5 months. Guess it
will be a good time to start practicing again :cool:.)

That Electrajet is a cool looking guitar... except for the LP knobs.

I'm looking forward to seeing your version.

That Electrajet is a cool looking guitar... except for the LP knobs.

I'm looking forward to seeing your version.

Good point about the knobs. Looking at various
finish options for ElectraJets on the Grosh site, I think the
knobs look okay in some cases -- like with the tortoise shell
pickguard -- but not others.

Using Gimp I made a figure of the electrajet on 8 1/2 x 11
paper. Each grid represents a square inch.

http://lh6.ggpht.com/_zSCTbpjGhns/TKKaXYbyQ9I/AAAAAAAAAqo/6ZxNMS5D8So/s800/electrajet.jpg

Transferred the design to a piece of 14" x 18" paper the
old-fashioned way (drew a grid on it with 1" between grid
lines, and mapped points from the small paper to the
large paper). Made some changes to the body shape,
and then glued the paper to 1/4" MDF.

The template-to-be sitting on top of the body-to-be:

http://lh3.ggpht.com/_zSCTbpjGhns/TKP41kP5oSI/AAAAAAAAArQ/AfgsP6NG8m0/s800/crude%20mock-up.jpg

Winner of the most primitive mock-up award. :lol:

Winner of the most primitive mock-up award. :lol:

I don't know, you did extrapolate from your computer image.
http://i299.photobucket.com/albums/mm308/coltwknight/Custom%20Guitar%20Building%20101/100_1405.jpg

I don't know, you did extrapolate from your computer image.

Hi Colt. Not sure I understand. Yes, I did extrapolate in
the sense that I drew lines on the plan (freehand) between
points I'd mapped out.

I was thinking as I did this that I should've picked up a
french curve at the art supply store when I bought the
paper.

Edit: Oh, I think I see what you mean now. You were responding
to my 'most primitive mock-up' joke.

I thought it was funny to think of the unfinished template
laying on the clamped wood as a mock-up -- in contrast to
the mock-ups you see in build threads where parts are
layed out on top of a finished body.

Looks like a Jaguar married a Strat and had a kid. Kinda cool, looking forward to how this turns out.

cool project - subscribed

In last week's episode flatfive glued the plan to 1/4" MDF...

Next thing is to turn that MDF into a template
by sawing and sanding, and then make a 3/4" template.
You start with a 1/4" template because it's very easy
to shape 1/4" MDF. You end with a 3/4" template
because you need that 3/4" for the router bearing to
follow when you route the actual body in multiple passes.

Here's the 1/4" MDF after sawing with a jig saw.

http://lh3.ggpht.com/_zSCTbpjGhns/TKZSFd8bPcI/AAAAAAAAAro/Q2pR3M5yjso/s800/sawed%20quarter%20MDF.JPG

Before sawing I sprayed a little lacquer around the body line
so that the jig saw wouldn't tear up the paper.

After sawing I used the Ridgid belt/spindle sander to remove
material until I was close to the line.

This step is a little tricky, because you want to get
a really smooth edge on the template, and you need to correct
any minor problems with the body contour NOW!

Looking at the back of the template helped in seeing the
outline clearly.

http://lh5.ggpht.com/_zSCTbpjGhns/TKZSFuuEhaI/AAAAAAAAArs/aCFOxn6NfK4/s800/sanded%20quarter%20MDF%20back.JPG

Here's the front after sanding was complete. I think I used
100 and 180 grit paper, with a small block and a 1" dowel.
Maybe 220 grit on the final pass around.

http://lh4.ggpht.com/_zSCTbpjGhns/TKZSF0Hmv9I/AAAAAAAAArw/vDnOiZRfJNA/s800/sanded%20quarter%20MDF%20front.JPG

Next I picked and drilled the spots for the pilot holes for 2 screws
that will attach the template to 3/4" MDF. Screwed the template
to the MDF, penciled the outline, removed the template, and sawed
the MDF.

http://lh6.ggpht.com/_zSCTbpjGhns/TKZSGNczohI/AAAAAAAAAr0/guvAyk2FldY/s800/sawed%20three-quarter%20MDF.JPG

Again I used a jigsaw, and I didn't get too close to the line because
the blade can wander a bit from side to side.

Here's "the shop" :lol: on a really nice afternoon in the 'burbs
of Chicago.

http://lh4.ggpht.com/_zSCTbpjGhns/TKZSGf24UOI/AAAAAAAAAr4/HtT47Vm1yZY/s800/the%20shop.JPG

Then the 1/4" template was screwed back onto the MDF, and the
MDF was routed. I use a separate bit for routing MDF because
TDPRI'ers warned me that it's full of rat feet and old tin cans.

http://lh5.ggpht.com/_zSCTbpjGhns/TKZSGt7EhAI/AAAAAAAAAr8/mehSpD6mhUg/s800/routed%20three-quarter%20MDF.JPG

Okay, that was all straightforward but it does look pretty good.
I'm liking the body shape more and more.

Man, how many irons you got in the fire?:mrgreen: Looks like you'll have to shut down operations when its gets frosty up there. :sad:
This should be very cool. But, it doesn't win the primitive layout award, I laid out the VLB directly on the template by hand with a pencil and refined the curves with a 3/16ths piece of oak bent and taped in place. Took about an hour and a half. Primitive but then again this wasn't a copy of something, just things I liked in other guitars thrown together to try to come up with something original.
Looking forward to more.

That body shape would make a prime candidate for tele style pickups/bridge. It would by like a telemaster but more unique. And with extra mojo!!

Yeah, I'm frantically trying to get stuff gone while it can
be done without a down jacket!

Man, how many irons you got in the fire?:mrgreen: Looks like you'll have to shut down operations when its gets frosty up there. :sad:

Thanks for the idea -- I hadn't considered that. At the moment
I'm still leaning towards p-90's, the biggest problem being that
I apparently can't route the cavities without knowing exactly
which p-90's I'm going to use.

That body shape would make a prime candidate for tele style pickups/bridge. It would by like a telemaster but more unique. And with extra mojo!!

I've got a bunch of nice veneer and had to figure out which
would best suit this body. I decided on kerlian burl, which
is really distinctive and I think fits the 50's/bowling alley/
rocket ship styling of the body.

While getting ready I discovered this veneer has lots of
small holes. I was worried how this might affect the
vacuum clamping of the veneer. Here's a piece of the
veneer held up to a window:

http://lh5.ggpht.com/_zSCTbpjGhns/TKep4FwtObI/AAAAAAAAAsU/vbgEdt16WMs/s800/see-through%20kerlian%20burl.JPG

So I tested the gluing first with a small piece of veneer
and had no problems. So then veneered the body blank.

http://lh3.ggpht.com/_zSCTbpjGhns/TKep4dJ69lI/AAAAAAAAAsY/85VUOp2qKxE/s800/veneer%20glued.JPG

The wood is really unique. It looks a lot more like flames
than flame maple ever did. The tentative plan is for a sunburst
emphasizing flame-like colors: yellow, red, orange.

By the way, I used Titebond Cold Press veneer glue.

Today I screwed the 3/4" template to the veneered body
blank, drew a line around it, removed the template,
and then jig-sawed the blank to within about 1/8" of the line.

The jig saw was breaking up the veneer edge, so I flipped
the blank over and sawed with the veneer side down.

Then I sanded with the Ridgid belt/spindle sander to get
to within about 1/16" of the line.

http://lh5.ggpht.com/_zSCTbpjGhns/TKlECMwPdUI/AAAAAAAAAso/wkDCd116dWM/s800/before%20routing.JPG

Sorry for the crummy pic!

Then I re-attached the 3/4" template and outside of the
body on my cheapo routing table, first with a bit having
the bearing on the bottom, then -- after flipping the body
over -- with one having the bearing at the top.

http://lh4.ggpht.com/_zSCTbpjGhns/TKlECQ6J3YI/AAAAAAAAAss/vozLVf3zi-0/s800/after%20routing.JPG

As I was routing I was thought about a lot of things:


jeez I could lose some fingers!
why didn't I just sand right to the line?
why are there always a few rough spots, even if I route downhill?
this takes longer than the sanding does
watch for tear-outs!
I will need to sand again after this to take care of the rough spots
a routing table may actually be more dangerous than a hand-held router.
maybe those TDPRI'ers who suggest not using a router for this step are right!

After routing there were a few minor problem areas, so I cleaned
them up today with the Ridgid belt/spindle sander.

http://lh5.ggpht.com/_zSCTbpjGhns/TKvkFZvM7lI/AAAAAAAAAs8/IhWOkwq1HBQ/s800/routed%20sanded%20blank.JPG

Just a couple of tiny areas to hand sand left now.

The veneer, of kerlian burl, is definitely going to need filling,
which I've never done. I thought I might try both epoxy and
super glue on my test piece. Before doing that I thought I'd
stain the body with some very diluted orange stain.

Then I tried filling with epoxy. I used Titebond 5-minute epoxy,
in those double-syringe things I don't like. I applied with a
credit card -- seemed very easy.

Here's the result after one application of the epoxy, and no
sanding:

http://lh4.ggpht.com/_zSCTbpjGhns/TKvkFsNG3WI/AAAAAAAAAtA/NUQt_tI-8mQ/s800/orange%20stained%20kerlian.JPG

Kind of nice, but too much like the kind of tacky, highly-flamed
and stained maple tops that folks were recently complaining
about in another thread. I'm thinking maybe a trans-black
finish might be nice.

I made another test piece (so easy with the vacuum press --
took me all of 10 minutes to cut the veneer, glue the MDF, and
throw it in the vacuum bag). I plan to use epoxy to fill it, and
then spray black-tinted lacquer. Maybe a tiny bit of purple
added to give a sort of dark wine color.

Very interested in this build. Will stay tuned!

Today I made a neck template for this build out of 3/4" MDF.
I used the method that's been documented very clearly by
Jack Wells:

http://www.tdpri.com/forum/tele-technical/45365-making-neck-pocket-template.html

Here's an uninspired pic of the template:

http://lh3.ggpht.com/_zSCTbpjGhns/TK6N3XgzHjI/AAAAAAAAAvw/xY6i6paVRuk/s800/neck%20template.JPG

I discovered earlier this year that you want to make the template
3/4" thick, not 1/2" thick, if you need to route a 5/8" deep pocket
with a 1" flush trim bit.

You can see the gory details of that discovery here (http://www.tdpri.com/forum/tele-home-depot/214223-poplar-metallic-orange-build-3.html#post2570237).

I also filled my new finish sample piece with epoxy filler. I'd
previously stained the veneer orange before the filler and
didn't like the color. Here's the color of the veneer after
the epoxy was applied.

http://lh5.ggpht.com/_zSCTbpjGhns/TK6N3ZGZMFI/AAAAAAAAAvs/a6uIiSDfqFU/s800/epoxied%20kerlian.JPG

Pleasant but a little dull. As mentioned above, I'm leaning toward
a trans-black tint with possibly a touch of add purple.

I'm annoyed that I can't do the P-90 pickup routes until
I get my hand on the pickups, as P-90 dimensions seem
to vary from one manufacturer to another.

Thats pretty cool, as mentioned its sort of a jag/jazzmaster with a strat bottom bout and switch. Should be real neat with the P-90's, but then again I'm a real fan of 90's. One of the coolest little guitars I gave my stepson was a cheap SG Jr which was a single pick up bolt neck SG with a wraptail tail piece. It has a dogear p90 and despite it being a cheap guitar had the nastiest P90 I've heard just a rude little guy, used to use it for slide. Watching this one with interest hope we get to hear it! Good luck.

Regards,

Don

Having a neck template made routing the neck pocket easy.

http://lh3.ggpht.com/_zSCTbpjGhns/TLJWqqgePYI/AAAAAAAAAwE/IUvFR5h3NlM/s800/IMG_6007.JPG

I'm happy that the neck pocket lines up just right with the
body outline -- there's just a paper-thin bit of wood left on
one side of the pocket.

I also sanded the epoxy-filled sample veneer. It sanded pretty
easily. Next step is to put another application of epoxy on
the sample and see if I then sand to a perfectly smooth surface.

How cool is this?! I have two ElectraJets, one with G-90s and one with three "Strat" pickups, and both are exceptional. This is the first "from scratch" EJ build I've ever seen. I think you're going to be extremely happy with the feel and sound of this guitar--the ergonomics of the body shape are excellent.

Radspin -- must be nice having the real thing! Hope I'm
able to get a little of the feel and sound of a Grosh.

How cool is this?! I have two ElectraJets, one with G-90s and one with three "Strat" pickups, and both are exceptional. This is the first "from scratch" EJ build I've ever seen. I think you're going to be extremely happy with the feel and sound of this guitar--the ergonomics of the body shape are excellent.

I've had family visiting so things have been a bit stalled,
but got started again today.

First I filled the top with Titebond 5-minute epoxy. The
5-minute stuff seemed fine on my sample, but on the
real thing, with more area to cover, and a less regular
shape, I was running out of time. The color looks pretty
good, though.

http://lh3.ggpht.com/_zSCTbpjGhns/TLjYgldMSyI/AAAAAAAAAw0/1DTGHkMh4Bo/s800/body%20filled%20once.jpg

Next I wanted to drill holes for the neck, but I'm tired
of figuring out where the holes on each build. So I
decided to build a little template to use as a jig.

I put some double-stick tape on the bottom of the heel
of a Warmoth neck, then stuck the neck to paper. Next
I outlined the neck on the paper, turned the neck over,
and etched the position of the neck holes on the paper.

Then I removed the paper from the neck, sprayed adhesive
on it and some 1/4" MDF, and stuck them together.

I jig-sawed the MDF close to the line, then sanded down
to the line. Checked against the neck to make sure the
size was right, then stuck the 1/4" template to 3/4" MDF and
routed. Here's after routing:

http://lh4.ggpht.com/_zSCTbpjGhns/TLjYgZGyKtI/AAAAAAAAAwo/RaAVWH0DfDc/s800/neck%20template.jpg

I was probably a time-waster -- should have skipped the
1/4" MDF and just cut and sanded the 3/4" stuff. Anyway,
then I carefully drilled the holes on the pattern.

Would have liked a brad point bit for this step, but don't
have one in 3/16".

Anyway, in the end the holes lined up pretty well.

http://lh3.ggpht.com/_zSCTbpjGhns/TLjYgnagR7I/AAAAAAAAAww/gYdCSS1Hmvw/s800/neck%20template%20result.jpg

So then I just plopped the jig into the neck pocket and drilled
four 3/16" into the body using this jig.

Last little task was to figure out the size and shape of the
rear control cavity, and cover. Using Electrajet photos as
a rough guide, I came up with this:

http://lh4.ggpht.com/_zSCTbpjGhns/TLjYgv7JhjI/AAAAAAAAAw4/HoDCZVZlV9E/s800/control%20cavity%20plan.jpg

Now I guess I'll make a template to use in routing the body.
I think I'll need two templates, in fact: one for the cavity,
and one for the recessed perimeter for the cover.

I have been playing with the free DraftSight software because
I'd like to be able to make proper plans. But it's taking forever
to try to get competent in using it.

A question: where do you find material for cavity covers?
I'm thinking black plastic, as I expect to use mostly black
hardware, but don't know where to get it.

Nice build!

You can get plexiglass in a variety of thicknesses, colors and even type (lexan etc) at Tap Plastics. Or look-up "plastics" in the Yellow Pages.

I'm not sure yet, but I'm slowly coming to the conclusion
that I'm indecisive.

For example, I keep going back and forth on the question
of whether this body should have a back contour (aka "tummy cut").
I know from a strat body that the contour is a nuisance when
finishing.

Last night I picked up a strat to see if the back contour was
comfortable. While sitting, it definitely was. Then I looked at
a photo of the back of an Electrajet on the Grosh site. The
back contour is so sexy on that guitar!

http://www.groshguitars.com/products/archive/ejet6.htm#port

So I drew pencil lines on the body.

http://lh6.ggpht.com/_zSCTbpjGhns/TLm04STfkBI/AAAAAAAAAxA/SiXSlGIE-aA/s800/back%20contour.JPG

Today I'm going for it. I've never done a body contour, so I'm a
little nervous about it, but I figure as long as I don't overcut
I'm okay. I've read up here on techniques for doing the contour;
I'll probably try different things, including a belt sander, the
Ridgid belt/spindle sander, and a rasp or other hand tool.

Hi flatfive

I remember seeing a video -somewhere- where they were doing strat style bodies. They had made a fixture to hold the body at the right angle and fairly securely so they could bandsaw and sand the tummy cut out at a consistent angle.

Could work pretty well with your Ridgid sander, and seems like it would be pretty easy to tweak the shape once you have the angle figured out.

Looking forward to seeing more of this build

Phil

Hi Phil. Thanks for the idea.

This is what Ron Kirn does, if I remember correctly.
He has a fixture that holds that body at an angle, that he
uses with the Ridgid sander.

The contour I'm sanding doesn't have such a regular shape
that I'd be able to do it completely this way, though.

Hi flatfive

I remember seeing a video -somewhere- where they were doing strat style bodies. They had made a fixture to hold the body at the right angle and fairly securely so they could bandsaw and sand the tummy cut out at a consistent angle.

Could work pretty well with your Ridgid sander, and seems like it would be pretty easy to tweak the shape once you have the angle figured out.

Looking forward to seeing more of this build

Phil

He has a fixture that holds that body at an angle, that he
uses with the Ridgid sander.

The Ridgid only has 4" spindles.. they are too short..... I use either a Grizzly Oscillating spindle sander http://www.grizzly.com/products/Oscillating-Spindle-Sander/G1071

Or a Jet a Jet Oscillating edge sander... http://www.cpojettools.com/jet-708447-oes-80cs--oscillating-horizontal-vertical-edge-sander/jetn708447,default,pd.html?start=4&cgid=jet-sanders

Either is far more effective is producing a nice smooth, even contour...

rk

Thanks, Ron. You saved me from building a fixture only
to find that it wouldn't work.

The Ridgid only has 4" spindles.. they are too short..... I use either a Grizzly Oscillating spindle sander http://www.grizzly.com/products/Oscillating-Spindle-Sander/G1071

Or a Jet a Jet Oscillating edge sander... http://www.cpojettools.com/jet-708447-oes-80cs--oscillating-horizontal-vertical-edge-sander/jetn708447,default,pd.html?start=4&cgid=jet-sanders

Either is far more effective is producing a nice smooth, even contour...

rk

Itching to work on the back body contour, but decided to
rout the binding channel and round over first.

For the binding channel, I used the StewMac bit and bearing.

http://lh6.ggpht.com/_zSCTbpjGhns/TLpx_WPqUFI/AAAAAAAAAyA/wqHCs8-LD8w/s800/binding%20channel%20routed.JPG

For the round over, used a 3/16" Milwaukee round over bit --
these were being sold for peanuts on Amazon a couple of months
ago. Made in Italy!? Thanks to Jack Wells for the tip.

http://lh3.ggpht.com/_zSCTbpjGhns/TLpx_Q_79SI/AAAAAAAAAyE/bRtSxAxaKiA/s800/body%20edge%20rounded.JPG

Decided to try to body contour by hand, to limit the speed at
which I could do damage. Bought this rasp at Home Despot:

http://lh6.ggpht.com/_zSCTbpjGhns/TLpxA7wISxI/AAAAAAAAAxU/bOOm-emR9m0/s800/rasp%20details.JPG

It's slightly convex on the rough side; flat on the finer side.

http://lh6.ggpht.com/_zSCTbpjGhns/TLpxAlQReYI/AAAAAAAAAxQ/ZaDY2s54sKM/s800/rasp.JPG

I just dug in -- it took material off quickly.

http://lh5.ggpht.com/_zSCTbpjGhns/TLpxBHkSZzI/AAAAAAAAAxY/qanK54-1qMA/s800/starting%20contour.JPG

In about 40 minutes I got to the point where I wanted to
switch to sandpaper.

http://lh4.ggpht.com/_zSCTbpjGhns/TLpxBsNPq8I/AAAAAAAAAxc/mtaWF1GVAxo/s800/done%20rasping%20contour.JPG

Hard to say why it was fun rasping out the shape of the contour.
It was just so satisfyingly 3-dimensional. :smile:

Nice build!

You can get plexiglass in a variety of thicknesses, colors and even type (lexan etc) at Tap Plastics. Or look-up "plastics" in the Yellow Pages.

Thanks Marty. Wish we had Tap Plastics stores here in Illinois.

You can get pickguard material for your covers at http://www.guitarfetish.com/Uncut-Pickguard-Material-Great-for-Custom-Pickguards-_c_224.html for one, Stewmac I believe has sheets of pickguard material as well. Just a thought.

Regards,

Don

Thanks Marty. Wish we had Tap Plastics stores here in Illinois.

No Tap Plastics???????

Ok, you will have somebody...

In the AT&T Yellow Pages, look under "Plastic Rods, Tubes, Sheets, Etc. Supply Centers".

I bought a piece of scrap 1/8" thick black plexiglass big enough to make a couple rear covers for $1.00 from my local supplier in Modesto (not Tap Plastics)...

http://www.plastics2000.net/

Don, thanks for the suggestion of using pickguard material
from GFS or another supplier. I may do that.

Marty -- I have yet to find a plastics retailer near me. Thanks
for the AT&T yellow pages search idea. I tried it and came up
with nothing. :sad:

I'm also going to try to some local hobby stores.

You could get clear and paint the backside black. Lots of places to get clear plastic sheet including Home Depot and Orchard Supply Hardware. Not sure if Lowes carries it.

I got some Tonerider vintage soapbar p-90s for this guitar.
I bought them new from eBay seller krazybytes, who I
can recommend. He was really nice to try to get the pickups
to me as quickly as possible when I told him I couldn't rout
the body without them.

I've got a problem, though. When I made my master template
for the body, I was expecting to use a pickguard. So one of
the template screws is in a spot that would be covered by
the pickguard.

http://lh3.ggpht.com/_zSCTbpjGhns/TLz1ydPtzYI/AAAAAAAAAzc/-WPP4K9WcJc/s800/IMG_6131.JPG

Since then I've decided the veneer's so nice that I don't
want it covered with a pickguard.

I could move the neck pickup rout closer to the neck. Any
problem with doing this?

I can see two possible problems:

1. sonically, could it be bad for the pickup to be too close
to the neck?

2. structurally, could it be bad for the pickup rout to be to
close to the edge of the body?

By the way, I use necks that have truss rod adjustment at
the headstock.

Here's the Grosh Turbojet, which is a variant of the Electrajet
but with humbuckers and no pickguard:

http://www.groshguitars.com/products/electrajet/tjet.htm#port

Id give plugging the hole a try. With all the figuring on the veneer you wont even see it. Id plug the hole just shy of the surface and then cut a small dot out of any left over veneer you have with some scissors and glue it in place. If you didnt know it was there, Id bet no one will see it once finished.

Thanks -- I think you're right. I'm going to try it.

Id give plugging the hole a try.

http://lh4.ggpht.com/_zSCTbpjGhns/TLpxBsNPq8I/AAAAAAAAAxc/mtaWF1GVAxo/s800/done%20rasping%20contour.JPG

Hard to say why it was fun rasping out the shape of the contour.
It was just so satisfyingly 3-dimensional. :smile:

There's nothing better than shaping wood with a good rasp.

I got some Tonerider vintage soapbar p-90s for this guitar.
I bought them new from eBay seller krazybytes, who I
can recommend. He was really nice to try to get the pickups
to me as quickly as possible when I told him I couldn't rout
the body without them.

I've got a problem, though. When I made my master template
for the body, I was expecting to use a pickguard. So one of
the template screws is in a spot that would be covered by
the pickguard.

http://lh3.ggpht.com/_zSCTbpjGhns/TLz1ydPtzYI/AAAAAAAAAzc/-WPP4K9WcJc/s800/IMG_6131.JPG

My P90 template allows me to screw into the neck pocket and the area of the bridge. And I can flip it to put a P90 rout in the bridge location as well.

http://i334.photobucket.com/albums/m408/apolloguitars/misc%20part2/anders083.jpg

Thanks. I was planning to make a P-90 template that would
affix to the neck pocket on one end, but I hadn't thought of
making it so it could be flipped around.

Can I ask: do you use 3/4" as the pocket depth?

My P90 template allows me to screw into the neck pocket and the area of the bridge. And I can flip it to put a P90 rout in the bridge location as well.

Can I ask: do you use 3/4" as the pocket depth?

Generally 5/8"... but sometimes depends on the guitar/neck/bridge combo.

http://lh4.ggpht.com/_zSCTbpjGhns/TLpxBsNPq8I/AAAAAAAAAxc/mtaWF1GVAxo/s800/done%20rasping%20contour.JPG

Hard to say why it was fun rasping out the shape of the contour.
It was just so satisfyingly 3-dimensional. :smile:

Its in our Genes (and Jeans) We're men, we like stuff with curves on it.. :D

http://i607.photobucket.com/albums/tt155/ReverendDonnie/rotfl.gif

Regards,

Don

Itching to work on the back body contour, but decided to
rout the binding channel and round over first.

For the binding channel, I used the StewMac bit and bearing.

http://lh6.ggpht.com/_zSCTbpjGhns/TLpx_WPqUFI/AAAAAAAAAyA/wqHCs8-LD8w/s800/binding%20channel%20routed.JPG

For the round over, used a 3/16" Milwaukee round over bit --
these were being sold for peanuts on Amazon a couple of months
ago. Made in Italy!? Thanks to Jack Wells for the tip.

http://lh3.ggpht.com/_zSCTbpjGhns/TLpx_Q_79SI/AAAAAAAAAyE/bRtSxAxaKiA/s800/body%20edge%20rounded.JPG

Decided to try to body contour by hand, to limit the speed at
which I could do damage. Bought this rasp at Home Despot:

http://lh6.ggpht.com/_zSCTbpjGhns/TLpxA7wISxI/AAAAAAAAAxU/bOOm-emR9m0/s800/rasp%20details.JPG

It's slightly convex on the rough side; flat on the finer side.

http://lh6.ggpht.com/_zSCTbpjGhns/TLpxAlQReYI/AAAAAAAAAxQ/ZaDY2s54sKM/s800/rasp.JPG

I just dug in -- it took material off quickly.

http://lh5.ggpht.com/_zSCTbpjGhns/TLpxBHkSZzI/AAAAAAAAAxY/qanK54-1qMA/s800/starting%20contour.JPG

In about 40 minutes I got to the point where I wanted to
switch to sandpaper.

http://lh4.ggpht.com/_zSCTbpjGhns/TLpxBsNPq8I/AAAAAAAAAxc/mtaWF1GVAxo/s800/done%20rasping%20contour.JPG

Hard to say why it was fun rasping out the shape of the contour.
It was just so satisfyingly 3-dimensional. :smile:


I don't like the Nicholson Rasps, I use one of these guys for just about everything. I can carve a neck in about 10 minutes. You'd be surprised how fast it will cut wood down, then flip it over, use the medium side to smooth the wood out. Then a few minutes with 60 grit or 100 grit, and you are there.
http://www.equestriancollections.com/product.asp?ic=BC00450R

These are so sharp, they will cut the $#!+ out of your fingers if you are not paying attention.

A flap disc on a 4" grinder works well too.

Hey Colt. I think you mean you *like* them, right? Wish the flip
side was also slightly convex.

I haven't done the experiment yet with my finger (I salute you for
being in the forefront of science :lol:), but kept expecting
I'd make one wrong move and scrape a hunk of alder out of the
back of the body.

I don't like the Nicholson Rasps, I use one of these guys for just about everything. I can carve a neck in about 10 minutes. You'd be surprised how fast it will cut wood down, then flip it over, use the medium side to smooth the wood out. Then a few minutes with 60 grit or 100 grit, and you are there.
http://www.equestriancollections.com/product.asp?ic=BC00450R

These are so sharp, they will cut the $#!+ out of your fingers if you are not paying attention.

A flap disc on a 4" grinder works well too.

Its in our Genes (and Jeans) We're men, we like stuff with curves on it.. :D


Well put, Reverend! (with all due respect to women in the audience)

Music is itself very spatial/visual, so we have some sort of genetic trifecta
happening.

I do NOT like nicholson rasps.

I have found the Nicholson Pattern Makers Rasps to be the absolute best for shaping necks and contouring bodies.

I have found the Nicholson Pattern Makers Rasps to be the absolute best for shaping necks and contouring bodies.

Thanks -- are you referring to the Nicholson 49 and 50?

http://www.thebestthings.com/newtools/nicholson_rasps.htm

Thanks -- are you referring to the Nicholson 49 and 50?

http://www.thebestthings.com/newtools/nicholson_rasps.htm

Yes.

Thanks -- are you referring to the Nicholson 49 and 50?

http://www.thebestthings.com/newtools/nicholson_rasps.htm

Those look like a lot better rasps than you buy at HD or Lowes. Or perhaps, the two Nicholson rasps I bought were just bad eggs.

Those look like a lot better rasps than you buy at HD or Lowes. Or perhaps, the two Nicholson rasps I bought were just bad eggs.

Yeah, I think they're better, and also a lot more
expensive. From my surfing it seems lots of woodworkers
like them, although there have apparently been some
complaints since manufacturing moved to Brazil.

Here's the hole near the neck pocket that will be exposed
unless I use a pickguard or move the neck pickup location:

http://lh6.ggpht.com/_zSCTbpjGhns/TL5Xrdc2NmI/AAAAAAAAAzo/xSkHqW_p-Jk/s800/hole%20to%20fill.JPG

I drilled it to 3/16" and whittled a plug. The tricky part was
to try to insert the plug just deep enough for veneer to
fit on top.

http://lh3.ggpht.com/_zSCTbpjGhns/TL5Xr0qNReI/AAAAAAAAAzs/6rYT2cdAx4k/s800/hole%20plugged.JPG

Then I scissored out a piece of veneer about the size of the
hole, and gently sanded the sides until it was about the right
size. After gluing the veneer plug in:

http://lh6.ggpht.com/_zSCTbpjGhns/TL5Xrz-seLI/AAAAAAAAAzw/2vfN758kvAk/s800/veneer%20circle%20glued.JPG

After sanding and wiping a little shellac over the plug:

http://lh6.ggpht.com/_zSCTbpjGhns/TL5XsbhGaMI/AAAAAAAAAz0/vGT_cXpWkg8/s800/sanded%20and%20shellaced%20repair.JPG

Not perfect, but this is quite close up. I'm thinking that I'll
live with it rather than move the neck pocket location.

Thanks to xbearxau for suggesting a plug.

For future reference you could try this:

Cut the dowel to flat with a miter box, about 1/8" shorter than the hole is deep. Glue veneer to the dowel top and let dry. Cut/sand the veneer to match the dowel. Cut 2-3 small grooves down the length of the dowel just short of the veneer with a razor knife to allow air/excess glue to evacuate.

Put a drop of glue in the hole. Insert the dowel part way into the hole. Using a C-clamp and a block of nice flat hardwood, push the dowel into the hole with the C-clamp/wood block. Remove the clamp/block before the glue dries to it.

Marty...:wink:

Glad it worked, looks great.

Looks good. You'll never even see it at arms length.

The body shape's like a less geeky Jag-stang.

1. sonically, could it be bad for the pickup to be too close to the neck?That's a fair question but I think you want it "as close as possible". Some lap steels have an additional pickup embedded in the neck - since there's no fretting anyway.

2. structurally, could it be bad for the pickup rout to be to
close to the edge of the body?Good question. Maybe the route won't be so deep .... same as the neck route?

Great build thread!
Greg

Thanks, Marty. Yeah, it would have been easier if I'd glued
the veneer to the plug before shaping the veneer. Shaping that
tiny bit of veneer with sandpaper was hard! Cutting the dowel
with a miter box is also a good idea.

Unfortunately, I didn't have any 3/16" veneer, and only had a
standard drill bit, which doesn't leave super-clean edges.

For future reference you could try this:

Cut the dowel to flat with a miter box, about 1/8" shorter than the hole is deep. Glue veneer to the dowel top and let dry. Cut/sand the veneer to match the dowel. Cut 2-3 small grooves down the length of the dowel just short of the veneer with a razor knife to allow air/excess glue to evacuate.

Put a drop of glue in the hole. Insert the dowel part way into the hole. Using a C-clamp and a block of nice flat hardwood, push the dowel into the hole with the C-clamp/wood block. Remove the clamp/block before the glue dries to it.

Marty...:wink:

Looks good. You'll never even see it at arms length.

Thanks.

This morning I tried to show the repair to my wife but she couldn't find it!

Thanks, Greg. I know there's physics around pickup placement,
and many people dislike 24-fret guitars because they say it keeps
the pickup from being placed in the sweet spot.

Maybe I'll move the pickup towards the neck as far as possible
without having to worry about structural issues.

That's a fair question but I think you want it "as close as possible". Some lap steels have an additional pickup embedded in the neck - since there's no fretting anyway.

Good question. Maybe the route won't be so deep .... same as the neck route?

Great build thread!
Greg

The body shape's like a less geeky Jag-stang.

Funky guitar! Maybe a little too freaky for a distinguished gentleman
like myself :lol: Did you build it?

ps I mean 'funky' in a good way. When my son was small, I remember
trying to explain to him the ambiguity of 'funky': Son, it's good to wear
funky clothes; it's bad to smell funky.

I waited for the Tonerider p-90s to arrive before thinking
about the pickup routs -- I've read that p-90s don't have
a standard dimension.

I started by placing the p-90 covers on my 1/4" master
template and tracing lines around them. Then I sawed out
the holes and began using a rasp to get close to the
line.

I was about here:

http://lh4.ggpht.com/_zSCTbpjGhns/TMT5LdX6eBI/AAAAAAAAA1M/n-saqhsXJ84/s800/pickup%20holes%20on%20master%20template.JPG

when I thought: why am I working so hard to make perfectly
straight lines?

I have a few pieces of laminated particle board, so cut a
couple pieces to the width of the p-90 covers using a
miter saw. Then I put these pieces between straight
pieces of the particle board:

http://lh6.ggpht.com/_zSCTbpjGhns/TMTzvAGVUAI/AAAAAAAAA0k/TGdIPQBb4Ds/s800/p-90%20routing%20jig.JPG

Beneath the particle board is my 3/4" template for the body.
You can see approximate pickup locations penciled in on the
template.

The two side pieces were clamped down to the work table,
so that the p-90 sized pieces could barely be slid back and
forth between them.

Then I put a pickup cover over one of the pickup locations,
and slid the small pieces next to it.

http://lh6.ggpht.com/_zSCTbpjGhns/TMTzvby46CI/AAAAAAAAA0o/rNLBWfWBA30/s800/p-90%20reference.JPG

At this point the small pieces had double-sided tape applied
to their bottom surfaces. I pressed them down firmly to the
template.

After removing the pickup cover and routing:

http://lh6.ggpht.com/_zSCTbpjGhns/TMTzvgXzagI/AAAAAAAAA0s/0d09axHXtps/s800/pickup%20template%20routed%201.JPG

Here's the 3/4" template with both routs finished.

http://lh4.ggpht.com/_zSCTbpjGhns/TMTzvyT8CaI/AAAAAAAAA0w/4TKpQzDu-FA/s800/pickup%20template%20routed%202.JPG

Now I can rout the pickup cavities on the body. Here's the
body after using a forstner bit to remove wood where the
cavities will be.

http://lh6.ggpht.com/_zSCTbpjGhns/TMTzwAWF9CI/AAAAAAAAA00/mWYJxRC7ba0/s800/body%20ready%20for%20pickup%20rout.JPG

The one little issue at this point is that the template has two
screws to attach to the body, but one of the holes on the
body has been filled. So I cut and fiddled with a small piece
of MDF until it fit snugly into the neck pocket on the body.
You can see it in the pick above.

Then I screwed the template to the body, with one screw
going into this new piece of MDF in the neck pocket.

I also needed to check to see what cavity depth I wanted.
I decided on 3/4" after looking at a bunch of things that are
too tedious to explain (even for me :neutral:).

Here's the body with pickup cavities:

http://lh5.ggpht.com/_zSCTbpjGhns/TMTzwR-XEII/AAAAAAAAA04/KJNoCrMmmCc/s800/body%20pickup%20routs.JPG

Two things:

1. I'm not claiming the approach I used is some ingenious new
breakthrough. It's just a variant of the method for routing
neck pocket templates that's been document by Jack Wells
and others.

2. I used a 1/2" diameter routing bit, but the corners of the
pickup covers are a little tighter than that. Any advice on
how to tighten up the corners a little? The approaches that
occur to me are: round file, sandpaper on a dowel, or careful (!)
use of a dremel high-speed cutter (http://www.amazon.com/Dremel-115-High-Speed-Cutter/dp/B00008Z9ZX/ref=sr_1_4?s=hi&ie=UTF8&qid=1287978685&sr=1-4).

Id advise buying a bearing router bit with the correct radius. You've come so far with a wonderful build, dont try to cut corners, you only ruin all your great work so far. Just spring for a $20 router bit and move on.

Measure the trace of the Tonerider covers to find out the radius of the corners. If you can get a pattern bit in the right size, do it.

In the future, you could use your drill press to drill the corner holes with a drill bit the correct size while you're hogging out the material.

Id advise buying a bearing router bit with the correct radius. You've come so far with a wonderful build, dont try to cut corners, you only ruin all your great work so far. Just spring for a $20 router bit and move on.

Thanks -- you're probably telling me what I need to hear.:neutral:

3/8" cutting diameter pattern bits are hard to find. There are
none locally, and StewMac wants $27 plus $8.50 shipping (!).
I also found the Amana 45475, which would probably work, but it's
very short.

What's strange is it's easy to find a flush trim (i.e.bottom bearing)
bit with 3/8" cutting diameter.

Measure the trace of the Tonerider covers to find out the radius of the corners. If you can get a pattern bit in the right size, do it.

In the future, you could use your drill press to drill the corner holes with a drill bit the correct size while you're hogging out the material.

I considered the second idea, but thought I might get a
poor result if the corner holes weren't drilled at exactly the
right place.

Think I'll experiment on scrap today to see if I can tighten
the radius cleanly. If not I'll order a bit.

That is looking fantastic.

with the dremel bit, you can remove material in the corners IN the cavity but not on surface and do that job with hand tools like a file or a chisel, if its in the guitar, no one will see the inside cavity walls are not clean, that would leave you a lot less job to get a snug fit all around the pickup cavity at surface but if you find the right router bit size, it will give much better results and you will use it again someday, i personally like my guitars to be very clean even inside, your choice.
hope it helped you make the right choice

Pascal

I was kind of stuck on how to proceed with the control
cavity.

The problem was that I'd drawn everything on the 1/4"
master template: the location of the knobs and switch,
the control cavity shape, and the shape of the control cavity
cover.

So if I used the master template as a template for the
control cavity routing, I'd lose the location of the knobs
and switch.

I realized I could solve the problem by sequencing things
in the right way. First use the master template to drill
pot and switch holes on the first of the two 3/4" templates
I've made. Then use the master template to rout the control
cavity shape on the second 3/4" template.

Here's the master template with holes drilled:

http://lh6.ggpht.com/_zSCTbpjGhns/TMYu_UT-J3I/AAAAAAAAA1U/jO-JhPaGq3A/s800/quarter%20with%20holes%20drilled.JPG

The holes for the pots are 3/8", the holes for the switch should
be 5/32", with 1 5/8" between their centers, and the switch slot
should be 1/16" wide and 1 1/16" long.

Here's the body with holes drilled:

http://lh3.ggpht.com/_zSCTbpjGhns/TMYvAdPf77I/AAAAAAAAA1k/kMBQea64m68/s800/holes%20drilled.JPG

Once the hole were drilled on the 3/4" template, I
cut out and sanded the cavity shape on the master template.

http://lh6.ggpht.com/_zSCTbpjGhns/TMYu_vw97lI/AAAAAAAAA1Y/JNgv_waNGiI/s800/quarter%20with%20cavity.JPG

The back shows the shape more clearly. The bumps are where the
screws will be.

http://lh6.ggpht.com/_zSCTbpjGhns/TMYu_-fce4I/AAAAAAAAA1c/LhSv6NpDHiE/s800/quarter%20with%20cavity%202.JPG

Now the cavity was routed onto the second 3/4" template (which was
made for routing the neck pocket). Then that template was used to
rout the body.

http://lh6.ggpht.com/_zSCTbpjGhns/TMYvAAoDvBI/AAAAAAAAA1g/a6RRNethcFc/s800/cavity%20routed.JPG

The wall between the cavity and the top is 1/4" thick.
That dark mark on the bottom is a feature of the wood that
was exposed by the routing.

The template was held to the bottom of the body with
double-side tape and clamps -- no screw holes on the bottom
of the body.

The last step was to go back to the master template again, and
this time saw out and sand the shape of the cavity cover.

I had no more 3/4" templates! So for the cavity cover template
I scrounged up this 1' x 1' piece of 3/4" MDF that had been used
for a veneering experiment. So I have now have a very elegant
cherry cavity cover template. :lol:

http://lh3.ggpht.com/_zSCTbpjGhns/TMYvBEkwdwI/AAAAAAAAA1o/BQVv6UkWSGI/s800/three-quarter%20with%20recess.JPG

The problem is, with a 1" router bit, I can't make a very shallow
rout using a 3/4" template. So I cut an opening in another piece
of 3/4" MDF that just a little a little bigger than the cover.

http://lh3.ggpht.com/_zSCTbpjGhns/TMYvBrraXzI/AAAAAAAAA1s/P6lS_d5e4p4/s800/another%20three-quarter.JPG

Then I made a sandwich: the body was on the bottom, the cherry
template on the top, and the MDF with the oversized cover hole
in the middle. The middle piece is just acting as a spacer.

(With the spacer in the middle, it was hard to align the template
on top and the control cavity on the bottom. I ended up using
a square to check the alignment.)

Then I adjusted and tested the routing depth. I expect to use
pick guard material for the cover, so I tested the rout depth on
scrap wood with a small piece of the pick guard material.

Here's the finished product.

http://lh3.ggpht.com/_zSCTbpjGhns/TMYvDF-UgvI/AAAAAAAAA2A/WWfNtwDRt44/s800/final%20cavity%204.JPG

I learned a couple of things today. One is that double-sided tape
can be very handy for routing. If it's used with clamps there's not
much chance of the template slipping. Another is that in guitar
building you make up for skill with time and patience.

Thanks, Pascal. Funny, it is easy to find 3/8" flush trim bits
that have bearings on the bottom of the bit. In fact
I have such a bit. So if I could get the correct radius in the
cavity then I could easily transfer it to the top of the cavity.

But how to get the correct radius (3/8") in the cavity?

with the dremel bit, you can remove material in the corners IN the cavity but not on surface and do that job with hand tools like a file or a chisel, if its in the guitar, no one will see the inside cavity walls are not clean, that would leave you a lot less job to get a snug fit all around the pickup cavity at surface but if you find the right router bit size, it will give much better results and you will use it again someday, i personally like my guitars to be very clean even inside, your choice.
hope it helped you make the right choice

Pascal

I'm at a loss on how to cleanly cut the switch slot, which
is supposed to be 1/16" x 1 1/16".

I seem to remember seeing a post here on how to do this
a year or so ago, but I can't find it now.

Any suggestions? The wall between the cavity and top is 1/4".

Edit: I've since found some TDPRI posts on this. It seems that
a common approach is a Dremel bit, like the 569:

http://www.tdpri.com/forum/tele-home-depot/159364-what-dremel-bit-cut-switch-slot-pickguard.html#post1798319

http://www.tdpri.com/forum/tele-technical/113890-how-cut-switch-slot.html

http://www.tdpri.com/forum/tele-home-depot/188554-flotsam-mahogany-build.html#post2173394

well, i guess that if you can find a 3/8'' bearing you can put it over the cutting part of the bit like regular bits you use with templates. i don't have any bits with bearing under so i dont know if you can remove it, that could work or another way would be if you have a drill press you can use that method video'd here http://www.lmii.com/CartTwo/Video.asp its called DRILL PRESS ROUTER, its de 6th video from the bottom.

for the slot, with a cutoff wheel if you have a flex shaft would work(do a LOT of test on scrap of the same materialas your guitar top) but the best way is if you have a precision router base for your dremel, align a ruler with the slot, clamp it down and slide your dremel router against it, kind of like you would do with a template, that seems to be the best/easiest way to do it.

Pascal

Pascal, thanks for the good ideas. I may be able to use
that drill press router idea, or something close, for the
pickup corners.

For the switch slot, I think I'll probably rout as you suggest,
but probably with a laminate trimmer. I don't have a laminate
trimmer, but know it will come in handy for lots of things.

Hi all. Looking for advice on a bridge.

The Electrajet generally comes with a Gotoh 510 tremolo
bridge, but I rarely use a tremolo and have them blocked
on strats I own. Still, I could get a Gotoh tremolo bridge
and block it.

Here are some of the hardtail bridges I've seen (hardware
on this guitar will be black):

Schaller roller bridge:

http://www.stewmac.com/shop/Bridges,_tailpieces/Electric_guitar,_non-trem_bridges/Schaller_Non-Tremolo_Roller_Bridge.html

Hipshot:

http://www.stewmac.com/shop/Bridges,_tailpieces/Electric_guitar,_non-trem_bridges/Hipshot_Hardtail_Bridge.html?read=reviews

Gotoh:

http://www.stewmac.com/shop/Bridges,_tailpieces/Electric_guitar,_non-trem_bridges/Gotoh_Hardtail_Bridge.html

strat-style non-tremolo:

http://www.warmoth.com/Strat-Flat-Mount-Bridge-Vintage-Spacing-Black-P580C703.aspx

A GFS bridge:

http://www.guitarfetish.com/Top-Mount-Hardtail-Bridge-fits-Tele-Squier-51-BLACK_p_760.html

There are also the cutoff tele bridges, but I don't think they
would fit the look of this guitar. Maybe I'm wrong -- maybe
this would look good:

http://www.guitarfetish.com/Cutaway-Wilkinson-Compensated-Tele-Bridge-Brass-Saddles-Gloss-Black_p_1806.html

There's also the issue that if the bridge is narrower than the
p-90 pickups then the appearance of the guitar can be strange.

I'm liking the electrajet shape so much that I'm thinking that
next year I might build one with a wraparound bridge, and another
in the Electrajet VT style, which is more tele-like.

I've been playing around on Kisekae, and it looks like
a black wraparound would probably look great on this
guitar.

Researching wraparounds on teles, I see that recessing
the bridge is not an option, so one has to angle the neck
a couple of degrees.

Unfortunately I've already routed the neck pocket and
drilled the neck bolt holes. Are there issues with
shimming the neck to achieve the required angle?
I see that some dislike this option, but don't know why.

Thanks for any thoughts.

if you bend a lot, roller bridge is a good idea, helps with string breakage and tuning issues, if you don't bend a lot, its not needed, warmoth's bridge seems like a good idea and it looks nice, i personally don't like the hipshot. i think the half tele bridge looks great, but it would really help to judge if you could post a pic of the body w/ the neck and the hardware you have on(p-90s too). also think if you want to put string ferules.

on the subject of your pickup corners... since you have a perfectly rectangular rout, make a jig/template that limits the travel of router baseplate. make the outside of the baseplate the bearing. brutally simple and cheap.

this was for a lipstick pickup, cut with a bearingless 5/8" straight bit:
http://farm2.static.flickr.com/1245/5122574052_9b6e7bf868.jpg

just move the sides out a little, use a 3/8" bit... spend the $28 on the bridge.

Thanks -- I may try a roller bridge.

I don't have much of the hardware yet, and haven't done the
binding, which will be black. Once I have the binding glued in
and some of the hardware, I'll post a pic.

if you bend a lot, roller bridge is a good idea, helps with string breakage and tuning issues, if you don't bend a lot, its not needed, warmoth's bridge seems like a good idea and it looks nice, i personally don't like the hipshot. i think the half tele bridge looks great, but it would really help to judge if you could post a pic of the body w/ the neck and the hardware you have on(p-90s too). also think if you want to put string ferules.

The slot for the pickup selector switch seemed like something
I'd be able to screw up pretty easily.

The slot is supposed to be 1/16" wide, and 1 1/16" long.
I found a 1/16" router bit on Amazon, but didn't trust my
full-sized router on such a delicate slot, so broke down and
bought a Ridgid laminate trimmer. I think this is a tool I'll
be able to use a lot.

I started with a test. I drilled a 1/16" hole in scrap,
drew a line through it, and drew a second line parallel
to the first. Then I put the bit (installed into the router
into the hole, snugged some MDF against the
router base, and clamped it, using the second line as
a guide.

http://lh4.ggpht.com/_zSCTbpjGhns/TMznv7s8xRI/AAAAAAAAA2g/MwywSwifsXk/s800/test%20routing%20for%20switch%20slot.JPG

Hope that gets the idea across. The test worked out fine, so
I went for it on the real thing. The only problem is that I didn't
drill the starter 1/16" hole directly on the line between the switch
mounting holes.

http://lh6.ggpht.com/_zSCTbpjGhns/TMziXZgQSzI/AAAAAAAAA2U/-jb9BpE5zbA/s800/routed%20switch%20slot.JPG

I don't think this will be a problem; the holes for the bolts can be
adjusted slightly; the tops of the bolts will hide the issue.

Here's the router bit I used: 1/16" cutting diameter and only
1/4" long. I guess at that diameter you can't go much longer.

http://lh6.ggpht.com/_zSCTbpjGhns/TMziXsOnKnI/AAAAAAAAA2Y/GVIOjDCoCvQ/s800/switch%20slot%20router%20and%20bit.JPG

Here's the rout after minor clean-up. You can see it's slightly
to one side of the line that bisects the bolt holes.

http://lh4.ggpht.com/_zSCTbpjGhns/TMziXrOhYXI/AAAAAAAAA2c/WrgUVRSLd5Y/s800/cleaned%20up%20switch%20slot.JPG

Looks great, straight as an arrow and really clean. Yeah I can see its a little offset, but the screw hole should give you some latitude. Otherwise cant beat how clean the slot looks. Its probably only off a 1/32nd or so anyway..

Regards,

D.

Nice job , I didnt even think they made a 1/16 router bit , you are going to love that Ridgid Laminate Trimmer , I use mine more than I use my full size router , I put the square base on mine , gives a little more of a platform for it to work with , one of the best tools I ever bought.

look good, you can always file the hole to make the screw centered on the line then countersink it so that the screw grabs at the right place +it will hide it well.
amazing build!

I learned a lesson: don't do a build step that's not right
figuring you can fix it later -- especially if you aren't sure
exactly how you'll fix it later.

I routed my pickup cavities with a 1/2" diameter bit, knowing
the corners of the pickup covers were tighter than that.

It's been a struggle to figure out how to tighten the corners.
There's no pickguard, so the edges of the pickup cavities have
to look good.

I got a 3/8" diameter straight router bit, and thought I'd use
the jig idea suggested by volowv in post #79 above.

Tested the idea on the MDF template, but it was hard to get the
rout perfectly aligned with the existing cavity. And it has to
be almost perfectly aligned -- even a tiny offset if very visible:

http://lh6.ggpht.com/_zSCTbpjGhns/TNIi5OWzFeI/AAAAAAAAA24/BcZS8ACFAAA/s800/test%20on%20mdf.JPG

On top of that, there are 8 corners to fix! I gave up on this
approach.

I was looking at a Jack Wells build thread the other day and
was thinking that building a guitar is a matter of solving a
serious of little problems. Jack's thread was great because
he solved every problem in an elegant and sometimes ingenious
way.

That is Jack. Me -- after three days of thinking I still had no
idea of how to solve this problem.

Tonight I popped into the basement and thought: I've got steady
hands; I'm just going to freehand this with my new laminate router!!

Fortunately my senses returned right away.

I then thought of using a small sanding drum on the Dremel tool,
but since I don't have a routing base for it I thought I'd try the
small sanding drum in the drill press.

Tried this first on the MDF template, and it worked. The nice
thing is that the rate of removing material is easy to control.
So I went on to the real thing:

http://lh4.ggpht.com/_zSCTbpjGhns/TNIi5b3AOvI/AAAAAAAAA28/G3bNMoAtCJg/s800/sanding%20pickup%20rout%20corners.JPG

I took it slow and easy, then did a little sanding by hand on the
corners that still needed a little tightening.

http://lh6.ggpht.com/_zSCTbpjGhns/TNIi5Vy-31I/AAAAAAAAA3A/qwFdUh6-rpE/s800/sanding%20pickup%20rout%20corners%20with%20bit.JPG

This pic doesn't show it well, but the end result was pretty good.

http://lh5.ggpht.com/_zSCTbpjGhns/TNIi5iwAbBI/AAAAAAAAA3I/Oaa2QY5Qt5U/s800/finished%20pickup%20rout.JPG

(but next time I will use the right-sized bit to rout the cavities)

More or less finished on the back contour. Thought I
was pretty close after finishing with the rasp but I've
spent 2-3 hours since then with sandpaper.

http://lh3.ggpht.com/_zSCTbpjGhns/TNS8yjlkLrI/AAAAAAAAA3U/MsGCnWABP4U/s800/tummy%20cut%202.JPG

Fun to take pictures of it:

http://lh6.ggpht.com/_zSCTbpjGhns/TNS8ynGPo5I/AAAAAAAAA3Y/fxvv7uMFUPI/s800/tummy%20cut%203.JPG

There's a tiny bit of touch-up 320 sanding to do on it, including
the transition to the rounded edge.

http://lh4.ggpht.com/_zSCTbpjGhns/TNS8yalaSgI/AAAAAAAAA3Q/yP56os_tyTg/s800/tummy%20cut%201.JPG

The thing I learned was that the "cut" should be kept perfectly
straight until the final sanding where the edges are slightly
softened. Originally the cut was "bulging" a little -- if that's
clear -- making it hard to get a clean break from the back to
the cut.

Warm weather this Sunday and Monday; I might have yet be
able to spray this body with lacquer before winter. :cool:

What remains to be done before finishing:

- top binding
- wiring channels
- jack hole
- bridge holes, possibly including string-through holes

The first two are doable. For the jack hole I don't know if
I drill the same sized hole as I would for a tele. Anyone know?
It's a football jack plate that I plan to use.

The bridge holes are a problem since I don't have a bridge. :sad:
I'm thinking of a hardtail bridge like the hipshot:

http://www.stewmac.com/shop/Bridges,_tailpieces/Electric_guitar,_non-trem_bridges/Hipshot_Hardtail_Bridge.html?tab=Specs#details

Stewart-MacDonald supplies dimensions for the bridge, but
it would be risky to drill mounting holes, and especially string-through
holes, without the bridge in hand.

very cool. It looks a lot like one of the 90's fender toronados. I'm looking forward to continuing updates. good luck!

Since this isn't really a tele I was wondering if there
might be any surprises in drilling the wiring channels.

The two channels to the pickup cavities can be done
just like a tele. Here the path for the channel to the
neck cavity.

http://lh5.ggpht.com/_zSCTbpjGhns/TNXUDFXbubI/AAAAAAAAA3c/3fvruJmU6ZI/s800/channel%201.JPG

The path for the channel to the bridge cavity is shorter
and easier than for a tele:

http://lh4.ggpht.com/_zSCTbpjGhns/TNXUDmY4-rI/AAAAAAAAA3g/Y2aknT_zGCA/s800/channel%202.JPG

It's an 1/8" drill bit -- a Toshiba "black magic". Squeals a
lot for black magic...

Drilling for the jack hole was a bit different from a tele, where
the jack is mounted to a flat surface. I'm planning
to use a oval, or "football", jack plate like on an Electrajet.

However, as this pic shows, there's no direct path to the
cavity from about where the jack should be -- at least no
path perpendicular to the tangent at the body edge.

http://lh4.ggpht.com/_zSCTbpjGhns/TNXUEeOphqI/AAAAAAAAA3k/8FzfSyjdiZk/s800/jack%20channel.JPG

It seems the solution is to drill a jack hole first, then
somehow drill a wiring channel between the jack hole
and the control cavity.

I made a jig to hold the body while drilling the jack hole.
It was inspired by a clamping arrangement I saw in a Jack Wells
build thread.

http://lh4.ggpht.com/_zSCTbpjGhns/TNXUEn-YzeI/AAAAAAAAA3o/Eqkn-QxVqrI/s800/drilling%20jib.JPG

The jig is just a piece of 1x10 screwed with a few screws into
the end of a 2x4. I stuck a bit of felt on the bottom of the
clamping surface. The drill press table is rotated so that it's
not below the bit.

http://lh3.ggpht.com/_zSCTbpjGhns/TNXUFHjNhdI/AAAAAAAAA3s/J1dcF66v00o/s800/jack%20hole%20drilled.JPG

The hole was better and the process less nerve-racking than in
my past efforts. A 7/8" forstner bit was used.

Now to somehow drill a wiring channel between the jack hole
and control cavity. I couldn't see how to do this from the
control cavity direction, so the plan was to drill through the
side of the jack hole:

http://lh6.ggpht.com/_zSCTbpjGhns/TNXbJgvSOwI/AAAAAAAAA4I/RdSjoWiI_iM/s800/jack%20wiring%20channel.jpg

The jig was especially handy here because there's no way I
could have drilled through the side of another hole by hand.

http://lh5.ggpht.com/_zSCTbpjGhns/TNXUFeOWCmI/AAAAAAAAA3w/_QG_eLZKbl4/s800/drilling%20jig%20in%20action.JPG

This last pic is a little unclear -- it's showing the hole to the
control cavity from the side of the jack hole.

http://lh6.ggpht.com/_zSCTbpjGhns/TNXUFh3O7RI/AAAAAAAAA30/SHVlfKTPlbc/s800/jack%20hole%20finished.JPG

I'm guessing the wire to the output jack isn't going to get
in the way of the plugged-in cable tip.

great jig&job!
I love that build, looks great&original.

Thanks for the encouragement!

great jig&job!
I love that build, looks great&original.

I'm not finding fun in binding.

I use superglue and occasionally a heat gun.
Black binding especially seems to need heat around tight
bends, else it crazes. But I find it hard to head the binding
to just the right temperature with a heat gun.

I also use blue masking tape, but it's just for insurance,
because I don't stop pressing the binding with my thumbs
until I've counted to 30 and the glue has set.

Here's the body after gluing the binding.

http://lh5.ggpht.com/_zSCTbpjGhns/TNjScndeaGI/AAAAAAAAA40/CBOwwOAZmFk/s800/binding%20glued.JPG

I only found one small oops. I tried to fix it once but it
popped back out of place after I let go. I'll try again tomorrow.

http://lh3.ggpht.com/_zSCTbpjGhns/TNjSdEwqyBI/AAAAAAAAA5E/qshaUEzeN9o/s800/small%20binding%20oops.JPG

Here's the body with the tape removed. I'm not sure about
whether black was the right choice. But hard to know before
seeing the body with the black pickups, bridge, and other
hardware.

http://lh4.ggpht.com/_zSCTbpjGhns/TNjSdXr20aI/AAAAAAAAA5M/RKIKLkBjV3I/s800/binding%20glued%202.JPG

I think the black is perfect, looks great!

I haven't checked on this thread in a bit. It's really coming along nicely. Great work !!

Citizen_Insane and jkingma -- thanks for the kind words and
encouragement!

There's a couple of small gaps in the binding. I've heard that
you can fix these by using goop made from melting binding
in acetone, but didn't know the details.

I asked ievans for some help on this, and he suggested
adding a little acetone to bits of binding in a jar. He said
that the trick is to get the right thickness, because if
the goop's too thick it will be hard to get into the gaps,
and if it's too thin it can melt the binding.

I'll give it a shot tonight.

with black hardware, it will look great, btw, black hardware was a really good idea, we don't see that often.

Two days worth of progress to report, as last night I must've
forgotten to press the 'submit reply' button. :oops:

Anyway, to finish up work on binding, I first quickly routed with
a flush trim bit to remove any excess. Then I sanded all round
the body edge with 220 and 320 grit to get the binding completely
flush with the wood. Did a quick pass with 600 on the binding
itself. Did a similar thing along the top edge of the binding.

http://lh6.ggpht.com/_zSCTbpjGhns/TNtzK6XvK8I/AAAAAAAAA5o/_jTNBfvFbUI/s800/binding%20sanded.JPG

There are a couple of small gaps I'll try to fix with
binding goop made from binding and acetone.

http://lh4.ggpht.com/_zSCTbpjGhns/TNtzLQEPg8I/AAAAAAAAA54/nfQi1w6Nx_8/s800/gaps%20in%20binding.JPG

Got the Hipshot bridge, so now I can place it and drill the
mounting and string-through holes! I'm happy with the
quality look and feel of the bridge. It's hefty.

http://lh3.ggpht.com/_zSCTbpjGhns/TNtzL2RIvgI/AAAAAAAAA6A/HwmQ5ABti7Y/s800/hipshot%20bridge.JPG

For placing the bridge position in one direction I measured
25.5" from the edge of the nut to the saddles.

http://lh4.ggpht.com/_zSCTbpjGhns/TNtzM76tVqI/AAAAAAAAA5g/6mt56kKcqqA/s800/setting%20bridge%20position%201.JPG

For the other direction I used strings from the E tuners, through
the nut slots, towards the bridge.

http://lh4.ggpht.com/_zSCTbpjGhns/TNtzNMnor9I/AAAAAAAAA5k/9HbXx5nocBE/s800/checking%20bridge%20lateral%20position.JPG

Once the bridge was in the right place I drew a light pencil line
around it and inside the holes.

Now on to drilling. I placed the bridge on the neck with a piece
of double-sided tape, and drilled the string-through holes to
about a 1/2" deep with a 1/8" brad point bit, using the bridge as a
template. I think I used a 3/32" bit for the bridge mounting
holes.

http://lh3.ggpht.com/_zSCTbpjGhns/TNx8NyhLHkI/AAAAAAAAA7A/eIil1UbU7Xs/s800/drilling%20bridge%20holes%201.JPG

The string-through holes are pretty straight!

http://lh4.ggpht.com/_zSCTbpjGhns/TNx8OhMxjOI/AAAAAAAAA7M/a9Oymy_Xe1A/s800/bridge%20holes%20drilled%203.JPG

It's vital that these holes are straight, because the
ferrule holes on the back of the body are drilled using the
"registration pin" method. Here's the 1/8" pin on some MDF
attached to the drill press table, and lined up with a 3/8"
forstner bit.

http://lh4.ggpht.com/_zSCTbpjGhns/TNx8OxoYgTI/AAAAAAAAA7Q/l5AxI7JMQS8/s800/registration%20pin.JPG

The body gets flipped over, and the pin put in the string-through
holes, one after another. At each step, the ferrule hole is drilled.

Since the top holes are aligned pretty well, so are the bottom ones:

http://lh6.ggpht.com/_zSCTbpjGhns/TNx8PulbLrI/AAAAAAAAA7U/o--D7Mj5DnY/s800/ferrule%20holes%201.JPG

Then I went back to the front and drilled through with the 1/8" bit.

http://lh4.ggpht.com/_zSCTbpjGhns/TNx8PxTgGRI/AAAAAAAAA7Y/U8wgQwMKJZM/s800/ferrule%20holes%202.JPG

Okay, all done with the bridge holes.

Returning to the binding -- I put bits of the binding in acetone,
and after 5 or 6 hours it turned to goop.

http://lh4.ggpht.com/_zSCTbpjGhns/TNx8QMU7WzI/AAAAAAAAA7c/ihO8LbQEfR4/s800/binding%20goop.JPG

I needed a very small putty knife to apply the goop to the gaps.
Maybe a screwdriver?

http://lh6.ggpht.com/_zSCTbpjGhns/TNx8Qs8jkCI/AAAAAAAAA7k/tb6Ztq8vi1k/s800/screwdriver%20putty%20knife.JPG

Hey! Who's been using my screwdriver as a putty knife? Was
probably my wife or son, I'm thinking.

Here's the goop. Seemed maybe a little too thing to use. ievans
warned me that if it's too thin, it can wreck the glued-on binding.

http://lh6.ggpht.com/_zSCTbpjGhns/TNx8QyIybBI/AAAAAAAAA7o/TQA80nxkXTY/s800/goop%20on%20screwdriver.JPG

But the acetone is so volatile, the stuff seems to thicken really
fast once out of the jar. So I applied some to the gaps.

http://lh5.ggpht.com/_zSCTbpjGhns/TNx8RMp8XrI/AAAAAAAAA7s/ByYhGU55xMo/s800/goop%20in%20gaps.JPG

I also discovered another gap, but this seemed to call for wood
filler. I used plastic wood because it dries really fast and doesn't
seem to soak into the wood.

http://lh3.ggpht.com/_zSCTbpjGhns/TNx8RSL1IBI/AAAAAAAAA7w/V3BCVQx-0Vk/s800/another%20gap.JPG

After an hour or so I sanded the problem areas, gave the top a
final sanding, and brushed on some Minwax sanding sealer.

http://lh4.ggpht.com/_zSCTbpjGhns/TNx8R1ykxzI/AAAAAAAAA74/QxfyfA2mXC4/s800/sanding%20sealer%20on%20body.JPG

The veneer is starting to look really nice with some finish on it.
It almost has an alabaster quality about it, which isn't really
captured in this pic:

http://lh4.ggpht.com/_zSCTbpjGhns/TNx8SKw3oSI/AAAAAAAAA78/xNL3wXLGomQ/s800/looks%20like%20alabaster.JPG

----

A couple of other things, for those not yet exhausted by the length
of this post..

Today I also cut up some planks so I could glue them into blanks
for use next year.

http://lh5.ggpht.com/_zSCTbpjGhns/TNyg5-ANVII/AAAAAAAAA8A/mUOVCaS6T7g/s800/wood%20for%20next%20year.JPG

That's poplar, basswood, and alder. No green in the poplar!

The more exciting development is what came in the Stewart Macdonald
box besides the Hipshot bridge:

http://lh4.ggpht.com/_zSCTbpjGhns/TNyg5-uYzwI/AAAAAAAAA8I/BC3LNl5hMMM/s800/IMG_6312.JPG

Excited about trying neck building for the first time!

Looking real good.

http://i334.photobucket.com/albums/m408/apolloguitars/Misc%20Part%203/awesome.jpg

Really nice work, can't wait to see the finished guitar.
JD

Thanks for the nice feedback, guys, and welcome to
TDPRI, JD!

I've brushed Minwax lacquer sanding sealer on the front
and back, but it looks like it will be spring before it's
sprayed with same tinted clear and then the clear coats. :sad:

In the meantime, though, I've got a couple other guitars
to finish, and I want to do at least one practice neck.

Back in action on this build, almost 10 months later.
I had to stop last year when it got too cold to do finishing
work.

Got the body out of wraps, but couldn't remember exactly
where I'd left off. Looks like I'd brushed on some sanding
sealer but hadn't sanded it.

The other day I got a hold of some samples from a
vanity supply place, so made a super-flat sanding block
by super-gluing a sample to some scrap.

https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-LKO1n3y0wRc/TmvxJWewRHI/AAAAAAAACcQ/Lsr9LSelISY/s400/IMG_8234.JPG

https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-H6mdvLOdGMQ/TmvxJper-RI/AAAAAAAACcU/gRXTBYZ9CSc/s400/IMG_8235.JPG

Sanded the body with 220, then 320. In some spots I went through
to the wood, so searched the web-infested depths of my humble
shop and found some Deft spray sanding sealer.

After spraying it looked pretty decent.

https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-tXlThnL_FZA/TmvxIJzXlVI/AAAAAAAACcE/VWw00oVSgk8/s800/IMG_8223.JPG

I thought I might use some tinted lacquer, but the color is
about what I wanted. (It's kerlian burl veneer on front.)

https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-g8xgEVctCtk/TmvxIt9HDXI/AAAAAAAACcI/ooTFsaqAwr0/s800/IMG_8224.JPG

The body is alder and it has nice color too, I think.

https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-0atXddfr1dA/TmvxJKqKE2I/AAAAAAAACco/r0i75p5SN8k/s800/IMG_8225.JPG

The sealer revealed a couple of small problem areas on the
inside of the horns. I'm going to take the ROSS to those spots,
then spray some more sealer. If all's well then I'll go straight
to clear lacquer.

I don't know how i missed this, but it looks great.

I've been wondering about this one Glenn , glad you got it out , it's going to be gorgeous , 2 P 90's , it's gonna rock , and that veneer , drool worthy !

http://i832.photobucket.com/albums/zz246/adirondak50/index.jpg?t=1294962743

I love that top. Stunning build.

I enjoyed reading this thread! I'm glad you started again, can't wait for new updates.

VERY nice...I really like the design!

Guys, thanks for the nice words.

Not much progress today. I had to fix up a couple of small
problems: some small scratches/gouges inside the horns, and
a white line along one section of binding where I'd filled a small
gap with plastic wood. It stayed light when sealer was applied.

To fix the plastic wood problem I first scratched out the plastic
wood with a razor blade.

https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-YJtF1AQkrwk/Tm1p7FdPHZI/AAAAAAAACc0/Drrfxx0zoig/s800/IMG_8237.JPG

I recalled a glass jar around the shop that had been used
to melt binding in acetone. After searching every nook and cranny
I found the jar, added a little acetone to re-melt the binding,
and stirred.

https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-lXVClMRXFyA/Tm1p7Ho_uVI/AAAAAAAACcw/ax8koU-mLf0/s800/IMG_8238.JPG

Probably chemists will say it is possible to re-soften hardened
binding material millions of times. :shock:

I then got really sloppy and just gobbed the goop over the gap.

https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-SRazVeiNBt4/Tm1p7i9uL2I/AAAAAAAACc4/iEo9XnJ6fec/s800/IMG_8239.JPG

After letting it dry and removing excess there were still a couple
of smaller gaps.

https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-98NeMo7mF10/Tm1p7zkX37I/AAAAAAAACc8/g6iQyTdUdkc/s800/IMG_8240.JPG

Disgusted with my cavalier behavior, I then added acetone again,
mixed again, but this time applied with more care.

https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-g5vdbYsnvCI/Tm1p8IYx4FI/AAAAAAAACdA/TG50aip2arc/s800/IMG_8241.JPG

After sanding:

https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-xbzYnTwLCBU/Tm1p6y5Yf5I/AAAAAAAACcs/Ypf5la-OsSQ/s800/IMG_8242.JPG

Not perfect but pretty good. Nothing is perfect under
powerful enough magnification -- the problem is to figure
out when to stop.

I removed the scratches inside with horn with the ROSS
spindle sander with 150 grit paper, then hand sanded to
320 and shot sealer again.

https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-zPJfShccM8Y/Tm1p8RsWn4I/AAAAAAAACdE/whCSFxtyCVU/s800/IMG_8244.JPG

The scratches don't show and no white line.

I'll sand lightly with 320 and then it's time for clear lacquer.

There are 4 options I've considered for spraying the lacquer:

1. Minwax or Deft from a spray can

2. Sherwin-Williams LOVOC from a Preval unit

3. LOVOC from a cheap HVLP system

4. LOVOC from a compressor and detail gun

Option 1 is simplest and easiest - BUT, I have almost
a gallon of LOVOC, and it's good stuff.

Option 2 is okay but I don't like the way Prevals spray.

Option 3 is interesting but from my little experience with
the HVLP system I know it wastes lots of lacquer and is
a hassle to clean.

Option 4 should be the best, and I actually have a compressor,
but it will take me a while to figure out all the little bits and
bobs I need to connect it to the gun.

I sanded the body lightly with 320, then used 400 and
600 quickly on the binding.

I decided to try to spray the Sherwin-Williams LOVOC
lacquer with the Wagner Control Spray system. I've
hardly used it before but it's easy. I used 2 parts
LOVOC to 1 part thinner. The thinner was plain old
Sunnyside; nothing fancy.

The lacquer went on well but the gun wasn't really
suited to the job. Lacquer was getting sprayed all
over the garage -- this system is more for fence spraying
than guitar spraying, I think.

Still, I'm psyched about how it looks after the first coat.

https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-UYT07JSBXbk/TnVe0s0_lrI/AAAAAAAACgo/pRsTLUcKy4U/s800/IMG_8306.JPG

https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-Rm1lqkR34Bs/TnVe0IuXO6I/AAAAAAAACgk/BpOKUkDF69w/s800/IMG_8304.JPG

https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-ToKZPd5tYaM/TnVe0ADgpPI/AAAAAAAACgg/SONY4u2idug/s800/IMG_8305.JPG

I'm going to let it dry for a couple of days while I figure
out how to use the compressor and spray gun I got for
Christmas. I don't have the hose, fittings, or knowledge yet
to use that rig.

Forgot to mention that I think a bug dropped in the investigate
the lacquer and got stuck. :mad:

Still, I'm psyched about how it looks after the first coat.
You should be. Looking really good.

WOW ! That is looking good , your work is old world craftsman type work Glenn , beautiful job.

Better late, then never! What a beautie!!! Excellent work!

Looking good.

Dave, Herb, 6stings, Sharp5: thanks a lot for the
kind words.

I got the bits needed to set up my compressor spraying
rig, so hope to shoot some lacquer again in the next day
or two, weather permitting (which it usually doesn't :mad:).

Now this is one awesome piece of kit! :wink:. Great build Glenn :smile:

Now this is one awesome piece of kit! :wink:. Great build Glenn :smile:

You are very kind, Dave. It's taking a long time but with luck I'll get
all the spraying done before it gets too cold. Middle of
next week looks like the window of opportunity.

All I was able to accomplish this week was getting the bits
needed to hook the compressor to the spray gun.

https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-3o7Nxc-Kge4/Tnsz5479n5I/AAAAAAAACh0/Cmqssjhag1s/s800/IMG_8326.JPG

There was a lot of head-scratching involved as I've never used
a compressor. I eventually got it hooked up. The set-up is:

compressor -> oil/water trap -> hose -> quick connect coupler ->
desiccant filter -> spray gun

I made a list of the needed parts before heading to Harbor
Freight but after getting home was glad that the folks who
designed the "compressor accessory kit" know more than me. :lol:

The foreignness of all of this was pretty amusing. It took
some minutes before I could figure out how to even grasp
the spray gun.

I would appreciate if you can tell me where to find a kerlian burl veneer? Your's is just perfect.

I'd like to dress one guitar in kerlian, but it's impossible to find it over here.
Cheers,
Darko

Beautiful. Simply beautiful! :shock:

Yeah, the kerlian burl is nice. I got mine from the eBay seller
named rjfritz123:

http://www.ebay.com/sch/merchant/rjfritz123_W0QQ_nkwZQQ_armrsZ1QQ_fromZQQ_ipgZ

He is also a TDPRI member: rjfritz

He is great to work with and will provide veneer in quantities
and sizes appropriate for guitars. I don't know if there will
be issues in shipping to Norway.

I would appreciate if you can tell me where to find a kerlian burl veneer? Your's is just perfect.

I'd like to dress one guitar in kerlian, but it's impossible to find it over here.
Cheers,
Darko

Beautiful. Simply beautiful! :shock:

Thanks for saying that. I can't wait to pop the P-90s in this
body and hear how it sounds.

This is simply stunning. Keep up the good work and go as slowly as you like because I've savoured every minute so far!

Thanks H_E_boy.

Well, it looks like I've got my spray rig going now, and
I lightly wet sanded a few little bumps with 600 grit paper,
so I'm ready to spray nitro once the weather is okay.

I'm going to use the "65 and 65" rule: at least 65 degrees
and no more than 65 percent humidity. 65 percent is a
little high but if I get pickier I'm not going to spray this
year.

This is simply stunning. Keep up the good work and go as slowly as you like because I've savoured every minute so far!

Ha! Fancy meeting you here Mr. H......LOL!

Very nice work, flatfive!

Ha! Fancy meeting you here Mr. H......LOL!

Very nice work, flatfive!

Hey Jimbob! :)

Flatfive, Jim is my ElectraJet project luthier!

Hey Jimbob! :)

Flatfive, Jim is my ElectraJet project luthier!

I wouldn't go as far as to say "luthier," but we're going to give it our best shot. It should be fun!

Here in the midwest we've had a beautiful week or two, so
I've been able to spray some lacquer. Sorry that these
pics aren't better.

https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-udpSraWTV5c/TpOJlf42oMI/AAAAAAAAClo/ig3-Ial8mPY/s800/IMG_8395.JPG

https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-qYyd5JrK7r4/TpOJlwq_glI/AAAAAAAACls/DrRG9SmK7yQ/s800/IMG_8396.JPG

I'm struggling a bit using a compressor and spray gun. I now have
a Husky detail gun (bought last year with the compressor), plus
a $12 HF gun, and a sale-priced $16 gun from Woodcraft.

I like the Woodcraft gun the best, but I'm still not able to dial
it in so that I get a spray pattern I like as much as what comes
out of a Deft or Reranch can.

I'll put one or two coats on this weekend then put this baby to
bed for 4-6 weeks. (I'm spraying Sherwin-Williams LOVOC, by
the way.)

In the meantime I'll check for any parts that I don't yet have,
and make the back cavity cover.

Do you need to wait 4 to 6 weeks with the Lovoc Glenn ? I also have a gallon of it , haven't used any yet but I thought I saw where Colt wet sanded after 3 -4 days with the Lovoc and buffed shortly after that . BTW , its looking great.

Do you need to wait 4 to 6 weeks with the Lovoc Glenn ? I also have a gallon of it , haven't used any yet but I thought I saw where Colt wet sanded after 3 -4 days with the Lovoc . BTW , its looking great.

Thanks for bringing this up, Herb. I haven't thought about it
too much. I used LOVOC on one previous body, and it sat
around for a long time before I did the buffing -- maybe too
long? Also a factor is that my stuff's in the basement where
the temperature's on the cool side.

I'll look around.

I just did a quick search here and I see where Colt wet sands Lovoc after 3 days , buffing I see another post where he says after a few days , while I don't see any harm in waiting it would be great to be able to wet sand and buff in a shorter time span , I'll pose the question to Colt in his finish thread.

Glenn that guitar is looking wonderful.

Would that I had this kind of patience, what a great looking job :wink:

Thanks a lot, guys. I think it's going to look nice with the
black P-90s and black hardware.

Thanks for investigating the LOVOC, Herb.

Thanks a lot, guys. I think it's going to look nice with the
black P-90s and black hardware.

Thanks for investigating the LOVOC, Herb.

No trouble Glenn , I did post the question to Colt in his "How I approach a nitrocellulous finish" thread , over in finely finished , check out his answer when you get a chance .

No trouble Glenn , I did post the question to Colt in his "How I approach a nitrocellulous finish" thread , over in finely finished , check out his answer when you get a chance .

Excellent! Thanks, Herb. I see that I should be able to
wet sand and polish in a week at most, after my final
spraying (which I hope is today).

Hi Glenn, glad to see you back to finishing this one after the long hiatus!


Speaking of finishing, not sure what you mean by liking the spray from Reranch cans over what you are getting with your spray rig. Are you getting more like "small droplets" as opposed to "finely atomized"? Have you tried experimenting with thinning the lacquer, or adding retarder? You didn't mention this, so could we assume you are spraying the LOVOC straight out of the can? It would be my experience that it would be a rare occasion when all the variables are exactly right that you could shoot any nitro straight out of the can (even when the can says so) and get perfect atomization.

I saw your thread in finely finished regarding the Woodcraft gun, and noticed in the specs that it comes with a .8 mm tip. The recommended tip size for nitro lacquer is more like 1.5 - 1.6 mm. I think you might get better results with that gun if you reduce the lacquer. I would try about 50-50, practice on scrap, and adjust from there. You will want to tune the gun using the various adjustments on the gun also.

If you are experiencing orange peel and it dries before any "flow out" occurs, you may need to add some retarder to the mix also. Most spray cans have generous amounts of retarder built in to aid flow out. Retarder is another thing to experiment on scrap with to determine the amount to use. Too much and you could risk drips forming where they wouldn't otherwise.

Looking great, and good luck!

It's looking great, Glenn! We're about to begin our guitars this week, too. I'll keep you posted.

Hi Marty. Thanks a lot for the tips.

What I mean about preferring the Reranch or Deft cans is that
with them I can get a fairly wide (maybe about 4"), thin, and wet
band of applied lacquer, without much "bounce back" or
overspray.

With the gun I have only been able to get a wet band of
about 2", and it is thicker than what I get out of a Deft
can. Also, there is much more bounce back and overspray.

I'm currently thinning at about 2 parts LOVOC to 1 part
thinner. Maybe I should try increasing the thinner amount
a little? Also, I'm not using any retarder, but I think the
lacquer is going on reasonably smoothly -- not as smoothly
as I got with the Deft cans.

Thanks again.

Hi Glenn, glad to see you back to finishing this one after the long hiatus!


Speaking of finishing, not sure what you mean by liking the spray from Reranch cans over what you are getting with your spray rig. Are you getting more like "small droplets" as opposed to "finely atomized"? Have you tried experimenting with thinning the lacquer, or adding retarder? You didn't mention this, so could we assume you are spraying the LOVOC straight out of the can? It would be my experience that it would be a rare occasion when all the variables are exactly right that you could shoot any nitro straight out of the can (even when the can says so) and get perfect atomization.

I saw your thread in finely finished regarding the Woodcraft gun, and noticed in the specs that it comes with a .8 mm tip. The recommended tip size for nitro lacquer is more like 1.5 - 1.6 mm. I think you might get better results with that gun if you reduce the lacquer. I would try about 50-50, practice on scrap, and adjust from there. You will want to tune the gun using the various adjustments on the gun also.

If you are experiencing orange peel and it dries before any "flow out" occurs, you may need to add some retarder to the mix also. Most spray cans have generous amounts of retarder built in to aid flow out. Retarder is another thing to experiment on scrap with to determine the amount to use. Too much and you could risk drips forming where they wouldn't otherwise.

Looking great, and good luck!

It's looking great, Glenn! We're about to begin our guitars this week, too. I'll keep you posted.

We are waiting! :lol:

What I mean about preferring the Reranch or Deft cans is that
with them I can get a fairly wide (maybe about 4"), thin, and wet
band of applied lacquer, without much "bounce back" or
overspray.

With the gun I have only been able to get a wet band of
about 2", and it is thicker than what I get out of a Deft
can. Also, there is much more bounce back and overspray.

What pressure are you shooting Glenn? Also, have you tried your adjusters? If I recall, the width of fan (or lack of it) is the rear screw, and the mixer (wet-dry) is the one in the front behind the nozzle. Unless there's a recommendation on your gun, on a new one I like to dial it down under 30psi, play with my patterns then up the pressure til you get a happy medium. Unless that's a really different kind of gun, I don't see one reason you shouldn't be able open up the fan pattern, and get it as wet or dry as you like :smile:
Looking really good BTW:wink:

Thanks, Dave. I'm able to shoot at around 25 PSI with the
woodcraft gun. I like the low PSI because I seem to get
less overspray and bounce.

I have played with the adjustments on the gun, but found
that when I opened up the fan it was hard to get the
lacquer to "wet" the finish.

My experience with cans was that I could shoot from about
10-12" away from the body, and get the lacquer to just
wet the surface while moving the gun at a reasonable speed
(maybe between 1 and 2 seconds across the length of the
body).

With the gun, after trying all the adjustments, it seems that
to wet the finish I need to move closer in, or make the spray
pattern smaller, or move the gun more slowly.

I'm guessing from what Marty said that maybe if I thinned
the lacquer more I could get the lacquer to wet the surface
more easily -- because I'm definitely getting thicker coats
than I did with the can.

Hard to explain this all in words -- maybe I need to try to
shoot video.

What pressure are you shooting Glenn? Also, have you tried your adjusters? If I recall, the width of fan (or lack of it) is the rear screw, and the mixer (wet-dry) is the one in the front behind the nozzle. Unless there's a recommendation on your gun, on a new one I like to dial it down under 30psi, play with my patterns then up the pressure til you get a happy medium. Unless that's a really different kind of gun, I don't see one reason you shouldn't be able open up the fan pattern, and get it as wet or dry as you like :smile:
Looking really good BTW:wink:

Hi Marty. Thanks a lot for the tips.


What I mean about preferring the Reranch or Deft cans is that
with them I can get a fairly wide (maybe about 4"), thin, and wet
band of applied lacquer, without much "bounce back" or
overspray.

With the gun I have only been able to get a wet band of
about 2", and it is thicker than what I get out of a Deft
can. Also, there is much more bounce back and overspray.

I'm currently thinning at about 2 parts LOVOC to 1 part
thinner. Maybe I should try increasing the thinner amount
a little? Also, I'm not using any retarder, but I think the
lacquer is going on reasonably smoothly -- not as smoothly
as I got with the Deft cans.

Thanks again.


Hi Glenn, you're welcome. This is hard to describe, but let me give it a shot:

Hmmm. 2" wide @ full fan? That seems more like what to expect from an airbrush. And you must be 4" away? Something is not right here. Can you buy different tips for this gun? .8 mm is really small. 1.2 mm might be a better starting point. The gun I use has a 1.3 MM tip, and I must thin Behlen SIL to get it to spray right. Behlen is supposedly good-to-go straight out of the can.


Not sure what you mean by "bounce". What is hitting the guitar should be sticking to it. What misses is dry before it hits the floor. It sweeps right up and looks like talcum powder. I wouldn't be too concerned about this inefficiency. More VOCs in the air, that's all.


Just to experiment, try reducing to 1:2 (one part lacquer to 2 parts thinner) and see what that does (on scrap of course). If is sprays better, that just answers a question about what may not be working right.

Tip size has to do with viscosity among other things. On a full-size gun, recommended tip size for lacquer is 1.5-1.6 mm. Lacquers have a much thinner viscosity than say latex, which call for tip size of 2+ mm.

Spraying with a spray rig will never be like spraying with cans. Cans are hyper-effiecient (and must be) with propellant. There is going to be more and faster air from a spray gun, and with that a lot more finish being applied. This is a good thing. I like a fan of about 6-8" at a distance of 10" (+/- a couple inches). The build is rapid, creating good flow-out. Watch the surface in the reflection of overhead lights to adjust the speed you move the gun, watching for a smooth,wet surface. Always hold the gun perpendicular to the surface and maintain the 10" distance.

Nitro dries hyper-fast. What they call "nitro" in cans are not true nitros. Chemicals have been added to stretch-out coating time to deal with the extra time it takes to apply a coat with the little 4" fan. With a gun, the surface is drying immediately as a coat is applied.

You want to "build" a coat with about 2-3 passes in rapid succession, melting into the previous pass. Making light passes spaced too far apart is going to build a dry and rough surface. This is OK if fixed by hitting it with a 50-50 (or even more thinner) coat to melt and flatten the dry coats. But that is best avoided as too much thinner and you can melt all the previously built-up finish right off! Ouch, this is not good, as drips form or a section of finish sluffs-off in a down-hill direction..:shock: Ask me how I know...:roll:

So you are looking for a gun that can apply lacquer way faster than a spray can does. If your gun doesn't fit this description, you may want to get one that does.

Your Makita compressor should be able to handle a full-size gun, if you get the right one. My Neiko gun (not expensive) needs about 3 CFM as far as I can determine. Maybe the 1.3 tip is helping the air consumption to stay lower. As long as you can see pressure build (or at least not drop) with the pump running and the trigger held down continuously with the gun set at 40 PSI, the compressor is adequate.

I think a detail gun is best suited for something like spraying a burst; the smaller output yields better control.I think you would be better served with a 600 cc cup size also. You don't want to have to re-fill in the middle of a coat.

FWIW and IMO of course; hope that makes sense, helps, and good luck!

Glenn, I basically agree with Marty that you should be able to dial-in your gun by adjusting the spray pattern, air volume, and flow.

The best way I know to adjust these 3 vectors is to start off with the flow control closed, the fan set to medium, and the pressure set to 40 PSI with the trigger pulled. Then point the gun at a piece of scrap and:
1. Open the flow control a quarter turn at a time until you're getting enough material to flow on the test panel.
2. Adjust the fan up or down to control the width.
3. Readjust the flow control to make a wet coat that doesn't sag.
4. Adjust the pressure at the gun to control overspray.
5. Readjust the flow control.

Thanks a lot, guys, your suggestions are really helpful. :smile:

It looks like weather here might permit spraying over
the weekend, so I'll try thinning the lacquer a bit
more and adjusting the gun some more.

I sprayed what may be the last coats today. If weather is good
tomorrow I'll try to spray a few coats then.

I thinned the lacquer a bit more, but less than 50%, and it definitely
flowed better. I didn't experiment too much with the gun since
it has been spraying pretty well, and time is short for spraying.

After the last coats it is smooth enough that I could almost skip
final sanding and go straight to buffing.

https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-8aePozu0eTQ/TqOisUIKY1I/AAAAAAAACrg/HC9LGqKAmfQ/s800/IMG_8458.JPG

https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-wYaTXNccwbI/TqOivfRJ8YI/AAAAAAAACro/a4EPrUQy2Mg/s800/IMG_8457.JPG

https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-fCzsR5MmAtM/TqOi00Imc3I/AAAAAAAACrw/01Fd5Ih-SWU/s800/IMG_8455.JPG

You get a pretty good view of the street in the last shot.

I'm anxious to put this baby together but am telling myself
not to rush the last finishing steps!

It is looking great!!

Thanks, Mojo. Put a couple more coats on today, and in a
couple of weeks we'll see if I put enough finish on.

Almost done wet-sanding the finish:

https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-8zP6eCnXhcM/T02n9zBE-zI/AAAAAAAAE18/cvC2DW7B3e8/s800/IMG_9202.JPG

No sand-throughs! :cool:

Get ready for it... (or avert your eyes if you hate glossy finishes)

https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-vhNAEY0WL_4/T1BN_WsEjZI/AAAAAAAAE3Q/wRqn0rsWjpQ/s800/IMG_9204.JPG

https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-f17w3YH1u7o/T1BOGESrOBI/AAAAAAAAE3U/uJMa3Dy01lc/s800/IMG_9209.JPG

https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-s3ihn_YGfWc/T1BOKIfO9LI/AAAAAAAAE2U/BXa6YwGOjd4/s800/IMG_9210.JPG

https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-gHVr1fVXFFk/T1BOeKtjDyI/AAAAAAAAE3g/KeHbkH7zmkY/s800/IMG_9220.JPG

https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-yWcQFxAxlZY/T1BORXoeA7I/AAAAAAAAE2k/fvgStlA5w7Q/s800/IMG_9215.JPG

https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-E_u8yWwZ6m4/T1BOZf4qBoI/AAAAAAAAE3Y/321AkDmW6gg/s800/IMG_9217.JPG

Sad to think it's all downhill from here for this finish! :neutral:

This is absolutely BEAUTIFUL!!!!
Congrats!

This thread and Greg V's clip are the two ingredients that drove me to buy two electrajets hehehe. Awesome looking body!! Have a neck for it yet?

No risk of my eyes being averted. Fantastic wood and finish.

Wow , looks great Glenn , what is your buffing method and what compounds/polish did you use ?

This is absolutely BEAUTIFUL!!!!
Congrats!

Thanks, and nice to see you around.

This thread and Greg V's clip are the two ingredients that drove me to buy two electrajets hehehe. Awesome looking body!! Have a neck for it yet?

Two Electrajets! Nice. I have a two piece maple/pau ferro neck that
I'm planning to use for this. The build of the neck can be found here (http://www.tdpri.com/forum/tele-home-depot/234948-basswood-veneer-build-5.html#post3323453).

No risk of my eyes being averted. Fantastic wood and finish.

Thanks. I'm happy with the kerlian burl veneer. I'm a little
surprised we don't see veneer used more around here, as it
allows you to use beautiful and unusual woods without spending
much. I paid something like $40 for a sampling of veneers
enough for maybe 10 guitars.

Wow , looks great Glenn , what is your buffing method and what compounds/polish did you use ?

Thanks, Herb. I should have said something about the process.
I wet sanded with 400/600/800/1000/1200/1500/2000 per
Reranch 101, using water with a couple of drops of detergent.
I did fight clogging of the paper sometimes. In the past I've
used mineral spirits, but don't like the smell.

Then I used 3M Finesse It II on a cheapo Turtle Wax buffer.
Exactly like in the basswood tele I finished a couple of weeks
ago, this left the finish glossy but with some noticeable scratches.
I then tried 3M Rubbing Compound with the buffer but scratches
still remained, so finallly I applied the rubbing compound by hand
and the scratches came out pretty easily.

The 3M rubbing compound left the finish super glossy. Afterward
I applied Finesse It II by hand but you could barely see a
difference.

I'm not sure why I have scratches after buffing. I tried to be
very careful in being thorough with each grit when sanding.
Maybe I wasn't careful enough about keeping the paper clog-free?
The other thought is that I'm not buffing with enough pressure,
or for long enough. Funny that the rubbing compound quite
quickly removes the scratches when I apply it by hand.

The Turtle Wax buffer could also be the problem. I got it on
a recommendation, but I notice the person who recommended
it has switched to something else. :razz:

Looking beautiful!!! Great look and great finish!

Well done.

Mark

Gorgeous, that is a stunning finish and a great looking guitar.

That's looking very nice, flatfive :) Would you mind if I posted a pic of my build in this thread?

Cue wild applause. :mrgreen:

Mark, hockeygoon, H_E_Boy, and Maricopa -- thanks. H_E_Boy,
feel free to post a pic of your build here.

Moving to the neck; all it needs is finish and fret leveling. Here's a
pic after the frets were installed:

https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-iCOEdrqi3YU/TpOJTrNmMxI/AAAAAAAAD0I/oXsyKSH3IH0/s800/IMG_8393.JPG

(It's a pau ferro fingerboard on maple. Details of the neck build are in this thread (http://www.tdpri.com/forum/tele-home-depot/234948-basswood-veneer-build-5.html#post3323453).)

Think I'll use Tru-Oil again. Too cold here for lacquer, and I do
love the feel of a Tru-Oiled neck.

That neck's looking good too, flatfive!

Here's where my ElectraJet style build is currently:

http://i824.photobucket.com/albums/zz165/HowardND/ElectraBird/812ef33d.jpg

http://i824.photobucket.com/albums/zz165/HowardND/ElectraBird/7c0668f5.jpg

This is a one-piece Swamp Ash body. I'm going to put three mini humbuckers in there. The neck is a custom build from Warmoth and is a plain ebony board over mahogany with a reverse lefty Tele headstock.

It's now being filled ready for its nitro lacquer.

Wow, FF... its looking absolutely beautiful.

What a sweet finish on that body Glenn :smile:, man I wish I had that kind of patience. It's almost enough for me seeing you and Herb do it, such class :wink:. BTW, glad to see you haven't been blown off the homestead, we've dealt with that here too :shock:

This is inspiring; I'm thinking about taking a whack at an Electrajet body. How thick is yours?

This build is going on hiatus for two months, isn't it? :-(

Okay, now that the build challenge silliness is out of the way, can we see this put together? ;-)

Okay, now that the build challenge silliness is out of the way, can we see this put together? ;-)

Silly, yes, but enough to stop me from building guitars for
3 months? ... again, yes.

Anyway, I just put some coats of Tru-Oil on a maple/pau ferro
neck I built last year, and now I'm doing the fret level.

https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-IuTkqMldjzQ/UA9U7n-e0nI/AAAAAAAAGFk/eso9WMdWISE/s800/IMG_0253.JPG

That's a StewMac diamond crowning file. It has 150 and 300
grit filing surfaces and works really fast. Got it after reading
lots of positive reviews here.

Got out the router table to rout the control cavity cover, using
a 1/4" MDF template.

https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-cBrk74xNm4s/UBsuMOLnppI/AAAAAAAAGF4/K2fYeT59O7U/s800/IMG_0261.JPG

https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-qttXJWBk0-g/UBsuNUG_HEI/AAAAAAAAGGA/W9bStYIpMmk/s800/IMG_0262.JPG

I never get a fit first time. I scraped lacquer out of the control
cavity lip, and did a little sanding to the cover until it squeezed
in.

The neck has Tru-Oil on it, and I used 0000 steel wool on the back of
the neck. Spent a lot of time on the fret leveling and in getting the
edges of the frets just right. Don't want to skimp on how
the neck plays and feels!

https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-bzTdz2IcwFQ/UBsuOA_tZoI/AAAAAAAAGGI/0ssVdxrhmpk/s800/IMG_0267.JPG

Just about ready to assemble now.

https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-tpKEyXSxQvY/UBsuPGmpF_I/AAAAAAAAGGQ/NQb7jI3WtjI/s800/IMG_0268.JPG

I'd better make sure I've collected all the parts :shock: I just got some
Wilkinson black vintage tuners in the mail yesterday.

Beautiful! Beautiful!

Check the Hipshot's Classic Tuners...

137436

....
Check the Hipshot's Classic Tuners...


Those are super nice, but pricey, I expect.
I like that neck a lot, too. Is it purpleheart with
no finish? Or maybe purple-ish rosewood?

ps I just checked -- only $60 for the tuners; that's
reasonable. And they have them in black, too,
for a little more.

pps The locking version is going for $60, too. Think
I'll be getting a set of these soon.

http://www.musiciansfriend.com/accessories/hipshot-6glo-grip-lock-locking-guitar-tuning-machine-set

Oooooo, I like those tuners. Kind of new meets old.

Rob

I used those tuners in my Still Unfinished Cabronita build , they are very cool IMO , and reasonably priced.

http://i832.photobucket.com/albums/zz246/adirondak50/mahogany%20build/DSC_0006-1.jpg?t=1339348779

Those are super nice, but pricey, I expect.
I like that neck a lot, too. Is it purpleheart with
no finish? Or maybe purple-ish rosewood?

ps I just checked -- only $60 for the tuners; that's
reasonable. And they have them in black, too,
for a little more...

The Hipshot tuners are wonderful, very resonable priced I think.
I buy them from Josh from HDCustom, for only $54

http://www.ebay.com/itm/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=290702583842

The neck is Brazilian Morado Rosewood...

I used those tuners in my Still Unfinished Cabronita build , they are very cool IMO , and reasonably priced.

http://i832.photobucket.com/albums/zz246/adirondak50/mahogany%20build/DSC_0006-1.jpg?t=1339348779

Hmmm, had almost forgotten about that one Herb. I can always trust you and Glenn to have an unfinished beauty just laying around :grin:

Hmmm, had almost forgotten about that one Herb. I can always trust you and Glenn to have an unfinished beauty just laying around :grin:

Dave, thanks for livening things up here, as usual!

Herb, that neck is really gorgeous!

6stings, I ended up getting the locking versions of those
tuners for only $55 from HDCustom -- thanks for that great
tip.

Excellent choice Flat! The tuners look wonderful on Adirondak's pic.

Check the HIPSHOT hardtail bridge .125" floor too, it has 2 1/16 spacing which is perfect for the P90s. $58 I think

137574

Hmmm, had almost forgotten about that one Herb. I can always trust you and Glenn to have an unfinished beauty just laying around :grin:

Well , it seems I forgot about it too Dave :D

Dave, thanks for livening things up here, as usual!

Herb, that neck is really gorgeous!

6stings, I ended up getting the locking versions of those
tuners for only $55 from HDCustom -- thanks for that great
tip.

Those tuners will look great on that Glenn , I think I paid $50. for mine last year , not locking though , but still not a bad price . Good suggestion 6strings :)

Excellent choice Flat! The tuners look wonderful on Adirondak's pic.

Check the HIPSHOT hardtail bridge .125" floor too, it has 2 1/16 spacing which is perfect for the P90s. $58 I think

137574

Well, I'm saving those hipshot tuners for another build,
but here's a pic from last November of the bridge I'll
be using:

https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-Ac_FjQdJrnQ/TNtzL2RIvgI/AAAAAAAAA6A/tyZxSdzo34w/s800/hipshot%2520bridge.JPG

:lol:


Those tuners will look great on that Glenn , I think I paid $50. for mine last year , not locking though , but still not a bad price . Good suggestion 6strings :)

Thanks, Herb. As mentioned above, I don't plan to use
hipshot tuners on this, but maybe I should. They'd go well
with the look of this guitar, I think.

For this build the plan is black Wilkinson vintage tuners, and
I installed the bushings last night.

But I woke up this morning with a bad feeling because the
Tru-Oil finish I put on the neck isn't quite right in a couple
of spots. So this morning I knocked the bushing out,
and am in the process of fixing up the finish problems.

lookin good!

Work continues on the neck finishing, but in the meantime
I reworked the neck from my 2011 challenge tele. I haven't
been playing it much because the neck's too chunky.

I really like the feel of the necks I've built with the Bill Scheltema
jig, so I stripped the hardware off the neck and thinned it with
the jig.

Here's the neck just after routing with the jig.

https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-a9MrAyPMi3g/UB8sSA1WZSI/AAAAAAAAGIw/its1yYl1vAw/s800/IMG_0331.JPG

Headstock end; you can see a lot of material's been removed:

https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-9-U7j7JxJ68/UB8shLmM9kI/AAAAAAAAGI4/3u_Tt1PlqA8/s800/IMG_0336.JPG

Not quite as much on the heel end:

https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-dHtrdBwNNjg/UB8shZonBcI/AAAAAAAAGI8/sffGoFCUJeY/s800/IMG_0337.JPG

One final shot of after the routing. You can see it's quite
smooth before any sanding or scraping at all:

https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-glMZ-diUM20/UB8shVPSgOI/AAAAAAAAGJE/0-NuBVuyubM/s800/IMG_0338.JPG

I took a cabinet scraper to it afterward -- only took a few minutes
to get rid of the ridges that occur especially towards the fingerboard.

The router bit was a plain old 1/4" shank diameter, 1/2" cutting
diameter straight bit.

Nice! :smile:

Still on this sidetrack in which I redoing the neck from
my 2011 challenge build. :confused:

After cleaning it up and working on the transitions:

https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-1ZkObzeraqc/UCxWohiFjXI/AAAAAAAAGLo/dK0DJYFblb0/s800/IMG_0351.JPG

I'm thinking I can get away with just Tru-Oiling the
raw areas. Problem is that the neck was dyed before
it was Tru-Oiled. If I apply Tru-Oil now the revamped
areas will be too light.

So I masked off the finished parts and sprayed some
Transtint Honey Amber that was highly diluted in
denatured alcohol (about 4 drops to 3 oz. DNA).
You spray it on super light; just about dry.

Here's after the first coat of Tru-Oil -- the color match
is pretty good.

https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-LOzZrHCX-iw/UCxW_GvMQvI/AAAAAAAAGLY/BY7bq_dXwWo/s800/IMG_0360.JPG

https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-rs5tQwdrvbc/UCxXJ4322BI/AAAAAAAAGLg/34RDkfARhOA/s800/IMG_0364.JPG

Heck Glenn, I'm redoing a fretboard of one I built 25 yrs ago, and not because it's worn out :lol:, just got tired of flat/no radius. Your fine :grin:

I like the jig!

Trying to get this and other projects finished up
by spring!

When I drilled the screw holes for the control cavity,
I hit the edge of the cavity and had to make a repair.
Couldn't figure out exactly how to make a clean repair,
then realized I could glue in a plug.

https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-k8grSDXV5DE/UPNbVnPFkKI/AAAAAAAAG64/dw45vxiuD8k/s640/IMG_0992.JPG

I had no idea on how to mount the P-90 pickups. This
video by Jason Lollar helped a lot:

3Jm-BR_FSsk

https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-mO9PzAB_pQs/UPNoos_m29I/AAAAAAAAG8E/23kcryfX5f8/s640/IMG_0995.JPG

My pickup cavities were 3/4" deep, just barely deep enough,
so I used some light foam beneath the pickups; not dense stuff.

https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-c-dfSdfhnPs/UPNbg7Z1_7I/AAAAAAAAG7A/E5dCSgESIr8/s640/IMG_0997.JPG

https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-XTVGL27fcw4/UPNbiSHojOI/AAAAAAAAG7I/stJSh_vTwRY/s640/IMG_0998.JPG

For the switch tip I did something I saw on a Ron Kirn build.
You sand and then polish the tip to remove any mold marks.

https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-17hJLEKKRv0/UPNbmUjs1cI/AAAAAAAAG7Q/25tvrhANmSc/s640/IMG_1001.JPG

Before and after:

https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-wV2oaVVLaxY/UPNbsZlYJ2I/AAAAAAAAG8Y/Ej1jzB9z_6U/s640/IMG_1003.JPG

Realized I forgot the hole for the bridge grounding wire.
My long drill bit is a large 1/4" diameter, so I drilled a
1/8" bit hole the top:

https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-9Wa9w0TqjvY/UPNbuB35rTI/AAAAAAAAG7g/K6FVfC2DOB4/s640/IMG_1009.JPG

which connected (miraculously) to a 1/4" hole from inside
the control cavity:

https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-GlyFUqgM17E/UPNbyzlDISI/AAAAAAAAG7o/AkoQhRWJVFk/s640/IMG_1010.JPG

Also, sanded the bottom of the bridge a little for a good
electrical connection.

It'll be a few days wait for further progress -- realized I didn't
have the pots and knobs I need.

I really like that veneer!

It'll be a few days wait for further progress -- realized I didn't have the pots and knobs I need.

:shock:

That's a really beautiful guitar, Glenn! I really like the black plastics with that veneer.

That screw repair in the control pocket is exquisite. Looks like an intentional high-quality detail.
Beautiful guitar. Bet those P-90's will sound awesome in there.

You know, I keep forgetting you haven't finished this. Marty still has an open membership drive in the IGPA (Incomplete Guitar Projects of America). I was proud member #2 :grin:

I really like that veneer!

Thanks, Glen.

That's a really beautiful guitar, Glenn! I really like the black plastics with that veneer.

Thanks. When I saw yours, it made me wonder whether a figured
veneer is the right choice for this kind of guitar. Maybe solid colors
are better for these, especially "kustom kar" colors.

That screw repair in the control pocket is exquisite...

Thanks, man. At first I was going to use a dowel, then I remembered
I recently got a 1/4" plug cutter, so that plug was made out of the
same piece of alder as the body, with grain running in the same
direction.

You know, I keep forgetting you haven't finished this. Marty still has an open membership drive in the IGPA (Incomplete Guitar Projects of America). I was proud member #2 :grin:

Congratulations on getting accepted as a member. :razz:
For me it's:

1. the electrajet
2. my 2011 challenge build was sprayed with laquer this fall
(originally shellac). Needs final sanding and buffing and re-assembly.
3. the melody maker still needs a burst
4. the mule needs string guides on the headstock and a burst :lol::lol:

Here we go. :grin:

Wow, Glenn, that's just impeccable. :shock:

What a beautiful guitar.

Looks terrific!

Thanks for the nice feedback, guys.

This is just about wrapped up. I made the nut and
just finished the wiring.

Being a P-90 greenhorn, I wasn't sure how to ground
the braided wire. This video helped:

ml0zHsIaMEY

Jeez, he's slicker than snot on a glass doorknob. :lol:

I used straight tele wiring:

https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-fB0isg5jOv4/UP4M_ROMh_I/AAAAAAAAG8k/FscInBImh1U/s800/IMG_1014.JPG

You can see the solder on the pots doesn't look great.
For some reason it was hard to get the solder to
flow onto these CTS pots I got from Warmoth. (Also,
what's with the openings on the backs of the pots?)

Plugged in and... BUZZZZZ. :shock: Monkeyed around
with a volt-ohm meter and found non-infinite DC resistance
between the hot and ground pickup leads.

Figured that was the problem -- then (just now) I
remembered that between the hot and ground leads
is one long piece of wire. Doh! :oops:

Guess it's more VOM monkeying-around tomorrow.

Figured that was the problem -- then (just now) I
remembered that between the hot and ground leads
is one long piece of wire. Doh! :oops:



I HATE it when that happens :razz:

You're wiring looks exceptionally clean, Glenn, especially compared to mine hehe. I had an electronics engineering friend take a look at one of my wiring jobs once and warned him ahead of time that it looked like a blind monkey did it. He opened it up and just chuckled and something to the effect of, "Blind monkey". :razz:

I soldered my braided cable by screwing up :rolleyes:. I actually cut it back so I could get enough lead and ground wire to go to the different locations. That's when one of my many friends here told me that I needed to solder the braided cable, so I soldered on a piece of regular wire then soldered that to ground. It actually worked out really well... much to my surprise.

It actually worked out really well... much to my surprise.

It shouldn't..............your gettin' pretty good ole son :wink:

Beautiful build!

:cool:

I love it. Beautiful work!

I wish the big name guitar makers take care of every detail, like you do!
Perfect!

Thanks, guys.

I just figured out the electrical problem. :smile:

Working with a multi-meter I saw that the hot pickup wires
connected properly to the output jack in all the switch
settings.

But the ground pickup wires didn't connect to the output
jack. What's wrong with this picture?

https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-P_vZmOL9-5k/UP9X-iWisPI/AAAAAAAAG84/2_Bj2sc24cw/s800/duncan-tele-wiring.gif

Then it hit me: the two pots are connected in a
tele through the control plate, and this guitar doesn't
have one.

Using an alligator clip I connected the backs of the
two pots and bingo!

Glad to have that sorted out, but I feel slow for not catching that
right away.

Good catch. And now I'll be patting myself on the back for reading this. I'll have this stored in the memory banks, and there will come a time probably many years down the road when someone will have this problem, and I'll be able to look like the smart one :mrgreen:

Hmmm, never thought that working on semi-hollows as long as I did would pay such unintended good fortune. I've gotten so used to daisy chaining pots together it never occurred to me that I was dodging a bullet :wink:

Moving just one wire will give you the 'Fezz Parka/Ted Greene/'50s' mod. I would recommend to try it, it gives more treble in lower volume settings.

162744

Wow, Glenn!!! This is looking fantastic!!! Can't wait to see it all finished up. You're definitely inspiring me to wrap up some of my languishing builds this spring.

Great work, my friend!

Peace,
Mark

Moving just one wire will give you the 'Fezz Parka/Ted Greene/'50s' mod. I would recommend to try it, it gives more treble in lower volume settings.


Thanks 6stings! I will probably try this.

Wow, Glenn!!! This is looking fantastic!!! Can't wait to see it all finished up. You're definitely inspiring me to wrap up some of my languishing builds this spring.

Mark, always so kind. Your work is one of my main inspirations
inside and outside TDPRI. :smile:

Well, it's all finished. Here's a quite rundown of the specs:

- alder body
- maple neck w/ pau ferro fingerboard, MOP dots
- black corian nut
- kerlian burl veneer on the front
- black abs binding
- Hipshot bridge
- Tonerider Vintage 90 pickups
- CTS 500K pots
- NOS Fender 3-way switch
- nitro lacquer finish on the body, Tru-Oil on the neck

Materials weren't expensive. I think the alder
was about $22, the veneer was $5 or so, the
maple and pau ferro were less than $20 total.
I think the pickups were $80 and the bridge
was $60.

Here's the glamour shots. The best I could do
on a day with not a lot of light.

https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-sYaFC2WNlLI/UQ2dmKQ3A4I/AAAAAAAAHAY/dbk0_zoR6QQ/s640/IMG_1040.JPG

https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-7hKOsXDHW-E/UQ2dn4FV-oI/AAAAAAAAHAg/IqaaSo4oUfU/s640/IMG_1043.JPG

https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-gPP2gPgy_qc/UQ2duBphTHI/AAAAAAAAHCU/jCMH4bTPd-I/s640/IMG_1073.JPG

https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-ysCagofyOuU/UQ2dvDD5TOI/AAAAAAAAHBI/eMvINnP0M_k/s640/IMG_1074.JPG

https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-e91BRjyvSSc/UQ2dsKgUnFI/AAAAAAAAHA4/ClXAZt_apdE/s640/IMG_1048.JPG

https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-1pNeEDUFi0o/UQ2dwOo_OEI/AAAAAAAAHBQ/2e6wL4gVQNM/s640/IMG_1077.JPG

https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-SI6vQMzRIn8/UQ2dp8go4WI/AAAAAAAAHAo/TL6u06GJQXE/s640/IMG_1070.JPG

https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/--qEpLhCfPG0/UQ2dqvMj4GI/AAAAAAAAHAw/pjI9gqjGms4/s640/IMG_1068.JPG

https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-8VsBdhsE8OE/UQ2dynsBgyI/AAAAAAAAHBY/gPvjTa24ADs/s640/IMG_1124.JPG

https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/--LfqSa5Knic/UQ2d1nu9r2I/AAAAAAAAHBo/A6TCIDfocdI/s640/IMG_1104.JPG

https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-qvJsTDz6jZQ/UQ2d5IJPOWI/AAAAAAAAHBw/Dja7SFNNNnM/s640/IMG_1087.JPG

https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-xRbQNCxNuoE/UQ2d6Cu-qnI/AAAAAAAAHB4/W2V_yK1yz3s/s800/IMG_1134.JPG

https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-jnhmecpx_zA/UQ2eBv2RicI/AAAAAAAAHCI/lOnEbSWP9u8/s640/IMG_1108.JPG

https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-7Yh7rgdpR-o/UQ2eACElcJI/AAAAAAAAHCA/8Iuhp16nnJM/s640/IMG_1101.JPG

It's a nice weight and I like the pickups.

In springtime I'll slap the flatfive logo on the headstock and
spray lacquer over it.

Thanks to all for the help and encouragement!

Thats awesome. Its strange, i would never have envisioned that guitar the way you did, but i love it. The finish looks killer. Amazing job man, congrats!

"If you want rules, read the IRS tax code. If you want to build guitars, make some sawdust." -Colt W. Knight

That's really a really sweet, and meticulous build. Didn't think I'd like it as much as I do, particularly as I generally have an aversion to black hardware, but that's just really elegant. Well done. Cheers

I love black hardware. Stunning.

Glenn thats right up there , you have done yourself proud.

Proper job !!

M

That is really awesome. The black hardware looks great with the binding. So classy.

That, Glenn, is one fine instrument.................WELL done :wink:

Glenn , this guitar is just gorgeous , another fine job from flatfive guitar works :wink:

That is awesome, I love the top.

Wow Glenn, she's a beaut..:grin:


Well done!

That's an absolutely beautiful guitar.
Makes me want some black hardware real bad.

How did I miss the finish of this? Fabulous work, Glenn. All class, my friend.

Great work, Glenn. That's so unique and beautiful.

Amazing work! I really like how this came together.

It is a little funny that the tele that you built for the challenge doesn't have a tele headstock (but I really like it), but this does.

Anyway, really enjoyed following this.

May I be another to say that is really great work!

That's a stunning pair!! Great build Glenn! Amazing work, I missed the part where you did the pickup selector slot in the wood - I'll have to do that in the future.

^^^ What they all said^^^

Beautiful work there, Glenn. I really like this one and the Challenge Tele is gorgeous!!! Not sure I've seen that one completed before.

Peace,
Mark

Hi everybody. Thanks for the nice feedback. It's great being
part of this community.