Nosmo #2 - Ziricote

Hi everybody -

I had such a good time building a bass for the challenge I thought I'd try my hand at another build. I have some Hickory left over, and I really liked the way it finished. Not so much the way it machines - It is pretty hard & heavy and tends to split out some when routing. It is very pretty but fairly plane, so to spice it up a notch, I have this piece of Ziricote.

http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file.jpg

Here's another shot next to the hickory.

http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-1.jpg

For those of you that don't know what Ziricote is, it's scientific name is Cordia dodecandra and it grows mostly in Central America & Mexico. I have heard it called Mexican Walnut, but I think the true translation from Spanish is "bust out the credit card". This stuff is NOT cheap! For more info go to this link http://www.wood-database.com/lumber-identification/hardwoods/ziricote/

This build may take some time, so if you get bored, check out all the other builds by people that know what they're doing. Speaking of that, I tend to do things out of order some times. I make a lot of this up as I go and I'm trying to learn how to do this stuff more efficiently. I also get distracted easily so I may start a process, get half way through and then start something else. We'll see.

So, the plan is kind of a Hickory/Ziricote Tele body with a Hickory/Walnut/Maple laminated neck. Ziricote fingerboard. 3 a side headstock. Probably be a 47 piece body or so :roll:

Sweet! I was wondering how long it would take before I saw this thread :razz:

Sounds like it's going to be a beaut. I'm interested in the headstock design you've got in mind because I intend to to a laminate neck with 3 on a side tuners for my current build.

So - first thing to do is plane some Hickory.

http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-2.jpg

That's my brand new, shiny planer.

Here's the other side after surfacing...
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-3.jpg

It made such a nice clean surface, it was really easy to spot this split :shock:
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-4.jpg

It may go far enough to interfere with the body
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-5.jpg

We'll deal with that later - I love a challenge!


Next I ripped a couple strips for the neck
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-6.jpg
I had to be careful ripping a board with a split in it. The best way I have found is to make sure the split is at the operator end of the board when you cut it. If the split is fed into the blade first, it can come off and wedge between the blade and the piece you're cutting and cause a kickback.

Then I ripped a piece of maple on the band saw
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-7.jpg

And a couple pieces of Walnut on the table saw
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-8.jpg
Notice the zero clearance plate in the table saw. Don't want a thin piece going down the hole with the blade. I'm not sure what's down there, but it can't be good.

:grin::grin:

Sweet! I was wondering how long it would take before I saw this thread :razz:

Sounds like it's going to be a beaut. I'm interested in the headstock design you've got in mind because I intend to to a laminate neck with 3 on a side tuners for my current build.

Come on Roger - I don't even have a drawing for the headstock yet :grin:

I just know it will be 3+3 and angled. Never done either thing. I'd call it a snakehead, but I might get that wrong. Is that a specific shape?

Edit: Snakeheads aren't angled are they?

After the mini bass I can't wait to see this.

Here's how I made the zero clearance plate for my saw.

First I marked it on a piece of plastic
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-9.jpg
That's an old 'Bag Butler'. Remember those things? you fold it out, stand it up and put a trash bag in it. Or you can lay it down and rake leaves into the bag. I think they were made out of recycled batteries or something.

Use a little BS (which I have in abundance) to cut it out
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-10.jpg

Sand to fit
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-11.jpg

Cut the slot
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-12.jpg
I lowered the blade, clamped a couple boards over it, turned on the saw and raised the blade.

They will be on sale for $19.95 soon :wink:

That Ziricote has beautiful grain!

I saw Colt use a zero plate in one of his threads. I used to use one when ripping thin stock but never knew what it was called. Then within a day I saw another guy using one to make string inlay strips on youtube. Small world eh?

In this thread I'm going to try to give credit to the proper people whose ideas I stol....um, researched. We'll just have to see how that goes.

That Ziricote has beautiful grain!

Yeah - I saw that piece when I was buying wood for the challenge and I had to have it. I've been afraid to cut it for the last 3 months :oops:

Now I have some Maple roughly 3/8" and some Walnut right around 1/4". I say roughly because I eye-balled it on the BS. The Walnut is pretty close, but I want to plane it flat.

I think I read somewhere in the instructions that you shouldn't plane anything less than 3/8" - or maybe 5/16". I hope they said that so you wouldn't hit the bed with the blades and not because the wood would self-destruct. Lets see :twisted:

Well, OK, just to be safe I put a sacrificial bed in the planner.
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-13.jpg

And ran the Maple down to 3/8" and the Walnut until it started to chatter. It's about 1/16" now and I still have all my fingers & eyes so I guess that worked. (ALWAYS stand to the side of your planer!!! Unless you're moving it, but you know what I mean.)
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-14.jpg

And here we have a bunch of neck parts...
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-15.jpg

that I think would look really good wearing clamps
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-16.jpg

While that's drying I figured I could resaw some fretboards.

Set up a fence like so...
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-20.jpg

and cut a 3/4 x 2 1/2 x 21 in half.
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-21.jpg

Saved a little sawdust for later. I've seen me work before so I know I'll need it.
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-22.jpg
That's probably 5 bucks worth of powdered Ziricote :smile: That's also before I learned to spell 'Ziricote'. I sure hope that doesn't confuse me later.

And here they are
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-23.jpg

HICKORY!!! :shock::shock:

I have a bunch of nice looking slabs of hickory. I tried to cut it once and it fought back...with a vengeance, so I still have a bunch of nice looking slabs of hickory :mrgreen:.

I love the way it looks, it's sorta plain but it's plain in a good way I think.

Awesome to see a new build from you, looking forward to it. How's that planer by the way? I was sorta holding out for the $600 Dewalt one but that ridgid has tempted me more than once. Should I quit holding out and get the ridgid?

One more thing. What's the purpose of this zero clearance plate? Is it to keep the blade from flexing side to side?

The zero clearance plate prevents thin pieces from falling down alongside the blade and it also helps to eliminate tearout because the wood fibers are supported all the way up to the blade.

HICKORY!!! :shock::shock:

I have a bunch of nice looking slabs of hickory. I tried to cut it once and it fought back...with a vengeance, so I still have a bunch of nice looking slabs of hickory :mrgreen:.

I love the way it looks, it's sorta plain but it's plain in a good way I think.

Awesome to see a new build from you, looking forward to it. How's that planer by the way? I was sorta holding out for the $600 Dewalt one but that ridgid has tempted me more than once. Should I quit holding out and get the ridgid?

Hickory is a pain! No doubt. It does not like the router. It's hard. It's heavy. It's dry. It's what I have and I do like the way it looks. I'm hoping (if I don't screw it up) it will set off the grain in the Ziricote.

I looked at planers a little and compared them some. The Ridgid is 13" and that's good. It's supposed to have a lifetime guarantee, but we'll have to see about that. The blades are reversible and fairly cheap to replace. It works pretty well so far. Edit: By the way, it's the newer model HD still had the older mod on display. This mod (R4331) has the depth adjustment on top and a drum lock that should make it easier to change blades - or so they say.

One more thing. What's the purpose of this zero clearance plate? Is it to keep the blade from flexing side to side?

The zero clearance plate prevents thin pieces from falling down alongside the blade and it also helps to eliminate tearout because the wood fibers are supported all the way up to the blade.

What he said :grin:

I took the laminated neck blank out of the clamps and cleaned it up. Knocked off most of the glue with a chisel and ran it through the planer. The blank was long enough to make a neck through, which was my original plan, but then I realized I don't know how to make a neck through. Well, I guess I could figure it out, but I'm already getting confused thinking about the 2 builds after this one. Did I mention I am easily distracted?

Anywho....I chopped the blank into a neck & a body part. Wow, that sounds bad. Like I'm making fried chicken. Or I'm a serial killer :shock:
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-17.jpg

Now, for the most part it's pretty straight. I must have used the same technique I used for the bass neck 'cause this one has a little twist too. Well, I'm not going to lap it like I did the bass. I have a new planer :grin:

I put a few layers of tape on the bottom to level it out....
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-18.jpg

and marked the top to make sure the extra came off in the right places.
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-19.jpg

It did but I didn't get any pictures. I just took off a tiny bit at a time until one side was flat, then turned it over, removed the tape and flattened the other side.

I cut a slice of Ziricote about 1" (thicker than the neck blank) and resawed it into 2 pieces 1" x 3/8" on the band saw. This is a shot of squaring it up on the table saw.
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-25.jpg
The feather board is to keep it from kicking back. I used 2 push sticks 'cause I'd rather cut them than my fingers.

So here we are with a bunch of body parts. I mean wood parts for the body.
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-26.jpg

Here's the center block glued up
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-27.jpg

I had to do some calculat'n before I glued on the dark edges. I want the laminations to be centered and I need to have the laminated block and the piece of Ziricote the same width. I also need to make sure the center blocks are wide enough with the wings to get a body, but I don't want the center blocks too wide.

When it came out of the clamps it looked like this
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-29.jpg
So now I'm rethinking my 'cut it big and sand it to fit' theory. I mean a little over is good but jeez!

Not a big deal - mounted a bottom bearing bit in the router and flushed it.
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-30.jpg
Caution! - The bit was adjusted lower than that before I trimmed the piece.


I think it came out just over 3 1/2" wide. I set the fence on the table saw and took off 1/32 from one edge. Adjusted the fence another 1/32" and squared the other side. Then, with the fence still set in the same place, I ripped the Ziricote.

And ended up with this
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-32.jpg

Sometimes I think it takes longer to type this stuff than it does to make a guitar!

Looking very good so far.

Thanks Glen, I still have plenty of time to mess it up :lol:

That's gonna be slick! Good job nos.

Thanks Bow - I hope it turns out.



Here's a little something for Roger:

http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-44.jpg

Not sure yet. Thinking about a PRS, Ovation, Ibanez, Gibson kind of blend. Waiting for the tuners to make sure they fit before I get too crazy.

:grin:

Hey, nobody told me it was "build time".

Glad to see this one coming. So, are you going to scarf the neck for the headstock angle?

Hey Eric - It's always build time :grin: I guess I will scarf the joint. I thought about a twisted dovetail, but my head started to hurt thinking about how to do it. Devo Stevo had a nice jig he used to make the angled surfaces flat in his challenge build. I think I'm going to make a jig like his that will be adjustable for different HS angles.

Now that I have all the parts for the body I can lay out the general shape on the wings.

http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-33.jpg
The laminated block will end up on the back of the guitar, but I wanted to use the stripes to find the center so I just swapped it with the Ziricote. I can tell already it's going to be hard to mark Ziricote. The pencil marks just disappear in the grain.

With the shape marked on each wing, I made some reference marks
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-34.jpg

Set up the fence on the BS and cut 1/4" off the top & bottom of each wing
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-35.jpg
I am really proud of my little band saw! That Hickory is HARD. It took a slow, steady feed to resaw 5" thick slabs. But the little fella pulled through just fine with the help of a Timber Wolf 1/2" blade.

Now each wing is 3 pieces
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-36.jpg

When I marked the shape on the tops I made some reference marks on the template. Now I use those marks to lay out the cores of the wings
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-37.jpg
Yeah....don't panic. That is the template I used for the bass. I haven't made a template for this build yet. I told you I do things out of order. The outside shape is the same (except for the neck pocket area) so this should be fine.

OK - they're all laid out and you're probably wondering what the heck I'm doing. Me too :grin:
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-38.jpg

Next step is to set a compass to 3/4" and mark another line inside the body shape on the cores
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-39.jpg

http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-40.jpg

A little more BS (with a 1/4" blade)
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-41.jpg

And now I have two chambered sides
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-42.jpg

http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-43.jpg


:grin::grin::grin:

Very ingenious!

I dunno about that sig line though... I think a 1911 is a more apt analogy.

Cheers!

Very ingenious!

I dunno about that sig line though... I think a 1911 is a more apt analogy.

Cheers!

But a 1911 is pretty :grin:

Thanks Bow - I hope it turns out.



Here's a little something for Roger:

http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-44.jpg

Not sure yet. Thinking about a PRS, Ovation, Ibanez, Gibson kind of blend. Waiting for the tuners to make sure they fit before I get too crazy.

:grin:

Of these 2, I like the one on the left better. Headstock designs are the hardest part of building lol.

But a 1911 is pretty :grin:

Well... okay... I kinda have grown to think teles are too.
How about a J-frame then? :razz:

Roger - I like the one on the left too. I designed that one for the bass and then chickened out and made a Tele type.

Anyone - I have grown to like Tele's. I always thought solid color Teles were kind of plane, but there are hundreds of them on this forum that are gorgeous.

I would say I've never seen an ugly gun - but that would probably be a lie :wink:



I like AK's too! :grin::grin::grin:

This one is pretty ugly


http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/file-19.jpg

This one is pretty ugly


http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/file-19.jpg

Ouch!
Someone fell asleep at the reloading press... or perhaps over-estimated their ability to train the cat to do it...

At any rate, I still think your build is more like a tricked out 1911:lol:

Damn cats!

Didn't do much today. Went to a friend's house to try some beer he brewed. Went bowling and tried some beer someone else brewed, I think Shiner, Budweiser and probably Miller.

I did go by the post office and it was like Christmas. Got some new router bits and some Bill Lawrence pickups.

http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/file-20.jpg

Micro-coils & Keystone Deluxe. Guess I have to build at least one more guitar :grin:

Tomorrow I'm supposed to get some truss rods and a bunch of stuff from StewMac.

I hope that box has the P-90 kits. I guess I have to build at least two more guitars :grin::grin:

At least 2 more guitars? Poor you!

I guess I have to build at least two more guitars :grin::grin:

OR you could build a double neck tele. Then again, the more guitars you make, the more fun you have.

At least 2 more guitars? Poor you!

Oh I'm not complaining :grin:


OR you could build a double neck tele. Then again, the more guitars you make, the more fun you have.

A double neck is kind of out of my league playing-wise, but you never know. I'm planning to have a lot of fun. I'm gonna have to buy strings by the case!

My best buddy Mike inspired me to build this one when he came over one day and told me about a dream he had with a guitar in it. The guitar had wide binding and an inlaid, fake F-hole. I thought 'Hey, I have this awesome piece of Ziricote, and it's not really big enough to make a full top.......' So here I am.

Of course I modified his dream some, and it's still evolving, but I definitely want to bind the top & bottom. Problem is, I'm not sure I have enough Z and I would have to take out a loan to get more :shock:

After cutting out 2 fingerboards and the center block for the body, this is all I have left (the piece on the right)
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-47.jpg

So.....time to do a little calculat'n. I want the binding to be 1/2" or so wide and 1/2" or so deep. The Ziricote is 3/4" thick.

I cut a bunch of paper strips 3/4" wide and laid them out on the drawing
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-45.jpg

Taped them together and marked the angles where they will join together
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-46.jpg

I added up all the lengths and came up with about 63" for each side (top & bottom). If I rip the Z to 1/2" strips on the BS (table saw would take too much with the kerf) I should get 5 strips 14" and 4 strips 17". That's 70" + 68". That should do it if I don't waste too much. Problem is, I won't have enough to do anything about the F-hole or control plate. Hmmmm............

That sure is a nice chunk of Z in the middle of the body. And when the guitar is finished, you are only going to see the top & ends. Hmmmm..........

OK, here we go. Hold your breath. Close your eyes. Set up the BS to resaw.
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-48.jpg
(That's my paper trick to set the blocks)

Cut the Z center block kind of in half
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-49.jpg

Cut some Maple
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-50.jpg

Now I laid the pieces on the drawing to figure out where I should cut it, marked the pieces, and cut them
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-51.jpg

Ripped the Maple to the same width as the Z
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-52.jpg

As long as the BS was set up, I cut the 1/2" strips
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-53.jpg

http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-54.jpg

Guess I'm committed now - or should be :lol:

Here it is with a piece I hope I can get a control plate & and F-hole out of.
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-55.jpg

When it's all done, nobody will know. As long as the three of you watching don't tell!


:cool::cool:

Sneaky, I like that.

Nosmo-Love the build and that you are using Hickory. I happen to have access to approx 1000BF of spalted Hickory. Damn it's hard though. I did some resawing on it and came up with a very unique fretboard on an earlier build.
Do you know the story on that S&W 629 you posted the pic of? That was the result of cheap Chineese ammo, not a reload.

Hey, I like that Spalted Hickory!

Nosmo, I'm looking forward to seeing this binding idea of yours. Don't worry though,
I've only told a couple hundred people on Facebook and Twitter...and then they'll tell
200 friends, and they will tell 200 friends and so on and so forth............no pressure though.

Sneaky, I like that.

Shhhhhh....


Nosmo-Love the build and that you are using Hickory. I happen to have access to approx 1000BF of spalted Hickory. Damn it's hard though. I did some resawing on it and came up with a very unique fretboard on an earlier build.
Do you know the story on that S&W 629 you posted the pic of? That was the result of cheap Chineese ammo, not a reload.

That fretboard is really pretty! 1000 BF ?? :shock: What do you think shipping would be to Texas? :lol: I used Hickory on my bass and learned it's not too bad until you get it anywhere near the router. Of course that could be my fault. If you can beat it into submission, it looks good finished. (Probably not as good as that spalted) I got that gun pic off the net. No idea what the story was. Kind of figured it was ammo.


Hey, I like that Spalted Hickory!

Nosmo, I'm looking forward to seeing this binding idea of yours. Don't worry though,
I've only told a couple hundred people on Facebook and Twitter...and then they'll tell
200 friends, and they will tell 200 friends and so on and so forth............no pressure though.

I knew I could count on you to keep it quiet :roll: Glen, you can just ignore my remarks above. I've never seen wide binding like that, but I'm sure it's been done. I think it will look a lot like the back of the bass with the colors reversed.

http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Bass%20Build/file-2326.jpg

Of course the binding won't be quite that wide though, and I should end up with a light stripe around the sides. And the roundover will be smaller......I guess it might not look a lot like the bass. :oops:

I love going to the Post Office!

I got my tuners today. I also got some binding & hardware and 2 P-90 kits for the next, or next next build.

My niece sent me a Pick Punch. It's pretty cool, now I can make my own picks. Kind of wish she had sent me a string punch but wachagonnado?

Made a few out of an old NRA card
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/file-22.jpg

Really looking forward to the pizza picks :lol:

Original plan called for a fake F-hole. Or at least an inlaid one. Now that the body is chambered, I don't see why I can't have a real one. But it has to have some Ziricote.

So I drew one out, transferred it to some 1/4" MDF, cut it out with a coping saw and did my best to sand the edges square
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-58.jpg

Turned out OK, not great, but OK
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-59.jpg
Please notice the solid Ziricote sanding appliance. If S/M was selling those they'd be $47.50.

Then I made another template for the inside
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-60.jpg
It took me about half a day to get it to fit. If I didn't own the cheapest bushing set and the most inaccurate router in the world, I guess I could have cut an exact matching pair. Oh well....

Here's most of the parts ready for a test.
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-63.jpg
I glued a handle on the inside template to keep my fingers away from the router. Attached the Walnut blank to it with double sided tape. That's a first for me and it worked pretty well. It's fiberglass carpet tape. Was kind of hard to separate the two pieces after routing. I cut the hole in a piece of Maple & the insert is Walnut.

Smack it in place and slather it with glue so it'll look like it fits better than it really does.
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-64.jpg

And sand it level
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-65.jpg

That's as far as the original plan went. But now I'm thinking I should make a real F-hole. I've seen people bind the inside of them before and I think that looks great. I want to have some Ziricote on that side to balance out the control cover. I thought this might happen so I've been thinking about how to do it. Really should be simple.

Set up the most inaccurate router you can find with the cheapest bushing set and let it fly.

Here, I put a 1/8" bit in a 1/4" bushing
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-66.jpg
That should leave me a 1/16" 'binding" inside the F-hole.

Attached the template to the inlaid piece
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-67.jpg
You probably want to be kind of accurate here :roll:

.....and this is why
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-68.jpg
S'alright, it showed me what I wanted to see. I don't think I like 1/16". I want it a little bigger. One of the advantages of having the cheapest bushing set known to man is, you don't get a lot of choices. As a matter of fact, the only other bushing that will fit is 7/16". So that will what, give me an extra 1/32"? Maybe I'm just too picky, but let's try it.

Gratuitous out of focus picture to follow..
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-69.jpg

I attached the template to the maple and drew where the edge of the darker wood should be. If I had started with this set up, I could have taken more off if I didn't like it. Since I can't figure out how to add wood I thought I'd just do it this way.

And it came out something like this (excuse my toe :oops:)
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-70.jpg

And in the south - that's what we call mo bedda! (I think he used to be a blues player :cool:)

Of course I haven't actually touched the guitar in a couple days because I was messing around with this. It sure is nice not to have a deadline. All most all of my mistakes are from trying to go too fast!


:grin: :grin: :grin:

wow i'm liking this thread.

Please notice the solid Ziricote sanding appliance. If S/M was selling those they'd be $47.50.

And the sandpaper wouldn't be included.

wow i'm liking this thread.

Thanks

And the sandpaper wouldn't be included.

:lol:

After all that routing, I unplugged it and started to change the bit. Kind of heard something rattling around inside. Took it apart and found a little surprise inside.

http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-56.jpg

I have no idea where that screw came from, or how long it's been in there. A friend of mine gave me this router when I started building my challenge guitar. So I've been using it by hand & upside down in a table for 3 months.

Sure am glad it didn't blow up & throw parts all over the shop :shock:

Maybe it'll work better now - it sure seems to run smoother :grin:

Sanded the inside of the body a little.

http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-57.jpg

http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-72.jpg

http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-73.jpg

Don't know why. Nobody will ever see it, unless they get real close and look through the F-hole.

Speaking of which.....I still haven't made a body template yet, so I had to lay out the control rout & the F-hole from the drawing. I need to cut them out before I glue up the body.

http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-74.jpg

http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-75.jpg

Then I mounted my F-hole template to the top section of the bass side and hogged it out with forstner bits on the drill press.
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-76.jpg
I cleaned it up some with a chisel, then routed it out.

Used the other part of the template and cut out a bit of Ziricote. Here it is glued into the top.
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-77.jpg

Used the same method I tested yesterday. Here's the finished hole.
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-78.jpg

I cut out the control hole too. Then I made a template to recess the plate.
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-80.jpg
Looks like that will work fine.

This is the recess cut in the top.
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-81.jpg
That would work great if I was using a regular control plate, but I'm not. Actually it's a little deep for a regular plate.

So here's the top almost ready for assembly.
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-83.jpg
You can see the Ziricote control plate is pretty thick. I'm going to rabbet the back so it sits flush with the top. It will still be thick, so I'll have to recess the pots and switch from the back.

That's about all I did today - Time for pizza & beer :grin:

Oh, by the way, that's not a blue racing stripe. Just a little anti-idiot tape to mark the center of the body. Pencil marks are hard to see on Ziricote.

I'm really liking this so far!

I'm really liking this so far!

Thank you.

nice job. the f hole and the control plate balance each other out really well.

That is a great way to 'bind' the inside of the F hole. I would never have thought of that, and it looks so clean. I will continue to follow this thread.

nice job. the f hole and the control plate balance each other out really well.

Thanks - that was the plan, we'll have to see how it works out

That is a great way to 'bind' the inside of the F hole. I would never have thought of that, and it looks so clean. I will continue to follow this thread.

I've seen guys on here bind the inside of F-holes, and it looks like it's pretty frustrating. It does look good when it's done though. If I ever do it again, I'll do it this way. I suppose you could use the offset bushing to trim a putty binding in an F-hole.

Shouldn't you have made a "N" hole?

Seriously, though, looking just as great as anticipated. But, we need MORE!!!

This is fantastic! I especially like your method for creating the f-hole binding. I'm following this one closely. I know there's gonna be more stuff to be learned here. Sweet!

BTW, your Challenge build and thread are awesome.

Craig

Hey Nos, Looking good! Love the grain on the ziricote, this is gonna be sweet!

A little progress today.

I taped the drawing to the top again to mark the locations of the pickups & strings.
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-85.jpg
Made some reference marks on the top.

I put the laminated block on top this time so I could mark it.

Rolled back the drawing and marked the center block.
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-86.jpg
The crossed out areas are where I want to remove some material. I want the sound to move freely from one side to the other :roll: But really....just removing a little more weight.

This is how I set it up to rout
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-87.jpg
The pine boards are screwed down to the table. The Ziricote block is about 1/8" thinner than the laminated block. I have some 1/8" scraps of luan paneling I'll use.

Put some double sided tape down to hold the spacers. They will get cut through and I need them to stay in place for the guide bearing.
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-88.jpg

And here we are, all ready to go
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-89.jpg

I started using a 1/2" pattern bit taking about 1/16" per pass. Good thing too, because I failed to put the anti idiot tape in that middle part. The place I don't want to rout. See where I'm going with this?

Well there I was, all set up with my safety glasses & ear plugs. Jamming out to some Eagles (which I had to crank up to overcome the ear plugs). Just routing away. First pass on the first section done. Wow, this is going great. Start on the second section.....D'oh! Ended up cutting one pass about an inch or so in before my brain actually kicked in.

Now I know it's on the inside and nobody will see it, but it may be just slightly into the bridge PU area. I'll fix it later. As long as I was kicking myself and thinking about how I was going to fix it, I though 'Hey, I have a new bit that will go faster and look better', so I finished the routing with a 3/4" dish cutter.

http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-94.jpg
Still makes a flat bottom, but rounds the edges.

To repair my little slip-up, I cut a small piece of Hickory and an even smaller piece of Ziricote. Squared off the end of the rout with a chisel, and glued the pieces in.
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-90.jpg

Sanded flush it doesn't look too bad.

Here are the sound tunnels
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-91.jpg

...and again
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-92-1-1.jpg

........and yet again
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-93.jpg

Still have the racing stripe :grin:

Shouldn't you have made a "N" hole?

Seriously, though, looking just as great as anticipated. But, we need MORE!!!

Damn - I should have thought of that!

I warned you, this may take awhile. I'm going as slow as I can and I still mess up :oops:


This is fantastic! I especially like your method for creating the f-hole binding. I'm following this one closely. I know there's gonna be more stuff to be learned here. Sweet!

BTW, your Challenge build and thread are awesome.

Craig

Thank you very much. I'll teach you how to fix stuff if you make the same mistakes I do :grin:


Hey Nos, Looking good! Love the grain on the ziricote, this is gonna be sweet!

Thanks, the Ziricote machines pretty well too (so far).

Well I couldn't stand it. I was going to cut the grass, but I kept walking into the shop looking at stuff. And then I would pick something up. And the next thing you know, I've got glue all over part of the guitar!

http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-95.jpg
I guess it was TWO parts.

Spread that around with an old card
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-96.jpg

And clamped it
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-97.jpg

So tomorrow those two pieces will be one :grin::grin:

OK - so it's time to cut the grass. But......the top is almost finished :twisted:

I just need to finish the control plate.

I started by setting up a fence on the drill press to keep everything in line.
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-98.jpg
I think those are about all the bits I used.

I drilled the recess holes in the back for the pots & the switch, then I cut the slot for the switch with a jig for the Dremel.
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-99.jpg
I remembered the anti-idiot tape this time. :smile: It's marking the ends of the slot.

And it came out looking like this
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-100.jpg
The slot is a little wide, but that's the smallest bit I have for my Dremel.

Time to rabbet the back. I made a real simple jig for this. I drilled a 7/8" hole with a forstner bit in a piece of pine a little deeper than the final height of the router bit.
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-103.jpg

Screwed one end of the board to the table and used a clamp at the other end so I could adjust the width of cut.
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-104.jpg

Had to do a bit of chiseling & filing, but eventually it fit.
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-105.jpg

http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-106.jpg

I couldn't resist putting the plate together to see how it looks & if the switch would work.
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-102.jpg
The switch tip I bought is apparently for a different type of switch. :shock:

So...I stole one off my Warmoth Tele
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-107.jpg

http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-108.jpg
I'll have to get a different tip. This one is too big. I think a Strat tip would work.

And if you were wondering, this is what it will look like from inside the guitar.
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-109.jpg

Of course it will probably be a lot darker in there :lol:

Speaking of dark - it's too dark to cut the grass now. Oh well, maybe tomorrow :grin::grin:

I am liking your build method more and more, keep it coming.

Thanks Glen

Looking great! I'm still cleaning up the workshop mess from my challenge build and you're doing amazing things!

I like the control plate! beautiful work. I've always wondered how hickory would go in a guitar. Its such a cool wood. Excellent job!

Very ingenious ideas in building the guitar, very cool! Where do these ideas come from, it's your second build! :)
Talking notes for sure!

Looking great! I'm still cleaning up the workshop mess from my challenge build and you're doing amazing things!

I tried cleaning the shop. I think I swept a little. But I can't go in there without thinking about building a guitar.


I like the control plate! beautiful work. I've always wondered how hickory would go in a guitar. Its such a cool wood. Excellent job!

Thanks - The control plate would have been a lot easier if I had just made it thinner. Sometimes I do things the hard way to figure out techniques.

Hickory is a pain to work. It tries to split if you even get it close to the router. But it does look nice finished - if you can get it there.


Very ingenious ideas in building the guitar, very cool! Where do these ideas come from, it's your second build! :)
Talking notes for sure!

Ideas come mostly from not knowing the correct way to build a guitar :grin: I'm still figuring it out, but thanks.

Well, I cut my grass. Thank you very much for asking. It's really a shame too, I had a pretty nice crop of dandelions going.

Then I went to the shop. Wanted to check the clearance of the switch in the body cavity. I figured it would be tight. After cutting off the top & bottom, the overall thickness of the body is right around 1 5/8". If you don't know by now, I don't really care too much about the specs. I'm not going to stress over 1/8". It's not like I'm going to cover it with a blueprint! That's a great idea though. I could build a guitar and cover it with the print like kwerk did. Only mine would have all the dimensions crossed out and scribbled in by hand :grin: ......but I digress.

The outside is 1 5/8". The inside is 1 1/16" and the switch is recessed in the control plate , but not enough.
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-110.jpg

I saw this coming. Really.

I even thought about how to fix it. Set up the Dremel with a little burr looking cutter (tried to take a picture of it but couldn't get it in focus).
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-111.jpg
Oh look, there it is. If you squint you can almost see it.

And rout the recess for the switch a little deeper.
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-112.jpg

Now here's where I learned something. It would have been easier (and neater) if I had just routed the recess in the first place. Now if I can just remember that next time :roll:

Now I have plenty of room - at least 1/16". Well, maybe 1/32".
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-113.jpg

A little bonus too - since the switch sticks out the top a little more, I can probably use a Tele switch tip now. How lucky is that?

:grin::grin::grin:

Nosmo, that ain't luck that's skill, man! I know you were planning that recess all along!

Great looking build.

John

Looking good nosmo , looks like you caught the building bug bad :razz:


I love going to the Post Office!


I hope while you were there you shipped my bass :lol:

Thanks John



Yeah Herb, I keep meaning to send that, but darn if I can ever remember. You don't know of an antidote for that bug do you?

Thanks John



Yeah Herb, I keep meaning to send that, but darn if I can ever remember. You don't know of an antidote for that bug do you?

Yup, send it to me and tell Herb it was lost in transit.:mrgreen:

One day I may have to start giving these things away. I can already tell I'm gonna run out of room :grin:

I guess I'm almost ready to glue up the body, but I'm thinking it will happen in stages. I've already glued the backs & sides of the wings. I think the tops of the wings are just about ready. So it looks like it's time to glue up the center block.


Here's everything set up and ready.

http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-114.jpg

I've got pine & MDF pads for the top & bottom to protect the body blocks from the clamps. I've got 2 pieces of scrap for each end to help align everything and plastic to keep them from sticking. Got the clamps already set up, got my glue. Even modified my glue spreader so it will make a more even layer of glue.

http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-117.jpg

Just cut a bunch of slots with the BS. Turned it into a miniature version of the trowel my buddy uses to set tile.

The glue looked pretty cool when I 'troweled' it, but by the time I got the camera, the rows had kind of leveled out. It worked pretty well though.

http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-115.jpg

Just in case anyone forgot what clamps look like...

http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-116.jpg

The blue ones keep the edges even. I put them on first, but not real tight. The red ones obviously press the ends together, they were next, a little tighter. Tap the ends even with a hammer, tighten the blue ones, tighten the red ones. Finally, the C-clamps go in the middle pretty tight. Go around one more time and make sure they are all tight. Wait.............OK, that's enough, wipe off the glue from inside the tunnels and the drips that could stick the block to the pine on the bottom.

Decided to drill some index holes in the tops to keep them from shifting when I glue them on. Turns out a bamboo skewer is exactly 1/8" :grin:

http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-118.jpg

As long as I have to wait for the glue, I figured I might as well seal the inside of the wings. I'll need this stuff.

http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-124.jpg

Aaaaannnnnddd..............sealed!

http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-125.jpg

You can see the sealer doesn't like glue. I don't really care on the inside, it's just to seal the wood, but it's something to keep in mind later for the outside.


:grin::grin::shock::grin:

http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-56.jpg

See there, I knew you had a screw loose :mrgreen:.

See there, I knew you had a screw loose :mrgreen:.

:lol::lol:

Seems to me there are too many parts in most stuff anyway. Most times, when I tear something apart, fix it and put it back together, there are a bunch of extra parts left over. :shock:

The center block is glued up & dry. The wings are sealed. So obviously it's time to work on the neck. :shock: I warned you that I tend to jump around from task to task. It all has to be done - does it really matter what order you do it in? I guess sometimes it does, but not right now :grin:

I started to lay out the neck template. Gather up all the stuff I might need.

http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-119.jpg

First I had to make sure the headstock and tuners were happy with each other. So I laid the tuners on the drawing to see if they had room.

Straight ?
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-121.jpg

Or curved ?
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-120.jpg

I kind of like them curved, but it doesn't matter yet. As long as they fit. And it looks like they do.

Next, I started to use the Colt W Knight method. That's how I made my 30" scale bass neck template. His technique works very well.

http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-123.jpg
I marked the nut, the 12th fret, the last fret, the end of the neck, the heel width and the center.

Line up the HS with the nut & center lines
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-122.jpg

I was this close (hard to tell without a picture isn't it?) to marking the lines for the sides and then I thought 'This headstock is going to be angled. I wonder if this will work?'. I mean, won't it be hard to shape the angled HS from a flat template?

I'm sure if I searched around on this forum I'd find a hundred ways to do this. On the other hand, if I just wing it..........

Plan B - Make a standard Tele neck template. I don't have one and I will need it for the next builds........maybe.

Spray glue a taped together drawing (ehawley - modified by jpturbo - thanks guys) to a piece of 3/4" MDF
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-126.jpg

Cut it out on the BS and rout the sides with a straight edge
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-128.jpg
Used 2 sided tape, I'm starting to like that stuff :grin:

Sanded the curves with the ROSS.

Ta da!
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-129.jpg

I measured the finished template and marked the center line again. Down the middle and at both ends. It looks like the center line is not centered on the lower fret markers, but that's because when I pulled the straight edge off it lifted the print from the middle of the neck to the heel. I glued it back down but it must have shifted. Not a big deal, the line is centered and I don't use this template to lay out the frets.

I suppose the next step would be to cut the neck at an angle. Well, that would be the next step for most people. I'm pretty sure I have enough laminated neck to make the HS, but I had another thought, and being easily confused, I decided to make 2 HS blanks.

Resaw some Hickory
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-130.jpg

Plane it down to just over 5/8" and glue it up.
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-131.jpg

Now I can wait for the glue to dry. Or I could work on the body.......


:?::?::?:

Waiting for the glue to dry just wasn't cutting it, so I started messing around with the body.

I cleaned up the excess glue from the sides of the center block with a chisel and decided to replace the racing stripe. After measuring, I noticed it was off a little at one end.

http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-134.jpg

This time I used a straight edge. I really want everything to line up because if it's off it will be easy to see with the laminations.

Next I lapped the wings against the center block to make sure I would get a good joint.

http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-135.jpg

See the little holes for the bamboo pins? Supposed to keep the tops from sliding around when I glue them. Wish I had thought of that when I glued the backs on! They moved a bit and now I have to sand them flat. I don't think I'll use the pins on the tops because if I leave them out, I'll be able to push the tops into the block with clamps when I glue them on the wings - live & learn :roll:

Here we are, ready to glue & clamp the wings on the center

http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-136.jpg

I put plastic (very high-tech material - kitchen trash bag) on the bar clamps to keep the glue from turning black where the body meets the clamps.

All glued & clamped. Just cleaning up the squeeze-out in the areas where the tops will go.

http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-137.jpg

Looks pretty flat to me :grin:

http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-138.jpg

Now what can I do while that's drying?

:twisted:

Oh look - the headstock blank is dry. Well.....dry enough.

I need to make a jig to cut the scarf joint. Seems like I read somewhere if one side of a triangle is 12" and the other is 3" you should get a 15 degree angle someplace. Let's see

http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-139.jpg

http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-140.jpg

Close enough for me :grin: I guess that could be 165 degrees. Numbers aren't my best thing.

Now all I have to do is cut them

http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-141.jpg

I ended up with 4 of them. Made sure they were all the same with a little help from the ROSS.

Took one and put it next to a square piece

http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-142.jpg

Then slapped some more pieces together with screws to make this

http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-143.jpg

I trimmed the neck & headstock blanks to about 3 3/8".

http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-146.jpg

Here's a test cut on MDF

http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-144.jpg

The blade doesn't go quite high enough to cut through. I cut everything that wide to fit the headstock. Probably could have made everything thinner & added ears, but I don't want ears on this one. Maybe next time.

Trimming was easy with the little pull saw.

http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-145.jpg

Checked the cut with a square and it's a little off

http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-148.jpg

It's hard to tell in the picture, but trust me - it's off. Just a minor adjustment to the blade and all is good.

http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-149.jpg

For this jig to work, everything has to be pretty square.

So now I have to figure out where I want to cut the neck & HS.

http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-147.jpg

Almost didn't have enough hands for that!

So here it is - ready to cut

http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-150.jpg

Devo Stevo had a cool jig in his challenge build to clean up the scarf joint. My plan was to make one. That's why I cut the angled pieces in the first place. But now that I'm at the point I need it, I think I can use his idea without the jig. I'll just clamp 2 of the angles to the blanks and make sure they're even.

http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-151.jpg

The blanks are clamped to the bench.

Test cut with the router

http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-152.jpg

I think this works :shock: Thanks Devo!

http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-153.jpg

Sometimes the simplest jigs are the best. I guess I could have cut the first angle with the band saw, would have saved hours. But what fun would that be?

Here are a few pics of the joint

Side
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-154.jpg

Back
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-156.jpg

And front
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-155.jpg

Had to use those bamboo pins somewhere.

:lol:

Didn't do a whole lot today. Just glued the body & neck.

http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-159.jpg

http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-160.jpg

I did use the bamboo pins to hold the scarf joint in place while I glued it.

Left them both in the clamps all day. Well, at least as long as I could stand it.

When I thought the body was set & dry, I took it out of the clamps and cut it on the BS. So far, so good :grin:

http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-161.jpg

http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-162.jpg


I started laying out the truss rod, but confusion set in (and a friend came over with beer :grin:). I have a SM hot rod & a couple Grizzly 2 ways. Interesting comparing them. I have only used the StewMac hot rod and I like it. The Grizzly rods look nice too, but different. The Grizzly uses a shallower groove, but a little wider. The hot rod is lighter & longer. They both use a 4mm allen wrench for adjustment, but the smart ends are different sizes. The hot rod is quite a bit smaller. I'm still not sure which one I'll use, but I do know it will adjust from the nut instead of the heel.

Edit: Forgot the picture of the back

http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-163.jpg

Today was router day. That's a scary thing with Hickory.

First thing is to cut & sand the body as close as I can before it gets to the router. I've said it before, but it's really hard to see the pencil marks on the Ziricote. Really! This was my solution to that problem.
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-164.jpg
A little old fashioned masking tape.

Then, trim a little more with the band saw and sand close with the ROSS. Sorry, no pictures of that, but do you really need pictures of that?

Mount the template and it's off to the router table.
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-165.jpg
That's the only place I had a little tearout and I'm shocked :shock: That's the best I've done yet with Hickory. Well, there's plenty of routing left to do.

So now I need to cut the channel for the binding.

Here's the first pass with the rabbet bit. Used the 2nd biggest bearing in the set (the biggest is to flush cut, and I thought that would take a LONG time :lol:)
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-166.jpg
See the mark near the dark stripe? That's how much I need to take off. The mark on the side is how deep I have to go.

Here's the rabbet set. It has a bunch of bearings, and I used every one of them.....well except the big one. Just kept taking as little as I could on each pass. Smaller bearing, adjust the router deeper. Smaller bearing, adjust the router deeper. Smaller bearing, adjust the router deeper...etc.
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-167.jpg

Once I had the last bearing set up, I used a piece of my binding wood to get the final depth.
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-168.jpg

And it turned out something like this
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-169.jpg

Or this
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-170.jpg

That is one big binding channel! :shock:

Looking forward to seeing the next step!

Me too!

Um - right. How you gonna fill that canyon of a channel? Not that I'm doubting your ability, but your going to have to melt a lot of binding in a lot of acetone to fill that :mrgreen:.

I'm fully expecting you to do something amazing like steam and bend wood that fits all perfect or make an exact fit binding like you did your f-hole. I can tell already I'm going to be in awe of the process - much like the rest of this build. Your killin me with your abundant talent :mad:.

Looking forward to seeing the next step!
Me too!

Me too!
You read my mind :grin: (or I read your post?)

Um - right. How you gonna fill that canyon of a channel? Not that I'm doubting your ability, but your going to have to melt a lot of binding in a lot of acetone to fill that :mrgreen:.

I'm fully expecting you to do something amazing like steam and bend wood that fits all perfect or make an exact fit binding like you did your f-hole. I can tell already I'm going to be in awe of the process - much like the rest of this build. Your killin me with your abundant talent :mad:.
Yeah, I probably got a little carried away with the router. But the Hickory was cutting so well! You don't think I can fill that with some .060 x .025 binding? I have like 4 pieces of it!

But seriously..........I tried to steam bend once. It wasn't pretty! It would be easy to make a template and rout it out of one piece - but I'd have to sell my truck to buy that much Ziricote :shock: Believe it or not, I do have a plan. If it works or not is another thing.

Hmmmm, a plan eh? Why am I worried?

Hmmmm, a plan eh? Why am I worried?

YOU'RE worried? How do you think I feel? :shock:






Should say felt - I have pictures :grin:

So here's the plan. Well, at least plan A. Plan B would probably be to cut off that edge and make the body about an inch smaller all around. Let's hope it doesn't come to that :wink:

(I have a bunch of pictures, so if you get bored, just skip to the end)

First I have to secure the body to the work bench. I mean, if it jumps off the table without any binding, it could get a nasty ding.
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-171.jpg
You can see the binding I cut earlier up in the top left. You can also see the paper I cut into 3/4" strips.

Actually, I want to keep the joints in the binding as symmetrical as I can. To do that, I clamped the MDF to the bench and secured the body parallel to it.
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-172.jpg

I can use the square to mark each edge close to the same.

Now all I have to do is make paper templates for each piece
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-173.jpg

I started at the bottom. The first piece is centered on the body and the angle of each additional piece is determined by how much 3/4" will cover.

Like this
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-174.jpg

I want the Z to hang over just a little, then I draw a line on the body, hold a piece of paper on the line and crease it with my finger to mark it.
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-175.jpg
OK, fuzzy picture, but you can kind of see the crease.

Cut it out with scissors...
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-176.jpg

...and lay it in place
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-177.jpg

After all the little paper bits are cut to shape, I taped them together and marked each joint.
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-178.jpg

Now I'm thinking 'This is a lot of work, and I'm going to have to do it again on the front'......but then I thought 'The front is the same as the back, almost, as long as my router was straight......' So I flipped the body over and tried the taped up template.
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-179.jpg

Bingo! This is so cool........I mean when something works :grin:

So there you go, I have this kind of cool body with paper binding :roll: I guess there's more to do.

When I first cut the pieces, I overlapped the ends because that was easier than trying to figure out all the angles of the miters. Now I can just eye-ball them.
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-180.jpg

And cut them into individual pieces.
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-181.jpg

I'm thinkin' this is how it must be to make a guitar out of stained glass :wink:

Alright, if you've been following along and taking notes, you already know it's hard to see pencil marks on Ziricote. You can see them, but you have to have the light just right. I thought about chalk, or one of those white rock kind of markers welders use, or white spray paint, or.....
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-183.jpg
Spray adheisive :grin: Just happened to have that laying around.

Cut each piece on the band saw...
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-184.jpg
(1/2" blade - too lazy to change it)

...and sanded them to shape on the ROSS. And sanded, and sanded, and.....

Until it looked like this.
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-185.jpg

And they still fit on the front
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-186.jpg

I didn't cut the front pieces yet. Those are the parts for the back flipped over. Now I know what you're thinking. He glued the paper templates to the pieces for the back. Now he's going to have to lay it all out again. :shock:

Fortunately, I thought of that way before you did. I made a copy.
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-187.jpg
I hope I don't get the 6 and the 9 confused. Should have drawn little lines under them, oh well.

:grin::grin::grin:

http://smiliesftw.com/x/big_bowdown.gif

Thanks James - I think. He's not mooning me is he?










:grin::grin:

I cut out the binding pieces for the front this morning.

http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-188.jpg

Sanded forever. One piece had to be recut, but that's not too bad considering there were 17 pieces on each side.
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-190.jpg

They fit pretty well. Close enough for glue & sawdust filler :lol:
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-191.jpg

Tweaked the back parts a little.
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-189.jpg

The tape made it easier to shape the parts. It kept them all from moving.

I had one little tearout cutting the rabbet. I really expected a lot more. Fixed it with a sliver and super glue.
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-192.jpg

When the repair dried, I glued everything.
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-193.jpg

When I said in the first post it was going to be a 47 piece body I wasn't kidding (well, actually I was). As a matter of fact, if you count the wings as 1 piece each, I think it came out to exactly 47 pieces! Who'da thunk?


:grin::roll::grin::lol:

I think you're crazy in a nice way!

I think you're crazy in a nice way!

Thanks






I think :grin:

You're like these guys in the TN Association of Woodturners that make these laminated bowls. One guy had 500 some pieces glued together and then turned on a lathe. Beautiful resuls, but man, what a monumental effort. Good thread Nosmo. Your a crafty person, and a great wood worker. I cannot wait to see how this turns out.

mg - Thank you very much.

I think this has the most pieces I ever put in a bowl. Made it about 12 years ago.
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/file-24.jpg

Spalted Pecan & Walnut. Sure wish I could find some of that spalted Pecan now!

Well, I couldn't stand it any longer. The glue was dry enough so I trimmed it to the template with the router. Knocked the high spots down with a belt sander.

And now it looks like this...
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-194.jpg

...and this...
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-195.jpg

...and this.
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-196.jpg

Oh, I weighed it too. 4.75 lbs :grin: That's not bad considering how heavy the Hickory is. Ziricote is no lightweight either. I was a little worried earlier. When I weighed it before it was like 13 lbs :shock: But of course it still had the clamps on it then.

Bad news, you totally blew it! Ship to me for proper disposal ASAP.

Jeez...between you and Herb I'm never gonna get to keep one of these!

Looks as good as my dream!!!!! Awesome

Fantastic, such a great job with those pieces!

What a great job - this is going to be stunning!

Looks as good as my dream!!!!! Awesome
I'm trying :grin:


Fantastic, such a great job with those pieces!
Thank you

What a great job - this is going to be stunning!
Thanks

Nosmo-I've enjoyed this thread so much I can't wait to see what you do with the Spalted Hickory I'm bringing you. We took a little inventory. There is about 1000bf that's been airdrying for 2+ years now. Think I can spare a few ft.
Will be in your area last half of July, Hope you're not on a rig.

SSO - That's awesome, I hope I'll be home.

Jeez...between you and Herb I'm never gonna get to keep one of these!

One for me , one for Glen , one of these days you gotta build one for yourself nosmo :lol:

It really looks great.

Hey Herb, I'm trying!

I can't wait to see this finished. I'm a sucker for natural finishes, but you just seem to add something really special to them.

Just out of interest, Nosmo, what do you do for a living?

Looking fine! I'm still trying to get over the f hole binding, that was awesome!

I can't wait to see this finished. I'm a sucker for natural finishes, but you just seem to add something really special to them.

Just out of interest, Nosmo, what do you do for a living?
Yeah, I like the natural finishes too. I am an ROV (Remotely Operated Vehicle) operator. I work offshore when they call me, until they let me go home.


Looking fine! I'm still trying to get over the f hole binding, that was awesome!
Thanks. That is one really fine guitar you're building out of the Mahogany. Interesting technique to say the least. You make it look easy.

Did you gain your work related experience in arcades?

Did you gain your work related experience in arcades?

:lol: Pretty much

Self-inflicted problems.


Yeah, it had to happen. It's kind of my trademark. Had two little problems.

The first problem was, when I glued on the binding I didn't put any at the front of the neck pocket. I figured I was just going to rout it out if there anyway. The problem is, I rout to my template with a 1/2" x 1" long top bearing bit. The template is 3/4". The bit will not rout the entire side with the template in place. After a few passes, I remove the template and use the routed portion of the body as a guide. Pretty standard procedure right? See where I'm going here? Well, without that bit of binding at the neck pocket, the bit cut about 1/4" into the front of that part. It took me a second to figure out what was happening, but it was too late. Made up a few new words that I can't repeat here. At the time I was so frustrated, I just cut 1/4" off the front and sanded it flat. Probably would work, but the more I looked at it, the less I liked it. The binding was visibly narrower and I would have to move the neck plate.

Decided to fix it.

Here it is after cutting it off & sanding some
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-200.jpg

and here are the pieces I'll use to fix it
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-339.jpg
Good thing I never throw anything out!

Line it up, glue & clamp
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-2426.jpg

http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-2245.jpg

Trim, rout, sand...
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-871.jpg

http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-1135.jpg

I don't think that will be very noticeable after the neck is installed.

The second problem I had was.......I knocked my camera off the work bench. It still works, but it must have broken the flash bulb. So without the flash, the exposure is longer and it's really hard to get in focus pics. Don't think I can fix that one :grin:

Man I hate getting old - everything seems so blurry these days.

Man I hate getting old - everything seems so blurry these days.

And I'm not helping with those pictures! I think ONE of them is kind of in focus.

Lookin great Nosmo! Good save on the mishap. :wink:

Holy jeebus man, that's a brilliant idea for some killer-looking binding!

Lookin great Nosmo! Good save on the mishap. :wink:
Thanks - I hate it when I do stupid stuff like that. But I can't seem to get through a build without doing it!

Holy jeebus man, that's a brilliant idea for some killer-looking binding!
Thanks, that was my buddy's idea to make it wide. I just embellished a little. I still haven't done regular binding yet, but I did buy some :grin:




By the way - I fixed my camera. A wire came loose when I dropped it on the floor. I'll try not to use the fuzzy pictures anymore :roll:

Good save for sure!

Yeah making mistakes just cuts to the bone, I feel your pain. You are left wondering "what the hell just happened??". It has just that little bit of extra mojo now!.. nice work.

Good save for sure!

Yeah making mistakes just cuts to the bone, I feel your pain. You are left wondering "what the hell just happened??". It has just that little bit of extra mojo now!.. nice work.

:lol: I need all the mojo I can get! I'm not really much of a player.

That's it. You're officially certifiably crazy. Welcome!

you've quickly become one of the fan favorites here, nosmo. I think it's your combination of cool ideas, great workmanship, sense of humor, great attitude and all around coolness :grin:

Great job on the guitar man!

That's it, I think you're getting way too many compliments and it's all going to your head.
So, having said that;

I hate this guitar, it's the ugliest thing I've seen since National Geographic starting printing
color pictures of Baboon butts!

(just kidding, of course. great job!!)

That's it, I think you're getting way too many compliments and it's all going to your head.
So, having said that;

I hate this guitar, it's the ugliest thing I've seen since National Geographic starting printing
color pictures of Baboon butts!

(just kidding, of course. great job!!)

Ha , yea , send it to me and I'll keep it outa sight for you :D
But seriously , I agree with Roger , you do some pretty work nosmo .

WOW Nosmo,

It looks great! There is a guy out there making banjo pots like the beautiful bowl you made. Very cool. With Herb and James raising the finishing bar and you doing this stuff I may have to buy more tools to keep up! Yes, that's how I'll explain it to my wife...... :roll:

Rob

That's it. You're officially certifiably crazy. Welcome!
I'll take that as a compliment. Thanks

you've quickly become one of the fan favorites here, nosmo. I think it's your combination of cool ideas, great workmanship, sense of humor, great attitude and all around coolness :grin:

Great job on the guitar man!
Jeez Roger, you're gonna give me a fat head :grin:

That's it, I think you're getting way too many compliments and it's all going to your head.
So, having said that;

I hate this guitar, it's the ugliest thing I've seen since National Geographic starting printing
color pictures of Baboon butts!

(just kidding, of course. great job!!)
Alrighty then.............so much for that fat head :cry:

Ha , yea , send it to me and I'll keep it outa sight for you :D
But seriously , I agree with Roger , you do some pretty work nosmo .
Thanks Herb - You're at the top of my mailing list.

WOW Nosmo,

It looks great! There is a guy out there making banjo pots like the beautiful bowl you made. Very cool. With Herb and James raising the finishing bar and you doing this stuff I may have to buy more tools to keep up! Yes, that's how I'll explain it to my wife...... :roll:

Rob
I don't have a clue what a banjo pot is, but thanks anyway (I think). Hey, any excuse to buy more tools.........

Hey Nosmo,

Like this:

Rob

The body is sooooooo close to being done - so I decided to work on the neck :shock:

I had to figure out how to cut the headstock. The stupid thing is angled! Thought about drilling the tuner holes and then transferring the template to the back so I could cut it upside down, but the template hits the neck. Sometimes I think about this stuff too much. Maybe I should take some advise from Nike and 'just do it'. I actually have a Big Dog t-shirt that is more appropriate for me. It says 'just do it....tomorrow'.

Well, this is what I came up with.
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-2014.jpg

Block up the back so it sits flat on the band saw. Just happens to sit flat on the ROSS too. A bonus!

All cut out
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-1277.jpg

Remember the truss rods I was talking about? I'm sure most of you have used both of these, but for those of you that haven't, here's a picture of them.
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-2185.jpg

The red one is a 2 way Hot Rod from StewMac. The blue one is also a 2 way rod, but from Grizzly.

I read somewhere on this forum that red guitars have more mojo so I decided to use the red truss rod. I'll save the blue one for a blues guitar :cool:

Set up the router to cut the slot
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-199.jpg

I test the cut on the piece of neck cut off on the right. I marked where I want to start & stop the slot on the back & side of the neck blank. I also marked the table where the bit is.
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-1851.jpg

Now you just hold the neck against the fence, line it up with the start mark, drop it onto the violently spinning bit and push it to the stop mark. Nothing to it. I can't rout the wrong side 'cause it's angled so I saved a little anti-idiot tape there :grin:. I cut it in 3 or 4 progressively deeper passes.

And here's a fairly straight, kind of centered slot for the rod.
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-1977.jpg

Most of the rod fits in the slot, but there is that dumb adjustment thingy sticking out one end. I thought about cutting it off, but that kind of defeats the purpose doesn't it? Plan B - drill a hole in the headstock. Now I gotta admit that scares the bologna out of me.

Had to make a jig. That kept me from damaging the headstock for several hours.

Glued some cut off neck parts
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-1498.jpg

Marked it
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-2401.jpg

and drilled it
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-286.jpg

several times
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-1961.jpg

Didn't like the 3/8" hole. That's a lot of hole. So I drilled a 1/4" hole. Probably a good thing as you'll see in a minute. By the way, a brad point drill bit is a great thing! Doesn't follow the grain much. Cuts a clean hole.

All ya got to do is........line up the jig with the center lines on the HS & neck and clamp it down. Chuck up the hand drill with Bradley Point and drill away.
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-401.jpg

Riiiiiiight..... looks good on paper. Bit's too short. Got one just a little longer.
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-2402.jpg

This one DOES require anti-idiot tape because it's long enough to go through the neck, the workbench and part of the floor.
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-402.jpg

It's a good thing I went with 1/4". I don't have a long 3/8" drill (yet :twisted:)

Well, you can see daylight, so I guess that's good.
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-1237.jpg

And now the whole rod fits in the groove
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-680.jpg

http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-1139.jpg

http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-2018.jpg
Still needs a little tweaking, but I think it will work

Now I have to redesign my truss rod cover
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-1158.jpg

Now I know why Gibson charges so much for their stuff. That was a pain in the a...fternoon. I should read more build threads. I'm sure there are easier ways to do all this.

:grin: :grin: :roll:

Hey Nosmo,

Like this:

Rob

Ooooooo that's pretty! So a banjo pot is a banjo body. Cool. I was afraid it might have been some kind of drug grown in Appalachia.

With a truss rod access like that I would'nt dare cover it!!!!!

With a truss rod access like that I would'nt dare cover it!!!!!

But it's in the plan - and we all know I NEVER stray from the plan :wink:

There's a bunch of work left to do on the neck so obviously it's time to do something to the body. I'm getting so good at changing horses mid-stream I don't even get my feet wet anymore :grin:

I've been meaning to finish the body template. One day I will, but for now this will work
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-1872.jpg
Still needs the control rout. I'll do that for the next build.

Hogged the body out with forstner bits
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-197.jpg

And routed
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-198.jpg

You probably noticed I didn't drill all the bridge or string holes in the template. I only drilled the outside holes.
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-507.jpg

I'll use the bridge to lay the other holes out on the body.
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-2304.jpg

Since this has a laminated body, I'm afraid if everything doesn't get perfectly centered it will be pretty obvious. I might use the pin in the drill press table to line up the outside string holes in the back, but I think I'll lay them out first just to double check that they are in the right place.

I laid out the neck pocket on a template with the PU routs.
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-2263.jpg

This is pretty standard around here for laying out a neck pocket. Straight edges on each side of the neck. Check scale length/bridge to neck pocket distance. Center the neck at the pocket & make sure the distance from the edge to the center is the same on each side at the bridge.
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-1536.jpg

Replace the straight edges with straight MDF. Recheck all measurements.
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-2012.jpg

Cut out waste in the pocket with the BS & rout.

You know, a lot of smarter people would just use straight MDF to start with. :roll:

Thats some mighty fine jig work there!

I agree with crazygtr

With a truss rod access like that I would'nt dare cover it!!!!!


Thats a pretty perfect access - work like that needs to be put on show!

Thats some mighty fine jig work there!

I agree with crazygtr




Thats a pretty perfect access - work like that needs to be put on show!

Awwwww...you guys. I had this great idea to inlay a Ziricote truss rod cover. Well, about half way inlaid to match the control cover. But now I'm getting all this peer pressure. Maybe I should start a poll to see who thinks it needs a cover & who doesn't. I really don't like stuff like that 'cause I'll probably do whatever I want anyway. But y'all feel free to post your opinions.

Awwwww...you guys. I had this great idea to inlay a Ziricote truss rod cover. Well, about half way inlaid to match the control cover. But now I'm getting all this peer pressure. Maybe I should start a poll to see who thinks it needs a cover & who doesn't. I really don't like stuff like that 'cause I'll probably do whatever I want anyway. But y'all feel free to post your opinions.

Since you asked... I always feel the mark of a good craftsman is being willing to hide things that ARE good enough to show.:smile: We all know that the access is good enough to leave, as will anyone else who sees it. It will tie together really well with a Ziricote cover.

.......It will tie together really well with a Ziricote cover.

That's what I was thinking.

Thanks for your nice comments.

Definately the Ziricote cover will look awesome!

Definately the Ziricote cover will look awesome!

Well, I hope so 'cause that's the way I'm going :grin:

Obviously you need more of a challenge than just a cover. I think the access hole needs to be bound to match the f-hole, once that looks perfect make a cover that has a sliding door which recesses into the cover when open, thus allowing the truss rod to be adjusted without removing the cover, and of course - the cover will also be bound, as well as the sliding door.

Obviously you need more of a challenge than just a cover. I think the access hole needs to be bound to match the f-hole, once that looks perfect make a cover that has a sliding door which recesses into the cover when open, thus allowing the truss rod to be adjusted without removing the cover, and of course - the cover will also be bound, as well as the sliding door.

That would be a challenge :shock: I'm just hoping it will play when it's done :grin:

Last time I finished the neck pocket template. So this time I guess I'll work on the neck.

Attached the neck template to the blank
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-2376.jpg
Tried to line up the nut mark and center the template. Used clamps to keep it from shifting while I drilled pilot holes and screwed the template on.

This end was a little easier
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-1159.jpg
You can see that I used Mojotron's tip here http://www.tdpri.com/forum/2012-tdpri-tele-build-challenge/317883-mojotrons-2012-challenge-build-thread-completed-7.html#post4030929. Used Durham's water putty to match the neck template to the pocket template.

Cut it close on the BS
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-1787.jpg
That's not even close enough for Hickory. Got to watch the grain when routing or it will split.

Routed to shape
(insert picture here :roll:)

And test the fit in the pocket template
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-1646.jpg

Had to put several layers of blue tape on the sides of the template. I think the pattern bit cuts just a hair bigger than the pattern :sad:
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-1866.jpg
In the background is the test cut in pine

Worked pretty well
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-2316.jpg
I hope it works that well with the body. I'm going to wait until the neck & fingerboard are put together to rout the pocket in the body. Got to make sure it's the right depth.

This is why everything has to be centered
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-698.jpg
If those laminations don't line up it will look pretty bad.



Tune in tomorrow for Fretboard Follies!

Ready to lay out the fret slots. I'm trusting JPturbo on this one. This is my second neck. The first one was a 30" short scale bass so I couldn't use the neck drawing that you can download here http://jpbturbo.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/02/broadcaster-neck-measurements-jpbturbo-03012012.pdf.

So here I am laying out the frets
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-1494.jpg
I marked each fret slot on the masking tape and scribed them with the knife.

I use a small machinist's square to keep the slots square
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-1561.jpg
The StewMac fret saw is one of the only guitar specific tools I own, but it works really well. It's just the operator that has problems.

Like this
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-2126.jpg
I guess it had to happen - I missed one slot.

Now with me playing, I'm pretty sure nobody would ever be able to tell. But if a good player ever picks up this guitar it would probably sound like schnitzel.

So I guess I have to fix it
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-1435.jpg
I filled the slot with wood glue and sprinkled Ziricote sawdust over the glue.

Pressed it in and did it again
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-1069.jpg

It looked a little shy to me, so I put another pile of sawdust over the slot
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-1126.jpg

and dripped superglue on it
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-2409.jpg

Wish I hadn't done that. The superglue makes it too dark.
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-2448.jpg

But, at least it's hard enough to cut a new slot
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-2107.jpg

I hope that won't be too noticeable after the frets are installed. I know I'll have to cut the slots again after I radius the fretboard, so maybe most of that will be gone.

Whatchagonnado?

I need to radius the fretboard next. And I want to make a video to show how my jig works. Big dilemma - do I wait for the memory card for the camera to arrive monday? Or do I make one minute videos and try to piece them together? Tell you what I did today - I went bowling, then I went to a friend's house to watch the US Open :grin: Had too much beer to operate any more power tools today.

Are you going to put any kind of finish on the fretboard? If you do I'm guessing the whole fret boards will be dark like the superglue spot. Great work regardless, this thing is going to be amazing.

Are you going to put any kind of finish on the fretboard? If you do I'm guessing the whole fret boards will be dark like the superglue spot. Great work regardless, this thing is going to be amazing.

I'm planning to use Tru-Oil on everything including the fingerboard, so it should darken it some. Last time I used my radius jig, I had to recut all the slots. I think this time it will take that repair out on both sides and just leave a small spot in the middle.

Looking forward to seeing your radius jig. I'm sitting here putting off radiusing the 3 necks for my builds. I don't have a jig...yet :grin:

Looking forward to seeing your radius jig. I'm sitting here putting off radiusing the 3 necks for my builds. I don't have a jig...yet :grin:

It actually works pretty well. I wish I had a jig for cutting the slots.

Nosmo, I've just been lurking through this build so far, but man, that binding job, and the bound f-holes are truly works of art. Love the headstock also. I don't think much of your fretboard boo-boo will be visible with the frets in place, it will look like a shadow of the fret, if it's visible at all. Somebody will really have to be contemplating the fretboard's navel to notice it. Entertaining and enlightening, not to mention interesting thread.

Obviously you need more of a challenge than just a cover. I think the access hole needs to be bound to match the f-hole, once that looks perfect make a cover that has a sliding door which recesses into the cover when open, thus allowing the truss rod to be adjusted without removing the cover, and of course - the cover will also be bound, as well as the sliding door.

I agree, but I think it should be hydraulically actuated, and realistically, it should dispense candy.

I received my memory card for the camera, so here's a mediocre video of how my jig works. I had to do a voice over because the audio was clipped pretty badly.


yre_nsE2dWI&


There are a few things I left out. The stops are to keep the router bit from hitting the screws that hold the FB. The ends can be replaced with any radius you want. They are mounted to the carrier 1/4" below the piece the FB is screwed to. I use a 3/4" straight bit. Wear eye & ear protection [:cool:]

This just keeps getting better. Beautiful work.

Hey, I will tell you what has REALLY helped me with stuff that requires extreme precision, like laying out and cutting fret slots. I've got one of those OptiVisor headband magnifiers. I use it all the time, but it came in especially handy yesterday when I was making sure my fret saw was in the right place before making the first pull. Even with my bifocals, these old eyes just don't see things as clearly as they used to!

This just keeps getting better. Beautiful work.

Hey, I will tell you what has REALLY helped me with stuff that requires extreme precision, like laying out and cutting fret slots. I've got one of those OptiVisor headband magnifiers. I use it all the time, but it came in especially handy yesterday when I was making sure my fret saw was in the right place before making the first pull. Even with my bifocals, these old eyes just don't see things as clearly as they used to!

Well, looks like I'm gonna have to find one of those. My eyes are older than yours :shock:

I agree, but I think it should be hydraulically actuated, and realistically, it should dispense candy.

Phil - I don't want you to think I'm ignoring you, but honestly I just don't know what to say to that. Except the candy would have to be M&M's :grin:

I agree, but I think it should be hydraulically actuated, and realistically, it should dispense candy.

That is hilarious. Get rid of that truss rod and fill the channel with candy. Hydraulics on a guitar...brilliant!!! What a great place TDPRI is.

Meanwhile, back at the old Same place...........


I put all my video production equipment away (didn't really take very long. I mean it's just a camera) and got right back to work. Well, alright, I ate lunch first, but then, like a flash I was hard at it.

Sanded the fretboard to about 320
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-1681.jpg

I will have to cut the slots again. I planned that. No - really. I want the slots to be curved like the fingerboard. At least this time the jig didn't remove the slots completely like it did last time, so I wont need a square to recut them. I may even wait until after I put the Tru Oil on the board. That way all the finish will be removed from the slots when I cut them.

Well, I can't attach the fretboard until I finish the truss rod cover. That may sound kind of out of order, but that's the way I roll :roll: There is a reason. Maybe it will make more sense if I just show some pictures.

First I cut out the cover
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-2265.jpg
That's the biggest piece of Ziricote I have left :sad: Except for another fretboard :grin:

Then I used an incredibly sophisticated tool, purchased at great expense from HF. Well, relatively great expense. I mean it IS Harbor Freight. I think it cost $3.50 or so.
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-2083.jpg

http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-1578.jpg

That tool is pretty cool. It keeps me from sanding off my fingerprints, and fingernails, and knuckles.

Once that was sanded to shape & thickness, I clamped it on the headstock and aligned it
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-610.jpg

Then I marked it with a razor
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-730.jpg

The next thing I want to do is cut out some of the headstock to inlay the cover, but I'm not stupid. I've seen me work. I need to test this on something disposable first.
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-1147.jpg

Hummmmm......not so good. I tried a Dremel in a router base with a little burr, but it just kind of burned it. Switched to a PC 690 with a 1/8" bit and that went a lot faster. You can mess stuff up really quickly with that set up. Now we're getting somewhere!
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-2427.jpg

The biggest problem was I couldn't see where I wanted to leave wood.

Anti-idiot tape is my friend :grin:
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-1274.jpg

Once I got most of the wood out of there, I did a little fine tuning with the blade & a very sharp 1/4" chisel
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-591.jpg

Figured out how long the cover needed to be and sanded it
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-2132.jpg
I used my truss rod adjustment hole jig to get the right angle. Obviously that's not A right angle, but it is THE right angle.

And there you go
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-1116.jpg

If my calculations are correct, the cover should help hold the nut in place. If my calculations are not correct, I bet Superglue will!

The purpose of the zero clearance insert is twofold:1)to stop cut-offs from falling into the saw-this helps avoid kickbacks,2)- to stop teaarout on the workpiece.These types of inserts
are useful on all motorized saws,but are especially helpful on "chop"saws. The insert supports the workpiece very close to the blade.This keeps the workpiece from splintering on
its bottom side.
oldteleguy

The purpose of the zero clearance insert is twofold:1)to stop cut-offs from falling into the saw-this helps avoid kickbacks,2)- to stop teaarout on the workpiece.These types of inserts
are useful on all motorized saws,but are especially helpful on "chop"saws. The insert supports the workpiece very close to the blade.This keeps the workpiece from splintering on
its bottom side.
oldteleguy

You are correct. I need to make one for my band saw. A thin, wedge shaped cut-off fell in the other day and jammed in the guide block. Broke my favorite 1/2" blade.:sad:

That cover is way better than a hydraulic candy dispenser. Beautiful work!

That cover is way better than a hydraulic candy dispenser. Beautiful work!

Thanks Phil - I couldn't figure out how to run the lines for your suggestion.

:?: I have a question :?:

I'm about to rout the neck pocket. Normally I don't care too much about the specs, but I think this could be important.

On the drawings I'm using (tdowns & jpturbo) the thickness of the neck at the heel is 1.01" and the neck pocket is .625 deep. That leaves the fingerboard .385" above the surface of the body.

My neck is 1.175 thick at the heel (I like a thick neck) and I measured the Wilkinson bridge at .350" (saddles adjusted as low as possible + bridge thickness). If I subtract the bridge from the neck I get .825" which would leave the fingerboard .35" above the body.

So here's my question, is the fingerboard supposed to be even with the lowest setting of the bridge, or should it be a little higher?

I guess I'm only talking about .035", but I don't want to rout too deep.

Question #2 - Am I overthinking this?

I think you may be overthinking a little. .035" isn't much of a difference.

I think you may be overthinking a little. .035" isn't much of a difference.

Thanks - That's kind of what I thought after reading my own post :grin:

Glued the fretboard on last night. Trimmed & routed it this morning. Cut the fret slots a little deeper. Still going to hit them one more time after the Tru Oil.

Routed the neck pocket. I think I split the difference with the depth.

Hogged it out on the drill press. Not really on top of the pictures today.

http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-708.jpg
The template is indexed with the drill bits & 1 screw. The MDF on the sides keep the template from flexing. I made it a bit skinny :oops:

Looks like the pocket fits the neck
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-774.jpg

And I guess it's centered about as well as I'd hoped
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-1865.jpg
Looks like a faux neck through from this angle.

Here's a couple from the front
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-212.jpg

http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-1731.jpg

Not too much left to screw up now. Drill the tuner holes, shape the neck, drill the neck mount holes (might recess the plate), maybe a little round over, string holes & ferrules, jack hole, etc.

OK, I guess there's plenty left to screw up :roll:

Looks like the pocket fits the neck

It doesn't get better than that!


Not too much left to screw up now. Drill the tuner holes, shape the neck, drill the neck mount holes (might recess the plate), maybe a little round over, string holes & ferrules, jack hole, etc.

OK, I guess there's plenty left to screw up :roll:

Whatever you do, make sure you hold on tight - this past weekend I dropped the neck I'm working on right now on the garage floor. Yep, I proved there is an easier and safer way to get tearout than with a router :oops:

I'm loving it more and more!

Craig - Thanks. Sorry to hear about your neck.

Glen - Thank you

I keep looking in on this Nosmo. I really like it. Looking great.

Thanks Bro

A picture of this thing needs to end up in a magazine, preferably a woodworking or guitar mag, I mean not that it wouldn't 100% improve a magazine like Vogue but...

A picture of this thing needs to end up in a magazine, preferably a woodworking or guitar mag, I mean not that it wouldn't 100% improve a magazine like Vogue but...

This one perhaps?



http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Alfred-Madcover13484_x.jpg

Did a little bit today. Very little, but it's going the right direction.

Drilled the headstock for the tuners
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-1433.jpg

Then I marked the neck for the side dots
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-989.jpg

Set up a fence on the drill press
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-2350.jpg
and used a 1/8" brad point bit.

Glued in the high-tech side markers
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-1973.jpg
Bamboo skewers - they're not just for aligning things.

They actually look pretty good so far
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-238.jpg

Bamboo has some cool grain
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-2072.jpg

:grin:

Nice side dots!

Thanks Glen

I use those bamboo skewers for my excellent kabobs. Looking at those side dots makes me hungry....

I use those bamboo skewers for my excellent kabobs. Looking at those side dots makes me hungry....

I was just thinking that , mmmm , wild turkey kabobs :D

I was just thinking that , mmmm , wild turkey kabobs :D

I usually do my Wild Turkey in a shot glass. I guess you could stir it with a skewer.

I have a bourbon/ apricot marinade that is just killer...... Works for poultry and beef.

I have a bourbon/ apricot marinade that is just killer...... Works for poultry and beef.

That sounds awesome. What time is dinner?

This stuff must get easier after you build a few. My problem is I really don't know what I'm doing, so I make a lot of this up as I go.

So I want to contour my neck. OK, not MY neck, the guitar neck. The last time, which was the first time, I tapered the back of the neck blank with a router which made it easier to get my contour. I did that with the router mounted in the table and the heel of the neck blocked up. This time, since the stupid headstock is still angled, that won't work.

Didn't really want to build a jig, but I had these two pieces of MDF that had been ripped to the same width.

I made a mark on the neck at the 1st & 12th frets and transferred it to the back of the neck. Then I marked each piece of MDF so I could line everything up. Measured from the top of the MDF and marked it at each fret mark. The mark at the 12th location is about 1/8" lower than the one at the 1st.
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-1178.jpg

Lined it all up and clamped it together
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-2112.jpg
There were a lot of calculations. Thickness of the blank. Thickness I want at each end. Length of the router bit. How deep I need to go to end up where I want. Made my head hurt :roll:

Anyway, once it was set up, I routed it in 2 or 3 passes, checking each time with the pointy end of the calipers.
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-2051.jpg

This is how it came out
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-1957.jpg
It looks tapered - I'll measure it later :grin:

I used the ROSS to get close to the shape I want at each end. This is the fat end. (Technical term for somewhere around the 12th fret)
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-877.jpg

Probably did this a little out of order, but when I got to the skinny end, I couldn't resist playing with the transition.
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-1311.jpg
No volute for me! (Did I spell that right?)

Then I did my best to remove all the wood between the two contours.
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-775.jpg
That little mini plane worked pretty well. Not as fast as a spokeshave or drawknife, but I don't have a spokeshave or drawknife so at least for me it was a lot quicker.

Here's another great little tool (obviously I don't own a scraper either)
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-2045.jpg
Now you might think that picture is out of focus. :roll: No, I was trying to show the wood curls on the floor!

Well, after way longer than it would take most people, the neck looks something like this
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-1184.jpg

Actually, it looks exactly like that. I'll sand it more tomorrow. I'm tired of this game, I want to play something else :twisted:

Looking at your preliminary neck routes, and the subsequent ROSS gouges reminds me why I don't trust my own calculations, and sneak up on neck shape and size little by little. (And why my Challenge guitar is going under the knife again before too long to correct the crappy profile.

But you gotta admit, when you've been working with that nice thick slab o' wood that's gonna be your neck, and hog down to rough first dimensions, it takes you aback a bit (!)--wow, that's a lot of wood gone, did I screw something up? I'll have to learn to trust myself, I guess. After all, your neck came out beautifully.

And tell me you ain't showin off with that shot of how perfectly your headstock and neck lined up, and joined up, and how awesone that transition looks--nah, not much!!

Looking forward to the next installment--.

Looking at your preliminary neck routes, and the subsequent ROSS gouges reminds me why I don't trust my own calculations, and sneak up on neck shape and size little by little. (And why my Challenge guitar is going under the knife again before too long to correct the crappy profile.

But you gotta admit, when you've been working with that nice thick slab o' wood that's gonna be your neck, and hog down to rough first dimensions, it takes you aback a bit (!)--wow, that's a lot of wood gone, did I screw something up? I'll have to learn to trust myself, I guess. After all, your neck came out beautifully.
I know what you mean. I sneak up on it too. I tend to build the necks to thick to start with. Mostly 'cause I'm scared of making it to thin.

And tell me you ain't showin off with that shot of how perfectly your headstock and neck lined up, and joined up, and how awesone that transition looks--nah, not much!!
I'm as shocked as you are :shock: But as long as it worked out......

Looking forward to the next installment--.
Me too. Not much left but sanding, and sanding, and sanding......

Beautiful neck! Great work as usual. Carry on :grin:

Looks fantastic. Nice carve. I used a combination of rasp/scraper/razor on my last neck and it worked really nice. Where did you get the small plane, and what size/type is it?

Beautiful neck! Great work as usual. Carry on :grin:
Thanks Roger. Whatcha been up to?

Looks fantastic. Nice carve. I used a combination of rasp/scraper/razor on my last neck and it worked really nice. Where did you get the small plane, and what size/type is it?
The razor worked really well. I have to buy some scrapers. The plane is a Stanley 12-101. Got it at Lowes. Pretty cheap, but it was taking nice curls off once it was adjusted.
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-1876.jpg

Really nice work, Nosmo.

BTW, small planes are awesome :grin:

http://i905.photobucket.com/albums/ac255/hendersonisgo/IMG_0682.jpg

Thanks Brian. Planes are great in general. I don't think I could have used a larger one on the neck, the transitions get in the way. The small ones definitely have a place.

Looks like yours is a little higher quality than mine :grin:

Nosmo, I have that same small plane that you used and I have used it while building a dozen canoes and kayaks and although it is small and inexpensive it is my favorite plane.

Yeah Glen, that little guy works pretty well. I bought it during the challenge, but I didn't use it on that neck. Don't know why, just didn't.

Looks like yours is a little higher quality than mine :grin:

Yeah, but in the end it really comes down to what you do with the plane... but I really do like my little Lie Nielsen (http://www.lie-nielsen.com/catalog.php?sku=palm)

Thanks Roger. Whatcha been up to?

Not a lot. i've got some wood that needs to be resawn for my next neck, but I don't have a band saw. I'm kind of stuck right now.

I've started getting into cycling though, and have the Industri-caster up for sale on CL in hopes of getting some cash together for a nice bike.

Oh come on Roger, you don't need no stinkin' bandsaw to resaw. Cut it by hand like elams1894. He said it only hurt for a few days afterwards. :shock:

Cycling sounds a lot like exercise to me. I try to avoid that kind of stuff. Hope you do get a nice bike for your guitar though.

Moving right along - like a herd of turtles.


I put a 1/8" roundover on the body, both sides. I mean top & bottom. I think there's only one side, the outside, but you know what I mean.

http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-2249.jpg
It's amazing how that little bitty roundover changed the look of the guitar. Just a little bit softer. I like it! :grin::grin:

Then I laid out the jack position
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-2494.jpg

Of course, before I drilled it, I got distracted and decided to recess the neck plate. Had to make a jig (imagine that!). Ripped a piece of MDF the same width as the plate & cut it in 2 pieces. Then I took 2 more pieces that had straight edges and set them all up around the plate on another piece of MDF
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-2482.jpg

Used those pieces to make a template in the bottom piece
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-595.jpg

Did a little test fit and it looks OK
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-848.jpg

Set the depth of cut on the router
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-1884.jpg
...better than that. That's a little deep.

And cut the recess
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-1294.jpg

Looks better to me - like it's supposed to be there
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-1291.jpg
I might go a little deeper. It was hard to check with the template in place.


With nothing left to distract me, I set up the drill press and drilled for the jack
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-706.jpg

1" then 7/8"
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-526.jpg

So the jack will be recessed
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-2367.jpg

I think the only thing left to do with the body is the string holes & ferrules. I used the pin in the table alignment method to mark the outside holes. Just barely hit them with the 1/8" brad point.
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-854.jpg
This is why I didn't drill them yet. They were off by almost half an M&M. Well, it's one reason. I want to make sure they're centered and square. Of course the holes themselves will be round, but they need to be square with the body. Next reason is I don't have any ferrules. I could order some. Or I could make a tone block out of Ebony. Or I could drill holes and put small washers in the bottoms. Or......


:?::?::?:

Very nice work nosmo , go for the ebony tone bar !

Yup, ebony tone bar.

Alrighty then.....I value both of your opinions, so I guess that settles it. Besides, if it turns out like do-do, I can blame you guys :grin:

Yes my Dear Nosmo, ebony has the tone! Trust me on this one. The Ebsquire is one glorious sounding guitar.

Well, after way longer than it would take most people, the neck looks something like this
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-1184.jpg

Actually, it looks exactly like that. I'll sand it more tomorrow. I'm tired of this game, I want to play something else :twisted:

That neck is beautiful. I really like the way the stripe ends at the headstock. Very well thought out Nosmo.

I don't know what to say. Can't wait to see this finished.

Yes my Dear Nosmo, ebony has the tone! Trust me on this one. The Ebsquire is one glorious sounding guitar.
That's awesome. With the tone from the Ebony and the mojo from the red truss rod, This guitar should be full of it. Kind of like its owner. :wink:


That neck is beautiful. I really like the way the stripe ends at the headstock. Very well thought out Nosmo.
Well thank you very much James.

Lookin' great!

This may only be your second guitar, but you've got some mad wood working skills, my friend!!

Nice job so far. :mrgreen:

I don't know what to say. Can't wait to see this finished.
I feel the same way :grin:

Lookin' great!

This may only be your second guitar, but you've got some mad wood working skills, my friend!!

Nice job so far. :mrgreen:
Thank you very much

Mmmmmmm , ebony

http://i832.photobucket.com/albums/zz246/adirondak50/tone%20-%20bars/IMAG0951.jpg?t=1317507731

Oh Herb,

That looks awesome! By the by, which one is that going into? Is it for Nosmo?

Rob

Oh Herb,

That looks awesome! By the by, which one is that going into? Is it for Nosmo?

Rob

That's going in the mahogany/maple cabronita , with the TVJones , I would have given it to nosmo but he never did send me that bass guitar he built in the challenge :lol:

Hey herb, I think nosmo mentioned a new shipping company. Give it some monkey business days, and it should be at your doorstep.:razz:

Hey herb, I think nosmo mentioned a new shipping company. Give it some monkey business days, and it should be at your doorstep.:razz:

Looks like I've been hoist by my own petard . :D

Jeez.....I go away for one day and you guys just start talking among yourselves. That's OK, really, I don't mind. Go ahead, feel free. Don't pay any attention to the guy behind the curtain.

Rob - I gotta say, I like the way you think. Herb, I think you ought to send it to me.

I actually spent part of this day working on tone blocks. But now I see Herb's and I'm thinking maybe I should start over. That thing is beautiful! Not quite beautiful enough to trade for a guitar, but beautiful. Mine look pretty sad compared to that.

Watch out for those petards. They started a whole new conversation on crazydave's build.

nosmo , here's the link for the thread I did on tone bars a while back , the ebony tone bar is in there.
http://www.tdpri.com/forum/tele-home-depot/293660-tone-bars.html

Herb, I read that thread awhile ago. Wish I had reviewed it before I made mine. :oops:

If you have checked out Herb's thread on making tone blocks, you'll see a few differences between the way he did it and the way I did it. I'd say if you want to make a tone block - read Herb's thread and do it that way.

Here's how I did it.

First I drew it out on the computer and printed this sheet

http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-332.jpg

Ripped some Ebony to 5/8" on the table saw. Then I set a stop block on my chop saw and cut all the pieces to length.
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-1571.jpg
Also cut a couple pieces of Maple to use for set up, etc. Since I used a stop on the chop saw, all the pieces are exactly the same length.

Set up a fence on the drill press and adjusted until the bit was centered on the width of the block. Cut out some of the print to use as my guide.
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-1584.jpg
I marked the Maple for the holes and then adjusted the paper until the left edge of the block was lined up with a mark on the paper when the drill bit was lined up with with a hole location. Secured the paper with tape. Now I don't have to mark any of the blocks. I can just line the edge up with the marks and drill.

I started drilling 3/8" holes. I didn't think 1/4" would be big enough and I don't have a 5/16" forstner bit. After drilling 3 of the blocks, I though I'd try 1/4".
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-315.jpg
Appears to be plenty of room. Sometimes I think too much, and sometimes I don't think at all :roll:

Finished drilling the rest with the 1/4", then drilled through with 1/8"
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-1778.jpg
Got a little pile of almost done blocks.

I made the template the same way I made the neck plate template. Just blocked it in and routed it in a piece of MDF
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-1734.jpg

Rounded the corners to match the template
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-1000.jpg
If I had made this like Herb did, I would have made the blocks 1/2" wide. I made them 5/8" because I wanted to rout with a 1/2" bit (and I thought I needed 3/8" holes). Didn't think of using a 1/4" with the shaft as the guide....D'oh. Anyway, now the ends are not round, they're more like rounded off.

Hogged the body out with a 1/2" bit...
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-1165.jpg

...and a sharp chisel
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-459.jpg
You can see the lines I drew on the back to center the block on the body.

Once the template is set up and loosely clamped, I index the template with the marks.
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-487.jpg
There are marks at each end and each side of the cut out as well as in the two 1" hole I drilled in the template.

It worked out OK, but I think I just made it harder than it had to be.
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-2491.jpg

At least it's done. I think now it's on to sanding & finishing.

Here's how I did it.


There's more than one way to skin a cat , the outcome is just fine , nice job :smile:




I undex the template with the marks.


I usually index my template with the marks but if undexing works I guess go with it :razz::lol:

Nosmo, FWIW, I think they turned out pretty good. I think i may have to borrow this idea from ya.

There's more than one way to skin a cat , the outcome is just fine , nice job :smile:
I love cat skinning....so to speak.


I usually index my template with the marks but if undexing works I guess go with it :razz::lol:
..."and sometimes I don't think at all."

Nosmo, FWIW, I think they turned out pretty good. I think i may have to borrow this idea from ya.

Thanks - make sure you check out Herb's thread.

I sanded until I got tired of it, quit for the night and sanded some more today. Tried all the tricks I've picked up here. Used blocks to do it - no sanding with my fingers. Raised the grain & sanded again. Ironed out some microscopic dents. Wiped all the dust off with Naphtha. Sanded some more. Went from 150 to 350 grit removing all the previous scratches each time.

I hate sanding. I love building, but finishing is definitely not my strong suit. I sure hope I sanded enough because I'm done with it! Well, at least until I sand the sealer. And of course I'll have to polish it. Jeez, this just never ends :cry:

Speaking of which, this is my set up for finishing
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-1333.jpg

I'm using Birchwood Casey gunstock Seal & Fill thinned about 50/50 with Naphtha for the first coat. That's it in the pepper jar. Once I put a coat on, I can hang the whole shebang in the garage.

But for now this is what my father used to call a 'sit-down' job
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-368.jpg

After it's all sealed & filled, I'll put Tru-Oil on until it shines (or until I give up on it).

I read another tip for using oil type finishes. It said to have the room as warm as possible so the oil flows & penetrates better. It's 100 degrees here today :shock:. This is all set up on my back porch. I think the room is warm enough :roll:

Of course that's only about 38 degrees C, that sounds much better! :cool:

I love the contrasts. I am really looking forward to the day this is delivered to my door.:mrgreen:

That is beautiful nosmo .

I love the contrasts. I am really looking forward to the day this is delivered to my door.:mrgreen:
The neck probably wont contrast as much as the white one that's on it now :grin:


That is beautiful nosmo .
Thanks Herb - If I can get anywhere near the finish you put on your guitars, I'll be ecstatic!

It worked out OK, but I think I just made it harder than it had to be.
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-2491.jpg

At least it's done. I think now it's on to sanding & finishing.

I don't know, I think it looks better than OK. WAY!

Thanks Graig

http://bloqhead.com/2011/kitten/

Seriously, send me this guitar when it's finished, or the kitten gets it.

http://bloqhead.com/2011/kitten/

Seriously, send me this guitar when it's finished, or the kitten gets it.

There wass supposed to be a kitten image in there. My threat is admittedly less effective without it.

That looks fantastic Nosmo

There wass supposed to be a kitten image in there. My threat is admittedly less effective without it.
Never the less - be careful with threats like that. I believe I've warned y'all "I love cat skinning....so to speak."

That looks fantastic Nosmo
Thank you.






ps - No cats were harmed during the composition of this post. Any perceived threat to individual or groups of felines is the sole responsibility of the reader and was not the intent of the original poster. Readers will hold harmless the composer of all past, present or future liability with regard to cat abuse. If suit develops, I will take it up with (my) - Lawyer Daggett. And he will make money and I will make money and your lawyer will make money... and you, ..., you will foot the bill.

:grin::grin:

Finishing is boring!

Got to find something to do while I wait. I've seen on here that quite a few of you get parts from Bezdez on eBay. I checked out their wares the other day and ordered a bunch of little parts. The package showed up yesterday (pretty quick shipping by the way) and this was in it.

http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-1045.jpg

A kit for making your own knobs. I love knobs! Big knobs, little knobs. I think everyone should have knobs. As a matter of fact, I don't think you can have too many knobs. Never know when you'll really want a knob and there won't be one around.

The kit comes with 20 brass bushings, 20 setscrews, allen wrench for the setscrews, drill bit & tap. You can make like.......20 knobs!

Let's try it out. First I need some wood because that's the part they left out of the kit. I have wood! Been thinking about knobs.

Here's some
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-2421.jpg
This is why I never throw any wood away. You just never know when you might need some to make......knobs :grin:

Cut it into 3/4" x 3/4" x 3/4" blocks and drilled a 1/2" hole somewhere near the center
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-1038.jpg
Kind of eye-balled all these steps. This is just a test - it'll bite me in the butt later :roll:

Then I drilled a 3/8" hole a little deeper
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-322.jpg

Whoever made this kit must have used M&M's or whatever the Chinese use to measure, because the closest bit I have to the diameter of the bushing is 3/8". The bushing is a little bit bigger - but not for long :twisted:

This is the fixture I slapped together for the lathe
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-536.jpg
The 1/4" bolt is slightly larger than the ID of the bushing (go figure), so I hit it with a file to take the threads down some. Also filed a flat on it for later.

The bushing jams on the bolt enough to file/sand down to 3/8"
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-443.jpg

And then you just press the bushing in
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-1141.jpg

Next you have to drill through one side of the bushing with the supplied drill bit so you can tap the threads in it for the setscrew. I eye-balled this too. Can you tell?
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-1361.jpg

Once you have the hole tapped, you can secure the knob blank to the lathe fixture with the setscrew and turn it 'till you're happy (the knob, not the setscrew).

(I had a picture of this, but it was WAY out of focus)

So here's the side the pot will be looking at
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-2264.jpg

And if I hadn't eye-balled everything, actual people might be looking at this side one day
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-521.jpg

The one on the left is awesome. The one on the right looks like I brought in the squirrels to line it up. I kind of thought the stripes might be too gaudy for this guitar anyway. That's why it was a test. Maybe Ebony or Ziricote/Hickory or something else.

Alrighty then, maybe that Tru-Oil is dry enough for another coat.

If suit develops, I will take it up with (my) - Lawyer Daggett.

:grin::grin:

That wouldn't happen to be J. Noble Daggett of Duey Fleecem & Howe LLP ?

Hey Nosmo,

Are you going to join the ebony nut club? It's all the rage of black squirrels everywhere. :roll: I have one on my Ebsquire and I think Herb is going to try it on his new La Cabronita. The club has a secret tailshake and dues are so reasonable you'd be nuts not to join. :roll: Let me know.

Rob

Hey Nosmo,

Are you going to join the ebony nut club? It's all the rage of black squirrels everywhere. :roll: I have one on my Ebsquire and I think Herb is going to try it on his new La Cabronita. The club has a secret tailshake and dues are so reasonable you'd be nuts not to join. :roll: Let me know.

Rob

Ha , nuts not to join a nut club :lol: , I know , I know , simple things , but I do think nosmo would fit right in Rob :razz:

BTW , nosmo , your pot control turning things look great , good job on them.

That wouldn't happen to be J. Noble Daggett of Duey Fleecem & Howe LLP ?
That's the one. I see you've heard of him. Don't mess with me man!

Hey Nosmo,

Are you going to join the ebony nut club? It's all the rage of black squirrels everywhere. :roll: I have one on my Ebsquire and I think Herb is going to try it on his new La Cabronita. The club has a secret tailshake and dues are so reasonable you'd be nuts not to join. :roll: Let me know.

Rob
Ebony nut? :idea: Hadn't thought of it until just now. I'd love to join the club. I'll even pay extra if I don't have to do the tailshake :grin:

Ha , nuts not to join a nut club :lol: , I know , I know , simple things , but I do think nosmo would fit right in Rob :razz:

BTW , nosmo , your pot control turning things look great , good job on them.
What are you trying to say? :shock: about the pot things, I agree with you on fitting right in with the nuts.

Made some more


http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-1496.jpg

These are way better than the ones I made for the bass. I'm gonna have to change them out.


:grin::grin::grin:

Very nice knobs!

I just read this whole thing! Took a while but it was worth it. I love this guitar. Put me on the list of "Send it to me!" people. :lol:

Yep... them there are some great looking knobs!

Very nice knobs!
Thanks - They're a lot easier to make than a guitar!

I just read this whole thing! Took a while but it was worth it. I love this guitar. Put me on the list of "Send it to me!" people. :lol:
I guess some people just have too much time on their hands :grin: You're on the list...but I gotta tell ya, it truly is a 'waiting' list. Just ask Herb.

Yep... them there are some great looking knobs!
I love knobs! Problem is, with 20 of them I'll have to build 8 or 9 more guitars - Damn :shock:

I love knobs! Problem is, with 20 of them I'll have to build 8 or 9 more guitars - Damn :shock:

Well , if you start sending off those geetars , let's just say starting with the bass for arguments sake , you'll have plenty of room to build 8 or 9 more , solutions are my specialty :D

Had to go offshore - be back in 2 weeks or so. I still have internet, but it's painfully slow!

WOW! Just read through this entire thread. I am blown away by your skill Nosmo! I really like the way you did the binding and think i might steal your idea for a build i'm doing here: http://www.tdpri.com/forum/tele-home-depot/333528-if-tele-gibson-es-had-baby.html#post4283464
Mine is walnut though, not quite as cool as the ziricote you've got here. Thanks for the awesome idea man. Just have to give credit where credit is due. Keep up the awesome builds.

TeleSky - Thank you. Feel free to steal any ideas you see here. I could say I've never stolen any ideas from this forum. I could say that - but I'd be the biggest liar in 4 or 5 counties.

The internet on the boat went out Sunday night. Just got it restored today. Thankfully, I'll be home tomorrow and I can see already it's going to take me days to catch up here. Lots of neat things going on in Tele-land.

I'm back home :grin:

So......where was I?

Oh yeah - I'm in the middle of finishing. I guess there wont be much to post until I get enough Tru-Oil on it and assemble it.

I did receive a bunch of parts for some new projects, so I may be joining the herd with a winder-builder thread soon. That seems to be all the rage around here lately.

Welcome back.

I did receive a bunch of parts for some new projects, so I may be joining the herd with a winder-builder thread soon. That seems to be all the rage around here lately.

Welcome back nosmo , take some time to un- wind a little before ya get to that winder :D

I've bought a lot of stuff from bezdez, but I somehow missed that knob kit. Very cool!

Welcome back.
It's good to be home!

Welcome back nosmo , take some time to un- wind a little before ya get to that winder :D
Well, I've been home about 4 hours...and I've had 5 beers :shock: I'm un-winding as fast as I can :grin:

I've bought a lot of stuff from bezdez, but I somehow missed that knob kit. Very cool!
That is a cool kit. Don't know if it's any cheaper than buying them, but it is fun!

Finishing is definitely not my strong point. Just don't have the patients for it. I'm really trying not to hurry, but it's killin' me :mad: The Tru-oil is building up pretty slowly. Of course it probably didn't help much when I sanded it smooth yesterday with the 1000 grit. At least it's kind of flat. Pores aren't filled very well so I guess I wont end up with the mirror finish I was shooting for. I'm just going to keep putting it on every morning. Maybe it will surprise me.

In the mean time, I took out some of the frustration on the frets. Beat the attitude right out of 'em. They went in fairly well, but I do have one that's popping up a bit at the end. There's one in every crowd. I'll wick some CA in the ends later.
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-1596.jpg

If there's a gun shop around you, you too can have custom neck holders like that :wink:

I glued the fret ends. Just a drop of CA in each end of each one. Then I filed the edges flush with the neck and angled the ends about 30 degrees. So...it was time to level them. I guess it's kind of standard procedure around here, but this is how I did it. First, make sure the fretboard is straight. Not the frets, the fretboard. Then mark the tops of the frets with a black marker. Pretty sure you could use blue or red or even green, but I'm thinking if you used something like fuchsia all the mojo would run away from the neck screaming.

Anyway, my next step is to use a flat file & hit all the frets until the marker gets knocked off the tops. I need to make a block out of granite or Corian for this. Maybe one day....
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-1011.jpg
You can see here that 17 & 20 are a little high. You can tell because the marker is going away on them but it's not on 18 & 19. I'm not sure who plays all the way up there, but one day someone that knows what their doing might pick up this guitar. I guess I have to make it right.

I keep filing until they're all level. Sometimes it takes awhile.
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-687.jpg
See all the metal that used to be frets? That's another indication that those two are high.

Finally got 'em.
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-1711.jpg
Of course now I have to dress the ends and crown them. Those two high ones got pretty flat. This is where most people would bust out the crowning file. I would too if I had one. Need to put that on my list.

I did buy one of these 3 sided 'safety' files.
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-1500.jpg
It has the corners smoothed out so you don't file into the fingerboard. Works really well on the ends, but a crowning file would have been easier to reshape the tops.

I got them pretty close. Still need to polish them, but I'm happy with how they turned out.

Wow! You really had to take a lot off those frets!

Wow! You really had to take a lot off those frets!

I think it tends to look like more than it really is.

It was quite a bit. Probably got some finish in the slots. I do have a few things going for me though. The frets are level now. I can reshape the tops of those two. Once they're rounded again they should look fine. Aaannnd....I never play that high on the board :grin:

Learned some stuff though. This is my 2nd neck. The first one was easier to fret and I had no trouble with the frets staying in place. From now on I think I'll fret the neck before I shape the back. I thought it would be better to finish the fretboard before I put the frets in, but now I have to refinish the board anyway :roll:

Speaking of finishing....Here's a pretty good article posted by Hemingway on using Tru-Oil. Should have read this a couple weeks ago.http://www.lmii.com/carttwo/truoil.htm


One day I'll figure some of this out.

Have I mentioned lately how much I hate finishing? :mad:


My lack of adequate preparation led me to sand off all the Tru-oil on the top and start over. I sure hope nobody is holding their breath waiting to see this thing finished.

Have I mentioned lately how much I hate finishing? :mad:


My lack of adequate preparation led me to sand off all the Tru-oil on the top and start over. I sure hope nobody is holding their breath waiting to see this thing finished.

Bummer, I feel your pain. Keep at it, and don't rush it! :cool:

I am sure you planned it that way.:wink:

Have I mentioned lately how much I hate finishing? :mad:


My lack of adequate preparation led me to sand off all the Tru-oil on the top and start over. I sure hope nobody is holding their breath waiting to see this thing finished.

Well, I have turned kinda blue - but it's cured my hiccups.

Alright Hemingway, you can take one more deeeeep breath. It's getting closer.

I'm about to give up on finishing. I've decided it will never be shiny enough for me, so I guess I might as well stop. The last coat is drying so I figured I'd do something with the neck.

I drilled the little holes for the pins on the Sperzel tuners and installed them.

http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-1461.jpg

Decided to make the tops straight across. Don't know why the middle one on the left looks crooked, it's not. Really!

On to the nut.

Cut a couple blanks out of Ebony.

http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-404.jpg

Sanded to the right thickness.

http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-740.jpg

http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-2394.jpg
Might be able to save some superglue. The truss rod cover holds the nut pretty tight. I marked the ends, cut & sanded them to the right length & angle.

Used the old 1/2 pencil technique to mark the radius on the nut.

http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-295.jpg

Of course I couldn't see it so I had to do it again.

http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-640.jpg

Mo bedda :grin:

Sanded it down to somewhere near the line. But not too near,

http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-540.jpg

Then I kind of rounded over the back. Did most of that on the ROSS, then switched to a sanding block.

http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-1660.jpg

http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-889.jpg

Laid out the slots with this sheet that I found here http://www.tdpri.com/forum/tele-technical/109915-compensated-nut-layout-tool.html (post #29).

http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-2022.jpg

Had to make some nut saws. (Used a cut-off wheel in the Dremel)

http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-1600.jpg

To go with my little files and welding tip cleaners.

http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-1799.jpg

Cut the slots

http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-249.jpg

And opened up the back a little

http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-1744.jpg

Bada-bing Bada-boom

http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg535/nosmospics/Ziricote/file-1266.jpg

Just have to tweak it during the set up.

It's not the B string machine, it's the G string one that's a little off. IMHO.

Nope - it was the B. Put a straight edge on them all and it was out a couple degrees. All better now :grin: