Experimental project

[rednwhiteblues]

great video! i cant wait to see this build come together, that neck has some beautiful grain, and with the fingerboard you picked and that body top it'll definitely turn some heads!

[jwells393]

Great idea on that edge guide. How's that little Harbor Freight router working for you? I bought one a year or so back but haven't used it yet.

[Rich Rice]

The edge guide worked well. The router has seen lots of use, great for $25. Not the best, but if you double check your settings it is pretty good. I use it every day, and have another as a backup that I never opened.

[Rich Rice]

I had been thinking about doing this guitar for a long time, as many of you know... Letting everything age was a long process, not knowing if I could get it to go- well, I thought about pickups, bridge, etc., and have decided that it's already pretty far out. Getting an eyeful of the wood changed the plan for a black pickguard, I hate to bury the wood. Today I realised the neck is going to be just fine, despite my doubts as to suitability of the fireplace log. I'm really digging the overall vibe of the guitar, and have now cleaned up the body routing, routed the neck pocket, radiused the edges, and started planning the rest of the build. I have an old pair of Schaller humbuckers that I bought, and never tried. They are from an old Music Man Silhouette, and have been in my parts bin for years. I also have a brand new Wilkinson trem with steel block..

Looks like this will become more of a rock guitar.. Certainly not the direction I has originally envisioned, but I don't need any more straight T guitars (I really don't need any more guitars, period.). The 'buckers will be body mounted without rings, and a smooth S style trem. Finish up with a polymerized oil and wax job, Gotoh Kluson split shaft tuners, and a rear routed control cavity to keep the face uncluttered. Looks like a plan, and plenty of work left to be done- but an unusual guitar is always so much fun to build and play.

So stay tuned, and thanks for your comments.

[jwells393]

That router is very similar to a little Makita I have. In fact the base is exactly the same except for color. Exact same texture on the base. I bought mine in the Harbor Freight store in Albuquerque for $20.

[Rich Rice]

Harbor Freight can be good and bad. I have had pretty good luck with lots of their tools, but an oscillating spindle sander caught fire in my shop last week, and it was only a couple of months old. It slowed down, smoked, then flames. Very scary thing at 6:30 in the morning...

[Rich Rice]

I put a few dabs of silicone into the channel- not a bunch, but enough to hold the ends down and help support the rods in the center. This should eliminate any possibility of truss rod rattle...


Then seated the truss rod

wiped away the excess material with a dry paper towel

then washed the exposed surfaces with acetone, to remove any residue on the gluing area.


I haven't done this before, but it makes a lot of sense- any position the TR is in, it will be supported and quiet.

[Rich Rice]

Back to the body for a bit of tweaking.. Here's the roundover and neck pocket rout.


I spent some extra time fitting the heel of the neck to the pocket

[Rich Rice]

I got busy this morning, and did some work on the neck/fingerboard. I trimmed the edges of the fingerboard closer to the neck, (still oversize, but close), then applied tape over the truss rod (keeps the glue from screwing with the TR)



Then on went the fretboard!


And then clamped it on up with a rubber band

[Rich Rice]

Even though the rubber band is very tight, I decided to clamp it to a metal straightedge for good measure. Can't hurt...


Now back to work- ;)

[Gaber_771]

LOOKS GREAT!!!!!

[SatelliteOrders]

Makes me wish I had woodworking gear at home instead of computers.

Well, so many computers, anyway....

[straightface]

This is a terrific thread Rich, the body came out much better than I expected and the neck build portion is a great read. I wish I had a fraction of your talent!

[Rich Rice]

Well, I made a ton of progress on this- I'll put up some new pics as I can.

[Rich Rice]

I'm having trouble with Photobucket.. I'll try, though... If you click on the pics, they will clean up better.

We installed the frets


started the finish on the neck and headstock


oiled up the fingerboard- Man, that wood feels great!

[martyb1]

Looks great Rich.That fretboard is awesome

[Rich Rice]

I cut in the control cavity, and made a walnut backplate.

[kreyzgym]

Amazing.
I'm not too fond of the joint on the headstock, but nothing can be done.

It's an amazing guitar so far!

I want to see more pictures of the body, though. Got any around?

[Rich Rice]

The flash just washes out some of the depth of color, it is a bit darker and richer in hand..

[martyb1]

WOW

[Edutainment]

I have to say, I didn't expect it to look that good. I'm impressed.

[shoretyus]

How and when did you radius the fretboard?

[Rich Rice]

Originally Posted by shoretyus

How and when did you radius the fretboard?

I radiused the fingerboard after it had been glued on, before I fretted it. A 12" radiused sanding block, some 220 grit paper, and ten pounds of elbowgrease later, I was ready to fret it on up.