David C
Tele-Holic
This is really interesting. I enjoying watching the progress, which seems to be a lot faster than I expected. I also notice you must have a ton of tools just hanging about in your 3,000 square foot workshop.
Always wanted a J200
- Thread starter 1bad914
- Start date
Lol, my shop is maybe 10x20, I am very efficient with my storage. I hang what I can and have places I store the big stuff the size is a challenge sometimes. The shop is in my basement, closed in with heavy plastic. Keeps the dust enclosed. Not sure what I would do with a 3000 sq ft shop. Play tennis! Lol
crazydave911
Doctor of Teleocity
Not WRC, but I have built Southern Red Cedar. The tiger stripe red with white stripes. It is soft but very strong. As is generally known, I do not use trussrods per sey and have not had any problems of note
Ahh I see. What you may or may not know is there were many mustache bridges. The first and the current one being the best. The first had individual bridge pieces for each string (intonated) and only glued on and very good tone. The bridges and guitars got progressively worse under Norlin. Heavier bracing and up to 3/8" bridge plates to keep warranty claims down and THEN Gibson's predilection for using two absolutely useless bolts under the two pearl dots. The absolute best and worst sounding Gibson flattops I've ever heard were Gibson J50s and J200s. I made careful note of the good ones and repaired the bad ones accordingly
I was curious what the actual size of my shop is. 17x8.5 feet. In that I have a ROSS, belt/disc sander, bandsaw, drill press, chop saw, table saw, 4.5 inch planer, large tool box, main bench and a portable bench/router table. Plus 3 acoustic forms and the bending forms for them, plus the bender itself. Lol. I really don’t feel cramped either. I do store all my other jigs and templates on a shelf outside my shop. I guess I high jacked my own thread.
I tape the two sides together and cut them at the same time. Helps keep them even. They are cut just proud of the line. I then spritz one side on both sides. I had previously marked the waist. I then wrap the side in parchment paper, making sure to transfer the waist mark onto the paper, then wrap it in tinfoil also transferring the mark. Then place that on one side of the steel sheet, then the heat blanket on top of that then the last piece of steel. I clamp it all together and lay it on the bender, making sure the mark is centered on the waist area in the bender. I install the thermostat lead as close to the waist as I can. I plug it in and wait until it gets to the temp I want, in this case to about 220 degrees. I then start bending the waist very slowly. Once it is just about down I slowly bend the shoulders and then hips. I then crank the waist all the way down. This helps take any slack out. As I am doing this the temp is rising to about 250. I let it stew a few minutes and then shut it off. I let it sit in the bender over night. I could take it out and put it in the form, but have had less spring back letting it totally cool before removing.
Once you get past the “mystery “ it is just a wood project.
Sorry, I cannot imagine something like this being just "a wood project". I hope to grow my skills one day for that when I have the time to focus on it. However, seeing stuff like what you are doing, Freeman has done, simply impresses the heck out of me. So it may be a wood project but you obviously have a boat load of experience and skills in my mind. I appreciate you sharing the journey through this project.
Skyhook
Tele-Afflicted
Thank you for the kind words. I don’t mean to minimize it, if you think about it building a house is just a wood project, but I would not do it. I meant to portray that anyone can do this. It just takes patience, persistence, and a little bit of fearlessness. I was lucky enough to find a local retired wood shop teacher, that builds guitars as a hobby (plus builds houses in the summer), about 4 miles from my house. He mentored me on the “mystery’s” of building my first acoustic. That was about 4 years ago. He tells me now that the student has exceeded the teacher. Lol He barely builds any guitars now. My point is that you can do this, study, watch videos, ask the many skilled builders on this forum any questions, most will answer. The one thing that most builders should want to do is pass on knowledge of working with your hands.
Not all things go as planned. I removed the side from the bender this morning to find that it was scorched. A big spot on the lower bout is scorched on both sides. I think it went all the way through. I guess it is a new way to torrify wood. Sigh. I bent the other side using the same process, accept I pulled it out after it cool to room temps. No problems, a clean bend with no scorch. They are both in the forms as I cool down. I did do a little sanding on the scorch, it did not touch it. Looks like it may be a painted J-200. The pic is just the inside edge as it protrudes from the form.
I did think about it and the only thing I can think of is that thermostat lead may have been in a bad spot. It was fluctuating a bit. So I may have baked it longer at a high temp but did not know due to incorrect temp measurement.
Freeman Keller
Poster Extraordinaire
Two things. I went back and reread your bending post. It sounds like you have the blanket inside the steel sheets - I was taught that it goes on the outside. My sandwich is steel, dampened kraft paper, wood, dampened kraft paper, steel, blanket.
Also I was instructed to bend at considerably higher temperature than you are using (possibly necessary because the blanket is on the outside). I start with the bouts at about (say that ten times) 250F and by the time the waist comes down I'm at 350 where I let it cook. My thermometer is stuck between the blanket and top steel because I don't want it inside the sandwich.
That pretty much follows the instructions that I got from John Hall at Blues Creek Guitars where I got my bender a long time ago. Don't know if either is right or not but I've bent probably 20 or so sets of sides and lots of binding, only one split side (and I watched Charles Fox who invented the bender break a side once). I've only bent mahogany, rosewood and koa sides but I have done some figured maple binding.
edit to add, I have bent maple binding on a hot pipe and scorched it. I have no idea what temperature I'm bending at, a wet rag laying on the pipe is steaming.
Also I was instructed to bend at considerably higher temperature than you are using (possibly necessary because the blanket is on the outside). I start with the bouts at about (say that ten times) 250F and by the time the waist comes down I'm at 350 where I let it cook. My thermometer is stuck between the blanket and top steel because I don't want it inside the sandwich.
That pretty much follows the instructions that I got from John Hall at Blues Creek Guitars where I got my bender a long time ago. Don't know if either is right or not but I've bent probably 20 or so sets of sides and lots of binding, only one split side (and I watched Charles Fox who invented the bender break a side once). I've only bent mahogany, rosewood and koa sides but I have done some figured maple binding.
edit to add, I have bent maple binding on a hot pipe and scorched it. I have no idea what temperature I'm bending at, a wet rag laying on the pipe is steaming.
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I have done it both ways. Never had a break or scorching either way. I think I was getting incorrect temperature readings from my thermometer lead. I think they were low, well obviously the temp applied to the wood was much higher than the thermometer said. I had a feeling something was amiss, my shop is in the basement of our home, my wife texted me “are you burning wood down there?” Yep!! Oh well, tomorrow I check and see if I paint a guitar.
Freeman Keller
Poster Extraordinaire
Maple looks really good with a sunburst.....
Freeman Keller
Poster Extraordinaire
As I said before, maple looks good with a little 'burst
Freeman Keller
Poster Extraordinaire
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