How to use standard 2" nominal lumber for body build?

[Michael A.]

I found a beautifully grained pine bench that had been in a garage for decades. It is unfinished 2x12" nominal, so I assume was lumber yard wood originally. I have about 3' of this board.

I'd like to try scratch building a Tele body from that. There is a slight cup to the boards, so I'll have to plane them. This will leave them less than the target thickness of 1.75". How does one deal with that? I don't really want a Tele that is Squier thickness. I don't have the ability to resaw the lumber and insert a spacer to restore the thickness.

Since the plank width is insufficient for a one piece body, is it generally better to use the 12" wide piece in the center of the body, with "wings" on each side of narrow pieces selected to give the best grain match?

Any links to threads where these issues are discussed is welcome!

Thanks in advance.

 

[ghostchord]

I built a thinner guitar (Not quite a tele but some elements from a Tele) from dumpster construction lumber (2x8's). You can definitely go thinner than 1.75". Fitting some of the components might be finicky or you might need to pick some special parts (e.g. the pickup selector switch) but it can be done.

Another option is to put a top on it. I might do this on my next one whenever that happens (I still got some 2x8's ).

My personal preference would be not to do wings simply because it's more pieces to glue up, plane/joint and match. The line is almost certainly going to show (not on top if you have a top) so you'll want to figure out the aesthetics of that. Possibly with a Tele style guitar having the line right around the control plate (e.g. center or top or bottom) might be visually interesting.

Go for it, have fun, and post lots of photos!

 

[guitarbuilder]

I'm building a guitar right now with a laminated cutting board style 1.5" thick base with about a .100 thick top on it. The switch is the part that would require a minimal cavity depth. I am using a 3 way toggle for SG's guitars which are thinner than a tele.

The problem of using a wide board and adding wings is that you see the glue joint on the sides in the curves. The change in color and grain direction can be yucky to look at.
I would opt for a 2 or 3 piece body with parts wide enough to eliminate that issue.

If you can get access to woodworking machines like a jointer and planer, I'd opt to put together a full thickness body if that's what you want.

 

[edvard]

Top it with something thinner, or put something boring on the back if you want to show the pine grain. Pallet slats are perfect. I think you can go down to 1-5/8 or so before you start noticing the thickness. I've played 1-1/2" thick guitars (mostly '60s/'70s unbranded Japanese guitars); don't like 'em...

 

[DrASATele]

1.65 is what Leo last used at G&L, their marketing team now calls it "original Spec" the point being that you have some wiggle room. Even some of the original Tele bodies were less than 1.75 as most of the work was done by people so each body could potentially be anywhere from1.65 to 1.80... A big belt sander can take quite a bit off a body blank in just a few seconds, even back then. Just pay close attention to the switches and needs for the various cavities. Some switches will fit a 1.5 body thickness no problem but others need that extra .10 of space. Point: have your parts handy they can help you determine if you have enough wood for the body.

 

[Peegoo]

In addition to all the good info above:

Your only limitation on the thickness of the body is the depth of your deepest component (Pickups? Switch?). Start there and size the plank accordingly.

If you use a control plate to mount the controls on the guitar, you can go thinner than rear-loaded controls because they require a minimum of about 3/16" thickness of wood to mount them. This is for a hardwood face; softer woods need more thickness for the controls.

I've gone as thin as 1.5" and it worked fine. I've also gone thick--almost 3"--on chambered bodies.

 

[Ronkirn]

This will leave them less than the target thickness of 1.75". How does one deal with that?

By not thinking about it.... Do it like Leo did in the 50's.. He had the wood planed until it was flat enough to make a guitar...

If you have access to Nacho's Book, the Blackguard.. he lists specs on many Blackguards... the thicknesses are all over the place, with 1 ⅝ being about average..

Get back out to the shop and rock that momma, we all wanna see it.

Ron

 

[Pete McC]

Just my 2c worth, why not make it a feature? leave the back with the curve for comfort and call it 'design'? or use it on the front as a kind of arch top... Make something unique out of it.
I would use the widest part in the centre and add wings to continue the shape, even angle the join slightly so the curved profile follows through.

 

[Jim_in_PA]

If you plan on a paint finish, rip the board with the grain down the middle, flatten and then reassemble it. That will take off less material while you flatten it so you can hopefully maintain the requisite 1.75"/46mm of thickness.

 

[schmee]

Are you sure you'll lose 1/4" planing them? That would be a ton! If the boards are that bad, I wouldnt use them. Or is it 1/4" in the 3 ft length. When you cut that down it will be 1/8" out and should clean up to 1/75.
So a tele body is what... 16" long.. losing 1/4" in 16" is a lot!

But I oike the idea of making it a "feature" let the curve be concave on the player's body side.

 

[Michael A.]

Thanks for all the superb responses and suggestions. I'll be giving all of these serious consideration.

The plank is actually 1 5/8" thick, or as best as I can measure until I get a battery for the digital caliper. Here are a few pix so you can see exactly what I'm going to be working with. The second pic is the side I want to use for the front due to the prevalence of the tight grain pattern. The third pic was to try to show the amount of cup. I may have to redo that pic, but in light of the suggestions to leave the back side concave, then I could ignore that. The wood is only 34" long.

Any other comments are welcome! Thanks again to all.

 

[TenaciousP]

I’m pretty sure early pine bodied Esquires were only 1.5” thick. I believe there used the same type of 3 way switch as the broadcaster/tele. So I think that would be sufficient body thickness.

 

[peterg]

What does the end grain across the whole board look like? I would rip the board to get a 6 1/2” or 7” wide piece then cut it in half and join them. Getting rid of the most concentric part of the board is ideal. You would end up with a 13” or 14” wide by 17” long blank.

 

[guitarbuilder]

body cavity depth required for crl switch.....1-3/8"

Stewart-MacDonald (stewmac.com)

 

[Michael A.]

What does the end grain across the whole board look like? I would rip the board to get a 6 1/2” or 7” wide piece then cut it in half and join them. Getting rid of the most concentric part of the board is ideal. You would end up with a 13” or 14” wide by 17” long blank.

Thanks for the reply. Here is a shot of the full width of the board. I think you may be right about ripping as wide a board as I can to preserve the tight grain lines and then join to make a 2-piece blank.

 

[DavidV]

The big box stores sell 1/4" thick boards that I use for dimensional lumber builds. Poplar if it's getting painted a solid color. Menards has mahogany and alder if you want it natural. Binding covers the transition if you need it to.

1.5" is just enough thickness to fit all of the electronics if you use a standard pickguard and control plate though.