Setch Posted April 16, 2006 Report Share Posted April 16, 2006 For several months now, I've been working on my first commission, a variation on a LPDC design, based on my third guitar. Top is euro' Sycamore with nice flame and slightly variagated colour, body is ribbon striped african mahogany, and the neck is 3 piece Pau Ferro (AKA Morado/Santos RW) with curly maple accent lines, EIRW fretboard and Madagascar RW headveneer and heelcap. Wenge binding with curly maple and pau ferro purfling throughout, Madagascar RW butt wedge, wenge pickups rings, Wenge/maple/Pau ferro backstrip and grain matched cavity covers cut from the body blank. Hipshot contour tremolo, Grover Sta-Tite open tuners and Swineshead Condor pickups (RW bobbins). The body is extensively chambered, and the top carved front and back to maximise acoustic volume, I've been posting my progress on my blog as I go (address at the bottom of my posts). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
marksound Posted April 16, 2006 Report Share Posted April 16, 2006 That's beautiful. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WezV Posted April 16, 2006 Report Share Posted April 16, 2006 That looks reaaly nice!! How do you like the swineshead pickups, i've had a few sets and been very happy but i havnt tried the condors yet. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Setch Posted April 16, 2006 Author Report Share Posted April 16, 2006 No idea what the swinesheads sound like yet - I haven't installed the bridge or tuners yet, or wired her up. The construction looks very nice, good attention to detail. I also like the lack of 'ears' sticking out the back of the baseplate. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Maurits Posted April 16, 2006 Report Share Posted April 16, 2006 Setch, it looks great as usual (absolutely love that neck), but I was wondering how you were planning to wire this beauty? Thanks, Maurits Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ben Posted April 16, 2006 Report Share Posted April 16, 2006 I like the thin veneer lines on the neck. Looks classy. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stolysmaster Posted April 16, 2006 Report Share Posted April 16, 2006 Very, very classy! A beautiful guitar with superb attention to the fine details. Interesting to see how people have different ways of carving tops. I like your method of using the router in concentric levels. Does it take a lot of practice to be able to do that without screwing up? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ben Posted April 16, 2006 Report Share Posted April 16, 2006 (edited) Also, whats the "thinned plastic coating." you say you put on the neck? Or is it a secret... Edit: Or maybe its just thinned laquer... Edit #2: Or maybe its thinned Rustin’s Plastic coating, which you mention further down in your blog... Did I answer my own question? Edited April 16, 2006 by Ben Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
custom22 Posted April 16, 2006 Report Share Posted April 16, 2006 Simply beautiful. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
erikbojerik Posted April 17, 2006 Report Share Posted April 17, 2006 Looking very nice Setch. I really like the "acoustic" style appointments. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Daniel Sorbera Posted April 17, 2006 Report Share Posted April 17, 2006 Very nice. Hows that wenge binding treating you? I'd think it would be hard to work with binding that had such big pores. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Setch Posted April 17, 2006 Author Report Share Posted April 17, 2006 OK - Apologies in advance if I miss any questions Wiring: I'm going with master volume w.pull pot to coilcut the pickups, a stereo pan pot to blend/select pickups, and a Big-D varitone. I've used the pan pot before, and I really like it. The router steps for carving the top: Doesn't take any practice - I use a jig which registers off the side of the guitar body. I adjust the cutter a step deeper, and a touch close to the edge for each pass, and then run the body against a guide to remove an even 'step'. The neck finish: As you guessed, it's just Plastic coating thinned 50% and wiped on with a cloth, then wiped off after a few minutes. Pops the grain and seals the wood without being clammy or sticky like a high gloss finish can be. The wenge binding: Yes, the pores are satanic. I used epoxy to grain fill, and then *lots* of drop fill during finishing to fill any pores which became evident as I progressed. File under PITA. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mynamesucks Posted April 17, 2006 Report Share Posted April 17, 2006 im really digging the smooth lines and clean work, i like the 12 fret inlays i have the two outers ones on my acoustic cant wait to see this thing done. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
redwhiteandthemaple Posted April 17, 2006 Report Share Posted April 17, 2006 That pic looks very artistic Do you always carve using (finger) planers?? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Daniel Sorbera Posted April 18, 2006 Report Share Posted April 18, 2006 the pores are satanic. I used epoxy to grain fill, and then *lots* of drop fill during finishing to fill any pores which became evident as I progressed. File under PITA. That mirrors my experience with using it as a body wood. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Setch Posted April 23, 2006 Author Report Share Posted April 23, 2006 Well, she's all finished and has flown the coop. I handed her over to the new owner this afternoon. He's extremely happy with his new guitar, and had plenty of praise for the looks, action and easy playability - I'm very satisfied! More pics on my blog - the thumbnails below give a good overall view, and I've included my favorite closeup, which shows a lot of the detail work, including the wenge/maple/pau ferro binding, the neck purfling, the wenge pickup rings, and the RW topped swineshead pickups. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
scottyd Posted April 23, 2006 Report Share Posted April 23, 2006 Wow! very nice. i love the purfling and binding, GOTM for sure Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
yahilltrade Posted April 24, 2006 Report Share Posted April 24, 2006 BEAUTIFUL! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GregP Posted April 24, 2006 Report Share Posted April 24, 2006 Awesome. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Maiden69 Posted April 24, 2006 Report Share Posted April 24, 2006 Very nice! Like many of your guitars, outstanding work! nice touch on the neck laminates! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
orgmorg Posted April 24, 2006 Report Share Posted April 24, 2006 Absolutely the nicest wooden bobbin cover and mounting rings I have seen! Too often these features look a bit wonky to me for some reason, but you have really nailed it here. Partly because of the choice of woods, but mostly by sheer precision. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ben Posted April 25, 2006 Report Share Posted April 25, 2006 That looks fantastic! I think the pickups come like that, but I totally agree with the comment about the wooden pickup rings, they look fantastic! It looks completely flawless. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Setch Posted April 25, 2006 Author Report Share Posted April 25, 2006 Yep - the pup's are exactly as delivered by Swineshead. You can choose from a pretty good selection of woods on their website. Their products are very carefully put together, and I liked the sound too. The condors were a touch brighter than I would go for, but they were being used with 10's and a tremolo - they sounded great when I tried 11's ,and I think they'd be great with a hardtail bridge. I also mailed them and enquired about their making bobbins tops from customer supplied wood - they said it's perfectly possible since they make all their own bobbins to order. When I get round to using the ziricote I got from fryovani, I'll be sending them some offcuts to get macthed pickups - sweet! Thanks for all the positive feedback guys The pickup rings were cut on my benchtop milling machine - a new toy my dad got for some light metal milling operations. We converted it to belt drive (after some aggressive flycutting stripped a few teeth of the plastic gear chain!) which upped the speed, and it is a pretty serviceable overhead router for small parts. The rings were cut from flatsawn stock, and I found the flatsawn figure on the top of the rings a bit busy, so I capped them with quartered veneer to match the binding. The small roundover on the edges of the rings makes the joint invisible - smart trick getting wood which is quartersawn on 3 faces Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mattia Posted April 25, 2006 Report Share Posted April 25, 2006 Beautiful, beautiful guitar. Classic, great design touches, clean workmanship, and overall pretty subdued, not too OTT. I like lots. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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