Just Design Work Right Now...

[Hippo]

Been working on this off and on throughout today:

I'd like to build a fretless using this body (or a similar one) as soon as I've planned everything out. Still not sure if I like it - going to do a cardboard cutout or something similar to give me a better idea of how well it would work. Please ignore the neck/headstock for now; they're just placeholders.

Any comments on the design would be great (the spacing between the neck and the bottom "thumb" are kinda worrying me..). Also, if anyone has tips specific to building a fretless, I'm all ears

[Jon]

Cut it out and see how the spacing looks in person. Personally, the waist of the guitar looks a bit too small and may not be comfortable for your play style. The horns may not be the greatest idea for a body without a top, the grain could be a bit dangerous on the parts that point towards the neck, it would be very easy to break those points.

[Hippo]

Yeah, now that I look at it the waist is pretty small. I think I'll put a top on it, just using some generic wood texture I found with Google for now; sorry about that. I see what you mean about the horns; I should probably either thicken them or get rid of that drastic a curve.. they definitely look brittle now that I think about it. X_X Thanks for the suggestions

[travismoore]

Have you thought about top heavyness?

might want to look at that maybe its just me but it looks alot more weighty at the headstock

[jmrentis]

I' ve been searching for some pics of an idea that might help with the horns in this situation, but I cannot find them. Anyhow, I will try to explain, but I doubt it will make any sense. Anyhow, the end of the horns, the parts that point in, could be further folded or curled in to the point they are connected on the inside of the horn. Ok, as I said you probably don't get it because I cannot explain it, so try this. Hold up your left hand and mimic the shape of the the horn. Now basically fold your hand closed or curl it closed, and this is basically what I was thinking. You'll see that type of horn on other types of stringed instruments and maybe you could come up with a never cooler version for guitars. Anyhow, if I come across a pic of what I am talking about I will post it, I doubt what I posted was clear enough to get a visual of what I am getting at. Anyhow, best of luck on your build. J

[GregP]

I guess I'll be the a-hole:

There's very little to commend this design. It has flaws in almost every conceivable area, except one: it's original. And to me, original is only as good as the execution, and I'm afraid that you won't be able to execute this without some serious consideration. Here's some food for thought:

- The horns, as mentioned, are problematic in terms of stability. Also, they'll be hard to actually shape-- where there's a will there's a way, but it won't be easy (take a scrap piece of wood and try shaping just one "horn-like" piece). Also, there's not enough clearance in the upper frets. Your hand is going to bump into them and you're not going to be able to play properly. In addition to the horns being plain ol' thin and weird and curly, they're just too 'extended' compared to the body, creating a weird imbalance.

- The body is extremely small. I'm a big fan of small bodies (incl. the Steinberger GL-type guitars-- y'know, the "brooms", as well as Johnny Winter's Laser), but their design goals are completely suited to the small size. For example, neither of those guitars have horns. The Steinberger Synapse has an extendable doodad for the strap, but it's straight, not meant to be integral with the look of the body, and stays out of the way. It's probably not going to sit very well on the lap and it'll probably feel weird because there's nowhere for your forearm to rest. That's like a Steinberger, too, so you wouldn't be the first-- but since your guitar's shape seems to at least "want" to be a standard guitar shape, it's something to seriously think about. Unless your entire design goal is to make a very compact guitar, you need to revisit the shape and size.

- You MIGHT have room for the electronics-- but it'll take some planning. You seem to have rounded edges, and even compact guitars like the Steinbergers are rectangular so that cavities can be realistically put in there. You only have 2 close-together knobs; I'm guessing, 1 volume for each pickup. I think you actually COULD get it to work, but it'd be fiddly, and without at least a switch you're working with a bit of a bear: each time you want to use JUST the neck or JUST the bridge, you have to twist two knobs.

- And my honest opinion: it just looks bad... there's nothing appealing about it aesthetically... (to me).

---

I don't mean any of the above to discourage you. Rather, the opposite. I think it's time to take a look from the ground up and tackle it with renewed enthusiasm and dedication! You yourself said you're not sure you like it, so perhaps it's time to try another design attempt. Take into consideration everything-- your materials, the size, the feasibility of certain features (the horn), creating a balance.... while at the same time perhaps holding onto some of the design characteristics that originally inspired you.

[biliousfrog]

thank god for that, now that Greg's shown himself for the nasty piece of work he is I can agree whole heartedly with everything he's said

Good on you for trying something different but personally I find it really ugly. If you're not sure about the design, try something else completely different. Don't attempt to tweak that one because you'll just go round in circles, try several ideas & you'll eventually settle on something that's workable & pleasing on the eye. List the functions that you require & the various measurements that are needed & then work on the pretty stuff around those constraints.

[Hippo]

Alright, after being ripped a new one () more than once, I decided to redo the body of the guitar, and then redid a bunch of the other parts. Headstock is taken from a Fender Squier; I think I'll design my own a bit later. I might change all of the hardware to black, but maybe make some/all of it chrome; undecided about that. I might alter the body somewhat (it looks a bit thin to me), but for the most part I'm pretty happy with it.

Oh yeah, I forgot a pickup selector. Anyway, any comments on design/colors/etc are definitely welcome... after looking at my previous design, I can't help but wonder what I was thinking Hopefully things will be a bit better with this one.

Edited July 10, 2007 by Hippo

[tim_ado]

yeah much better although personally i would like a lower horn to be shorter but hey ur guitar

[RGman]

Definitely an improvement, but I'm agreeing with Tim about the horn.

As long as you like the guitar your building, thats the main thing!

Edited July 10, 2007 by RGman

[TheIRS]

much better! I like this design now, flows better, looks more appealing to the eyes and way more practical. I'd beef up the upper horn and like the others have said, shorten the lower one. Other than that stuff, great design!

[GregP]

The waist is a little bit "forward" compared to most typical guitars, but to me that's not necessarily a bad thing-- just keep it in mind, and maybe make a cardboard mock-up to see if it'll "sit" on your lap in a way that you like.

In addition to the suggestions about the horns, I would at least -consider- the lower bout(s), which are only about the same width at the widest point as the width of the cutaways at the widest point. They're perhaps even a bit narrower. There's no real rule for that, though, it's just something than an eye catches, having seen hundreds of different kinds of bodies.

Overall, it's a good direction. It looks like you're using a vector draw program for the body, no? Spend some time with the bezier curves and you'll eventually end up with something that fits your general design while flowing a little bit more elegantly. I'm sure you'll get there!

Greg