Galaga_Mike Posted November 11, 2012 Report Share Posted November 11, 2012 Here is the plan for my fourth build. My goal on this one is to be clean and precise. My biggest downfall is rushing through steps and calling it "good enough", so I plan to work on that. - PRS shape with slight modifications - Chambered mahogany body with maple cap - Maple neck, fingerboard wood TBD - 25.5" scale length - Bolt on neck (might become a set neck) - Bigsby with roller bridge - Zero fret - Neck angle, scarfed headstock joint - Filtertron pickups Finish is still under debate. My last two guitars have been TruOil, but I'm tempted to try a stain with clear coat. I don't have a gun or any real painting supplies, so I'll need to research the clear coat before committing. Here's the sketch: And here's a shot of the wood: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Galaga_Mike Posted November 11, 2012 Author Report Share Posted November 11, 2012 Got the mahogany jointed and the back side planed with the router jig. This is the tightest joint I've ever done, thanks to a slab of granite used as a sanding block. I think I saw this idea on a forum somewhere, and it is indeed a fantastic way to get a flat joint surface. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
demonx Posted November 11, 2012 Report Share Posted November 11, 2012 My biggest downfall is rushing through steps and calling it "good enough", so I plan to work on that. There's an old saying, something about if you find yourself saying "it's good enough" then you should throw it out and start again! I know what you mean though. Most of my stuff ups are simply from rushing or not slowing down and doing something properly. It's a personality trait i'm still battling nearly every time I step in the workshop! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dpm99 Posted November 11, 2012 Report Share Posted November 11, 2012 You might try one of these: http://www.homedepot.com/buy/preval-9-oz-complete-spray-gun-267.html#.UJ-3PYc83Ak They were recommended to me by a local luthier that uses them a lot. Since they use compressed air,there's no condensation, you can put whatever you want in that little jar, and they do a pretty good job. You'd be better off with a nice Sata spray gun and a good compressor system, but short of that, I think this may be the way to go. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Galaga_Mike Posted November 14, 2012 Author Report Share Posted November 14, 2012 Still in what I consider the wood prep stage, nothing fun yet. I got the maple bookmatch started. FIrst I run the edges of the board through the tablesaw, then I cut the remaining wood with a handsaw. Not ideal, but it works in the absence of a giant bandsaw. and I got the joint prepped for gluing using a block plane and my granite sanding block: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Galaga_Mike Posted November 16, 2012 Author Report Share Posted November 16, 2012 Got the maple bookmatched and finished making the body template. So far no big surprises. Next step is to chamber out and shape the mahogany. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Galaga_Mike Posted November 18, 2012 Author Report Share Posted November 18, 2012 The mahogany is shaped. It did not go as smoothly as I had hoped. I had one small bit of tearout, but nothing too major. My bigger concerns were the burning near the horns and the "hair" at the ends of the grains. This is my first time working with mahogany, so my questions are: 1) Is burning the symptom of a dull bit, or a dull operator (am I going too slowly or possibly the wrong way?) 2) Is the fuzzy hair at the grain ends also due to a dull bit, or is this expected with mahogany? I never had this problem with maple or cherry. I see a lot of edge sanding in my future. Thanks in advance. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bob123 Posted November 18, 2012 Report Share Posted November 18, 2012 Tear out can be due to operator error, but dull bits never help that. With burning while cutting, that's usually indicative of the blade being dull. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Galaga_Mike Posted November 23, 2012 Author Report Share Posted November 23, 2012 Finally got a few minutes to get back to the guitar. Got the chambers routed out of the mahogany. Starting to do the planning for the neck. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Galaga_Mike Posted November 27, 2012 Author Report Share Posted November 27, 2012 Started the neck tonight. Got the scarf joint rough cut on the bandsaw. The rough cut was so good that I just sanded the joint flat. The dry fit looks like a very good fit. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
killemall8 Posted December 1, 2012 Report Share Posted December 1, 2012 Shoulda done the scarf the opposite way, so you dont have a glue joint in the middle of the headstock. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
maull Posted December 1, 2012 Report Share Posted December 1, 2012 Shoulda done the scarf the opposite way, so you dont have a glue joint in the middle of the headstock. Good point, but if he does a laminate on the headstock it will hide it for the most part. . . . Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Galaga_Mike Posted December 2, 2012 Author Report Share Posted December 2, 2012 Yeah, I plan to laminate the headstock. The benefit of this way is that I only have to replane the headstock face instead of the entire fretboard area if my scarf joint slips by a little bit. Planing is one of my weak points, so I try to avoid that if possible. Anyway, I'll need wings glued on for the headstock and I'd like to cover those up, too. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Galaga_Mike Posted December 2, 2012 Author Report Share Posted December 2, 2012 Only a little progress here. Glued up the scarf joint and have been spending most of my guitar time planning the pot mounting and f-hole cutting. This leads to a question. I'm having trouble figuring out the best way to cut the f-holes in the maple. I like the size of them, but my smallest pattern bit (1/4") won't fit in parts of the hole. The options as I see it are: 1) Make the f-holes bigger so I can make a template and fit a pattern bit in there. 2) Cut them "freehand" with a jigsaw, clean up with files. 3) Cut them "freehand" with a coping saw, clean up with files. Any suggestions? I really like to use templates for everything, but I also like the size of these f-holes. How do other people cut these? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ScottR Posted December 3, 2012 Report Share Posted December 3, 2012 Those that can usually use a scroll saw, the rest usually resort to options 2 and 3. One can also hog out the bulk of the area with forstner bits and clean up with a file. SR Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pauliemc Posted December 3, 2012 Report Share Posted December 3, 2012 I use option 3. If I had a decent scroll saw id use that. But the coping saw works fine, just make sure its a good blade. I was taught to always use it so that the down stroke cuts, you would be amazed at how many people I see with it cutting on the push stroke Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Galaga_Mike Posted December 10, 2012 Author Report Share Posted December 10, 2012 Fret slots sawed. Used the table saw to put a slot for a fender style nut to align the strings on the zero fret. I'm also practicing f-holes. I'm glad I did, because they are looking pretty rough. Hopefully I'll be ready for the real thing after a couple more trials. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Galaga_Mike Posted December 12, 2012 Author Report Share Posted December 12, 2012 Made some progress tonight. I got the maple top planed with my router jig and cut the F-holes. I ended up using Forstner bits for the ends then very carefully using a scroll saw. I still need to do some detail sanding on the inside walls, but I'm very happy with the results and glad to be done with that part. Extra bonus: taking these flash photos has shown me that this maple has a decent figure to it. I thought it was very plain until now. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Galaga_Mike Posted December 16, 2012 Author Report Share Posted December 16, 2012 I always liked those grain matched cavity covers that people do, so I bought a scroll saw off of craigslist and went to work. I cut the initial slot with a MultiMax (one of those vibrating plunge saws). I got a few burn marks from the scroll saw blade, but with a little sanding I think it will be good. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Galaga_Mike Posted January 9, 2013 Author Report Share Posted January 9, 2013 Finally made a little more progress. Spent way too long making an insert for the cavity cover and embedding magnets. Glued the top on tonight. I'm worried that I didn't put on enough glue, but we'll find out soon. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Galaga_Mike Posted January 19, 2013 Author Report Share Posted January 19, 2013 It took a really long time to figure out a safe jig for routing the truss rod slot. Finally got something that worked. Also got the headstock ears and veneer put on. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Galaga_Mike Posted January 20, 2013 Author Report Share Posted January 20, 2013 Headstock thinned down and shaped. I made the headstock slightly too thin, so I may need to put an extra washer on the tuners. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Galaga_Mike Posted January 26, 2013 Author Report Share Posted January 26, 2013 Glued the fretboard on today and also sanded the sides of the body with my new sanding drums. Love it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Galaga_Mike Posted February 9, 2013 Author Report Share Posted February 9, 2013 Fretboard radiused. I always worry about the sanding block rotating so I set up a little guide with 2x4's. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Galaga_Mike Posted February 10, 2013 Author Report Share Posted February 10, 2013 Got the frets pressed. This was my first experience pressing instead of hammering. I'm sold, it went very smoothly. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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