avengers63

I've read/heard that cherry makes a dang nice guitar. As for how it is to work with - there's a reason woodworkers like to use it.

I have a fan. Seriously, though, I told you in a PM where I get most of my wood. It all comes in dang rough, but I've only had 2 pieces that weren't up to par out of probably 30. One of them warped after it was planed, so that wasn't any fault of his and could have happened with any seller. So in reality, 1:30 isn't bad at all. AND I don't pay market price for it including shipping (most of the time). The selection is kinda limited, but at this point, I'm OK with it. Oh... which did you mean looked good in that shape: the limba-topped LPjr or the mahogany/maple stringer PRS? Two Bodies I got the control cavities and pup routes hogged out last night and this afternoon. No pics. I wouldn't even have posted an update, but since I'm here answering killemall anyway...

Thanks! Make the template 1) Trace the outline of the control plate on template stock (plywood). 2) CLOSELY cut them out. 3) Double-stick tape the original to the template. 4) Clamp down a cutoff piece that is as thick as (maybe just a little thicker) than the originals to the table of the drill press. The edge will line up EXACTLY with the edge of the drum sander. This will take some trial & error. 5) Using the scrap you just lined up as a fence, the original becomes the template. Sand the plywood template down to size. Even if you're a little off with the original and the makeshift fence, you'll have an exact shape on the new template. When it came time to to the real thing with the template that was just made, 1-3 are basically the same. At #4, I used the micro-plane spindle thingies I have for the drill press. They have a plastic base that guides along a template beautifully.

My main purpose in thinking about the biscuit joiner for alignment purposes. As I stated in the initial post, the wider body blanks won't fit through my planer. I'm figuring a biscuit joiner would help with keeping the face & back of the blank level. Strengthening the joint was a secondary concern. FWIW: I'll eventually be getting one anyway for other woodworking projects. If I can make use of it here, all the better.

I was just hasslin' ya.

As if your ego needed stroking.

Which is proof (to me) that he's not really from New Mexico. Nothing grows in New Mexico but cactus and pissed-off Indians.

If you bought "Meguiars", then you did the right thing. You can rub out a pretty nice shine with that after all the wetsanding is done.

Also, when you start the hole, run the drill slowly in reverse to get through the finish. This will reduce the possibility of burning AND chipping the clear.

Is there any particular reason we don't use a biscuit joiner when we're gluing up body blanks? Granted, the bodies don't really need the extra strength, but it'd certainly make the glue-up a lot easier. AND... it you're like me and only have a 13" wide planer, those extra-wide bodies (ES335-ish, firebird, explorer, etc) would be a lot easier. Any thoughts?

You gotta put a sustainer in everything?

I got some limba backplates finished up. One of them will be going on the limba/mahogany LPjr I'm working on. The other two are for this LP.

Two Bodies I didn't get a whole lot done over the 3-day weekend. I was only able to spend about 4-6 hours total in the shop. I managed to get the two blanks all glued up, cut out, planed, template-routed, and drum-sanded. I prpbably own't be able to touch them again until Thursday or Friday. I'm kinda looking forward to getting back to it. I have 4 bodies that need some router attention. This is going to be quite a pile of wood shavings. It's a reas feeling of accomplishment knocking them out in rapid succession like that. Tulip & Re-Paint I'm really hoping that I can buff out these two this weekend. I'm tired of looking at them sit on my pool table/staging area.

What's helping me on sheer volume is that I'm mostly just making bodies, not whole guitars. I only have three axes I'm working on that will be finished, and one of them is a really low on the priority list. I've completed & sold 3 bodies, have another 2 that are in striking distance, and 2 that are in long-term planning. Add to that probably a dozen templates of bodies, routing guides, and cavity plates. To top it off, there's the re-painting project that was ticking me off for quite a while. Then there's other woodworking projects in various state of (un)finish: 2 intarsia plaques, 4 boxes, 5 picture frames, 2 sets of coasters, 7 crosses, and some shelves for my kid's wall. Huh. Looking at it all, I guess I have been doing quite a bit. No wonder I need a vacation.

I've thought about that one. My only thought is to do it on a pair of templates first, then do it on the real thing. I'm going to throw out a guess that they spend dozens of hours making everything perfect. Or they spend a lot of time on a CNC machine once, then make the same design at will.

Check the tutorials on the home page for one on how to remove the fretboard.

I'm with Mikro - paint it. It's purely cosmetic, so just camoflague it.

I'm surprised you remember me saying that. (trying hard to remember.....) I give up... Is the Mercados the market area? We took an afternoon trip into Cancun and spent a few hours (and a few hundred dollars each) at the venders shops. Some of the stuff was pretty decent, but the majority looked like the same low-end crap that someone else had across the street. Believe it or not, I really enjoied that little trip. EDIT: Just did a quick Google search... that was it. She picked up a number of interesting pieces of silver jewelery. I REALLY wanted a leather vest or a pair of boots, but it didn't happen. Not many 2X vests or size 13 boots in a country of.... well.... short people (sorry!)

Yea... I can't say that it's not a risk. On the other hand, the Karosa neck i have was around $40 shipped, and it's not bad at all. Don't you sell yours on eBay? That might be part of the problem. I'll be doing it locally where the buyer can get his hands on it. As we're all aware of, that's a big issue when buying an instrument. Also, we're coming up on the Christmas buyong season. Would that be Eden necks, by any chance? I've never heard negative reviews about Mighty Mite. The one other eBay neck I have was a grand total of $25 shipped. It was a no-name that was from something that was pieced out. I onyl got it because 1) it was dirt cheap, and 2) I wanted to try replacing the inlays. I havent been brave enough to try the inlay thing yet. The neck is straight, but the edges of the frets are a little sharp. I never checked on how level they are. I figure if they're anywhere even close to level, I can spend some time filing the ends of the frets while I'm watching a movie or something. Unless, of course, I dork up the whole thing trying to do an inlay with the frets in.

To go back off-topic, I think it might just be an old reality that's hard to overlook. The way I've read it (since I wasn't alive then to see it first hand), it USED to be that American made products were head & shoulders better than stuff that was outsourced to Mexico, Tiwan, Korea, India, or whatever (nothing personal!) low-income nation that was used. The companies that outsources were looking for a cheaper business model. The sacrifice for that was lower quality. It didn't take too long for "foreign made" to mean "piece of junk". The large scale importation of cheaply made (NOT poorly manufactured) Japanese products, combined with the lower production models and the assumed quality of American products, has slowly changed the attitude of many consumers. But it's an uphill battle against decades of reality and continued propaganda. There is also a sense of bitter annoyance assiciated with outsourcing. We seem to want to have out cake and eat it too. We don't want anything outsources because that takes jobs away from Americans. At the same time, we want the products to stay at the same price, despite the fact that Americans can't work for the same wage as foreign labor. That's helping keep the sometimes false impression that foreign made = junk. Interestingly, I don't ever remember seeing the same attitude towards European made products. Quite the opposite, in fact. EG: We've always held German made products in very high esteem. Good luck with the finances.

One excuse is as good as the next. Basically, I just don't want to. Thanks, but I didn't have a lot to do with it. It kinda grew that way. It's heavy, dense, and a kinda brittle. It ate a bandsaw blade outright. Granted, it was the cheap blade that came with the saw, but still... It had a tendency to chip out in the planer. Even on the jointer, the edges could get nicked. It took a but to sand down, too. All of the little nicks and "raised-up-almost-chipouts" are a few sheets of 80-grit. Lastly, due to the small divots and being open grained, it took 2 rounds of grain-filler and 2 thick coats of sanding sealer to fill it. I'm still not sure I have everything filled up, but I'll let the lacquer show me where I missed it. How is it to work with? It's a PIA, that's how it is. But it does look good when it's done.

You can get Epiphone and Squire necks at a pretty reasonable price. Now go ahead... I dare you to say you have an issue with MEXICAN made Fender necks.

I don't have anything of my own to add here yet, but I gotta say that that dragon face is great!

http://stores.ebay.com/karosaguitars http://stores.ebay.com/CKO-Guitar-Parts I have a Karosa neck. It's mated with the Tulip. It seems pretty well-made. I'm not 100% sold on his home-made truss rods, but if he can make them for less than he can buy them for and they work, then I guess it's all good. I admit that I'm taking a risk on the LP neck from CKO. I'm sure they're from a Chinese sweat-shop CNC factory. But... I've been seeing acceptable reviews about the Chinese stuff lately. I've played a few Chinese guitars at the shop across from my neighborhood, and they're not bad. They're not up to Japanese quality, but they're at least as good as an Epiphone or Squire. I've seen some good reports about Eden, too. Their shakey start and horrible reviews from then make me hesitant to check one out. Before we go any further, let's clarify something. I'm not making this to be some kind of high-end instrument. I'll be trying to sell it locally for about $400. I only want to have +/- $200 invested in it. That's one reason I'm not spending a lot on the neck - I only need it to be servicable and playable. As long as the neck is straight and the fretwork is decent, I'll be happy. Tell ya what - I'll take some detailed pics of it when it comes in, side by side with the Carvin and the Karosa, and I'll post them in this thread with a detailed write-up about all three.

It's cool. I only got one thing to say about that - eBay. Y'all can hate it all you want, but I've rarely been disappointed with what I bought there. Now, I shall put on my asbestos tuxedo, cuz I can see the flames coming at me even as I type this. Nope, and I don't plan on it. Nothing about it appeals to me. He's waaaaaay out of my price range. Were I to go that route, I'd get a Carvin. $150 for a maple/ebony paddle-head with Carvin's outstanding Q/C is pretty good. Larry Karosa (eBay seller) makes a decent neck too.