GregP

Thanks for that. Off to find out what a spool clamp is. Edit: Just found'em... wouldn't you know that Google.ca shows the StewMac ones as the first hit? Greg

Thanks for the replies, folks. Much appreciated. Assuming I can get a good strong clamp using either direction (I'm sure I can... I have lots of clamps at my disposal), is there any compelling reason to choose one over the other? I'm leaning towards gap to the outside and clamping down. Thanks for the info about the edges, too. If 1.5" is overkill, I'm definitely interested in scaling that back. 0.5" still seems pretty thin, though; however, not having any experience in the matter whatsoever, it may be plenty. I'd be interested in hearing other opinions, otherwise I think I'll scale it back to 0.75", which is still a healthy improvement over what I was going to do. Greg

What a kick-ass axe, my friend!! Wonderful! I actually liked the pickup mounting... er... plate! I think the contrast and the break from standard pickup-mounting paradigm worked out for you. Nice idea for the cavity covers, too. Good on ya! Greg

Sweet! You're quite talented, LGM. Your work must fill your family with pride. Seriously, too, though. Greg

Cool, I actually really dig that tip. I'm going to give it a whirl for sure. Do you figure I should put it with the 'gap' around the edges, and slam'er down, or with the 'gap' in the middle? After chambering, there will be more gluing surface area along the middle than around the edges. (Like my artwork? <big grin>) Any feedback would be greatly appreciated, and I mean that sincerely... knowledge is not a cheap commodity to me.

Sweeet-looking carve!

3/4 sleeves!!! Now THAT'S class! Yippee! Greg

While I'm waiting for a comment on the carved top issue, I have another one: I'm chambering out as much of the body as possible, but I have some concerns-- If you recall, my maple is slightly cupped. I've decided that the glue should hold it in place just fine, as the cupping is very subtle, and has already been partially corrected by dry-clamping. I still want to make sure I have a strong glue job going on. So, *How much wood should I leave around the edges, as a gluing surface? Would 1" wide all the way around be enough? *Would I be better off gluing it so that the edges hold the top in place, or flip it over so that the edges are flush but the middle holds it all down and flat? I mean, I'll be gluing both the edges AND the middle, but I just need to figure out which will be more efficient for keeping the maple flat and secure *For the controls, I don't really need to 'back rout' the limba, do I? I could use the maple top for mounting the controls, and in that area just go all the way through the limba from front to bad, no? ------------------------------------------------------ I'm not sure if I'm being very clear, so I'll just explain what I WOULD do if I didn't have this forum, and you can feel free to jump in and tell me if you have a strong opinion to the contrary, as well as your reasoning: *Although I'd like to chamber out as much as possible, I'm not going to touch the middle at all, so there will be a solid hunk of wood going down the centre of the guitar, wide enough for the bridge and buckers. This will be partially for stability, but mainly because at least I know I won't be f---ing it up this way. *I will leave 1.5" around the edge, to give enough support for the glue when I attach the top. I'd like to leave less, but I'm not certain that I'll have enough surface area, since my wood is slightly cupped and I want a strong glue join *I will place the cupped maple (remembering it's only slightly cupped, barely detectable, so it's not like I'm trying to fix a full-on warp) so that it's touching at the sides, with the gap in the middle. When the wood is pressed down, I'll be counting on all that extra wood I've left in the middle to provide a strong gluing surface for keeping the maple in place. *Where the control cavity is, I will rout completely through the limba part of the body. The maple top will provide a flat mounting surface for the controls. Greg

Also, who says there has to be overhang? Go to the line for fret 22.. or 21... or whichever, and zzzzip, saw it off! Of course, if you have space for the overhang, you might as well keep it anyhow, but if you're worried it'll get in the way there's nothing wrong with just cutting off the excess. Greg

Nice! Er, that's about all I have to say for now!

It's tough to find a vocalist at that age. Lotsa girls would try out, I bet. If nothing else, you might be able to meet a few of them. <chuckle> Greg

Sweet baby JINGLES those are some big pictures. I'm on broadband and it STILL took a while to download. As for the back, I don't know one thing from another, but if it were ME, I would consider just doing one big-ass cover that covers the entire lower half of the back (or heck, even the whole back, just for aesthetics), more or less following the general outline of all the cavities. You could either countersink with some careful router work, or even just put it right over top and 'tolerate' the lip of the cover. That's just me. Greg

In the original, the entire thing is a bit too long and/or thin for my tastes. The modified one is a bit more to my tastes, too, but a bit of width (or a bit less length) would still make it even more to my tastes. All subjective, though. Greg

Pretty groovy stuff. Bang-on with the Southern Rock comparison. Going to look for a vocalist at all, or are you content to play instrumentally? Greg

Indeed... nice! I see the dual curse/blessing of the purpleheart continues. How many victims will it claim before it's through, I wonder? Greg

That thing is sick, but in a good way for a change! Most overblown stuff leaves me cold, but this is over-the-top in a way that somehow turned out successfully IMO. The angels, I could do without, but props to the craftsman. Greg

Hey, I really like that! Mind you, I like the original one on the left (#1) still, too. Greg

Historically, and according to the all-encompassing statistical source known as "I'm pulling this out of my ass", Medium people would get Large "just to be safe". But now that tighter-fitting t-shirts are more in style again, the same people might take the Medium instead, thinking, "Well, if it's a bit too small it'll still be cool". That's just what I think, from scanning current fashion trends. That said, Large will always be your biggest seller. The graphic had better not be lame, Brian. I will only buy one if it features lots of naked chicks holding flaming guitars while posing suggestively with an Anaconda. Greg

Even Hyunsu's scrap pieces he uses for clamping cauls have great figure. Or at least one of them does.

That makes great sense... the reflective particles in the basecoat will reflect back through the blue 'filter' of the transparent blue coat. Sounds like a winner, Chris! Greg

ChrisDee, you are showing telltale signs of idiocy. I'd suggest keeping comments related to Hyunsu's guitar making. Hyunsu-- As soon as you have pics of that MusicMan without clamps, post'em up here! I'm considering doing a MusicMan Axis as a future project and I'd be very curious to see how yours turn out.

Beats me, but that sounds good... it's what I went with, though without any specific reason other than it made for a nice round number. Greg

Looking great!! Now that you're adding a carved top, are you going to thickness plane the main part of the body down to size, or are you just going to go thick-ass guitar, all around? Greg

They must have shared it, then, because it also appears on Skyscraper by DLR. Greg

Thanks for the input. 5/8" is the standard Les Paul carving top size, so I thought I'd get more of a carve than that, no? If I leave only 1/8", that still leaves 1/2" worth of height to carve. The 335 isn't known for having a dramatic dome anyhow, so it's only my intention to use a subtle carve. Even with a 1/4" 'leave' at the edge, that would leave another 3/8" for the carve. That said, your idea to go right down to the limba near the edges is still viable. I was only worried about having the transition between the maple and the limba look too obvious, if I don't turn out to be very successful at smoothing and sanding, etc. Ie. seeing a wee line or a change in texture when it goes from maple to Limba. Oh, and the maple top, cut to size. I hadn't done anything with the photo yet, but as it turns out I didn't even get it all in the picture. I told the company to send me unfigured and non-bookmatched to save a bit of money, but even without spraying you can see some nice figure in there... makes me wonder what their figured stuff is like! Up at the neck pocket area, you can see that it widens a bit. That's where the template ended, and I didn't bother 'cleaning it up' since I'm not sure what to do for the neck attachment yet. Anyhow, in its truncated glory: Cheers!