The next level of GAS...

[kwakatak]

I must be sick. My GAS has transcended looking at new instruments in stores and online. Now that I've got my head into building my own I'm passing up on great deals. I'm gonna be building a mini jumbo using western red cedar and mahogany and am taking inspiration from the Taylor GS5 and the appointment of the similar (but handmade) R Taylor style 1.

 

Wouldn't you know it though, but I've gotten beads on both those models on the used market and I'm not tempted. Sure, the GS5 is $1300 and I've tried it a couple of times, but I'm not really interested because I don't like the white binding. Then there's a similar R Taylor Style 1 for sale over at AGF ($2300 if anybody's interested) and even though I like how it has rosewood trim instead of white plastic I can't commit because I've never been a fan of buying sight-unseen unless under certain circumstances.

 

So what'm I looking at? Call me crazy, but I'm currently on LMI's site looking at wood binding and purflings. I'm trying to find out what I like best with western red cedar and south American mahogany. Would EIR be too hard to work with or should I splurge and go with cocobolo? Would that be too much or should I try used walnut instead? What about the purfling? Herringbone? BWB? How about some of that nice 4-color type on LMII?

 

*sigh* just trying to find a theme. I also want to put a little "flair" of my own on it somehow, even though I'm not much of a woodworker at all. Should I try and design a yellow rose in homage to my recently-departed aunt Rose who lived in San Antonio or do I do something a little simpler?

 

So now I've got the stewmac catalog and a couple of "how to build your own acoustic guitar" books with full color illustrations open on the kitchen table and my wife and visiting mother are giving my looks like there's a 500 pound elephant in the room.

 

Have any of you other builder/custom buyer types ever come up against this? I need help, fellas!

 

BTW - with luck I'll be formally kicking off my build this week. Hopefully this is just anticipation.

[sixgunner455]

I must be sick. My GAS has transcended looking at new instruments in stores and online. Now that I've got my head into building my own I'm passing up on great deals. I'm gonna be building a mini jumbo using western red cedar and mahogany and am taking inspiration from the Taylor GS5 and the appointment of the similar (but handmade) R Taylor style 1. Wouldn't you know it though, but I've gotten beads on both those models on the used market and I'm not tempted. Sure, the GS5 is $1300 and I've tried it a couple of times, but I'm not really interested because I don't like the white binding. Then there's a similar R Taylor Style 1 for sale over at AGF ($2300 if anybody's interested) and even though I like how it has rosewood trim instead of white plastic I can't commit because I've never been a fan of buying sight-unseen unless under certain circumstances. So what'm I looking at? Call me crazy, but I'm currently on LMI's site looking at wood binding and purflings. I'm trying to find out what I like best with western red cedar and south American mahogany. Would EIR be too hard to work with or should I splurge and go with cocobolo? Would that be too much or should I try used walnut instead? What about the purfling? Herringbone? BWB? How about some of that nice 4-color type on LMII? *sigh* just trying to find a theme. I also want to put a little "flair" of my own on it somehow, even though I'm not much of a woodworker at all. Should I try and design a yellow rose in homage to my recently-departed aunt Rose who lived in San Antonio or do I do something a little simpler? So now I've got the stewmac catalog and a couple of "how to build your own acoustic guitar" books with full color illustrations open on the kitchen table and my wife and visiting mother are giving my looks like there's a 500 pound elephant in the room. Have any of you other builder/custom buyer types ever come up against this? I need help, fellas! BTW - with luck I'll be formally kicking off my build this week. Hopefully this is just anticipation.

That's a tiny elephant. Yeah, if it was in my kitchen, I'd be a little bit disturbed, because it's still an elephant, but it's only a baby. Baby elephants are cute, you know.

I played my first DN3 yesterday, so I know what you're saying about loving those nice Taylors. And I got excited a while ago about building a guitar. I read every darn thread about it, and I listened to all the gurus and talked to a couple of luthiers.

Then I started calculating out how much time and money I would spend to build myself a guitar.

I think I'd be ahead of the game, rather than spending months sanding and chiseling and staining and purfling and polishing and finishing all the puzzle pieces of thin, fragile wood to build myself a guitar and finally end up with something that would probably resemble a guitar shaped object at the very least, I think that if I were to call up Bob Taylor or one of his people and have them build me a BTO DN3 or DN5, I would be better off. I really think I would.

So I'm glad that baby elephant found a place to go when I kicked it out of my kitchen and workshop/garage. I really am. Because it was such a lonely looking little fellow when it left. But it was still cute.

My wife stopped laughing at me a few days after I stopped looking at kits and wood and such. She thinks it would take me at least a year to get one built.

Good luck. I think it might be worth it if you enjoy all the steps of the process.

[kwakatak]

Sorry to hear you "came to your senses," gunner. As for me, I've got an enabler who has the tools and materials and probably would like the company to keep his own builds on track.

 

Meanwhile I think my wife would rather I devote my efforts to cleaning up and fixing stuff around the house. I need to get out more though. Can't you tell?

[sixgunner455]

I think if I had an enabler who'd already bought all the tools and had the jigs and such, I'd probably be in the middle of building a guitar.

[C70man]

Go for tortoise shell binding...always wanted a guitar with one.
Second to that...creme, like on my CO-2c....

[C70man]

Kwak, Try to find a CO-2 to play....you may not build your own...I'm serious, its that nice a guitar....I've seen a few on Ebay around $700 with HSC. Yeah, an American built Guild (Tacoma) listing for $2800 for under a grand....You can get them in concert and w/cutaway. Every day, I'm just amazed how good mine sounds.

You might even like to look at the build on it....not a bad axe to copy...the damn braces are really light....carved to a point....never seen that before. And the neck is some kind of new experiment Tacoma came up with...bolt on with a graphite connector to enhance sustain....all I know is that the neck if it ever needs a reset will be a hell of a lot easier, and the design works...I can't put the damn guitar down....and I have 4 just sitting on stands begging to be played....

[rickoshea]

ohhhh hoooo yes. I now have no GAS for guitars - I'm cured, I am free . Sadly and indeed worryingly, I now lust after chisels, back and side sets and power tools. I sit at night reading LMI's and StewMac's catalogues. This has resulted in a lightening of the bank balance due to the "essential" acquirement of a bench saw ..... and a thicknesser/planer ...... and a belt sander ...... and and and ..... {censored}, I've just realised this is worse than GAS

[revive]

Kwak,

Go for it man! If you don't try, you'll be wondering and asking yourself "what if" for the rest of your life. Don't worry about passing up good deals. Good deals will always come up every time. Opportunities to build your own may not.

Can your "enabler" serve as your mentor too? If so, more power to ya. Hmmh... is his first name Tim?