Members Freeman Keller Posted July 10, 2015 Author Members Share Posted July 10, 2015 Back to the body - routed the pickup cavities Drill out as much waste wood as possible with a forstner bit All routed - note that the neck tenon gets routed along with the body Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Phil O'Keefe Posted July 10, 2015 Share Posted July 10, 2015 That gizmo in the background is a digital protractor - my son gave it to me for Christmas when he saw the old one I had been using for years. Now I can be accurate to fractions of a degree when things don't fit. I really need to get one of those. I still use the old-fashioned protractors when measuring angles. Digital calipers made my life much easier, and I can't imagine measuring things without them now... I imagine I'd find a digital protractor to be similarly useful. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Phil O'Keefe Posted July 10, 2015 Share Posted July 10, 2015 Wow, that's incredible - and it looks like painstaking work. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Freeman Keller Posted July 12, 2015 Author Members Share Posted July 12, 2015 Back to the neck. Glued the ebony headplate on it I actually did three necks at the same time - remember that I'm building a pair of parlors along with the 355. Bound the headstock Here are the three necks - the parlors get head plates made out of the same wood as the bodies - Madagascar and Brazilian rosewood, the 335 is ebony Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Grant Harding Posted July 12, 2015 Members Share Posted July 12, 2015 Spectacular! They're each perfect for the body they're matched to. I'm drooling. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Freeman Keller Posted July 16, 2015 Author Members Share Posted July 16, 2015 Back to the body. I've fitted the back a dozen times but before I glue it on there are three things to do. First is to wire this puppy. Drill the holes for the pots , switch and jack (that's a cool little laser sight on my drill press - put the mark where you want the hole in the cross hairs and bingo, hole is where you want it). Put the controls and pups in place and solder them together Lastly, and very importantly, plug it in to my little shop amp. IT WORKS! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Freeman Keller Posted July 16, 2015 Author Members Share Posted July 16, 2015 Second thing is to sign and date the top and put a label inside on the back where it can be seen thru the f-hole Third was to tape over the f-holes with painters tape to keep crud and finish out. We're ready to close the box Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Preacher Posted July 16, 2015 Members Share Posted July 16, 2015 Aha, so it's a lefty! This is great looking work, Freeman, as always. I've been too busy to post much lately but your posts continue to be fascinating, and getting a look inside before assembly is a real bonus. Thank you! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members gardo Posted July 17, 2015 Members Share Posted July 17, 2015 Another work of art Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Freeman Keller Posted July 19, 2015 Author Members Share Posted July 19, 2015 Terrible picture of gluing the back on. Sorry. Just lots of clamps The masking tape on the f-holes is already starting to pull loose - time for plan B. Also I had this brilliant idea of putting little O-rings on the controls so they wouldn't fall inside the guitar. Another bad idea and I'll put the nuts back on them. When it comes paint time I'll just mask them off. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members gardo Posted July 20, 2015 Members Share Posted July 20, 2015 Any tiny miscalculation you may make is nothing compared to the fiascoes I would be sure to face.We learn from our mistakes so thanks for pointing them out rather than hiding them ,this is how technology grows.What about using a heat shrink tube on the shaft of the controls and lowering them into the body? Would it hold or would it lead to a fishing expidition? ( a fiasco) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members papaschtroumpf Posted July 20, 2015 Members Share Posted July 20, 2015 Looks like you use tie down for the wires? That would make it very difficult to pull them back out wouldn't it? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Freeman Keller Posted July 20, 2015 Author Members Share Posted July 20, 2015 What about using a heat shrink tube on the shaft of the controls and lowering them into the body? Would it hold or would it lead to a fishing expidition? ( a fiasco) I did try tying a piece of thin wire on each control thinking I would put them inside while I painted and then pull them back but it seems a lot safer to just put the nuts on and mask them. Everything gets a washer or the switch plate or knobs so it isn't like I have to have perfect finish right to the edge of the hole. Looks like you use tie down for the wires? That would make it very difficult to pull them back out wouldn't it? Yes and I'm having second thoughts about that, but its too late now. I did it to keep everything neat inside - I had for wires to be banging around and didn't want them hanging in the f-hole. However you are correct that if anything ever needed to be worked on it will be a bit of a bitch. I did carefully check that the electronics worked before closing the back and since there is really nothing to go wrong with a few passive components so we should be fine. I think that if anything did need fixing it could be fished over to the f-hole and the wires snipped off. Another brilliant idea that may not have been so brilliant Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Freeman Keller Posted July 20, 2015 Author Members Share Posted July 20, 2015 Since it looks like a few folks are still following this (and thank you all for the great comments) I'll blunder ahead. Following up with Papaschroumph's question, I did spend a rather frustrating morning. The output jack did slip down inside and kind of turn sideways - trying to hook on to it thru the hole (which of course is the same diameter as the jack) was darn near impossible. A friend stopped by to see the guitar that I'm building for him and while we were chatting his lovely wife managed to use two sticks like chop sticks and pull it out. Its got a nice nut on in now.... OK, body is closed and time to bind it. In keeping with the Gibson theme we are going to use simple cream colored plastic binding - I like wood on acoustics but most of the time I think the cream plastic looks "right" on this style guitar. Set up my little laminate trimmer with a bit with a ball bearing that is slightly smaller than the cutter - that sets the depth of the cut into the side. The white UHMW donut around the cutter rides on the edge of the top and sets depth of the down cut. Looks like this The whole assembly rides on a vertical track on three cam followers and the weight of the router keeps it on the guitar. The guitar itself sits in a support frame that has been adjusted perfectly vertical on the sides. (mmmm, camera autofocused on the sides, oh well) With plastic there are a couple of different glues you can use - traditional is a solvent based kind of like model airplane cement but its messy and a hassle. I've had good luck simply taping the binding in place dry leaving little sections between tape where I can drip some thin CA glue in place, then pull the tape off and go all the way around with CA on the top and side. The binding stands very slightly proud of the top, scrape it back with a box cutter blade And bingo, its bound Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members gardo Posted July 20, 2015 Members Share Posted July 20, 2015 I get the idea that you enjoy the journey more than the destination, ( using all of your toys er a I mean tools ) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members papaschtroumpf Posted July 20, 2015 Members Share Posted July 20, 2015 And bingo, its bound you always make it sound so easy I'd probably end up with CA all over the top, and my fingers stuck to my eyelid or some similar disaster. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Freeman Keller Posted July 21, 2015 Author Members Share Posted July 21, 2015 you always make it sound so easy I'd probably end up with CA all over the top, and my fingers stuck to my eyelid or some similar disaster. I won't tell you about the time I decided to wear latex gloves when doing a CA bound body. The CA dissolved the latex and absorbed it into the binding - in luthier terms, it was a complete clusterf**k. Oh, wait, I found a picture.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Freeman Keller Posted July 23, 2015 Author Members Share Posted July 23, 2015 Body is bound, lets move back to the neck. Its had the position blocks installed so it needs to be sanded back to its 12 inch radius. This is a sanding block with that radius - I've put some 120 grit sticky back paper on it. You can see that its cutting into the pearl a lot bringing that down to the radius of the board. Rub it down with steel wool - that's just the gunk that came out of the slots This is my handy dandy fret wire radius thingie. Home made like quite a few of my tools but it works just fine. Puts roughly a 12 inch radius, maybe a hair smaller, in the wire by just drawing it thru the gizmo Here are tools and things that I'll be using in the fretting process. The slab of wood in the back has holes for each fret when it gets cut to size, the thing to the right is my pressing caul (you'll see in a bit) So, since this is a bound fretboard I need to cut each fret to length, then fill the tang back so its just wide enough to fit between the binding. Made this fancy jig to hold the wire while I file on it btw - I love the way bound fretboards look and I do them a lot, but I really hate working on them. In fact I turned down a refret today because I just didn't want the hassle - could have made a hundred and fifty bucks but its also possible that I would have made a mess. Anyway, here are some frets filed to fit their slots - now you see why that hunk of wood is important - each one is cut to fit just one slot and the board lets me keep track of them. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Freeman Keller Posted July 23, 2015 Author Members Share Posted July 23, 2015 IE (or Vbulletin) just burped - fortunately the above was auto saved. Rather than reopening it and editing I'll continue on in a new window. There are three ways to install frets - hammer them in, press them in or glue them in. Gluing is used on bar frets, some vintage refrets or when the board is pretty badly damaged. Hammering is just that - line them up with the slot and give them a few calibrated taps with a hammer - there is definitely a technique to getting them set just right. I hammered for a while but then decided that even pressing was better (for me at least) and that's what I do now. Its easiest to press while the board is still off the neck (but there is a potential problem here that I'll show in a minute). I've got this cool little caul (yeah, another tool LOL) that has inserts of different radius with a groove cut in them. It is designed to pivot so the pressure is applied equally on both sides. Its designed for an arbor press (which I don't have) but works pretty well in a drill press (which I do). Looks like this I put three very small drops of super glue on the slot - one in the center and one at each end to help hold down those little ends. Press them in, hold for 10 seconds for the glue to kick, then clamp everything under my curved sanding blocks for a while Here is the problem with fretting the board off the neck - the tangs force the slots open very slightly but it puts a back bow in the board. That is actually used to advantage on vintage guitars without adjustable truss rods - so called "compression fretting" can be used to control relief. Not really a problem here - it will be clamped flat when I glue it to the neck. Last step at this time is to snip the ends off each fret and file it flush with the side of the board. Lots more dressing later, but this much right now Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Freeman Keller Posted July 26, 2015 Author Members Share Posted July 26, 2015 This seems more like a blog than a discussion - might as well continue and glue the fretboard on to the neck. Adjust the truss rod so its completely neutral, drop it in the slot And glue the f/b on. The orange clamps are to keep it from sliding from side to side - the glue is very slippery when first put on - the quick clamps take that back bow out. I put a dummy nut in place to set that gap, then remove it before the glue sets. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members knotty Posted July 26, 2015 Members Share Posted July 26, 2015 Stunning stuff as usual Freeman thx. Have you ever totted up the cost of the tools you have for your guitar work? If you hadnt built them up over the years and wanted to start building, what would you have to spend? Not that I have anything like the skill set needed,I was just curious. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Chordite Posted July 26, 2015 Members Share Posted July 26, 2015 Freeman I think you should consider this as a book. Possibly a book with two or three projects at different skill levels, a basic solid body, an acoustic and this one along with a few chapters on tools and materials If you choose evergreens like this 335 it would have a long market life without the need for regular updating and I am sure would become a standard. Certainly wouldn't hurt to run the idea by a couple of publishing houses.C. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members gardo Posted July 26, 2015 Members Share Posted July 26, 2015 This seems more like a blog than a discussion . I enjoy seeing and reading everything ,yet it's so far above my skill level that I can't even ask an intelligent question. The best I can offer is encouragement and appriciation So thanks for the step by step details. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Freeman Keller Posted July 27, 2015 Author Members Share Posted July 27, 2015 Stunning stuff as usual Freeman thx. Have you ever totted up the cost of the tools you have for your guitar work? If you hadnt built them up over the years and wanted to start building, what would you have to spend? Not that I have anything like the skill set needed,I was just curious. I started by building an acoustic guitar kit (highly recommended) and I had a "usual" small collection of tools. I had to buy a bunch of luthier tools - nut and fret files, special reamers, a small router and a few special bits for the bindings. Each time I built something I took on more of the challenge, which usually meant buying a new tool - bending sides, doing more inlay, carving the necks. By the time I built my first electric I had the hand tools but the solid body required a band saw and router table. I added the drill press and belt sander somewhere along the line. I make all my own jigs and templates, buy plans off the internet, and still find that I need a new tool every now and again. The big purchase for this one was the floating binding router - three hundred bucks, but I'm building two other guitars at present and it has paid for itself by now. I like good tools but I'm also realistic - my band saw, table saw (which I hardly ever use on guitars) and air compressor are all from yard sales. I wish they were better, but for what I do they are adequate. If someone is really interested I could tally up the tools that I think you should have for various levels of building. But I'll also warn you that the only thing worse that GAS is TAS, "honey, can I buy a new router...." Freeman I think you should consider this as a book. Possibly a book with two or three projects at different skill levels, a basic solid body, an acoustic and this one along with a few chapters on tools and materials If you choose evergreens like this 335 it would have a long market life without the need for regular updating and I am sure would become a standard. Certainly wouldn't hurt to run the idea by a couple of publishing houses. C. Wow, I had never thought of it in those terms and that is very flattering. Mostly I just want to share what I do with you folks - if I answer a few questions that is good, if I inspire someone to build their own guitar, even better. I also know that the person I'm building it for is watching - hope he is happy with what he sees. I enjoy seeing and reading everything ,yet it's so far above my skill level that I can't even ask an intelligent question. The best I can offer is encouragement and appriciation So thanks for the step by step details. Thank you. You three have been regular commenters and I really do appreciate it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members wankdeplank Posted July 27, 2015 Members Share Posted July 27, 2015 It's a pleasure to follow your painstaking steps on your masterpieces Freeman. Great artist and craftsman. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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