My first Tele build

[chrispscott]

Except for my Agile Les Paul knock off all the guitars I play anymore are partscasters. I've decided to just go the whole nine yards and start making my own guitars. I just started working on bodies the other day.

 

My friend Rusty and I are working on them together. He's been doing some serious wood working since he was about my age (I'm 24 and he's 43) and he has been wanting to build a guitar for almost as long.

 

Well since I don't know {censored} about wood working and he doesn't know {censored} about guitars we decide to pool our resources together.

 

I forgot my camera so we'll just have to settle for crappy camera phone pics for now.

 

First things first we had to make a template out of MDF so here is Rusty cutting out the MDF.

 

Next we made a trace of a Tele body (in this case my modded GFS Ash) on the MDF and cut it out in the band saw.

 

We decided poplar would be a good wood to start out with. It's pretty cheap so if we screw up we won't feel too bad about it. The polar only cost me $25 at Woodcraft and we have enough to make 3 bodies.

 

Rusty routing down the template

 

 

Next up we drilled holes in the MDF template using a drill press for the cavity routing.

 

 

 

Rusty's son just started playing and he's hooked. He can already play Smoke On The Water and knows most of his chords. His instructor just got him started on scales. For being 9 he does a pretty good job.

 

And the finished template.

 

Unfortunately the table router crapped out on us and I hope to head back over tomorrow and get some more work done.

[ashasha]

Cool

 

I'll be watching this thread.

[newbuilder]

I'm in...love the build threads.

[Elias]

Are you buying the neck or building that from scratch as well?

 

Good stuff, I'm looking forward to more updates.

[chrispscott]

 

Are you buying the neck or building that from scratch as well? Good stuff, I'm looking forward to more updates.

 

 

Don't know yet. We are going to cross that bridge when we come to it.