jmrentis Posted July 2, 2005 Report Share Posted July 2, 2005 (edited) Alright welcome to my progress pics/posts of my very first full guitar build. Before this I have only done mods nothing from scratch. I have done some prior woodworking such as ramps and rails buth nothing too difficult, although putting a nice smooth curve in a ramp isn't easy, but it's quite a bit more forgiving than any aspects of guitar. I must warn you that this will be a long time post as I am disabled and any standing work is painful and difficult for me, but is needed for sanity. It will be slow progress but this should be all the more reason for a better than average first build, hopefully. I have done a couple months+ work of homework and question for this project and will be doing much more. I must say everyone here at Project Guitar has been great, so much information and experiences to learn from and everyone has been very kind to me, which I'm sure that dealing with inexperienced people with inexperienced question constantly can become frustrating after time, they still have been more than gracious. I want to thank all of you that have been of help to me. So here's the basic idea of my first build, mind you that it will be somewhat simple for obvious reason(I don't want to waste time and money), but will have some more complex parts so I feel that I have accomplished something that took a lot of work and effort. It will be a Rg style body I like the general look of this shape and it is fairly simple, most likely will not have arm contour or body contour. This could change but I'm not sure as this will be a chambered body with possibly some binding, so the contours would make binding and chambering more difficult for a first build. It will be chambered for weight reasons, I have taken into account that this will affect the sound/tone and I am ok with this. The body will be purpleheart chambered with a quilted maple cap 1 1/4" purpleheart and 1/2" maple might vary depending on availability of maple, I already have the purpleheart one piece 1 3/4" thick 14x20", cocobolo fretboard from Rich(fryovanni) great stuff BTW, and the neck is a laminate of hard maple/ jatoba/ hard maple, possibly with a zircote or cocobolo headstock veneer again from Rich. The neck will be thicker than most, as I like a bigger profile because my hands are good size and seem to cramp less on bigger necks, undecided on exact measuements on this. Dual action truss rod, hot rod from stew mac probably. 25.5 inch scale, fixed bridge, two humbuckers,AANJ, angled headstock. I haven't decided on a bridge either, Wes turned me on to the Floyd fixed speedloader, which would be exactly what I want, but I might not go that high class for my first one, but will depend on my wallet and the price when they come out. As I said this project will be a while in the making, but I had some time on my hands to write this desciption so I figured I'd get it over with. Still undecided on radius of fretboard and type of tuners, I have sperzel locking tuners on my Ibanez and I like them very much, no problems as of yet, so either those or Gotoh, because I hear so many good thing about those Gotohs and would have no issues putting them on this project. I will probably use SS frets, I have been hearing a lot of good things about these recently as well. Also undecided on inlay, I have something in mind and have the tools to do it, but I would hate to ruin the fretboard on my first try, it's not terribly intricate just some numbers and letters, and if possible a very simple Pisces symbol, just two fish in a circle, very simple fish. But this might have to wait until I have the skill to feel confident doing it, might just go with block inlays as I like these also. No pickguard, will be routed from the back for electronics, I might do a 5 selector switch and have some fancy wiring in there or just regular 3 way switch. Chrome volume and tone knobs, dome style. I will need some pickups with some heavier sounds, more bass end because of the hard woods I'm using, it will be a bright sounding guitar I'm sure. Might use Dimarzio, Tone Zone and Air Norton combo, this area I would like some input on especially as I have little experience with most pickups, I would like to go passive just a preference. Headstock will be similar to a Les Paul, either 3x3 or 4x2 because of my laminate neck it will look better symmetrical, rather than offset. Also a graph tech or slip stone nut from stew mac. I know they help more for tremelo, but I like to bend a bit and don't see how it could hurt especially with locking tuners. I'm sure I've forgotten somethings but that is basically what I want, there is still quite a few undecided aspects and that is part of the reason I am posting this now so you guys can advise me on this journey. I'm putting a link to my pics of wood that I bought and some cheesy template I made, which will be upgraded to mdf board as I hear this makes a better template than plywood. The template is still rough cut in the pictures, but the white paper one is basically what it will look like. I have also started making one of mykas neck pocket routing jigs, I still haven't fully put it together, but I will do that soon, so I can start to practice with my router. The neck is now about ready for the bandsaw to get it to size and have the angle in the headstock, I might be able to get two out of it, if not two with angled headstock, at least one with angle and another with a scarf jointed headstock. Also I used more than double the c clamps as in the picture, that was just a dry clamp. On the neck I ended up using too much titebond, which made for a long planing process, but this was ok as the boards were not all even to begin with, a few mm difference. Worked out ok in th end. So thats it for now, I know it was a novel but I like to have it all planned out as much as possible. I would like some opinions and I'm sure there will be some, good and bad, this will only help my process. Also I have a lot of pictures on my page, and there isn't much progress, this is because I like taking pictures, I've done a lot of it throughout my life from friends, skating, nature and especially fishing. As I go I will shrink them down to just the most important. So again thank you everyone on this site, especially Brian for starting this whole thing. Jason Progress Pics Edited July 2, 2005 by jmrentis Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pr3Va1L Posted July 2, 2005 Report Share Posted July 2, 2005 mate, your pics link don't work. It links to your login Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fryovanni Posted July 2, 2005 Report Share Posted July 2, 2005 Hey Jason whats the password? (just kidding!) . I will check back a little later. Peace my friend, Rich Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jmrentis Posted July 2, 2005 Author Report Share Posted July 2, 2005 (edited) Sorry guys, I'm sure after reading all that you I'm sure you at least wanted to see some pics, remember though I haven't done much yet, it's mostly just pics of the wood, and some glueing and practice templates. I will do my final template within this coming week and get the shape cut to size and hopefully Myka's neckpocket jig setup, we'll see. Oh yeah that blue guitar is my ibanez, not my work, it is a guitar I can use to do mods on and play around to see what I like, plays good though. I think I have fixed it I just went to account options and switched it to make it public, let me know if it works now! Thanks for letting me know and sorry about that! Jason Edited July 2, 2005 by jmrentis Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
!!METAL MATT!! Posted July 2, 2005 Report Share Posted July 2, 2005 http://photobucket.com/albums/b256/jmrenti...ent=ebay090.jpg HA Cute Cat! Any way man I like The soun Of this Guitar! I hope It works out It's Good To see Your useing templates! If you take your Time and Keep asking Qusitons this Guitar will kick A$$ And Your Useing some Of my FAV wood's purpleheart and quilted maple YUM !!METAL MATT!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jmrentis Posted July 2, 2005 Author Report Share Posted July 2, 2005 Thanks, you guys will be the main reason if this thing works out! Thanks to you personally Matt as I really like the purpleheart and you and your work were the main inspiration for that! Thats my cat Peebles shes 16 years old and doesn't leave my side, she is always in between my keyboard and the screen, and takes my chair if I get up, like in the pic! I'm glad to hear that I got the pics working! Thanks again everyone! Jason Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fryovanni Posted July 2, 2005 Report Share Posted July 2, 2005 Looks like you have a good start. Templates and planning are so critical to a good project. The lainates look nice and snug. Keep up the good work. Peace, Rich Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
westhemann Posted July 2, 2005 Report Share Posted July 2, 2005 Still undecided on radius of fretboard very ,very important information coming up... the radius of the fingerboard MUST match the radius of the bridge for good playability. i don't know for sure the radius a fixed speedloader off the top of my head...but if i were to guess i would say either 10" or 14"...but you MUST find out before you radius the board great work on the neck laminate...invisible glue lines...just like it is supposed to be. most likely will not have arm contour or body contour. This could change but I'm not sure as this will be a chambered body with possibly some binding, so the contours would make binding and chambering more difficult for a first build. It will be chambered for weight reasons, I have taken into account that this will affect the sound/tone and I am ok with this. just a suggestion here...these things are up to you...but a forearm contour and the "gut cut" in the back are what really make the guitar feel comfortable... if you insist on a flat top(which is great,don't get me wrong)be sure to slightly round all of the edges after you bind it...(slightly...if done right you will not even notice it except that it will feel better) AND make the guitar body slightly thinner than normal...1 5/8" is what i personally would do...and yes,i would not hesitate to do a flat top...i think they look great...BUT you should reconsider the gut cut... tuners...take a look at the schaller minis...they are very nice and result in a possible smaller headstock..or just a cleaner look on a regular headstock and less weight to drag the neck down I will need some pickups with some heavier sounds, more bass end because of the hard woods I'm using, it will be a bright sounding guitar I'm sure. Might use Dimarzio, Tone Zone and Air Norton combo, this area I would like some input on especially as I have little experience with most pickups, a good warm passive pickup set would be a jb at the bridge and a 59 at the neck(duncans) i feel like they are much warmer than dimarzios Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jmrentis Posted July 2, 2005 Author Report Share Posted July 2, 2005 Thanks everyone for the tips. very ,very important information coming up... the radius of the fingerboard MUST match the radius of the bridge for good playability. i don't know for sure the radius a fixed speedloader off the top of my head...but if i were to guess i would say either 10" or 14"...but you MUST find out before you radius the board great work on the neck laminate...invisible glue lines...just like it is supposed to be. I really didn't think about that, I'm glad you let me know,it makes perfect sense but I honestly never never correlated the two, good thing you let me know, thats one of the main reasons I posted this so early in the game. So I don't have any mistakes that will make my project less than great. If I went with just a flat bridge, and had a radiused fretboard, would this make it not as playable, or could I adjust the saddles a little to compensate? just a suggestion here...these things are up to you...but a forearm contour and the "gut cut" in the back are what really make the guitar feel comfortable... if you insist on a flat top(which is great,don't get me wrong)be sure to slightly round all of the edges after you bind it...(slightly...if done right you will not even notice it except that it will feel better) AND make the guitar body slightly thinner than normal...1 5/8" is what i personally would do...and yes,i would not hesitate to do a flat top...i think they look great...BUT you should reconsider the gut cut... tuners...take a look at the schaller minis...they are very nice and result in a possible smaller headstock..or just a cleaner look on a regular headstock and less weight to drag the neck down The gut cut might be a good idea, actually I would like both, I am just trying to be cautious for my first and I was worried about the chambering, but if I take my time and do proper calculations I should at least be able to do the gut cut. I won't be doing binding on the back, so that helps. About thickness, I had previously put a lot of thought into making it a bit thinner, it would be a good idea considering I will probably have the flat top and the heavy part(purpleheart)back would be what I made thinner, so this would shave some weight along with the gut cut. So I will probably make this change thanks for the advice on that. 1 5/8" feels good to you? It seems about right, so you are not making it too small for the cavities and neckpocket, but enough to feel the difference. Also on the rounded binding, do you use the router roundover bit or trim router, or what? This sounds also like some great advice. And I will look into the schaller minis, the less weight the better, and the smaller the more it will show off the headstock shape and veneer. Are they what you usually use? I don't remember off hand but is that what is on your Beast? That guitar should be framed, man that wood was a once in a lifetime looking piece, perfect in my eyes. a good warm passive pickup set would be a jb at the bridge and a 59 at the neck(duncans) i feel like they are much warmer than dimarzios Thanks for the info, like I said I don't have much experience with most pickups. I recently decided to either put a jb or tone zone/air norton in my bridge for my ibanez. I ended up with the tone zone because I got it brand new in box sealed for $30. I just couldn't pass it up, I like it so far but I know there are others I will like better. The Jb was what I really wanted, I have only heard good things about them and seem like they are perfect for what I want. The 59 I am unfamiliar with, I have read about them some, but never heard it, but it sounds like the warmth I need for this project. So you think that SD are warmer than Dimarzios, thats good to know and I can tell you even though the tone zone is a low end pickup it still has a lot of treble, I think maybe a little too much for what its specs are designed for, a little unsatisfied in that aspect. Also one of my favorite guitarist of modern times Adam Jones plays a JB and a Jazz in the neck. He isn't as fancy as some guitarists but the sounds he makes drive me crazy. Do you know if there is much or any difference in between the jb and the trembucker jb, because thats what I would have needed for my ibanez samething thing as F spaced, wider than 2" total string spacing over bridge pickup. Just curious. Thanks for all the kind words and the much needed help. You have been a huge help to me Wes and I want to say thank you very much. Everyone here has been great Setch helped with out with how to go about chambering and some other things, Rhodes gave me some info, metal matt has been an inspiration for my project, and Rich(fryovanni) has also been a huge help, also he has some great woods for sale, that are really nice looking, which are also easy to work with because it is about the right thickness for most applications when you get it, saving a lot of time,hassle, and money. So thanks all and I hope for more opinions and advice as it all helps me for to make this what I want this to be. A Project Guitar! Jason Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
westhemann Posted July 3, 2005 Report Share Posted July 3, 2005 If I went with just a flat bridge, and had a radiused fretboard, would this make it not as playable, or could I adjust the saddles a little to compensate? all bridges are radiused...the "flat" ones you speak of just allow saddle height flexibility to match any radius...the flod speedloader does not have adjustable height on the saddles,so you really need to match it...some guys suggest shims..but i don't like that fix at all Also on the rounded binding, do you use the router roundover bit or trim router, or what? not that rounded...just with a sanding block ...just a very little bit..like imperceptably really.it's just a good practice to slightly round over those edges anyway so as not to cut through the finish I don't remember off hand but is that what is on your Beast? those are grovers...not minis at all...but my others all have minis...i can't frame it,i am too busy playing it...it plays so sweetly i can't pick up my others...i think it is the stainless frets,to be honest...but it is not a perfect guitar...in the finishing department i did screw up a bit...something i will do much better on the next time Do you know if there is much or any difference in between the jb and the trembucker jb, because thats what I would have needed for my ibanez samething thing as F spaced, wider than 2" total string spacing over bridge pickup. Just curious. the difference is the string spacing...i don't know if the fixed speedloader is f-spaced or not...that is something you need to know before ordering the pickup Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jmrentis Posted July 14, 2005 Author Report Share Posted July 14, 2005 Hey guys, just a small update. I got my maple top from Fryovanni(Rich) a couple days ago and I am very impressed with it! Very nice piece of wood and will compliment my project perfectly. It's not quilted or flamed, it's more along the lines of stepped or angel wings figure. And it has a solid figure throughout. It is however very difficult to get a picture that shows off how nice it actually is. I have a pic or two in my page of pics that shows it but it's just for size reference basically, you can't see how gorgeous it is unfortunately but take my word for it, if you want to see about what it will look like with a finish look at fryovanni's wood for sale page Here's my top. And here is a link to the rest of his wood for saleFryovanni, wood for sale very nice stuff! And soon I will be getting a very nice figured cocobolo fretboard and matching headstock veneer from him as well, I will post it when I get it. So anyways I tried something that I have never seen done because I had no other options and I was curious to see if it would work. The purpleheart I have was too big, it was 1 3/4" thick and heavy as hell, also I am adding the maple top which is a little under half an inch so I had to thin out the purpleheart about a half an inch. Well I don't have a bandsaw or thickness planer yet and one of my buddies that builds didn't have a thickness planer, he has a bandsaw but it wouldn't be able to handle a 14" wide piece of purpleheart, it doesn't fit anything that big, and I don't think it would be nearly strong enough to pull that off even if it was tall enough. So I was thinking I needed to find a place that I could use a thickness planer type tool, or try my hand at routing it flat. Well I figure with purpleheart I would go through a lot of $ in bits trying to take off 1/2" on a 14"x21" board of purpleheart and on top of that I am very inexperienced with the router still, just didn't seem like a good idea for now. So I talked with my pops and one of his buddies and came up with an idea with using a table saw, sound crazy but it ended up working pretty good. My dads friend had a blade that was about 3/4" inch wide and can be set at different width down from that by taking additional blades out, we could only fit like 1/2 inch of the blade, so we had to take out a couple of the blades. It has a similar concept as a forstner bit, it grinds away all the wood you don't want. The blades are all pressed against each other but are a little offset to reduce kickback I believe, which I can imagine will happen sometimes although we never had this issue. So I marked the area I wanted cut out and left about 2 inches on either side so I could get a nice flat surface in the middle, and so I could get 2 pieces of purpleheart 2 inches wide x half inch thick x 21 inches long. So I could use them for laminates or whatever I find them useful for. I could only go 2 inches wide because thats as high as I could get the blade in the old school table saw to go, it won't fit any bigger blades. I had one problem though just for the little piece I was cutting off, it really burnt the wood when I made that long cut with the blade so high, but it's alright because I left a good amount of wood that I can sand down, so the burn will be taken off with plenty to spare. Back to the leveling. So we started in the middle of the board and made the passes on the side of the board that had the worst grain runout and imperfections, but this will be the back after I sand it smooth. The blade worked great besides stalling the saw a couple of times and leaving little tiny grooves. Thats the outer blades that cause the grooves and there is nothing you can do about it, but they are so small it won't take but 5 or 10 minutes to sand it smooth. Overall it worked really well, compared to what I was expecting. And it lightened the weight a lot which is great, but I will be chambering it so it will be even lighter. So anyways it was crazy but it worked great, I got the half inch off easily, without spending all kinds of money on ruined router bits, without making it uneven. Also I couldn't find a place to thin it, hopefully I will get one before I get to my next project but if not, I would not hesitate to go this method again. And I bagged up 3 bags of the dust and slivers from the purpleheart just in case I run into any tearout or glue joints that I need to fill with purple. So I will post some pics when I get it sanded smooth, right now it doesn't look that good with that burned side and the grooves, but it is only some very minor work, and I got what I wanted. Also when you cut the purpleheart it looks almost like no purple, it gets really light in color, but already the color has come back and it has only been a couple of days.So there are a bunch of pics I've added but nothing good. I have a new template I made, still needs flatter edges, but is about to final shape. Next I'm getting some router bits and start working on the chambering along with rough cutting the neck and doing the truss rod and fretboard. Hopefully I will get at least two necks from my laminate piece. I think I'm going for a nice set of mop block inlays with a V type shape in the center made of figured mop. Well thats the update so far, I'll add or edit if I think of anything else. Thanks for checking out my stuff, and I hope for your opinions and advice as always. Later guys! Jason Oh and also I think I decided on this hipshot bridge in chrome Hardtail Hipshot Bridge, Stewmac. And here's a pic and a link to my pics Progress Pics Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AlGeeEater Posted July 15, 2005 Report Share Posted July 15, 2005 Nice mustang Damn ford guys Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thegarehanman Posted July 15, 2005 Report Share Posted July 15, 2005 Great work so far, man. Honestly though, I like the car more. haha Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fryovanni Posted July 15, 2005 Report Share Posted July 15, 2005 Sweet Mustang! I have a Red 69' Mach1 and a Blue 67' coupe. Peace, Rich Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
erikbojerik Posted July 15, 2005 Report Share Posted July 15, 2005 FORD....Fix Or Repair Daily. Very nice top! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CudBucket Posted July 15, 2005 Report Share Posted July 15, 2005 It's good to see a real "in progress" post instead of another "hey look at this 'concept' design I drew. Isn't it cool?" Very nice work so far. Dave Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jmrentis Posted July 15, 2005 Author Report Share Posted July 15, 2005 Thanks guys for the comments! I really appreciate it. It's a '67 Mustang Fastback. I've done a whole lot to it since I got it, which was fairly recently, a reason that this project will take me a while. Parts are expensive for it(the car). Drive American Cars, Rock Foreign Guitars! Well I did some reworking on my neck design for the rough cut. I couldn't figure out what size I should start with in thickness, I had 1 1/2" to begin with and it seemed way too big and would just be extra work, then I drew it out to an inch and that seemed too small and wouldn't give me enough wood to build a nice volute. I really want a nice volute, they have grown on me significantly. Not only do they look good but they also increase the strength of the neck, which is never a bad thing. Well since I couldn't figure out what I needed size wise I asked for help, I asked Perry. He gave me some advice, basically some minimum numbers, numbers I shouldn't go below and some approximate numbers that he uses himself. So I have re drawn the profile view to a size of 1 1/8". Right in between what I had drawn before, I'm hoping that will be perfect for me, giving me enough room to build a solid volute while not causing me some excess work. It has a 13 degree angled headstock and I will transfer it today to some poster board type material, then with that I will make a master for future necks, and double sided tape the poster board one to the neck laminate to cut. Hopefully getting 2 or more necks, but we will see. Also I cut another little piece off my body wood for other uses like laminates, it's little over quarter inch thick 2 inches wide and 20 inches long. Now I have two that are about that size. I tried two cuts to get this one cut, but it seems to have burned the wood even worse, no worries though I left plenty to sand or shave down, there will be no problems there. I think the blade was pretty dull by the time I got to that part, purpleheart is some hard stuff and can dull stuff pretty easy it seems. I wish I could show you guys the drastic difference in color of a just cut piece of purpleheart, compared to an aged one, aged even just a week. I have two pics that show either side of the little pieces I cut, and one side you can tell it's a little lighter in color, it's the side with the little bit of burn on it, but it's hard to see how much darker the other side is because there is quite a bit of grain runout on that piece, but never the less you can see the difference. Rich tells me that cocobolo is the same way, it gains much more color as it ages. I think that is very cool. So here is a link to the lighter piece of purpleheart the one that was just cut a day or so old,1 day old cut piece of purpleheart, Aged side of purpleheart with grain runout Well thanks again for all the kind words, it keeps me optimistic that this project will turn out great, at least great for a first attempt. As always advice and suggestions are welcome. I will post again when I have done some more progress which might be a few days at least! Thanks guys for making this possible for me! Later. Jason Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MzI Posted July 17, 2005 Report Share Posted July 17, 2005 I shall warn you now about purple heart. Do not try to route the full body depth in one pass because your router will kick back and you will also get a lot of tear out. Just really take your time. The way I ended up doing mine was only routing 1 inch passes at a time. Also be careful around the horn areas as they can be a pain MzI Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jmrentis Posted July 17, 2005 Author Report Share Posted July 17, 2005 Thanks MzI for the tip, I still need more practice on my router, but when I do the body I will be doing small passes. I see so many people on this site that have tearout on all kinds of wood, and I know purpleheart can be worse than most. So I will go slow or for the outline of the body I might do a super close pass on my buddies bandsaw and buy a robosander to clean it up to the edge. I would feel safer that way. But I still might use the router so I'm undecided. Thanks for the tip though and I will post once I get there to let you guys know how it goes. Later. Jason PS I like the work you do MzI, nice stuff! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
orgmorg Posted July 17, 2005 Report Share Posted July 17, 2005 FORD....Fix Or Repair Daily. That's how it starts out. It later becomes.. Found On Roadside, Dead And ultimately... Find Old Reliable Dodge Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MzI Posted July 17, 2005 Report Share Posted July 17, 2005 A robo sander wont do you much good. It will just burn the wood. The best way is to get within 3/16 of an inch. You dont want to go too close because purple heart likes to chip when cutting it with a bandsaw similar to ebony. All you really can do with a sander is touch the surface of purple heart. When you do have to sand use 60 grit or lower, when your trying to take wood off. Finish sanding is the same as always. When I did my tummy cut, I found the best way to do it was with a rasp. After that I cleaned it up with a sanding disk on a grinder. The grinder barely touched the wood. That was with a 50 grit disk too. Also I drive a Ford and have no problems with it whatsoever. MzI Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jmrentis Posted July 17, 2005 Author Report Share Posted July 17, 2005 Well I guess then I won't need to buy a robosander yet. As far as bits go, how many flutes are there on the one you used ? I'm sure you used carbide right? Also I know there is bits that have angled flutes, diagonal, would you consider using one on the purpleheart, did you? Another thing I have read is that the wider the cut on the bit, the more problems that occur. What would be a good size to use for the body outline, to avoid tearout? Thanks for your help MzI, if you have the time I would really appreciate some of those questions answered. Also like I said I have done a lot to my ride and I don't have many problems, just a few adjustments from time to time. Later, Jason Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MzI Posted July 17, 2005 Report Share Posted July 17, 2005 The router bits I use are from woodcraft. Double flute pattern bits. I started using a 1/2 shank by 2 inch cut with the bearing on the end. That one created major kick back and got to be really dangerous. Plus I destroyed the first one I had. The purple heart actually chipped the bit. I beleive there is some pictures in my thread of the chipped bit. I bought another of the same bit and even brand new it was still kicking back. So I moved to a smaller pattern bit. Two flutes again. This one is only a 1 inch cut length 1/4 shaft with the bearing on the shaft itself. They are carbide bits. Heres the link to them Woodcraft bits. The only thing I dont like about the woodcraft bits is they dont have a warranty on them. Although part of the collar on my 1 inch bit lost a set screw so I called them up and they sent a brand new collar for free to me. I honestly dont understand all those angled and spiral bits. I stick to the straight flute ones because I know they work. I only got one real small bit of tear out using the 1 inch bit and that was because I was going against the grain and there was some stress cracking in the wood. But it isnt that bad it will be fairly easy to hide. MzI Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jmrentis Posted July 20, 2005 Author Report Share Posted July 20, 2005 Hey guys I did a bit of sanding to get the little channels I had smoothed out. I had forgot that I had a nice belt sander. I had no belt though so I went yesterday and bought some 50 grits being that the purpleheart is so hard. I only did 5-10 minutes of work and it worked great. I was worried about more burning, the table saw cut I did to get the little fretboard size pieces really burned the wood, I had cut the pieces from the last two inches on either side of my body blank. So now it is nearly flat, I have about another 5-10 minutes getting perfectly flat, there is still a channel or two left, but for the most part it is all even. This side is going to be my back, I want the other side to be glued because it is a smoother surface, I don't have a planer/jointer so I want to use the side that is untouched to glue. In the pics you can see how light the purpleheart can get, it's more brown almost, right after you cut it and as the days go by it gains that dark purple color back, it's very cool how it works. Next I will tape my neck template to the neck and trace it, and take it to my buddies and cut it out on his bandsaw, and if I do it well enough I'll come home with 2 necks. While I'm working with the neck I will start doing some chambering and rough cuts on the body. So far so good and I'm having a blast. Thanks everyone for their information it has been a big help! Later, Jason. Progress Pics Very slow progress, but progress none the less! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GEdwardJones Posted July 20, 2005 Report Share Posted July 20, 2005 This is shaping up to be a really cool project. Now, if you'd do a mini ramp tutorial (with coping spine).... Oops, sorry, thought this was ramp plans dot org for a second. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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