westhemann Posted November 27, 2010 Report Share Posted November 27, 2010 So some of you may remember this project.It started out as a clean piece of maple and a large piece of pommelle bubinga... I started it a while back but shelved it when things at work got hectic.Yesterday I pulled it from the closet and started on it,mostly because that other one is such a tough rebuild that I wanted to catch my breath on something that will do what I want it to do. As you can see it is routed for dual humbuckers and a kahler.The headstock is a scarf joint that I did while I was experimenting with poly glue,and it was so messy I have not used it since. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
westhemann Posted November 27, 2010 Author Report Share Posted November 27, 2010 First thing I wanted to do was finish the neck.So I went to the hardware store and bought a "diamond tile hole saw" bit for my drill press and I used it to cut dots out of some red recon stone I have with gold streaks in it.Then I found a drill bit that matched the size and installed them into the board Most of the dots are installed well,but one is slightly off center.Not enough to really bother me too much though. Then I sanded the board with my radius block through the grits 100-320 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
westhemann Posted November 27, 2010 Author Report Share Posted November 27, 2010 So dots are installed and now it is time for side dots.I always just use the plastic side dot material from Stewmac,because I really don't care much about them except that I use them while playing(I don't ever use the front dots),so I need them to be as visible as possible,so I always use white on ebony,and black on maple...but this time I decided to do it just a bit differently,so I put them right at the edge of the binding.Again one of them refused to cooperate It's tough to see in the light,I will try to get a better pic soon. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
westhemann Posted November 27, 2010 Author Report Share Posted November 27, 2010 So on to the body.I marked out the square pocket to do a better heel joint And cut it with the bandsaw Then I marked out the heel of the neck in position And I finished sculpting out the back of the neck,and drilled for the tuners And that is where it stands right now. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
westhemann Posted November 27, 2010 Author Report Share Posted November 27, 2010 Okay,so before going back out to get back at it,I wanted to take some better pics of some things...so Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ScottR Posted November 27, 2010 Report Share Posted November 27, 2010 Love the recon stone fret markers but am worried about the poly scarf. Does it feel strong? SR Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
westhemann Posted November 27, 2010 Author Report Share Posted November 27, 2010 worried about the poly scarf. Does it feel strong? Yeah it is plenty strong...nice joint and alot of surface area is glued.The mess I was talking about is that when you apply water like the instructions say to the pieces of wood,it foams like crazy....Gorilla glue is what I used...I just won't use it again because it messed up my kitchen bar top... So on to carving the top..I marked out the "edges" in pencil just for a loose reference Then I routed a step in it I had two bad tearouts...I am going to have to work around that somehow..either reshape it or do a complete roundover of the edge..I could flatten that spot at the lower bout and install my jack there,but I really want the jack elsewhere..we will see what happens I guess And after the rough carve with the sanding disc... Man,there is going to be a hell of a lot of work involved rasping and sanding it down. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ScottR Posted November 27, 2010 Report Share Posted November 27, 2010 Man,there is going to be a hell of a lot of work involved rasping and sanding it down. I did a prototype out of bubinga before I made my first guitar. It had a contoured back. It was the most difficult wood I've worked with to shape and sand smooth...more difficult than jatoba. It's just so dang hard and dense. It was worth it though. It looked great. Kind of wasted on a prototype though. SR Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
westhemann Posted November 27, 2010 Author Report Share Posted November 27, 2010 This is the second guitar from Bubinga for me..the first one was easier just because of all of the straight sides...I could use my benchtop sander to get most of it. But I honestly believe it sands easier than hard maple.I built a body of hard maple once and it was tough..I mean really tough. But the end result with bubinga is always sooo worth it....I think it is the most stable wood I have ever used...damn near bulletproof once you get it done. After the carve this body is only 1" thick at the edges.1 3/8" in the middle...so this one should really be comfortable because of the thin-ness,but still heavyenough to balance properly because of the bubinga...at least that's what I am hoping. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WezV Posted November 28, 2010 Report Share Posted November 28, 2010 i have always found bubinga difficult to work... infact the first neck i had to give up on was bubinga and my chosen short cut did not work well but i love the stuff and it is worth persevering with Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
avengers63 Posted November 28, 2010 Report Share Posted November 28, 2010 The neck I made from bubinga felt like glass after I buffed it out to 4000 grit. I didn't find it hard to carve at all. Then again, carving the neck and carving the top are two different beasts. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WezV Posted November 28, 2010 Report Share Posted November 28, 2010 it just depends what you carve it with. the first time i used it i was using microplane rasps. They are great on most usual woods.... but did not suit bubinga at all, they were blunted and blades pushed flat in minutes. normal rasps seem to do the trick though, slower, but they get there on my first neck i decided to bandsaw off the excess to help the carve along... i knew it was dodgy but had seen it suggested and tried it... it did not work well! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
westhemann Posted November 28, 2010 Author Report Share Posted November 28, 2010 Necks are easy compared to bodies IMO.Everything is straight and easy to reach on a neck,and a radius block makes the board easy to make right,too...I mean,as long as you consider inlay to be artwork rather than "part of the neck". Btw I saved all of the recon stone dust in a ziploc bag for some unknown use later...not on this guitar...but as I was making the dust I started thinking about how Perry uses shell dust and stuff to do things that make his guitars stand out...so I had to save it. Also..straight grained bubinga is easier than figured to carve.There is no use trying to cut figured bubinga with a bladed hand tool... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
westhemann Posted November 28, 2010 Author Report Share Posted November 28, 2010 If I get to do a singlecut I´ll probably bolt the neck on, instead of setting it. Do you find that much of a difference in tone? Man I really do...not that it is better or worse,but I prefer a set neck tone to a bolt on...To be honest I am surprised that I ended up liking set necks so much.I used to be a "neck through or nothing" guy,but now I like playing them equally,but I prefer to build a set neck because of the separate body and neck... I really like how your LP is coming along Wes. Thanks..this one you mean? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
westhemann Posted November 28, 2010 Author Report Share Posted November 28, 2010 on my first neck i decided to bandsaw off the excess to help the carve along I use an oscillating spindle sander to get rid of the bulk of the wood on the back of the neck...even on bubinga it plows right through. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
westhemann Posted November 28, 2010 Author Report Share Posted November 28, 2010 I´m curious of what you´ll think of the mahogany neck and ash body combination in the end. Me too Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
avengers63 Posted November 28, 2010 Report Share Posted November 28, 2010 I´m curious of what you´ll think of the mahogany neck and ash body combination in the end. Me too I'm sure it'll sound great. I'm not gonna tell y'all what I do to prep the neck for carving. Y'all prolly think I'm a dip anyway... why give ya any more ammunition. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
westhemann Posted November 28, 2010 Author Report Share Posted November 28, 2010 Hopefully you don't soak it in water.Cause that would make it tear more,not less. I can't think of anything else I have ever heard of... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
westhemann Posted November 28, 2010 Author Report Share Posted November 28, 2010 After an hour of sanding Damn hard stuff Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
westhemann Posted November 28, 2010 Author Report Share Posted November 28, 2010 Y'all prolly think I'm a dip anyway Oh,btw..not really...a little strange maybe..but I can think of several people much more suited to the term "dip"... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
westhemann Posted November 28, 2010 Author Report Share Posted November 28, 2010 Ah..found my pics from back when I started,in case they are interesting Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Maiden69 Posted November 28, 2010 Report Share Posted November 28, 2010 Nice Wes... can't wait to get back to civilization to start another build. This one has been a long time on hold! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
westhemann Posted November 28, 2010 Author Report Share Posted November 28, 2010 Thanks,Maiden. So I almost have the carve done...I used norton 80 grit and it works pretty well...maybe another hour and it should look pretty good Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
westhemann Posted November 28, 2010 Author Report Share Posted November 28, 2010 I am getting dumb in my old age.I just realized you guys have no idea what this wood looks like when it is not all full of sanding dust... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
westhemann Posted November 28, 2010 Author Report Share Posted November 28, 2010 It's not a top.It is the entire body and headstock. This one is clear only...no dyes,only clear gloss...that's why I used these woods. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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