ScottR Posted January 31, 2017 Report Share Posted January 31, 2017 9 hours ago, a2k said: Tops book matched. It's amazing how different the grain is considering they are two ends of one piece of wood. It is amazing how much changes in the width of the kerf. The closer your board is to flat sawn the bigger the difference will be. SR Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
a2k Posted January 31, 2017 Author Report Share Posted January 31, 2017 7 hours ago, ScottR said: It is amazing how much changes in the width of the kerf. The closer your board is to flat sawn the bigger the difference will be. SR Ah, that makes sense. I was wondering what the trick was - I split it with a band saw so the kerf shouldn't have been too severe, but then I also ran it through a thickness sander to get it flat. I *think* the book-matched effect is still there and hopefully the strings/pickups/bridge will obfuscate the issue with the grain not lining up as a perfect mirror image. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
a2k Posted January 31, 2017 Author Report Share Posted January 31, 2017 17 hours ago, a2k said: Even though nobody will ever see the insides of the chambers, the OCD part of me that wants to go in and clean up all of those circles left by the forstner bit. Any reason why I should clean'm up? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
charisjapan Posted February 1, 2017 Report Share Posted February 1, 2017 33 minutes ago, a2k said: Even though nobody will ever see the insides of the chambers, the OCD part of me that wants to go in and clean up all of those circles left by the forstner bit. Any reason why I should clean'm up? Yes, those little holes are tremendous tonesuckers! Just like sound-absorption baffles, all those little holes and bit-depth irregularities will cause uneven reverberations between the flat top and your cavity floor. You could either smooth the bottom, or make an exact reverse image on the inside of the top. ... Seriously, I really doubt there is much tonal effect, but I couldn't live with myself knowing what it looked like in the cavity. I guess it really depends on the thickness of the back. I have heard it said that too thin will give you too much "air" ... but in all reality, 1/4" or more will sound fine. Cheers! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
curtisa Posted February 1, 2017 Report Share Posted February 1, 2017 Be careful that you've left yourself enough depth with your upper cavities, such that you don't punch through the back if you choose to add a belly carve on the rear of the body Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
a2k Posted February 2, 2017 Author Report Share Posted February 2, 2017 23 hours ago, charisjapan said: Yes, those little holes are tremendous tonesuckers! Just like sound-absorption baffles, all those little holes and bit-depth irregularities will cause uneven reverberations between the flat top and your cavity floor. By strategically reducing the area of parallel surfaces within the chamber, the harmonic profile of standing waves is normalized thus ensuring a consistent resonant response across the audible spectrum. Yeah, that's it. Plus tummy comfort cuts cuts. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
a2k Posted February 20, 2017 Author Report Share Posted February 20, 2017 Slow and steady... here are some progress shots from the past two weeks: Alignment pins to get the tops on the bodies. Clamptastic, guitar 1: Clamptastic, guitar 2 Trimmed down to the templates: And the back edges rounded: Now I'm shifting my attention to the necks. I want to get these together and up to the carving stage before I route the neck cavities to confirm depth. One neck is already good to go (it's some extra from the neck of the koi bass). I squared up and glued the other neck - flamed maple with a rosewood stripe. Next up: - run the necks through the drum sander to get the thickness right - cut the scarfs at 13 degrees - prep and join the scarf joints - cut truss rod channels - get logos etched onto headstock tops And I still need to make a decision about pickups... Thanks for following along! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Andyjr1515 Posted February 20, 2017 Report Share Posted February 20, 2017 Good progress . Those are some decent sash clamps you're using Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
a2k Posted February 21, 2017 Author Report Share Posted February 21, 2017 22 hours ago, Andyjr1515 said: Those are some decent sash clamps you're using The shop as a whole series of them in various sizes, ending in half a dozen monster clamps that must be 6 feet long. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Andyjr1515 Posted February 21, 2017 Report Share Posted February 21, 2017 1 hour ago, a2k said: The shop as a whole series of them in various sizes, ending in half a dozen monster clamps that must be 6 feet long. Fantastic . I must invest in some more clamps. I have enough in terms of numbers, but many of them have small handles that make it difficult to apply enough tightening. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
a2k Posted February 21, 2017 Author Report Share Posted February 21, 2017 Unfortunately this is likely the last project in this huge shop. We are moving back to the states in July. I currently own approximately zero clamps. But there is hope.. the new house has a small shop space off the garage and the neighborhood has a tool library a few blocks away. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
a2k Posted February 22, 2017 Author Report Share Posted February 22, 2017 I got a little shop time in today and did some test cuts in preparation for the upcoming scarf joints. The original plan was to follow the site tutorial and make a jig that holds the neck at the right angle and run it through the table saw, but the table saw blade isn't big enough. So the new plan is to use the mitre saw. It angles up to 60 degrees, so I'm adding another 17 degrees with an angled face to get a 13 degree cut. Test cuts seems okay. Anybody see any issues or red flags with this approach? 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mr Natural Posted February 23, 2017 Report Share Posted February 23, 2017 as long as that mitre saw blade is thick enough to cut thru your neck blank I dont see any issue. great progress so far. "tool library" wish my neighborhood had one of those Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
a2k Posted February 24, 2017 Author Report Share Posted February 24, 2017 11 hours ago, Mr Natural said: "tool library" wish my neighborhood had one of those Yeah, I was pretty stoked to find that out. Here's a directory of other tool libraries. Looks like Atlanta has one. There's a small shop space off the garage too. My wife even pointed it out. "There's your bass building shop" (but she was probably thinking "sucker - I get the entire house, and he's happy to have a little dungeon off of the garage"). 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Andyjr1515 Posted February 26, 2017 Report Share Posted February 26, 2017 On 22 February 2017 at 0:49 PM, a2k said: I got a little shop time in today and did some test cuts in preparation for the upcoming scarf joints. The original plan was to follow the site tutorial and make a jig that holds the neck at the right angle and run it through the table saw, but the table saw blade isn't big enough. So the new plan is to use the mitre saw. It angles up to 60 degrees, so I'm adding another 17 degrees with an angled face to get a 13 degree cut. Test cuts seems okay. Anybody see any issues or red flags with this approach? Really interested in this. I've always avoided scarfe joints because of this issue. Never really thought of using a chop saw but that joint you have there looks pretty damned good! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
a2k Posted February 27, 2017 Author Report Share Posted February 27, 2017 17 hours ago, Andyjr1515 said: Really interested in this. I've always avoided scarfe joints because of this issue. Never really thought of using a chop saw but that joint you have there looks pretty damned good! I've gotta admit that it's working out okay but not the 100% foolproof method I'd hoped for. The sample I'd tested with was thinner than the actual necks. When I cut the necks, the pressure from the saw twisted the wood, which ended up making a, ever-so-slightly warped cut. Perhaps if you have a taller fence and can camp the neck to the fence at both the top and bottom of if, you could avoid this. I think I was able to get a good glue surface and should be able to clean things up with a little bit of sanding and a leveling beam. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Norris Posted February 27, 2017 Report Share Posted February 27, 2017 10 hours ago, a2k said: I've gotta admit that it's working out okay but not the 100% foolproof method I'd hoped for. The sample I'd tested with was thinner than the actual necks. When I cut the necks, the pressure from the saw twisted the wood, which ended up making a, ever-so-slightly warped cut. Perhaps if you have a taller fence and can camp the neck to the fence at both the top and bottom of if, you could avoid this. I think I was able to get a good glue surface and should be able to clean things up with a little bit of sanding and a leveling beam. I admire you for trying. I don't think I'd trust my mitre saw to cut it that straight - it has far too much play that I think twice about even using it for cutting skirting boards! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
a2k Posted March 6, 2017 Author Report Share Posted March 6, 2017 Okay... where was I? Oh yeah, scarf joints with a mitre saw. I think it turned out okay. Probably a little too risky to make standard operational procedure, but for this project it worked. I cleaned up the surfaces with my sanding beam, got everything glued together, and got the truss rod channels installed. Photoz: I went a little too deep on one of the channels - about 1.5mm, so I'll put a fillet in above the rod. And I'll need to be careful not to take away much any behind the rod when carving. And one channel is a little off center - I think it's close enough that it should be okay. Headstock plates are off to get the logo lasered into them. Here's the tiny glue line at the scarf. I'm not gonna lose any sleep over it. Finally, I'm glueing up the "heal" that needs to bulk up the double-cut neck. What could be more fun than a picture of two pieces of wood clamped together with glue? Moving along! I'll get the necks shaped and then go back and finish the routing in the bodies. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
a2k Posted March 17, 2017 Author Report Share Posted March 17, 2017 I've got a deadline. Our vocalist is likely leaving Japan at the end of next month, so my band's last gig is probably April 15. And I'm traveling from for the first two weeks of April. So that means I've got to get these finished this month. Hope I can do it! I have been making fairly steady progress. The necks are all glued up and ready to be shaped next week, electronics cavities routed, and I've done the pacman cut on the pickup cavities. Here are some photos: Headstocks have been laser etched: fingerboard and headstock plate aligned with pins so they glue on straight: New toy - laser beam! Heal glued on the double cut neck: Fillet ready to the truss rod channel: I have learned my lesson and used a fence to make sure the side markers all lined up: Dots on the board and holes on the side. I love the way the abalone looks on ebony. They glow. Glueing the fingerboards on: And finally, the electronics cavities are routed. I'm hopeful that I will get the necks shaped, fretted, and glued in next week. Then I can finish the week after and give it two weeks to cure while I'm away. Next week is gonna be a big week! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ScottR Posted March 17, 2017 Report Share Posted March 17, 2017 4 minutes ago, a2k said: I love the way the abalone looks on ebony. They glow. Me too. they look like opals when you get them polished up. SR Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KnightroExpress Posted March 20, 2017 Report Share Posted March 20, 2017 Looking good! +1 on the abalone/ebony combo, always a good decision. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
a2k Posted March 26, 2017 Author Report Share Posted March 26, 2017 (edited) Grrrrr... freakin' tear out. I was drilling the pickup selector hold and probably (definitely) was going a little too fast. Just as the bit made it through - blam - a chunk of the top went flying to who-knows-where. My fault, and a major bummer. The repair plan is to fill it and then just use a washer as a mounting plate for the switch to hide the repair. Any other ideas? Otherwise there are lots of good progress updates to come once I regain my spirits from this screw-up. Edited March 26, 2017 by a2k Typos Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Andyjr1515 Posted March 27, 2017 Report Share Posted March 27, 2017 You could even pop a Gibson 'Rythm Treble' plate on...they are big enough to cover many sins Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
a2k Posted March 27, 2017 Author Report Share Posted March 27, 2017 33 minutes ago, Andyjr1515 said: You could even pop a Gibson 'Rythm Treble' plate on...they are big enough to cover many sins Now you've got me thinking. I wonder if I can get a plate etched with something besides "rhythm/treble". I'm thinking "funky/sexy", "country/western", "rock/roll", "yin/yang", or maybe just "10/11".. This might even be the place... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
curtisa Posted March 27, 2017 Report Share Posted March 27, 2017 What you need is someone with a CNC Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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