ScottR Posted November 8, 2017 Report Share Posted November 8, 2017 1 hour ago, Andyjr1515 said: And first coat of gloss is on : Oh my. SR 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Andyjr1515 Posted November 9, 2017 Author Report Share Posted November 9, 2017 First coat of varnish is now on the back: The neck will be left unvarnished - the tru-oil slurry and buff approach for a neck is pretty unbeatable in my view... In the meantime, the top and sides have had their second coat: As with one of my other recent builds, because of the environmentally led formulation change of the polyurethane varnish I've pretty much always used, I've switched to using an artists fan brush. The new formulation doesn't react at all well to medium to high levels of thinning - pretty much essential for the wipe-on method - and life was too short to try everyone elses standard polyurethane varnish. I was also not convinced with a recent try of the Osmo polyx gloss - even though I found the satin absolutely great - I had severe reactions to second coats with the gloss even though they had been left to dry for the recommended time before recoating. I can't do with ultra-sensitive coatings...particularly when they are even sensitive to themselves!!! The great thing about this standard polyurethane varnish is that it will go on top of pretty much anything... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Andyjr1515 Posted November 13, 2017 Author Report Share Posted November 13, 2017 Once it had fully dried, I still wasn't certain about the gloss so I've given it another coat. This time I added a teeny % (8% max) of mineral spirits to stop the brush drag and make it level a bit better. You know, this new formulation REALLY doesn't like being thinned. It ended up just about OK but I think I'm going to contact the manufacturer's technical department and find out what thinners they recommend... Gosh - could I be looking at not using standard polyurethane varnish in the future???? Anyway, this - I am sure - is good enough to polish out the micro brush marks once it's fully hardened. It doesn't bear close examination until then but it looks fine at a distance While the gloss is curing, I can still get on with the finishing jobs...which is what I'll do next, starting with re-seating a couple of dodgy frets and levelling / crowning / polishing and fret-ending 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Prostheta Posted November 13, 2017 Report Share Posted November 13, 2017 Regardless, you're nothing short of being an absolute trooper for pulling off such excellent gloss finishes with brushes. Truly outstanding, and it makes those of us that spray or rub feel like we're cheating somehow. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ScottR Posted November 13, 2017 Report Share Posted November 13, 2017 Possibly he is cheating by being able to pull off these glorious glossy finishes with a brush? The preferred method is always the one you do best. And Andy, you make these look superb doing it the way you do. Wasn't that a Motown hit back in the 60's? SR 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Andyjr1515 Posted November 13, 2017 Author Report Share Posted November 13, 2017 36 minutes ago, Prostheta said: Regardless, you're nothing short of being an absolute trooper for pulling off such excellent gloss finishes with brushes. Truly outstanding, and it makes those of us that spray or rub feel like we're cheating somehow. Honestly, though, close up it's not a patch on a well applied spray and buff finish. But, as @ScottR says, it works for me....and, for me, spray and buff generally doesn't! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Andyjr1515 Posted November 23, 2017 Author Report Share Posted November 23, 2017 It's stretched the patience, understanding and tolerance of MrsAndyjr1515 to the limit, but I've worked like a Trojan to try to get this finished to be able to enter this month's "Guitar of the Month" . Now, having seen the quality of the competition, it was probably very misguided effort So a quick visual catch-up: The pre-wired, plug-in, very slick, very expensive, Schaller flagShip piezo/mag preamp mixer comes with components clearly well thought out by a world leading manufacturer and supplier of guitar components: That three way rotary with the sealed, stiff, boot sending the large, stiff cable vertically is clearly waiting for the introduction of the new ranges of 6" thick guitars that the worlds top guitar makers are bound to be bringing in soon.... Look, I love Schaller. I really do. But fellas...really? You are better than this... On that subject - which knob is the flagship Schaller one and which one is a cheap and cheerful Harley Benton offering? The nicely coated, knurled, solid brass, standard 6mm shaft, grubscrew fitted one, or the cheap, small. plastic, push-on, 3mm non standard one? Now....I love Schaller. But fellas? Really? Anyway, I cannibalised a dremel fitment and made myself a converter: And, having proved that these piezo accumulators as STILL not fit for purpose (the Hannes piezo bridge (again - this is a VERY expensive piece of equipment) I believe uses Graphtech piezo saddles. Having had multiple failures in the past years with their accumulators, I had hoped that they may have improved them. It failed. No....but I really do love Schaller... But fellas? This is plain shoddy.... Hang the warranty - I snipped the connectors off and soldered the reds together and the blacks together and fitted them directly into the screw connectors on the preamp unit. Note also the warranty breaking removal of the three way rotary boot. And - suddenly - it was finished! All it needs now...is your votes 4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Prostheta Posted November 23, 2017 Report Share Posted November 23, 2017 Good show! And wow, Schaller....really? Those are some spectacularly-poor design decisions. I think those are Molex SPOX connectors, and I am also sure they come in right-angled versions. I could make up new connectors for those, however the tool for crimping the contacts is usually in the region of a hundred pounds or whatever. It's a really silly hurdle to entry for the enthusiast. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Andyjr1515 Posted November 23, 2017 Author Report Share Posted November 23, 2017 3 hours ago, Prostheta said: Good show! And wow, Schaller....really? Those are some spectacularly-poor design decisions. I think those are Molex SPOX connectors, and I am also sure they come in right-angled versions. I could make up new connectors for those, however the tool for crimping the contacts is usually in the region of a hundred pounds or whatever. It's a really silly hurdle to entry for the enthusiast. Surprising, isn't it. I'm going to drop Schaller a line because it is all fixable - and I would have thought quite important for them to fix. The one where it needs a right angle exit is the three-way. Totally unusable as supplied. The orientation of the molex (or whose-ever) connectors is actually fine, but that accumulator block is a poorer quality than a standard one that you could get in the local Maplin retail store. Almost always they have a firm fit and a simple lock tag, These have neither. So - just like the Graphtec ones on the Ghost system I've used from years ago, you push them in firmly, you close the hatch and play...and it's great. Then pick it up the guitar the following morning and one or more of the strings are completely dead! Open the hatch, squeeze the connectors against the block with your thumbnail and you have all 6 strings back again. Ease the pressure, you've lost one or more strings again. Having had the Graphtecs fail on me on three or four gigs despite warranty replacements of the accumulator block I was half expecting problems, but hoping that Graphtec (if it is their saddles - and might not be) would have fixed such a simple thing. To have the same issue from the Schaller offering is disappointing and irritating. And this is a £168 ($223) bridge we're talking about. So - there being no other way at all to fit the three way or rely on the piezo, I've had to invalidate the warranty on a £168 bridge by snipping off the connectors and simply soldering the two pairs of wires together and a £160ish pre-amp by removing the unusable rubber boot. That's £320 ($420) of liability just to get it to work. I do love Schaller....but they ARE better than this. Now they need to prove it I shall try to be some of the oil in the machinery to make that happen... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Andyjr1515 Posted November 23, 2017 Author Report Share Posted November 23, 2017 double post Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
curtisa Posted November 23, 2017 Report Share Posted November 23, 2017 Nice work, Andy, despite the last minute hurdles. It's a shame about the design flaws in the Schaller electronics. They've probably thought they'd done the right thing by making everything plug-and-playable for those people who aren't so good with a soldering iron, but in doing so they've come up with a system that isn't fit for purpose in the real world. If I'm using EMGs on a build I'll throw away anything with their quick connectors (except for the pickups) and hard solder everything else. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
frankencat Posted November 24, 2017 Report Share Posted November 24, 2017 Very nice! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Norris Posted November 24, 2017 Report Share Posted November 24, 2017 Lovely job. Your builds just get better each time 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ScottR Posted November 24, 2017 Report Share Posted November 24, 2017 Mercy, mercy, mercy-lawd have mercy but that is stupendously gorgeouristical. I just looked wood porn in the dictionary and all that was there was a picture of this guitar. Masterful work Andy! On 11/23/2017 at 7:57 AM, Andyjr1515 said: And - suddenly - it was finished! Peering inside the control cavity is like having a look under a racing car's hood...bonnet to you, I suppose. I don't imagine anything was very sudden about that. SR 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mr Natural Posted November 28, 2017 Report Share Posted November 28, 2017 great job Andy. Very well done sir. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Andyjr1515 Posted December 7, 2017 Author Report Share Posted December 7, 2017 Well, the newborn and I have said our goodbyes, with one last photo before it goes to its new home: I'm pleased to say that Tim is delighted with it And he's a really good player. It sounded wonderful under his skilled hands... Quite a difficult build in some ways, but one of my favourite results 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ScottR Posted December 7, 2017 Report Share Posted December 7, 2017 52 minutes ago, Andyjr1515 said: I'm pleased to say that Tim is delighted with it I would imagine so! 53 minutes ago, Andyjr1515 said: And he's a really good player. It sounded wonderful under his skilled hands... Mmmmm, P-90s, I'll bet it does sound great. 53 minutes ago, Andyjr1515 said: Quite a difficult build in some ways, but one of my favourite results MIne too! Fine art that is. Worthy of a velvet draped pedestal and it's own special lighting....when not in use of course. SR 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
curtisa Posted December 7, 2017 Report Share Posted December 7, 2017 7 hours ago, ScottR said: Worthy of a velvet draped pedestal and it's own special lighting....when not in use of course. Or perhaps even when in use. Complete with wind machine, flames and a cliff-top performance. 1 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guitarred and Feathered Posted January 22, 2018 Report Share Posted January 22, 2018 I am a noob working on my first build (a barncaster) but have plans to do more after this one. Love your work, choice of woods, etc. How do you do the carving/body shaping? So far I am practicing with a Shinto rasp, saw pics of one of the builders here using gouges/chisels--just wondering what you use--I like the look of showing the different woods at the curved/carved areas. Thanks. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Andyjr1515 Posted January 22, 2018 Author Report Share Posted January 22, 2018 3 hours ago, Guitarred and Feathered said: I am a noob working on my first build (a barncaster) but have plans to do more after this one. Love your work, choice of woods, etc. How do you do the carving/body shaping? So far I am practicing with a Shinto rasp, saw pics of one of the builders here using gouges/chisels--just wondering what you use--I like the look of showing the different woods at the curved/carved areas. Thanks. Hi, welcome and thanks! It depends on the wood, and it depends on whether I am shaping a convex or concave carve, but for a top convex carve, I actually often use a (freshly sharpened) jack plane on low cut depth to rough out, then move to micro plane or shinto, then to a straight cabinet scraper and then sanding with block. For concave curves, it's generally a micro plane (curved) blade held with both gloved hands, followed by a curved cabinet scraper. I'll drop some photos on when I'm back on the desktop Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Andyjr1515 Posted January 22, 2018 Author Report Share Posted January 22, 2018 2 hours ago, Andyjr1515 said: Hi, welcome and thanks! It depends on the wood, and it depends on whether I am shaping a convex or concave carve, but for a top convex carve, I actually often use a (freshly sharpened) jack plane on low cut depth to rough out, then move to micro plane or shinto, then to a straight cabinet scraper and then sanding with block. For concave curves, it's generally a micro plane (curved) blade held with both gloved hands, followed by a curved cabinet scraper. I'll drop some photos on when I'm back on the desktop Hi, again @Guitarred and Feathered I always stress in my threads that what I show is how I personally do things - not necessarily how it should be done! Anyway, for what it's worth, generally these are the tools I use for my body carves: Generally a jack plane (it's actually a Bailey No.5) is NOT what you'd use, but I find it useful to get a full body-length curve started. I have a beautiful block plane (it was a very special surprise gift) but, actually, for body carves I find that less usable. For many other jobs, of course, it's mustard! I then quickly move onto the micro-plane blades. With decent protective gloves, I use them two-handed. The fine curved one is particularly useful. And then to the cabinet scrapers. But I have done a complete carve with cabinet scrapers alone. Takes a long time (and you really have to learn how to burnish them properly) but they are very effective and super-controllable. There are great builders on this site whose work leaves me open-mouthed in awe and use all sorts of other tools and techniques, so it's worth having a really good trawl through some of the other build threads. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guitarred and Feathered Posted January 22, 2018 Report Share Posted January 22, 2018 Thanks for your response and pics of the tools you use. Have been looking at jack planes on ebay, hadn't known about the micro blade planes but will have a lookout for them as well. Will look at other builders' work also but you seemed fairly accessible as I perused your website, so I got up my nerve to approach you with my question first. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Andyjr1515 Posted January 22, 2018 Author Report Share Posted January 22, 2018 45 minutes ago, Guitarred and Feathered said: Thanks for your response and pics of the tools you use. Have been looking at jack planes on ebay, hadn't known about the micro blade planes but will have a lookout for them as well. Will look at other builders' work also but you seemed fairly accessible as I perused your website, so I got up my nerve to approach you with my question first. No problem Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Norris Posted January 23, 2018 Report Share Posted January 23, 2018 14 hours ago, Guitarred and Feathered said: Will look at other builders' work also but you seemed fairly accessible We're all a pretty friendly bunch and are happy to help out where we can Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
meatloaf Posted January 23, 2018 Report Share Posted January 23, 2018 On 22/01/2018 at 10:43 AM, Andyjr1515 said: I always stress in my threads that what I show is how I personally do things - not necessarily how it should be done What you actually show Andy is how you get incredible results, many people approach building in different ways but your way obviously works well for you, another stunning result, I'm not surprised that Tim is pleased with it. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.