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Black Limba Flying V


Stu.

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  • 3 weeks later...

You guys are far too kind, as always. There's still plenty of time for this to go wrong, especially at the pace I make progress.

I managed to get the clamps off at the weekend. The joint looked good, so I shaped the heel and roughed a new neck profile in; including blending the sides at the fingerboard edge. It still needs a LOT of work, but I'm really pleased with the fit and maple veneer so far.

48617388676_4db16b14a9_b.jpgUntitled by S K, on Flickr

48617034003_048763ef63_b.jpgUntitled by S K, on Flickr

48617389326_8c069b9876_b.jpgUntitled by S K, on Flickr

48617389316_481bcbc09c_b.jpgUntitled by S K, on Flickr

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12 hours ago, Bizman62 said:

This time I abstain from commenting nicely since the changes to your previous post aren't too significant. Happy? :P

 

10 hours ago, Prostheta said:

Right, so what have I misse....oh fffff

😁👍

My 'updates' are turning into spot-the-difference challenges... 😆

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Agh, tell me about it. Glacial is the new norm for me. That said, whenever I do manage to be able to get something done, it's the worst time to document it. I like the idea of a spot the difference though....not sure if that would be a worthy competition to have, or even encourage. 😀

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  • 7 months later...

I hope everyone is still good, especially considering our new normal. Just at the point where I'd started to settle into my new job to the point where I was going to start moving projects and tools up, the lockdown was initiated in the UK. I'm fortunate enough to have a cupboard of tools and workbench at home now, although my serious kit (2kW router, bench planer, thicknesser, radius jig, and most of my other guitar specific tools) is all 90 miles away. I have a padauk 2-piece blank and handful of fingerboard blanks with me too.

I've kept myself busy by building an enclosure for my little CNC, working on a router sled, and re-sawing padauk by hand. I also caught a drum sander on offer:

49806267407_876543d393_b.jpg  49805402853_117ef17b08_b.jpg  49805402508_b7864af480_b.jpg 

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Fun new fingerboard:

49805400763_b25d228182_b.jpg 

 

49806264562_5e49e1cf2f_b.jpg
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That's some classy kit you've put together. It looks like the CNC might have gotten some work whilst you did that.

It's too bad they can't be taught to resaw billets. I bet you made a pile of orange sawdust to go with your sore shoulder whilst resawing padauk by hand.

Sweet fretboard too. I can't wait to see the guitar you build to go around that looks like.

SR

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That padauk is seriously tough! I built a circular saw jig to start ~60mm on each side, and now I'm still cutting through the middle of the blocks by hand. 30 min shifts seem to keep the pain and boredom at bay! I even bought a lovely vintage 5tpi Spear & Jackson panel saw, which arrived yesterday and has been powering through after a quick sharpening (rip); my 10tpi cross-cut was taking way, way too long as you can imagine. The Dyson is now very orange indeed 😂

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  • 2 weeks later...

Well, the saw absolutely destroyed the padauk:

49854555382_a8f193c0dc_b.jpgUntitled by S K, on Flickr

I now have some backs and tops to work with:

49853716183_f3c1ec64b0_b.jpgUntitled by S K, on Flickr

49854256666_c7542b5bec_b.jpgUntitled by S K, on Flickr

The padauk body is going to be topped with spalted beech (I forgot to take a photo), and maybe something dark between.

Feast your eyes on the cheapest no.7 that Amazon has to offer:

49854556637_753aeb7d92_b.jpgUntitled by S K, on Flickr

Pretty great straight out of the box. I wanted a safer option with my bench planer stuck 90 miles away.

Also, my carving skills are really coming along:

49853716928_ebb8e351f2_b.jpgUntitled by S K, on Flickr

Edited by Stu.
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1 hour ago, Stu. said:

Well, the saw absolutely destroyed the padauk:

Yeah....the hard work is not over when you resaw with a hand saw.

1 hour ago, Stu. said:

Also, my carving skills are really coming along:

Awesome work there! You really captured the mischievous glint in the eyes....which are given away by that twitch in the tail. :)

SR

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11 hours ago, Stu. said:

It was actually a lot of fun for my first jointing by hand! The results are pretty good too:Untitled by S K, on Flickr

That's because any job is fun compared to resawing by hand 🤣 Every time I start doing that job, I regret it about 5 minutes in. That drum sander will improve your quality of life though. Looking forward to seeing what you do with that top.

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I have a bit of a dilemma!

My original plan was to use the padauk to make a Tele, with a light wood for a cap and a thin laminate of something dark between (to carve through). I've bought and joined two tops to stack: one is walnut, and the other is spalted beech. Although I wanted the spalted beech on top, it ends up looking like a ombre guitar; having padauk, spalted beech, and then walnut gives more contrast and impact. If I choose the latter, I can also add walnut veneer to the headstock.

 

49904253053_7ceae23f85_b.jpgUntitled by S K, on Flickr

49905077042_d4db008402_b.jpgUntitled by S K, on Flickr

49904772421_e7b99edb72_b.jpgUntitled by S K, on Flickr

49905070852_a5737d7ed2_b.jpgUntitled by S K, on Flickr

The next step is to route wiring channels and some weight relief into the padauk, followed by sanding the tops and gluing it all up.

My neice is also about to turn two, and she's getting a kitchen for her birthday:

49904772866_cce04ac03b_b.jpgUntitled by S K, on Flickr

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Hiding either the walnut or the beech in between the layers would be a sin!

Also, have you tested how they act together with the finish?

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On 5/17/2020 at 2:16 PM, Bizman62 said:

Hiding either the walnut or the beech in between the layers would be a sin!

Also, have you tested how they act together with the finish?

This was a good shout! There isn't enough contrast at all between the spalted beech and walnut on their own.

I'm going to try fumed eucalyptus veneer between to tidy things up; it should be dark enough to give clear separation.

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  • 2 years later...

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