gpcustomguitars Posted October 8, 2018 Report Share Posted October 8, 2018 I definitely have no will power at all...can't understand how I quit smoking I like this design so much that I just have to start it, so, the design again: 1-IMG_20180926_184927 by Goran P, on Flickr 2-IMG_20180926_184933 by Goran P, on Flickr 3-IMG_20180926_184940 by Goran P, on Flickr Started by making some templates: 02-IMG_20181006_134835 by Goran P, on Flickr 03-IMG_20181006_140945 by Goran P, on Flickr and picked the center section out of a few pieces I had in the shop, cherry again: 05-IMG_20181006_145025 by Goran P, on Flickr I managed to fit the headstock part in there, slightly angled, to use the longer grain. Some cutting with the jigsaw: 08-IMG_20181006_153005 by Goran P, on Flickr Sanded the templates, and drilled some holes to fix them to stock: 09-IMG_20181006_164434 by Goran P, on Flickr I want a light-coloured wood in the back, so I'm adding a piece of acero parana to the neck lam to build up thickness: 10-IMG_20181007_132501 by Goran P, on Flickr 11-IMG_20181007_134548 by Goran P, on Flickr ...and fixed the templates to some more cherry stock. It's not perfect, but I've managed to pick sections that are fault-free: 13-IMG_20181007_143510 by Goran P, on Flickr That's it for now! 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ScottR Posted October 8, 2018 Report Share Posted October 8, 2018 Just couldn't stand it, could you? SR Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Skyjerk Posted October 8, 2018 Report Share Posted October 8, 2018 Sweet. Theres something about that shape that reminds me of something, only I have no idea what. Not a guitar, but something. I like it Neck-through always a winner in my book, too Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bokchoi77 Posted October 9, 2018 Report Share Posted October 9, 2018 Definitely an interesting shape, look forward to seeing this come together! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gpcustomguitars Posted October 9, 2018 Author Report Share Posted October 9, 2018 Thanks! I just couldn't look at that paper guitar any more The thing I like about this design is that it's all made from really small pieces, so I'm using some stock that would be unusable otherwise without a lot of laminating. The whole thing should be made out of 6, max 7 pieces, and still be relatively normal-sized and balanced. On the side note, I finally replaced my overhead router unit that got stolen a few years back, so I can route and plane stock again Hopefully, some more shop time later today. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Splintazert Posted October 9, 2018 Report Share Posted October 9, 2018 Yup, that's a nice shape and definitely has economical use of the body wood. Good luck with the project. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
verhoevenc Posted October 12, 2018 Report Share Posted October 12, 2018 Wow... TOTALLY out there but also 100% works! Way to push the boundaries. Chris Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jdogg Posted October 12, 2018 Report Share Posted October 12, 2018 I love this shape... very cool. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gpcustomguitars Posted October 15, 2018 Author Report Share Posted October 15, 2018 Thanks a lot!!! Not much time for guitars for a few days now, making some furniture for my friends new apartment, but will get back to this asap Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gpcustomguitars Posted October 16, 2018 Author Report Share Posted October 16, 2018 Finally had some time for the shop! Not much done, but I got all the main parts of the guitar cut out roughly, except the fretboard. Started with routing the wing shapes, went fine to the max depth of the short bit I use for this work. Switched to longer one after that, but I didn't like the feel that gave, so I just cut trough roughly with the jigsaw, and further cropped the excess on the scroll saw. I'll finalize the shapes on the sander, and thickness them on overarm router with myself appropriately out of it's reach 1-IMG_20181015_211545 by Goran P, on Flickr 2-IMG_20181015_223310 by Goran P, on Flickr 3-IMG_20181015_223321 by Goran P, on Flickr 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mistermikev Posted October 16, 2018 Report Share Posted October 16, 2018 looks pretty cool to me. exciting design. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gpcustomguitars Posted October 17, 2018 Author Report Share Posted October 17, 2018 It's really nice to see the positive responses to the design Now I hope I'll do it justice. Some more wood removed - started by routing the treble side straight, bass side is still needed as is for routing the TR channel. 01-IMG_20181016_181844 by Goran P, on Flickr Sanded the wings clean, they seem to be pretty radial cut stock. 02-IMG_20181016_190030 by Goran P, on Flickr Removed most of the stock on the sander to form the heel: 03-IMG_20181016_193734 by Goran P, on Flickr 04-IMG_20181016_200422 by Goran P, on Flickr 05-IMG_20181016_200428 by Goran P, on Flickr 06-IMG_20181016_200438 by Goran P, on Flickr First real mockup, all stock still too thick: 07-IMG_20181016_200447 by Goran P, on Flickr 08-IMG_20181016_200911 by Goran P, on Flickr 09-IMG_20181016_200927 by Goran P, on Flickr 10-IMG_20181016_202946 by Goran P, on Flickr And checked how the trem cavity correlates to the back carving, seems to be fine. 12-IMG_20181016_203616 by Goran P, on Flickr Started flattening the surface for glueing, but need to cut the TR channel first. 13-IMG_20181016_210000 by Goran P, on Flickr So, next step is TR channel, followed by routing the bass side straight, and then glueing the scarf. My 4+2 locking tuners for the Alvin Lee finally arrived yesterday, so I can finish the assembly! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Andyjr1515 Posted October 17, 2018 Report Share Posted October 17, 2018 I like the shape very much, Goran. Those body blanks are mighty pieces of timber! What will their final thickness be? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gpcustomguitars Posted October 17, 2018 Author Report Share Posted October 17, 2018 Thanks Andy! I started with 50-51mm. After about five years, I finally replaced the detachable router unit that fits in the standard 44mm collar and can route stock to thickness. Had an hour or so to spare today, so here it is - flattened one side first, and then thicknessed from the other to about 44mm, both the sides and the neck portion of the body. I think it's a good starting point, never installed a floyd before. The wings might look thicker than they really are, as they are not that big. I'll post some overall dimensions tomorrow. Also thinned the neck to about 17mm, final target will be 15mm at the 12th fret. Routing steps are 2mm max, but it's all rather quick (and messy.....) I need to fine tune the setup to route for the truss rod (still need to actually buy one ) and then I can glue it all up and start carving. 1-IMG_20181017_184833 by Goran P, on Flickr 2-IMG_20181017_190336 by Goran P, on Flickr 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Andyjr1515 Posted October 20, 2018 Report Share Posted October 20, 2018 On 10/17/2018 at 9:48 PM, gpcustomguitars said: Thanks Andy! I started with 50-51mm. After about five years, I finally replaced the detachable router unit that fits in the standard 44mm collar and can route stock to thickness. Had an hour or so to spare today, so here it is - flattened one side first, and then thicknessed from the other to about 44mm, both the sides and the neck portion of the body. I think it's a good starting point, never installed a floyd before. The wings might look thicker than they really are, as they are not that big. I'll post some overall dimensions tomorrow. Also thinned the neck to about 17mm, final target will be 15mm at the 12th fret. Routing steps are 2mm max, but it's all rather quick (and messy.....) I need to fine tune the setup to route for the truss rod (still need to actually buy one ) and then I can glue it all up and start carving. 1-IMG_20181017_184833 by Goran P, on Flickr 2-IMG_20181017_190336 by Goran P, on Flickr I like that shape very much Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gpcustomguitars Posted November 6, 2018 Author Report Share Posted November 6, 2018 Not much time for the shop for a while now, but during the weekend I had some time to spare. Set up my router thingie, can do more different jobs now! First, plugged that little piece missing at the end of the neck lam, used a improvised rail to cut the tr channel, and glued the headstock on. 1-IMG_20181103_170600 by Goran P, on Flickr 2-IMG_20181103_181109 by Goran P, on Flickr 3-IMG_20181103_183316 by Goran P, on Flickr Then took off the excess wood first roughly by chisel, and then planes, to get a flat-enough surface to attach the headstock template. The idea is to get the surface to be leveled smaller. 4-IMG_20181104_120525 by Goran P, on Flickr 5-IMG_20181104_123501 by Goran P, on Flickr and routed with handheld and a short bit with a bearing, 2mm at a time, luckily, no tearout at all. 6-IMG_20181104_124940 by Goran P, on Flickr Then flattened/thicknessed the back of the headstock, and routed a bit of the future volute in with a round bit. 7-IMG_20181104_165215 by Goran P, on Flickr 8-IMG_20181104_165224 by Goran P, on Flickr I'll flatten the face side of the headstock next and add a 2mm veneer over it, still haven't decided if I want some contrast or not. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gpcustomguitars Posted November 7, 2018 Author Report Share Posted November 7, 2018 Not too much progress, but I have thicknessed and flattened the headstock to about 13mm. I'll do some more sanding to have it perfectly flat, and add a layer of 3mm acero parana (in pics also). After sanding it should all amount to 15mm thickness. It's all still a bit slow, but it should get more interesting soon. 1-IMG_20181106_201830 by Goran P, on Flickr 2-IMG_20181106_204030 by Goran P, on Flickr Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gpcustomguitars Posted November 9, 2018 Author Report Share Posted November 9, 2018 It's slowly starting to take shape I took a 2mm piece of binding and fixed it to the nut position, and placed it on a long straight piece of scrap and routed or milled? the correct neck thickness slope. The headstock veneer piece was cut out with some material to spare, but I'm still thinking of actually using more cherry for that, and thinning this piece to 1mm as a contrast. 1-IMG_20181108_175253 by Goran P, on Flickr 2-IMG_20181108_175704 by Goran P, on Flickr 3-IMG_20181108_180439 by Goran P, on Flickr Then I started to shape the back of the headstock using the round router bit: 4-IMG_20181108_181957 by Goran P, on Flickr 5-IMG_20181108_182424 by Goran P, on Flickr I used a round engraving chisel to further refine some details, and finished for now with scrapers. 6-IMG_20181108_183450 by Goran P, on Flickr 7-IMG_20181108_184242 by Goran P, on Flickr I should get a truss rod now and enlarge the channel as needed to fit to be able to glue the headstock veneer(s) on, but I will probably add 2 strips of cherry or maple to the scarf before, just to be on the safe side. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
2.5itim Posted November 10, 2018 Report Share Posted November 10, 2018 Is it just me or is that volute way into the headstock? I’d think you’d want the strength from the volute closer to the neck but it may just be my eyes deceiving me from the pics. Is that high e tuner going to be able to sit flat against the headstock? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gpcustomguitars Posted November 12, 2018 Author Report Share Posted November 12, 2018 Hi! I'll remove more wood as needed when I drill the tuner holes. Regarding the volute, I decided not to add 2 strips to the headstock, as I laminated the headstock plate out of 1mm acero and 2mm cherry lams. The volute will be built up in the same manner, overlaping the seam a bit, I think it will be strong enough. I did quite a lot of new steps in the meanwhile: 01-IMG_20181109_183813 by Goran P, on Flickr 03-IMG_20181110_140203 by Goran P, on Flickr 04-IMG_20181110_144039 by Goran P, on Flickr 05-IMG_20181110_144044 by Goran P, on Flickr Picked a piece long enough for the fretboard: 06-IMG_20181110_164729 by Goran P, on Flickr The cherry lam for the headstock is from the same piece: 07-IMG_20181110_164739 by Goran P, on Flickr 08-IMG_20181110_172006 by Goran P, on Flickr The headstock seems warped 09-IMG_20181110_173001 by Goran P, on Flickr 10-IMG_20181112_113546 by Goran P, on Flickr 11-IMG_20181112_114631 by Goran P, on Flickr Thinned to 3mm: 12-IMG_20181112_115400 by Goran P, on Flickr 13-IMG_20181112_121201 by Goran P, on Flickr Marking the access hole: 14-IMG_20181112_123710 by Goran P, on Flickr Routed the taper of the neck off: 15-IMG_20181112_131630 by Goran P, on Flickr 16-IMG_20181112_131758 by Goran P, on Flickr 17-IMG_20181112_131925 by Goran P, on Flickr Ready to glue on: 18-IMG_20181112_132544 by Goran P, on Flickr I used all 6 holes and screwed the jig to the headstock, then clamped: 19-IMG_20181112_134324 by Goran P, on Flickr Thinned the fretboard to 6mm: 20-IMG_20181112_140159 by Goran P, on Flickr Planed the taper of the fretboard from both sides, getting better at planing 21-IMG_20181112_152357 by Goran P, on Flickr Cut the nut and the end of the fretboard lines: 22-IMG_20181112_161424 by Goran P, on Flickr ...aaand first real mockup!!! 23-IMG_20181112_162512 by Goran P, on Flickr 24-IMG_20181112_162521 by Goran P, on Flickr Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gpcustomguitars Posted November 14, 2018 Author Report Share Posted November 14, 2018 Trimmed the headstock to final shape with router, again small cuts, 2mm max. No tearout 1-IMG_20181113_193323 by Goran P, on Flickr 4-IMG_20181113_195609 by Goran P, on Flickr Now I'm ready to cut the fret slots and glue the fretboard on. I think I have the final decision on the some simple inlay for it! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gpcustomguitars Posted March 4, 2019 Author Report Share Posted March 4, 2019 Hello! The winter break is over! It's finally warm enough to start gluing in the shop, so here goes: I've since radiused the board and cut some simple abs dots with my leather punches, 2mm, 6mm and 8mm ones. I want some contrast in the fretboard, since the whole guitar will be cherry, not counting 2 accent pieces, so I've dyed it with some cognac coloured dye that I've used previously. I'll follow that with tung oil to seal it after fretting. 3-IMG_20190302_161430 by Goran P, on Flickr and glued it together, 4 nails were used. Removed the clamps early this morning While that was drying, I made a quick mdf jig for the 2 pots I'm planning on using, and routed the lower wing to about 23mm. I'm actually trying to preserve some weight there It's visable on the jig where I plan to drill for the jack. 5-IMG_20190303_152500 by Goran P, on Flickr Then made my now regular little cut on the headstock (and realized that the second string pilot hole is a bit off, will take special care when drilling for tuners) 6-IMG_20190303_155355 by Goran P, on Flickr and cut and glued my logo out of some 2mm abs with CA 6-IMG_20190303_155355 by Goran P, on Flickr I'm planning to make the head plate darker, so the inner part of the logo will be taken care of a bit later. 8-IMG_20190303_183657 by Goran P, on Flickr During the winter, I did manage to do some work, cutting a few pieces in the shop and gluing them up in the house in the evenings, so this is what came out of that: 1-IMG_20190203_122753 by Goran P, on Flickr 2-IMG_20190221_211329 by Goran P, on Flickr I'm waiting for the corners, still need to cut the back boards, and the preamp is missing the whole tone stack (pots in the mail also), but it's nice and loud. With the random 36V 1A power supply I had in the parts bin it gets up to 18 watt-ish. BR Goran Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mistermikev Posted March 4, 2019 Report Share Posted March 4, 2019 guitar is coming along nicely. that is some respectable work on the tolex there. always want to build an amp... but I have a super-fear of high voltage. good on ya! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ScottR Posted March 4, 2019 Report Share Posted March 4, 2019 Good to see making sawdust again Goran! SR Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gpcustomguitars Posted March 5, 2019 Author Report Share Posted March 5, 2019 Thanks, it's really good to be back in the shop! Mike, I've started this by making some simple pedals for fun, usual stuff like boosters, treble boosters, various electra dist. type stuff, and started daydreaming about preamps. This amp is not valve powered, it has a class D chipamp inside, TPA3116D2, I've used a voltage module to set the voltage from my power supply to required max 24v, and built the clean preamp for it using FETs. I didn't have 2 250k pots when I started this, so to complete the tone stack I have to wait on them. I got the 12' speaker for free in somewhat bad shape, so I had to clean it up and patch it up in a number of places, but it works great now. The cabinet making is really rewarding, it's a small project compared to what we usually do, and I need a dose of quick results now and then If you're interested, I can PM you with the details of the stuff I've used, nothing inside exceeds 36V and it's all pretty modular. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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