curtisa

Ideally it will be the equivalent of the gap under the string at the second fret if you depress the string at the first. It's not something that can be planned for easily, and has to be fine tuned when slotting/seating the nut with strings on under full tension.

Yep, I don't reckon anyone has installed frets and avoided levelling them. It's just part of the standard process that gets undertaken when building any guitar. Check your neck for levelness after installing the frets too. Inserting the frets can introduce a slight backbow as the tangs are squeezed into the fret slots, and may require a slight tweak of the trussrod. Only level the frets after checking everything is straight. I level at 320 - 400 grit, crown with a diamond grit file, polish after crowning starting at 400 grit working up to 2000, and then buff.

After you've finessed the nut height to suit the strings and frets, yes.

Something thin and flat needs to be placed in between the neck surface and the underside of the nut. Timber veneer would be ideal.

Pretty loud :)

I assume the nut is pre-slotted. Are your measurements confirmed with the frets installed and the nut in position, or are you going by the manufacturers' specs only? Depends how you're mounting the nut behind the fretboard. If the fretboard is cut straight off and the nut sits on the neck surface you may have to shim the nut up to get the nut slots higher than the fret tops. If the nut mounting ledge behind the fretboard is yet to be cut it pays to make the ledge shallower than you need. The final adjustment of nut height can then be made by carefully sanding the underside of the nut. All that said, it's best to sort out the nut height once strings are fitted.

My eyes! It burns!

Looks like you need to solder the pickup leads to each of the volume pots, solder the output lead to the jack and install the bridge ground wire. The rest looks pre-assembled. Wiring colours won't be the same as the above diagram, but a rough interpretation for your situation would be: Neck pickup centre conductor (red cable) soldered to lower lug of neck volume pot. Bridge pickup centre conductor (black cable) soldered to lower lug of bridge volume pot. Outer braid of each pickup cable soldered to the case of each respective volume pot.. Output cable centre conductor (yellow cable) to tip connection of output jack. Output cable outer braid (yellow cable) to sleeve connection of output jack. Ground wire (skinny black) bonded to the bridge assembly somewhere convenient.

I've yet to be convinced that fretboard material makes an appreciable difference to the plugged-in sound of an electric instrument. For an acoustic guitar I can imagine it could have some impact, but have not compared enough acoustics side-by-side to decide for myself. Supply and demand. I'm sure that as rare hardwoods become impossible to source other alternatives will become easier to obtain at sensible prices. The instrument-building industry will not grind to a halt if ebony becomes extinct, it will just adapt to new materials and technologies. Also bear in mind that it's not just guitar builders that will be forced to look elsewhere in the future. It will affect a lot of different craft industries from violin makers to fine cabinetry construction. Not sure. Have heard of Richlite (a phenolic material) and graphite alternatives, but obtaining small quantities for home builders could be problematic. All would probably necessitate the use of epoxy instead of PVA when gluing. Never explored the idea myself. Of course, there' s no reason you have to rely on rare ebonies and rosewoods when it comes to fretboard material. Lots of non-endangered timbers exhibit the requisite hardness, density and low seasonal movement necessary to hold 24 frets in place.

Sounds fairly similar to what I do. Drill a couple of 1mm holes in the 1st and last fret slots. 1mm is small enough to be hidden under the fret when it gets installed. Position the fret board on the neck and drive a 1mm brad into those holes through the board into the neck a mm or two. The brads should leave a little divot in the neck that can be used to relocate the fret board and prevent it sliding around when glue is added. Lift off the fret board from the neck with the brads still embedded. The ends of the brads should just poke through underneath the fret board enough to locate back on to the neck. Apply glue, refit the fret board to the neck making sure the brads bite into the little divots and clamp. When the glue has dried the brads can be carefully withdrawn from the fret board with a pair of pliers.

Crumbs! Big ol' fistful of entries this month, and 'attack of the multiscales' to boot. Boroducci, 'Fresco' - No frills builds always strike me as being deceptively difficult to execute. There's no hiding behind epoxy fills, crazy grain patterns or audacious styling. This one looks fantastic, well done. Tomas Mascinskas, 'Ultimega' - For a second build you've got to be congratulated for jumping straight into the deep end. Multiscale, 7 string, aggressive styling, modified pickups...Hope we get to see some more of your work in the future around these parts. MBStudios, 'Weave Tele' - Ingenious use of carving on an otherwise 'passive' area of a guitar body. Gives a huge lift to what could have otherwise been just another Tele build. Nice work. Oxbow Guitars, 'ADS Bass' - Good call taking a popular body shape and restyling it to make it your own. The copper plated hardware gives a worn-in look which complements the appearance in an understated, almost Steampunk-ish way, Excellent work. Andyjr1515, 'Sow's-Ear Purse Bass' - I normally wouldn't go for a single cut bass, but you've changed my mind this month. She's a beauty, to be sure. The timber-covered pickups are a great way of integrating those black boxes into the overall styling. Brianr, 'Ghost Birdseye Hollowbody' - Great to have an entry where we can see and hear the instrument in action. Got a real vintage jangle to it in the clip. Would be great to know a little more about the effort that went into creating such a unique looking instrument. Stick around and tell us more about your work. JohnnyGTar, 'SolariS' - For a first build you have to be commended for tackling such a challenging branch of guitar construction. I don't reckon I would have had the guts to attempt a fanned-fret instrument as my first creation. Original, 'The Redondo' - Surfs up! Great take on a retro style, made all the more special with custom moulded plastic components and the split single coil pickup. The way the white grain filler pokes through the blue even looks like waves rushing by. Fantastic work by all entrants.

Yes, the neck is usually tapered all the way from nut to heel. You need to be careful slipping the neck in and out of the pocket horizontally (ie, in the direction of the neck) rather than vertically (ie, bearing down on the fretboard). There's every possibility that the taper of the heel will pinch the treble side of the pocket and split it out as it slides past. By removing the neck that way you're effectively driving a wedge into the body at that point.

Either way works. I personally find it easier to have the fretboard cut to the right shape first, glue it to the neck and then finalise the neck taper to match the fretboard using a template-following router bit. Should be fine. Just make use the truss rod is a firm fit inside the channel. Trying to correct a rattling truss rod after the fretboard is glued on isn't much fun. A few beads of bathroom silicone inside the channel before pushing the rod in place will help.

Could be a regional thing. Youtube may be blocking the display of that video in certain countries.

As long as the top is flat cutting a binding channel around the perimeter of the body would be fairly straight forward. Binding the rear of the body won't be much fun with all those contours though. Binding could look nice. Be prepared to redo your staining though, as you'll likely scuff it up when you're cutting the channel and daub glue on it while installing the binding. Bound neck too, for consistency?