Making Body Templates

[PerryL]

Here's how I make guitar body patterns and I wanted to get ideas of how you guys make yours. I don't use CAD drawings or anything from the computer but Use old school methods. Mainly I find a pic from a magazine or Pic from the net and project the image on white paper With my Trusty Tracer Projector, trace it out with pencil making sure one of my necks falls within scale length. I cut it out and transfer that to the wood.

[goth_fiend]

what i do is similar, i draw a full sized guitar, neck and body so i know that it will all go together, after i draw the full sized instrument, i get out a sheet of plexi glass and my dremel and a saw(i like to use a coping saw for this), after i transfer the body shape onto the plexi, i SLOWLY cut out the body and after im done with that i use the dremel to smooth out the edges of my new template, i then just use a pattern cutting bit on my wood and voila! new body

[BassGod]

Goth fiend- Do you use a router to cut your body after making the template? I would think bits to cut that deep would be hard to come by.

[PerryL]

Your kinda hijacking me here but Yes use the router bit to cut the circumference then remove the template and lower the bit to cut the rest of the shape. essentially making the first router cut your template.

Edited November 15, 2004 by PerryL

[goth_fiend]

what i do its this, i use a bandsaw to get the body blank relativly close to the template, then i use the pattern bit to go over the template and cut out the rest of the body, i usually go about 3-5 passes on one side, then i flip the body over and repeat, then i use a spindle sander to take off whats left after that(just got one about 2 weeks ago-havent been able to stop using it! i love this thing)

[Necrovore]

Where did you pick up your pattern bit?

[goth_fiend]

i believe my father got it at the home depot but im not sure i will ask him in the morning when he gets home.

[ACSpike]

I've tried a number of times to understand CAD and failed. So I've created my own process and tools. Still use my computer; I just like to make things more complicated.

I google for a picture.

Blow it up to 1:1 in Inkscape.

Trace it with the bezier path tool.

Copy the path data into my own little tool.

Click a few buttons and print out the resulting PDF which has been split to print on 8.5x11 sheets of paper.

I started writing a more in depth tutorial in the hope that someone could use it, but it sucked so I quit. You can still read it at the bottom of this page.

As far as cutting out. I haven't gotten that far but I will rough it out on a band saw and clean it up with something.

Edited November 17, 2004 by ACSpike