Drak Posted January 9, 2005 Report Share Posted January 9, 2005 When I said I had wrapped up operations for the winter.... I sooooooo lied, hehehe... This is what I've been doing for the past 3 weeks or so. Just finished up the center one this morning, about 1/2 hour ago. The one on the right with the back already on it is a bit larger than the other two, hence the Queen. None of them is as large as a full-bore archtop, hence Queen and Jacks, no King. None of them are finished either, this is just a 'stage' they're in at the moment. They haven't even been routed to final shape yet, just the insides gutted, still some fine-sanding to do. All will have arched tops and backs, but not as extreme as a normal archtop (1") I don't like that much arch with electrics. It's OK for a real archtop, but it's just not my preference for electrics to have a guitar with 2 huge humps in it. These are 'po' boy', or 'wannabe' archtops, not the real deal. My electric interpretations. The one on the left is Alder, the other two Honduran Mahogony. The one in the center, if you notice, has a smaller center section, since that one will have a trap tail on it, I didn't need the extra wood for the stop tailpiece studs. You can see where I have the bridge locations penciled in, and the one in the middle has no stop tail markings. PS, this body shape is my all-time favirite guitar body shape bar nothing else out there. I've been waiting a long time to approach this project. Florentine single-cut Gibson style, makes me buckle at the knees every time. I don't really like the double-cutaway 335's nearly as much as these. Just my personal preference. Queenie has a Curly Redwood back, not arched yet. It will have a nice Quilted Maple top. This is backwards for a real archtop, where the Redwood would be the top wood and the Quilted would be on the back, but this isn't a real archtop, and the Redwood will still add warmth to it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
spirit Posted January 9, 2005 Report Share Posted January 9, 2005 Woooooooow! Those are hawt! Although, I like your Tele's better, but that's just cos I like Teles Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
erikbojerik Posted January 9, 2005 Report Share Posted January 9, 2005 Nice Drak! I'm also a sucker for the 175 shape, very classy. Whenever I see one I think of Pat Metheney. Now we know where all that mahogany is going.....use the rest to do something about that fence! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Maiden69 Posted January 9, 2005 Report Share Posted January 9, 2005 Couldn't resist the BUG!!!!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Slabbefusk Posted January 9, 2005 Report Share Posted January 9, 2005 175's are classy. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Drak Posted January 9, 2005 Author Report Share Posted January 9, 2005 Yes, 175's are classy indeed, but were much more deep-bodied guitars for jazz that had hand-carved Spruce tops. Here below is an ES-225TD, which I had one EXACTLY like this one in every single way except mine was a tobacco-burst, not a cherry-burst. I had that guitar for probably 15 years or more, and sold it a long time ago due to a hard (= broke) winter one year. It Sucked. Factory Bigsby, 2-pkp, 1957, 2 P-90's, exactly like the pic shows. Don't think jazz here, think Elvis, Carl Perkins, Early Days Rock-N-Roll, Rockabilly, Girls Gone Wild Guitar. Think George Thorogood. He uses one of these. Think P-90 Raw Gutbucket Grunge-tone. That's the guitar I had, and -sort of- where I'm heading with these. I will make one sort of a jazz guitar maybe, probably the big thick Queenie, but the rest are gonna be blues screamers ala the Reverend Gibbons, not mellow-times jazz compers. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PerryL Posted January 10, 2005 Report Share Posted January 10, 2005 Always Blown away by your work Drak. I'm glad you couldn't call it off for the winter. I may try and build a guitar like this one only in the style of yours above. This is Billy Gibbons Guitar. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Slabbefusk Posted January 10, 2005 Report Share Posted January 10, 2005 You wouldnt happen to have a drawing for the body of one of those beauties? I'm thinking about using that shape for my acoustic. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Drak Posted January 10, 2005 Author Report Share Posted January 10, 2005 These would be too small for an acoustic guitar. They're about 1/2 way in between a 175 and a normal Les Paul, so I would say too small for an acoustic. Try going up to a music store with a piece of poster paper, pulling the guitar of choice off the wall, and simply tracing it. It doesn'y even take 5 minutes unless you stop to talk to one of the sales staff who invariably will want to know what you're doing with it, how many guitars you've built, yada yada yada... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Slabbefusk Posted January 10, 2005 Report Share Posted January 10, 2005 Size doesnt really matter the "acoustic" I'm building is going to be sort of a travel/electric-acoustic guitar with a piezo pickup so therefore i'm making it smaller. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Drak Posted January 10, 2005 Author Report Share Posted January 10, 2005 No problem then. Shoot me a PM and we'll arrange it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Drak Posted January 11, 2005 Author Report Share Posted January 11, 2005 Here's the back, glued on last night but still not routed to final shape, dry. This is the Alder body, which will have a stoptailpiece, not a trap. Buckeye Burl, and rear control cavity has already been cut out, that operation had to be first. The dark area up near the neck pocket was a big bark inclusion that had to be filled with dyed epoxy, which I did the day before yesterday, then sanded flat before it was glued on. After it was glued on, I treated the entire interior with 2 coats of CA glue. This shot is dry, so you can't really see what it's going to look like yet. The top is all like the dark center section, 100% dark, with lots of wavy figure. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
genbloke Posted January 11, 2005 Report Share Posted January 11, 2005 (edited) Drak, I love the way how you cut out the cavity covers, very impressive. I'm just curious, what was the reasoning behind CA'ing the interior? genbloke Edited January 11, 2005 by genbloke Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Drak Posted January 12, 2005 Author Report Share Posted January 12, 2005 Thanks! Because there is an old finishing rule that goes, whatever you do to one side of the wood, you also do to the other. If you finish one side and leave the other raw (with no bracing), then the wood on the raw side will still accept moisture content, expand, and possibly warp, distort, or crack the wood. And this Buckeye is spalted, so it could use the extra stabilization anyway, so all reasons pointed to sealing the interior, and CA was the perfect candidate for this application. Normally I use shellac. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
johnsilver Posted January 13, 2005 Report Share Posted January 13, 2005 Drak, that back is sick, sick, sick. Can't wait to see more. Looks like one of those pictures psychiatrists show to their patients. The figure looks like a cute fuzzy tiger's face (the bottom figure) about to be pounced on by an evil dragon (the top figure). At least, thats what I see........... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Drak Posted January 13, 2005 Author Report Share Posted January 13, 2005 Yeah, I like it too, it's very different than all the quilt and flame stuff going on these days. I still love quilt, and one of these is going to be quilt, but I like the Buckeye for the change of pace since you rarely ever see it on guitars much. It takes a ton of prep work to use it tho, filling in a thousand voids and holes and stuff. I'm just sort of feeling my way thru it, I'm sure if I use it more I'll think of better ideas for void-filling in the future, I've had some wacky ideas already, but since I want to move along with these, I'm just going with what I already know, which is dyed epoxy right now, and CA to pore-fill and stabilize it. Here's a pic of the top too, dry. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PerryL Posted January 13, 2005 Report Share Posted January 13, 2005 Lookin sweet Drak. How did ya get in to cut the control plate out? Slot it and cut it with a scroll saw? How about the large top holes? are they gonna get the fill-in with colored epoxy? Sorry, So many questions. I'm diggin this alot! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Drak Posted January 13, 2005 Author Report Share Posted January 13, 2005 Thanks! I cut the control plate out before I glued it on with my scrollsaw. I start the cut with an Xacto blade punched thru the wood just enough to get the scrollsaw blade thru. I haven't decided about those top holes, I'm contemplating leaving them there as soundholes, maybe accenting them, I don't know yet, that's why it hasn't been glued on yet, hehehe...I always believe in going with what the wood has to offer, which in this case would mean leaving the holes as-is maybe...or making devil eyes out of them...just don't know yet... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
xebryusguitars Posted January 13, 2005 Report Share Posted January 13, 2005 im cheering for those devils eyes. Devil eyes soundholes...totally bada$$ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Meegs666 Posted January 13, 2005 Report Share Posted January 13, 2005 are these going to be carved top? because that picture of the gibson looked like it had a flattop. anyway, looks beautiful. love that buckeye. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dansk Posted January 13, 2005 Report Share Posted January 13, 2005 woot drak, looking awsome... i've come to really love the look of that buckeye burl you use.. where is it native of? expensive, hard to find? about those voids on your top, how about something like this? can't wait to see them all rockin' Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
!!METAL MATT!! Posted January 13, 2005 Report Share Posted January 13, 2005 about those voids on your top, how about something like this? WOW that look's like a great idea!! you could even do the bull thing Drak Good work there dansk I like that idea it get's me thinking anyway man Drak this is going to be one killer guitar I cant wait to see more !!METAL MATT!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Drak Posted January 13, 2005 Author Report Share Posted January 13, 2005 Thanks Matt Meegs, yeah, the Gibson is an archtop, but just not a full-bore jazzbo archtop. Full arches are normally about 1", I don't know what the Gibby is, but it's not 1", and it's a pressed plywood top as opposed to the real deal carved Spruce top the top-of-the-line Jazz models had, but it still has a raunchy tone all it's own. dansk, that is a very cool idea, thanks! There is one more operation I need to do. I am going to add on another 3/16" board under the top, haven't decided what wood yet, and here is why: Here is another piece I'm working on, see at the bottom where I had to just cut away those areas? That's what I mean about having the ability and creativity (which I don't have much of...not like Clavin or Perry...I need to learn to inlay hehehe) you need to be able to roll with those kinds of changes to work with this stuff. This one below is going to be a real PITA, but it will certainly be worth it, and this stuff is NOT cheap either. It's some pretty risky wood to work with when you look at the price of it and the fragility of it too. I mean, just about every piece I've worked with has voids, fissures, holes, gaps, indents, and on top of all that it's spalted too, so you could watch a lot of $$$'s go right down the johnny very quickly if you make one wrong move. I really needed all the experience I have presently to figure out how to deal with all these roadblocks and pull it off. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ThePlague Posted January 14, 2005 Report Share Posted January 14, 2005 i'm all for leaving those holes as they are. it gives it a natural feel that just works with how the wood looks. at least in my opinion. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Drak Posted January 14, 2005 Author Report Share Posted January 14, 2005 I think I see your point. I like the idea, but maybe have them curve out and down, or just out, to sort of 'roll' with the patterns of the wood itself. Going up as in the picture seems to be fine for eyes, but sort of goes against the natural grain of the wood itself. I think the basic idea is pretty cool, just maybe not in that exact shape/direction. I'll play around with the idea. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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