Dugz Ink Posted February 22, 2005 Report Share Posted February 22, 2005 I couldn't find a fretless electric bass that had the options that I wanted, and when I mentioned that to a friend he said "You have a nice woodshop, and your a talented builder, why don't you learn to build guitars?" I didn't have a good reason to not build guitars, so I started learning. And because my wife supports this new hobby (she thinks that building guitars is a perfect match for my love of music and my love of woodworking), I don't have to sleep in the shop after I buy $300 worth of parts. D~s Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jnewman Posted February 23, 2005 Report Share Posted February 23, 2005 I had to put in "other" because it's a combination of things up there and things not up there. The process that has led me to beginning to seriously plan my first guitar build started a few years ago. I'd always (starting about ten years ago when I started playing guitar) played a strat, and had(have) a wonderful one (a 2000/2001 (can't remember which) Fender Texas Special HSS with a pearly gates + in the bridge in ash with a sienna sunburst), but had been listening to so much blues that I decided I really needed to get a short-scale heavy-wood humbucker guitar to get the other half of the blues spectrum. Which is when I found out several things: First off, a certain level Gibson is significantly more expensive than its Fender counterpart. The cheapest Gibson Les Paul (that is not a Jr. or a Faded, or a studio) costs d*mn near $500 more than I paid for my American Special strat. Second, and probably more important in the grand scheme of things, I can't stand the way a Les Paul feels . I like SG's a lot, but they're pretty expensive too. So I started looking at custom guitar manufacturers, and found a few that could make a Fender/Gibson custom-shop level guitar for about what a nice LP costs. I've been on and off about to buy a custom guitar for a couple of years. Then, in my quest for a good DIY tube guitar amp (I've done a good bit of electronics work), I stumbled across big groups of people who make their own guitars - and I think to myself "Hmm. I love building things and I'm pretty good at woodworking, I can do this - and if I do, I know I'll get EXACTLY what I want, not what some custom shop guy thinks I'm telling him I want." So I started reading and planning. to be continued.... .... ..... Just kidding - but that's as far as it goes. I have my guitar all planned out, but may have to wait till summer to start building it (I'm a college student - so it'll be hard to do it during the school year, but I'm going to do my best to get started in the next few weeks because I don't want to wait that long). I'll let you guys know how it goes and post plenty of pictures . Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Drak Posted February 25, 2005 Report Share Posted February 25, 2005 ...for the chicks of course! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bigdguitars Posted February 25, 2005 Report Share Posted February 25, 2005 for what its worth A PRS, LP are too expensive for what you are getting. Plus I need a hobby. oh yea, like drak said chicks dig it... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ToneMonkey Posted February 25, 2005 Report Share Posted February 25, 2005 When I was a nipper, I found Melvin Hiscocks book in a library. Read it and was hooked, even if I didn't get to start one until about 13 years later. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mickguard Posted February 25, 2005 Report Share Posted February 25, 2005 . Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Canuck Brian Posted February 25, 2005 Report Share Posted February 25, 2005 I'd actually stopped playing completely once my band of 11 years broke up. I had no motivation. I played tournament level paintball for 7 years and i tore the hell out of my ankle. Since i couldn't do that anymore, i picked up guitar again. I was on the Jemsite and I saw a link to PG and I was instantly hooked. If i couldn't afford to buy the 2500 USD guitars that i liked so much, i could just build them. So now i'm building an 8 string. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Drak Posted February 26, 2005 Report Share Posted February 26, 2005 Idch, you should contact Bo Diddley, I bet he would buy a guitar or two from you. I'm serious. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mickguard Posted February 26, 2005 Report Share Posted February 26, 2005 . Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Aakoo Posted February 26, 2005 Report Share Posted February 26, 2005 I have always enjoyen woodworking. And ever since i started playing guitar at the age of 13 I have been dreaming of building a guitar. I had a few years pause in playing recently since moving to country side and here you can not find anyone to play with. Now last early autumn I found out a musicants forum that had a instrument building section on it.. After reading it a few months I realized that now i have almost proper working place in my houses basement.. But the most biggest thing to get me started was after reading these forums and really understanding that guitar building is not rocket science.. Only very thorough woodworking.. And I can do that. Now after building my first two guitars, I have begun to play lots of more.. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tirapop Posted February 27, 2005 Report Share Posted February 27, 2005 Yeah, Bo's still alive. He's still touring, well into his 70s. He can't afford to retire. Like a lot of artists of his time (and race), he got screwed out of his rights and royalties. He puts on a good show. The man's a legend. What other artists' songs can you identify half a bar into? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MzI Posted February 27, 2005 Report Share Posted February 27, 2005 my main reason is because I cant afford the $9000 price tag on a Gibson 1959 Korina Flying V Historic Reissue MzI Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mickguard Posted February 27, 2005 Report Share Posted February 27, 2005 . Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TGwaH Posted February 27, 2005 Report Share Posted February 27, 2005 To me guitar have always been beautiful pieces of art. From the curves to the notes produced guitars are the perfect piece of art, you know, it's like Stephen Jenkins sang "the four right chords can make me cry." Just felt like finally giving something back to the world of music... er, I need to do something to save my masculinity... I've gotta go widdle a tooth pick from a log and spit on things, yeah those are manly things. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Maiden69 Posted February 27, 2005 Report Share Posted February 27, 2005 On my case if I was too be honest, is that I can't leave nothing stock, if I got a bike I got to make it better, a car... the same, and ever since I got my hands on a guitar, I know that I could make it look better, that got me into painting them, then, since I had to put them together, I had to learn the machanics involved, now I know how it works, so I got to make it better!!! Everyone that I make is better than the one I made before, and by the time I get over it, I'm sure I will be making a darn sweet guitar. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mushy the shroom Posted March 5, 2005 Report Share Posted March 5, 2005 A friend (skibum5545) helped me get involved, but what really kicked it off for me was my development of a few concepts. I built a test guitar with a new pickup concept, and it kind-of took off from there. My first real guitar was built last summer, and it incorporated a couple of my concepts. Anyway, I joined to gain some early advice, then once I learned a little, I gave some. I look forward to sharing my concepts once they're fully developed and tested (need some funds and a CNC machine).. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
x189player Posted March 5, 2005 Report Share Posted March 5, 2005 Repair and restoration. I brought old guitars back to life before I ever thought of making my own. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marzocchi705 Posted March 5, 2005 Report Share Posted March 5, 2005 I have been playing guitar for just about 3 years, im getting almost good at it. It cam time to choose a final project for my Craft and Design class so i though i'll build a guitar for a laugh. Now im staying behind till 5 30 in the wood shop working on it, im addicted. I absolutly HATE Sg's, cant stand them, i never knew why untill i played a custom hand made one the Bedlam DG custom [url="http://www.bedlam-guitars.co.uk/sgpadauk/index.htm"]Link[/url] and compared it to my mates Gibson. I thought why not make my guitar an SG that works for me, so im doing that now. See my progress thread [url="http://projectguitar.ibforums.com/index.php?showtopic=14492"]here[/url]. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
willliam_q Posted March 11, 2005 Report Share Posted March 11, 2005 I love playing guitars and always wanted a £2000 guitar but could never afford one. I just thought I would try to build one. I always knew it would take a few guitars to get up to the required standard. I also built a guitar to challenge myself. I love setting personal challenges. I had never worked with wood before and my technology teacher at school had it in for me and put me down at every turn so I thought it would be great to be able to prove him wrong. although I never got into building my guitar until 4 years after I left school, it was a great confidence building excercise in which I proved to myself that I could work with my hands. Also the fact that my friends and family thought I was mad and was just throwing my money away just made me do it even more. So if my technology teacher is on this site (highly unlikely) - **** YOU!!!! HAHA! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
neocon58 Posted March 15, 2005 Report Share Posted March 15, 2005 these forums! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fehgalloway Posted March 15, 2005 Report Share Posted March 15, 2005 I was horrified at the price of "good quality" guitars (i only just decided to learn) and (in my ignorance) thought I could do better....how wrong I was.... AUD$3500 for a Strat....pft...not likely, not when they were designed to be cheap to re-produce... and guitars just grabbed me. they seemed possible to build. I'd like to try to build lots of things, most of which i wouldn't have a clue how to do....a computer, a car, it's interesting to see how things work. electric guitars are a lot simpler than i ever imagined (before i ever saw one ) I knew nothing about woodworking or guitars and saw it as a chance to understand both a little better... i think it's worked Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Daniel Sorbera Posted March 22, 2005 Report Share Posted March 22, 2005 you see my problem is I got REALLY lucky when I bought my godin... It's for lack of a better word PERFECT. So anything I've built just seems like crap Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
monkey69962000 Posted March 22, 2005 Report Share Posted March 22, 2005 I like to build and understand how things work. I played guitar becuase i like music and the many diverse styles a guitar can have. Then i decided to try and build a guitar, which i am almost done with (Les Paul, but no digital camera to put on forums^_^ ). Also, i wanted to be knowledgable about what i use. It also saves me money for me to fix my guitar strings, tremelo, pickup height, ect. becuase i learned about how to build and how a guitar works. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bileshake Posted May 14, 2005 Report Share Posted May 14, 2005 When I was thirteen I realized my obsession for guitars. Van Halen built his own one of a kinda machines and still sounded better than everyone else and couldn't be mistaken for anyone else when onstage. At this early age, my friend and I would got down to the local music academy and buy destroyed student guitars for $20 and take them home and fix em paint them, bastardize them. 20 yrs later I still hide in the garage but I work on better guitars now. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GuitarGuy Posted May 14, 2005 Report Share Posted May 14, 2005 Someone told me I couldn't do it. lol. So I did. Been at it off and on ever since. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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