brian d Posted June 9, 2006 Report Share Posted June 9, 2006 Congratulations on your first neck build Mickguard! Brian. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mickguard Posted June 9, 2006 Author Report Share Posted June 9, 2006 Congratulations on your first neck build Mickguard! Brian. Yeah, I guess people who already have done this knows what it feels like I keep looking at the thing, thinking...wow, I did this? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
brian d Posted June 9, 2006 Report Share Posted June 9, 2006 Yeah, I guess people who already have done this knows what it feels like I keep looking at the thing, thinking...wow, I did this? I've only done a practise neck. 1st real neck is in the works....truss channel routed, waiting for the fingerboard. Brian. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mattia Posted June 9, 2006 Report Share Posted June 9, 2006 Congratulations on your first neck build Mickguard! Brian. Yeah, I guess people who already have done this knows what it feels like I keep looking at the thing, thinking...wow, I did this? Congrats, dude. Neck making is still one of my favourite parts of building. Very zen, tacticle, no need for terribly fancy jigs or anything...just lovely. Also, I've found it's the thing that seems to impress people most (the 'No WAY! You made the neck too??' factor) for whatever reason. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mickguard Posted June 9, 2006 Author Report Share Posted June 9, 2006 Chambered the ash body today. Using a design obviously inspired by Scott French's tuning fork chamber --I call this one 'the lungs' Took hours to do this...don't know if I'll do it again. If I'm going to spend that much time and effort, then I might as well make a true hollowbody. I know it's not perfectly rounded, but since I don't plan to make a second one, and the innards won't be seen, I decided to cut myself some slack. Meanwhile, I had the top bookmatched by a local carpenter with a big bandsaw: It's 10 mm thick...it's a little warped right now --I had it in the car, did a few errands before going to the carpenter's, and the wood got hot. I clamped it between two pieces of wood for a couple of days, and it's much straighter now, presses down with little effort, so I think it'll be all right. I'm going to make a couple of f-holes and drill the holes for the pots and then get the top glued on...then I'll get back to work on the necks. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mattia Posted June 9, 2006 Report Share Posted June 9, 2006 Niiice...also, dude, you routed all of that out? Masochist... I drill out the bulk of the wood with a forstner (1", but I'd use bigger if I had one and my drill press could handle it. It can't, because it's a wuss.) and simply clean up with the router. Much, much, much faster. It also saves your (more expensive) router bit from undue wear and tear. And don't kid yourself, bending sides, applying kerfed linings, etc. is still slower than doing everything with a router. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mickguard Posted June 9, 2006 Author Report Share Posted June 9, 2006 Niiice...also, dude, you routed all of that out? Masochist... Nah, I used a forstner bit for most of it, but I switched to the router to take out the last few millimeters. Still took me hours to do all that....but I'm pretty slow at things. Anyway, it doesn't matter anymore...I went back to look at it a few minutes ago --the thing curled! Not just a little bit either...so I don't see how it's going to be possible to glue the cap on, unless I can straighten the body out (but then, what's to stop it from curling again?). This wood has been glued up for over a year now too...guess it just wasn't dry enough after all? I could take it to the carpenter, he's got a thicknesser big enough to handle it. But the guitar would end up way thinner than I wanted. So, dunno. Maybe one of the triplets ain't going to make it Probably for the best, forces me to concentrate on one project at a time. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mattia Posted June 9, 2006 Report Share Posted June 9, 2006 Yikes. Curled? By how much? How's your temperature/humidity control/situation? Sounds like the wood wasn't dry when you bought it and/or glued it, or was case hardened. How much did you leave on the back? What's the overall thickness? I've never had things curl that badly, not with solidbodies (thin acoustic guitar plates, yes, but if quartered they tend to sort themselves out pretty quickly). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mickguard Posted June 9, 2006 Author Report Share Posted June 9, 2006 Yikes. Curled? By how much? How's your temperature/humidity control/situation? Sounds like the wood wasn't dry when you bought it and/or glued it, or was case hardened. How much did you leave on the back? What's the overall thickness? I've never had things curl that badly, not with solidbodies (thin acoustic guitar plates, yes, but if quartered they tend to sort themselves out pretty quickly). Yeah, it's weird, this wood has been glued up and lying around here since last year. I didn't buy it, I just grabbed some scrap from a friend's furniture project, but I know it was kiln-dried. But there's something weird about this wood ---like I said, it's got this flame thing going on. And what happens when I work with it is that the wood kind of crumbles --more than make dust or shavings or whatever. So maybe the wood had some inherent fragility --and by taking out as much as I did, that became a problem? It's 30 mm thick, and I scooped out about 22 mm (leaving 8 on the bottom). It's not at all like the ash I just bought, and so far that ash seems to work pretty well. When I say curled, I mean that the nice flat blank I had this afternoon now rocks back and forth --so it's pretty significant. Maybe I should have gone with a monoframe construction and two caps instead? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mickguard Posted June 9, 2006 Author Report Share Posted June 9, 2006 So, dunno. Maybe one of the triplets ain't going to make it Well, I'm not quite ready to give up it...I moistened the wood a little on the back then clamped it down between two flat boards. Got about 10 clamps on there. It flattened out easily enough, so it can't be that bad, can it? I figure I'll leave it like that for a few days, unless someone has a better idea? Don't know if it'll work, but it costs nothing to try! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
j. pierce Posted June 10, 2006 Report Share Posted June 10, 2006 Maybe I should have gone with a monoframe construction and two caps instead? I was just going to say, that seems to be the easiest way to do these things . . . Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mickguard Posted June 10, 2006 Author Report Share Posted June 10, 2006 Maybe I should have gone with a monoframe construction and two caps instead? I was just going to say, that seems to be the easiest way to do these things . . . Yeah, lesson learned there. We'll see if I can get this to straighten out --maybe if I convert it to a monoframe it'll behave itself? But I think I'll just start again with it--I'm not so far along on this one where that would be a big deal. I've got better wood here now too. In fact, I'm thinking it'll give me the opportunity to try out a different body shape --maybe come up with my own design. The main reason I started this guitar was as practice for the other one (since it's a set neck). I just went with this shape because I had the template already made Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Daniel Sorbera Posted June 13, 2006 Report Share Posted June 13, 2006 (edited) I don't think your tuners are equidistant there buddy. Bad design choice if you ask me Edited June 13, 2006 by Godin SD Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mickguard Posted June 13, 2006 Author Report Share Posted June 13, 2006 I decided to tackle the neck pocket on the Junior. Edit: But the task became too much...I had to figure out the order of events I need, before getting to that. With Setch's help, I think I understand what to do now. In the meantime, I decided to start a new neck from scratch-- it occurred to me that it would be nice to have a built-in center line...so I took my last piece of this wood and cut it in two pieces and reglued it. I flipped one of the pieces so the grain runs in opposite directions. I don't know how necessary that is, since I'll be sticking with the carbon fiber tubes. Finally found a round-bottom bit to fit the carbon fiber tubes, so I'll be able to route the channels to fit exactly. Should also work for the truss rod. Just makes sense that things should be snug. The neck blank is thicknessed to 25 mm --the last one I left at 35 mm, and that just made things more complicated for me. So I've put that neck aside and I'll get back to it in the future when I've got a better handle on things. I also took the ash blank I want to use for the other guitar and cut that down the center and reglued it. By flipping the pieces, I was able to match up the most vertical parts of the grain --they're not perfectly vertical, but much closer now. Now I'm going to spend the time to build a proper neck pocket jig (Myka's design, of course). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mickguard Posted June 18, 2006 Author Report Share Posted June 18, 2006 After laying under clamps for the last week (between two wide flat boards), the ash body has straightened out pretty nicely. But I had this idea that I could add a strut in there to help encourage it to remain flat after the top has been glued on I called it the "Tone-lok" It's a piece of carbon fiber tubing glued in with epoxy. I wanted to try out my new round-bottom bit, that's why. (It's hard to see, but the rod is glued in perpendicular to the body's center line) So this guitar's back on track, I think.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Robert Irizarry Posted June 18, 2006 Report Share Posted June 18, 2006 I called it the "Tone-lok" "Clean, crisp notes every time..." Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
badsnap Posted June 19, 2006 Report Share Posted June 19, 2006 Earlier in the thread you talked about your PUs being humbuckers and wanting to maybe use lipsticks in a future build. Have you considered using at least one of the strat/tele style humbuckers ie quarterpound etc. This would give you the humbuckers but also decrease the size of the PU routes and perhaps allow a longer tenon to set the neck more stable??? Just an idea!! BTW...love the forum and following the threads...I'm learning a ton and enjoying the heck out of it!!...Rog Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mickguard Posted June 19, 2006 Author Report Share Posted June 19, 2006 Earlier in the thread you talked about Yeah, I change my mind a lot ....well, I adjust my thinking. Drives the wife nuts. I originally planned to use a set of humbucker-format P90s (GFS Brooklyns)...they've got a pretty distinctive sound, a real honk to them. But because of the body design, it'd be difficult to fit both in, without having them crowded together. I'll save the Brooklyns for another build--I'm toying with a revised version of the Bocaster (that was my very first project). Instead I'm going to go with a set of mini-humbuckers (GFS Memphis...I have the bridge pickup, j. pierce has sent me the neck pickup --very cool of him!--since they don't sell these anymore). The minis are small enough to fit, and they look cool too. Plus they're 4-lead pickups so I'll have the option of installing a couple extra mini-switches to split the coils. Not that I'm a huge fan of GFS's stuff or anythign, I just really like that retro look. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mickguard Posted July 4, 2006 Author Report Share Posted July 4, 2006 The girls wanted to say hello, even if they're nowhere near finished... The fretboards have been attached and are very roughly planed--I have a few layers of masking tape on the sides of each neck for the moment, I'll take that away when I'm ready to sand everything smooth. I'm tempted to use a router and a follower bit for that. Although I really like the process of shaping and carving. The top of the rosewood board (that's the ash hollowbody) will be trimmed when I shape the headstock --I'm thinking of picking up a new router bit just for that. I think I can find one that will give me the slope I'm looking for. The rosewood board has a slot routed for a nut/string guide. The ebony board, on the other hand, will have a string guide fitted to the end of the board --I'm probably just going to use some scrap ebony for that, I thinki it'll look cool... The truss rod access channel is already drilled through for the ebony neck (I used a set of gimlets to get through, and it worked out fine)--wish I had done that for the rosewod neck! As it is, that one is only partially opened, on the truss rod side. That way, when I drill through, I won't hit the truss rod itself. For the hollowbody, my plan right now is to mount the neck pickup above the end of the heel --this will leave a good 10 mm or more of the heel once I route away the necessary amount to house the pickup. But that's why I chose these minis (and thanks to the incredible coolness of j.pierce, I have the complete set). With the heel extension, I think the neck joint is going to be super-stable. I'm using inserts and short screws to bolt this on. I'll probably use 5 screws. Next up: need to place the dot markers. I'm thinking of using the router and edge guide for that...I'll have to practice a bit first to see how that will go. I'm going Gretsch-style with the dots along the edge. Because when I sing, I need to be able to glance at the guitar and see where my hand is sometimes--side dots aren't big enough for that. I still want side dots though. I'm going to glue the top to the ash body pretty soon. And in the meantime build a Myka Accu-Pocket Jig of my very own. I'm also trying to think of the electronics I want for the ash guitar --I'm thinking of using a blend pot instead of a pickup switch, and a master volume and that's it. Although I'm tempted to add in miniswitches...except, I'm not a fiddly type, I wonder if I'd ever use any of that. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Drak Posted July 4, 2006 Report Share Posted July 4, 2006 About 7-8 years ago I went thru my big 'chambering' phase, where I was making bodies about 2.25" thick, but they were hollowed pretty similar to what you are doing here, rather extreme hollowing (it used to tear me up to see so much nice wood go up the chute) ...and I ran into your problem several times, and it didn't matter how long I had the wood or how long it had sat, but several of them warped and cupped exactly like yours did once the extreme routing was done. 'Bones' (GOTM winner) was from that era, although it sat around for a few more years before I finished it up and entered it here at PG, it is 2.25" thick and -completely- chambered except for a centerblock of wood left in place slightly wider than the tailpiece studs needed to be for support. Want to know something even worse? Sometimes, after having the body reflattened out then gluing the topper on, it would distort/cup the OTHER way! So beware, oh Mickeysahn... the Wood Spirits may not be done with you yet! If I learned anything from all that, it was to have that top glued up beforehand and ready to go, as soon as I had routed out the body, anything else that needed to get done got done right then and there and that top got glued up within a few hours of me routing the body chambers out, that seemed to be the most successful way I found. Looking good man! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
marksound Posted July 4, 2006 Report Share Posted July 4, 2006 Because when I sing, I need to be able to glance at the guitar and see where my hand is sometimes--side dots aren't big enough for that. They're called bifocals. Check into it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mickguard Posted July 4, 2006 Author Report Share Posted July 4, 2006 They're called bifocals. Check into it. It's no joke Ah the joys of getting old... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mabyenot Posted July 4, 2006 Report Share Posted July 4, 2006 that is a nice grain on the neck on the guitar on the right. looks really nice and flowing! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mickguard Posted July 6, 2006 Author Report Share Posted July 6, 2006 About 7-8 years ago I went thru my big 'chambering' phase, Yeah, I think this one's about cured me forever... I have the top on now --I was worried that there'd be too many gaps for this to be viable, but now that it's on, it looks pretty good. There is a very slight gap along the bottom bout--but it's so small it's not worth trashing the body over. And I'm looking into adding some kind of binding along the glue line, if I can figure out something interesting. In the end though, since this is a bolt-on, I can view the body as expendable-- if it doesn't work out, I can remove all the hardware and start again! In the meantime, I need to get the markers into the fretboards. Right now I'm looking at something like this Gretsch Country Gentleman I'm not sure how I'd go about doing that though. I'm thinking I can just use the dot markers I have, position them at the edge and sand them square with the neck. Could end up looking nice...kind of wish I'd bought larger dots though. I think using the router would be best for that--I can use the edge guide to get things exact. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mickguard Posted July 7, 2006 Author Report Share Posted July 7, 2006 Right now I'm looking at something like this Gretsch Country Gentleman I'm not sure how I'd go about doing that though. I'm thinking I can just use the dot markers I have, position them at the edge and sand them square with the neck. Could end up looking nice...kind of wish I'd bought larger dots though. It occurred to me this morning that the fact that I'm using an unbound neck might give me problems with this side marker idea --maybe the dots are too brittle to use as an edge? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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