al heeley Posted August 31, 2006 Report Share Posted August 31, 2006 I got my neck lined up on the mojo2 project and noticed the pilot holes for the thru-body ferrules are about 3mm too low, so as to create an angle on the strings between bridge and ferrules, instead of running stratight thru. I drilled the pilot holes all the way thru Is there an effective way I can blank them off and blend them to match the quilty maple top, so it doesn't look too much bodged? I'm really annoyed at myself for this. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mammoth guitars Posted August 31, 2006 Report Share Posted August 31, 2006 Post a pic so we can take a look. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
al heeley Posted August 31, 2006 Author Report Share Posted August 31, 2006 I've just put a bit of wood filler paste in the holes for now. The holes need shifting along 3 or 4 mm to bring the strings back in line. Hope that explains things a bit better. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
prs man Posted August 31, 2006 Report Share Posted August 31, 2006 I see what your talking about all is not lost I have used eppxy putty from http://woodcraft.com you can get it in different colore to match the wood. the epoxy putty will dry in 30 minutes and sands out nice. you might need to get a couple different colors and mix [vary easy] check it out hope that helps you Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
al heeley Posted September 1, 2006 Author Report Share Posted September 1, 2006 Thx man! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WezV Posted September 1, 2006 Report Share Posted September 1, 2006 although obviously wood filler wont have any grain lines or absorb the dye in the same way so will most likely stick out like a sore thumb. I probably would have left them were they were, most people never would have noticed and it is only your 2nd guitar. Other options i would look at are an inlaid wooden plate that the strings go through or just using a stopbar tailpeice that would cover the mess on the front and use a solid finish on the back. If you have some of the maple left over it may be possible to make little plugs for the holes that have similar grain but i still think this would stand out too much Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
al heeley Posted September 1, 2006 Author Report Share Posted September 1, 2006 I was thinking about inlaying a small plate from some leftover scrap maple from the top, as long as I can rout out a channel and fit the plate in neatly enough. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mattia Posted September 1, 2006 Report Share Posted September 1, 2006 Unless you can dead-on match the grain, PERFECTLY, and glue with hot hide or something, and you're planning on staining, I'd actually use some small scraps of contrasting wood. Say a pair of rectangular-with-rounded-corners scraps (following the line of the holes, one per 3 holes) made of whatever your fingerboard wood is (rosewood, ebony...). Because otherwise it will very likely remain visible, so may as well turn it into a design feature instead of a flaw. All the creative inlay I've ever done on bodies (big one on the red PRS-ish thing I subbed for GOTM last year, smaller one on my girlfriend's) has been due to flaws in the wood (hidden worm damage) or tool messups (slipping router bit). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Setch Posted September 1, 2006 Report Share Posted September 1, 2006 If you use a top ferrule, work out how wide the lip is, and see how far that allows you to budge the hole without it showing. It might be enough to make the offset between bridge and ferrules inconspicuous, or even invisible (to any anyone other than you ). The holes at the back can be left as they are, the string should still come out OK at the top. If it binds near the top, just increase the diameter of the back holes a bit, but stop short of coming out the top. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Desopolis Posted September 1, 2006 Report Share Posted September 1, 2006 I think I would also just inset another piece of wood, I think it would be a pretty cool style feature as well, no one (well besides us ) would know it was orinially a mistake Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Drak Posted September 1, 2006 Report Share Posted September 1, 2006 Make a cool inlay, like a bolt of lightening, to cover up your original holes. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
al heeley Posted September 2, 2006 Author Report Share Posted September 2, 2006 cool idea. I may have to think about that one. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jalien21 Posted September 2, 2006 Report Share Posted September 2, 2006 yeah. i placed my back holes in slightly the wrong place on my first guitar. i did just that, i routed out the area and inlaid a 1/8 inch piece of wood. i don;t have a picture. but it came out looking pretty cool. especially if you've used another wood on the guitar that you can repeat. you don't need a complicated inlay to do it. a lightning bolt could be tough. i just routed out a straight line around the holes, and put in a bar with the corners rounded off. worked well. good luck! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
al heeley Posted September 3, 2006 Author Report Share Posted September 3, 2006 I routed out back to the mahogany and fitted a little maple offcut over the previous ferrule hole area. Just went for a simple rectangle with rounded corners. Reasonably happy with that but there's a small gap due to some give in the soft wood jig I made. I'd be happier if someone can recommend a neat way to fill the half-to-1 mm gap, maple sawdust and super glue? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WezV Posted September 4, 2006 Report Share Posted September 4, 2006 Problem with that is it will always look like a mistake. If you had inlayed a bit of ebony it would look more intentional and you wouldnt have the problem you have know because its loads easier to fill around ebony, maple sawdust and superglue looks like filler. Ebony sawdust and superglue looks like ebony Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
al heeley Posted September 4, 2006 Author Report Share Posted September 4, 2006 I filled the gap with some paste wood filler in the end. Once sanded back and stained it looks ok, well better than having all the strings darting south at a perculiar angle to pass thru the ferrules. I suppose its the best compromise but considering the amazingly high workmanship standards of you guys, yes my work is still very rough round the edges I'm afraid. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WezV Posted September 4, 2006 Report Share Posted September 4, 2006 my stuff is still sometimes rough round the edges as well, i have just learnt to hide it better Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
al heeley Posted September 4, 2006 Author Report Share Posted September 4, 2006 I'm quite pleased with the outcome, after going thru the usual emotions once a slip-up is realised. What is really nice is how the stain has warmed and softened over the last couple of weeks, it's got a really silky golden glow to it now. Can't wait to hear how she sounds Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jaycee Posted September 4, 2006 Report Share Posted September 4, 2006 I like that Al . It will look to the uninitiated as if it was meant to be. I'm not into Archtops ? so it looks fine to me. I have learnt over the years that sometimes rather than try to hide your mistakes see what you can do with it, what is it telling you, gets your creative juices flowing so to speak Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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