Tele Routing

[thewongster]

Hey can someone please, with a telecaster body that's laying around, (or being built) please help me make my telecaster rout template? You can do this by taking a please of white paper and putting it over your pickups and control cavity and taking a pencil, and shading over it, which leaves a dark line, and then can you scan it and post it here? SOrry I know im asking for a lot, with nothing in return, but this would greatly be appreciated

[Mickguard]

SOrry I know im asking for a lot, with nothing in return, but this would greatly be appreciated

Sorry, bub, I just don't see it. If you're too lazy to get this part of the build done, there's no point in anyone else helping you. You can buy templates for this though, if you want.

But the main problem is that your hardware might not match what other people are using. Even if it's all 'standard' stuff, you really have to build according to the actual parts you're using.

[Desopolis]

look at a telecaster, all the pickups are under the pickguard, and the control plate covers the cavity there. All you have to do, is route the holes for the pickups, connect them, route the cavity, then connect them with a channel.

The cavity and pickguard cover it all.

it doesn't have to be exactly, or even similar to someone else's, as long as those properties are met.

[cherokee6]

My $.05: You may want to try using plexiglas with taping the traced shape of the guitar first and cutting out the basic shape. However you shouldn't shortcut the process. Make your drawing first using tracing, your ruler and pull out your compass, calipers, protractor, French curve, flexible curve and any other tools you will need. Get a pot of coffee, tea or what-have-you going, as the process takes time. Most importantly, neck pockets and pup routings need to be perfectly aligned, depth measured, etc. You can probably use the body you have as a reference, but maybe not as an exact copy (see prior replies) You'll thank yourself later for the drawings. If you create templates then, you can use them for future build! (don't forget to take the coffee pot off the stove) Good luck!

[thewongster]

Yea I got the body shape outline all perfect and all including the nck pocket, but I just dont know how to get the pickup stuff and all perfect :S and I dont have a telecaster. Thanks, and whatabout mds as a subsitute for plexiglass?

[postal]

MDF templates are the norm.

Plexi/lexan are nice because you can see the wood underneath- This is very helpful when working on figured woods, but otherwise just a "nice to have"... "isnt my template prettier than yours?" kind of thing.

Look around a few places have free pattern downloads to help you make your template, but I dont recall where of the top my head.

[cherokee6]

There are guys on ebay selling their drawings pretty cheap. Can't hurt to have them. Mdf is fine for a template as is a hardboard such as masonite. It's a great learning experience to do this yourself, but if you want to save time, buy the templates for about $59 from the site listed earlier. Some peole think the thicker (mdf) template is better with the router with bearing on the bit. I haven't had the experience so I couldn't tell you. Look under guitar plans on ebay. And yes, I think the plexi template is prettier! I think I'll hang it on my office door.

[thewongster]

Thanks you guys very much, all this info is really useful, I went to mmy local musicstore and compared the telecaster template that I printed off (multiple taped pages) the guitartemplate things ( the site with lots of freee CAD guitars) and I compared it to an american telecaster, the body shape is pretty much on the dot, but the pickguard on that is definately off. Just to let you guys know. Thats once more

[120kResistor]

A lovely person posted a link to his design of pickup routing on this Topic :

Pickup Routing

2nd post down by Guitar Guy but don't use them if you plan to make a profit out of them