Prs Style Guitar

[capu]

thanks for explaining the neck angle in the heel.looks great I like the router fixture you used.

I'm using Wilkinson wrap around bridges. you replaced your Wilkinson with a bass ass.

was there something wrong using the Wilkinson

The Wilkinson's sounds really good (this is due to the fact that it's made of one piece of aluminium and it doesn't have parts that can move...) and this is the reason why PRS stop tails install this bridge. The main disadvantage (in my opinion) is that the intonation cannot be set up so precisely as the Badass (where you can set each string separately).

[capu]

Hello guys!

Here you can find 3 sound samples:

Clean Sound Test

Crunchy Sound Test

Demo Song

The sound tests have been performed using Line 6 Guitar Port in order to be easily replicated by someone else with other guitars. This is the only way that I found that allows you to be able to compare the different guitar sounds.

Here you can find the Line 6 Guitar Port presets I used:

Clean tone: Like Heaven

Crunchy tone: Verse

The sound tests have been recorded by progressively switching the pickup selector from position 1 to 5

[jer7440]

Capu, I have a couple of questions for you about the carve on this guitar. 1. What is the overall thickness of the guitar body. 2. Is the plane, where the pickups and the bridge sit, flat (or parallel to the back) or is it angled. If it is angled do you know how much? 3. What is the depth of the carve from where the bridge sits to the low edge of the perimeter.

Thanks in advance for your help, and that is a gorgeous guitar. Nice job!

[capu]

Capu, I have a couple of questions for you about the carve on this guitar. 1. What is the overall thickness of the guitar body. 2. Is the plane, where the pickups and the bridge sit, flat (or parallel to the back) or is it angled. If it is angled do you know how much? 3. What is the depth of the carve from where the bridge sits to the low edge of the perimeter.

Thanks in advance for your help, and that is a gorgeous guitar. Nice job!

Hello Jer7440

I'm very pleased to give you an answer.

1. The overall thickness is 51mm

2. it is flat and parallel to the back

3. The initial thickness was 24mm and at the edge it is 7mm

In few words, the thickness of the maple is 24mm and the one of the mahogany is 27mm.

If you have any question don't hesitate to ask me

[oblaty]

capu, I have discovered PRS similar to yours... one of Slovak guitar builders made it... there are few diferences like pickups, it´s left-handed, it has natural back...

You can find them here Sollerguitars

[capu]

capu, I have discovered PRS similar to yours... one of Slovak guitar builders made it... there are few diferences like pickups, it´s left-handed, it has natural back...

You can find them here Sollerguitars

Incredible!!! They are rella similar! Consider that at the begging I had in mind to leave the back natural then, after the staining, I changed idea because the contrast, from my point of view, was to high... In addition he used the same tuning machines I used: the PlanetWaves Auto-trim...

2 Persons in the world having in mind the same image: a blue PRS style guitar with a tree-of-life inlay on the fretboard.

Thank you very much for the link, I really apreciated it

[oblaty]

Heh gladly happened...

This guy lives few kilometers from me... I order parts in his webshop, pictures on his site were also helpfull to me when I was building my first guitar

I´m going to see his workshop some time.. perhaps when I will be buying new parts

By the way I´m going to paint the back black too to have the contrast with green.... This is beautifull image PRS

Edited June 6, 2007 by oblaty

[capu]

Heh gladly happened...

This guy lives few kilometers from me... I order parts in his webshop, pictures on his site were also helpfull to me when I was building my first guitar

I´m going to see his workshop some time.. perhaps when I will be buying new parts

By the way I´m going to paint the back black too to have the contrast with green.... This is beautifull image PRS

I think, as you, that if the back is black, the top pops up and the result is aesthetically better.

Now I'm preparing to start a new project: an headless guitar. The color I chose is green with black back.

[oblaty]

Hmm i don´t like headless guitars... but that´s my opinion... what green will you use? Bright green like me?

[PTU 7's.]

Very nice idea, a PRS with the tree inlay, i like it. Congrats, very good job!

[Maiden69]

Very nice. I think that the only 2 things that I think will have made it look better are the scoop in the trebel cut away, and the cover, alto it has a very nice inlay, I think it would had looked a lot better if it was in a black cover. The natural cover takes a lot of attention away from the overall look of the guitar, if the back would had been natural too like the cover, it would had been the best

[Carry The One]

Excellent work. Could you tell me how you did the inlay and where you got the materials?

Edited June 11, 2007 by Carry The One

[capu]

Excellent work. Could you tell me how you did the inlay and where you got the materials?

Hello,

I made the inlay of the fretboard using epoxy resin and microballon.

The mixture: mix 14g of epoxy resin (resin + hardener) and add microballon (glass or phenolic) till you get a sort of clay (not too hard and not to liquid).

Then fill pattern you routed on the wood and let it harden for 24 hours. At the end, with a radioused sanding block, sand it.

It's very easy!

The color of the mixture can be changed using special colors for resins (liquid or paste). You can also use powdered ones but you cannot use water based or solvent based colors (they cannot evaporate and they also damage the chemical structure of the resin --> the resin is a polymer).

My advice is to do some practice on scrap wood.

Let me know if this description is sufficient and don't hesitate to pose me any question.

[capu]

Very nice. I think that the only 2 things that I think will have made it look better are the scoop in the trebel cut away, and the cover, alto it has a very nice inlay, I think it would had looked a lot better if it was in a black cover. The natural cover takes a lot of attention away from the overall look of the guitar, if the back would had been natural too like the cover, it would had been the best

You are right. I usually use ebony back plates but in this case the only one I had was this. I probably will replace the back plate with an ebony one. I agree with you, it will look better.

Thank you for your suggestion

[capu]

Hmm i don´t like headless guitars... but that´s my opinion... what green will you use? Bright green like me?

At the moment I'm not sure but I think to use, like you, a bright green. The body will have a flamed maple top with a natural binding.

[capu]

Excellent work. Could you tell me how you did the inlay and where you got the materials?

Sorry, I forgot to tell you where to get the materials. You can find all you need in every models shop (these are materials that are frequently used in building RC airplane models)

[capu]

Hmm i don´t like headless guitars... but that´s my opinion... what green will you use? Bright green like me?

I forgot to tell you that I'm going to build a fiber carbon neck for it but I can't start until I receive the mechanics (bridge and, in particular, the head string locking nut).

[oblaty]

Hmm i don´t like headless guitars... but that´s my opinion... what green will you use? Bright green like me?

I forgot to tell you that I'm going to build a fiber carbon neck for it but I can't start until I receive the mechanics (bridge and, in particular, the head string locking nut).

Mmmm carbon fiber... sounds interesting... I doubt I could get some carbon fiber material, or If I could it would be expensive.... Pure carbon wouldn´t be problem, but it isn´t very good for instruments.. it´s very tough, but very brittle. I´ll stay loyal to old good wood

[Carry The One]

Hello,

I made the inlay of the fretboard using epoxy resin and microballon.

The mixture: mix 14g of epoxy resin (resin + hardener) and add microballon (glass or phenolic) till you get a sort of clay (not too hard and not to liquid).

Then fill pattern you routed on the wood and let it harden for 24 hours. At the end, with a radioused sanding block, sand it.

It's very easy!

The color of the mixture can be changed using special colors for resins (liquid or paste). You can also use powdered ones but you cannot use water based or solvent based colors (they cannot evaporate and they also damage the chemical structure of the resin --> the resin is a polymer).

My advice is to do some practice on scrap wood.

Let me know if this description is sufficient and don't hesitate to pose me any question.

Thanks for the reply. I am now just debating whether I want to attempt a similar pattern or go for something less complex.

[Mr. Preston Swift]

quick question for Capu

Did you cut the vine of life inlay yourself and then inlay it or did you buy a precut one and just inlay it yourself or did you just but the fretboard with the vine of life inlay in it already?

[capu]

quick question for Capu

Did you cut the vine of life inlay yourself and then inlay it or did you buy a precut one and just inlay it yourself or did you just but the fretboard with the vine of life inlay in it already?

Hello!

In the past I did it by my self (starting from a picture of a Jem) then I found on ebay a guy selling precut fretboards.

[cukaracha]

can you pls teach me how you arched the top so perfectly?

[capu]

can you pls teach me how you arched the top so perfectly?

"Teach" is a big word, I can tell you how I did ;-)

I first started by tracing a line with a pencil on the side delimiting the natural binding (in my case 7mm). This is a very important line because it defines the level you have to reach by removing the material. It's also very impotant that you, using the chisel, leave 1mm from that line: you will trim it with sand paper later in the carving process.

Then I traced, on the top, the "flat zone".

Here is a picture where you can see the rough curving with the chisel and you can also see the line I traced to delimit the "flat zone":

Picture 1

You have to remove the wood in excess without going too near to the limit you traced (1mm). When you have reached a sufficient level of rough curving use the sand paper (I started with a 80) to complete the curving removing the famous 1mm of tollerance you left. I decided to do all by hand because if you use a sanding machine you don't have the sufficient control as you do it by hand.

At the end, it is important that you remove all the sanding erregularities carefully: when you have a glossy surface you will notice all them as a kick in the stomac. To do this I used a tangental strong light source to identify all the points to be sanded.

I hope my explanation will help you.

There are also other techniques.

Picture 2

Picture 3

Picture 4

[Mr. Preston Swift]

quick question for Capu

Did you cut the vine of life inlay yourself and then inlay it or did you buy a precut one and just inlay it yourself or did you just but the fretboard with the vine of life inlay in it already?

Hello!

In the past I did it by my self (starting from a picture of a Jem) then I found on ebay a guy selling precut fretboards.

I saw that guy there too. Did you get the already inlaid into the precut fretboard? Cause that's like $80+ ish)

Anyways I wanted to see how it looked in a finished guitar before i purchased one. I think it looks great. Good job on the axe.

[cukaracha]

can you pls teach me how you arched the top so perfectly?

"Teach" is a big word, I can tell you how I did ;-)

I first started by tracing a line with a pencil on the side delimiting the natural binding (in my case 7mm). This is a very important line because it defines the level you have to reach by removing the material. It's also very impotant that you, using the chisel, leave 1mm from that line: you will trim it with sand paper later in the carving process.

Then I traced, on the top, the "flat zone".

Here is a picture where you can see the rough curving with the chisel and you can also see the line I traced to delimit the "flat zone":

Picture 1

You have to remove the wood in excess without going too near to the limit you traced (1mm). When you have reached a sufficient level of rough curving use the sand paper (I started with a 80) to complete the curving removing the famous 1mm of tollerance you left. I decided to do all by hand because if you use a sanding machine you don't have the sufficient control as you do it by hand.

At the end, it is important that you remove all the sanding erregularities carefully: when you have a glossy surface you will notice all them as a kick in the stomac. To do this I used a tangental strong light source to identify all the points to be sanded.

I hope my explanation will help you.

There are also other techniques.

Picture 2

Picture 3

Picture 4

that really helped! thx, capu! but one more question, when you carved the body (between the edges and flat zone) using a chisel, did u carve it flat (not curved) first and then contuored it (to make it curved) with sandpaper or what?