pariah223 Posted January 14, 2008 Report Share Posted January 14, 2008 I have build 4 solid body guitars, and i am getting quite comfortable in the art to the point where the last one i made is a great joy to play and has replaced my boughten guitar in terms of the one i play regularly. I am now ready to jump into acoustic building to see where that may take me. I dont even own an acoustic guitar so building one that plays well would be a real treat. Anyway, first place to start i guess would be the body mold. So i was wondering what you guys do for the body mold, since it is so important in the bending of the sides and stuff of that matter. I have read 4 sheets of 1/2 MDF makes a great solid mold, but i have also heard of other methods. What ones do you guys use, and reccomend? Thanks! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jammy Posted January 14, 2008 Report Share Posted January 14, 2008 I use a full thickness mold (or as near as dammit). They're made up of stacked MDF, and around 1/3 of it's thickness is removable (screwed on rather than glued like the other joints) This allows me to have the sides fully supported when bending (and allows me to ensure the side is perfectly bend across it's whole height), but then remove some thickness to do jobs like glueing on linings etc... http://www.darkmatterguitars.com/siteimage...g/241007/01.jpg That image shows one of my guitars in it's mold (at 2/3 full thickness). Note the screw holes to attach the final ring of MDF to take it up to full height. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Daniel Sorbera Posted January 14, 2008 Report Share Posted January 14, 2008 I use one similar to the true north design (I copied it from his pictures). It's not as stable as one like Jammy's, but it if fully adjustable so you don't have to build one for every shape. Link Look at all his pictures to get some ideas for some other jigs as well. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fryovanni Posted January 14, 2008 Report Share Posted January 14, 2008 Take a look at this very recent thread - topic That is a good place to start and there are several links to get you going on research. Plus you have another member that you can talk to about what he has been doing to get the ball rolling (he is pretty close to where you are at). Peace,Rich Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
carousel182 Posted January 14, 2008 Report Share Posted January 14, 2008 Hey, Im so close to getting this started i cant wait. I just have some solid bodies to finish and on to make for someone. But i found a good source of cheap wood locally. Martin guitar factory sells their wood for cheap and i live about an hour from them. But yea i havea side bending jig go bar deck radius dishes molds blankets etc.(Ive made ever jig before i started.) Also rich, i was reading kinkades book again and i noticed he usd gobars that appear to be oak, would this be a suitable replacement for fiberglass. Also, i have a vacuum press coming so i might try that for bracing. And i just glued up a back and it went good. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
scab Posted January 15, 2008 Report Share Posted January 15, 2008 sweet dude! sounds like your coming along nicely! it's always nice to have everything (or most everything) ready before you start.. also it is very possible to make molds out of plywood, as it will last longer and is stronger.. Make sure you keep giving us updates on your progress.. I'm really interested Good Luck! Scab Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
carousel182 Posted January 15, 2008 Report Share Posted January 15, 2008 I might do the back this weekend. its going to be something real easy because chances are ill screw it up. I'm finally almost done that strat that I've been finishing. Maybe when i clear coat it ill put pics up. its a blue-green-yellow burst. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pariah223 Posted January 16, 2008 Author Report Share Posted January 16, 2008 its awesome to see so many people are into building guitars. Ill have to post some pics of my tele style i just built, it came out awesome, and plays just as good. Check out my sig for my first guitars, a bass and a strat. The bass i am very proud of. Started building my body mold today, ill post pics when it is done. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
carousel182 Posted January 16, 2008 Report Share Posted January 16, 2008 Cool, I made the semi solid mold. Their are height changers that can be attached for sanding rims (I haven't gotten that far yet ) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pariah223 Posted January 18, 2008 Author Report Share Posted January 18, 2008 is there any advantage of a semi solid over a solid mold? i may be silly, but the semi solid molds look like they would take a bit more time to make.. considering you gota make sure everything is lined up and in square, and then (nail or glue?) all the little braces in. Whereas a solid mold, you take a bunch of mdf, glue and screw it together, cut out and shape your shape, and your done. So before i jump in and make one or the other, which one will be better in the long run? I have a large pile of 1/2 thick MDF, so materials is not an issue. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
carousel182 Posted January 19, 2008 Report Share Posted January 19, 2008 solid would be good, i just used the semi solid option because I felt like using the staple gun, thats all. you dont really have to worry about squaring everything up in that step you just use the spindle sander or rasps to get it squared. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pariah223 Posted January 19, 2008 Author Report Share Posted January 19, 2008 ah i imagine using 1 inch staples as opposed to hammering in brads would make that process alot more fun and alot less tedious. as well as more accurate because you can hold the piece with a hand, staple with the other. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fryovanni Posted January 19, 2008 Report Share Posted January 19, 2008 I know people that prefer solid plywood, some that prefer to space two sheets with blocks and people who prefer to use adjustable dowels. They are all good. Just be sure to check everything with your machinist square and make sure everything is solid. Outstanding link in Daniels post, very clean effective jigs. Good jigs will keep your build under control. With sloppy jigs you will spend ten times as long trying to fix or true things up, hopefully not making an unrecoverable slip. I really like talking to other builders about jigs and methods they use. Even if just about every method they use is the same as yours, there is always something they do a little different that may be something you want to think about using. Peace,Rich Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pariah223 Posted January 19, 2008 Author Report Share Posted January 19, 2008 yeah i enjoy talking with other people who do this stuff as well. Is there like, an IRC channel for project guitar? if not there should be! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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