J.Crowhurst Posted June 28, 2008 Report Share Posted June 28, 2008 This is my first project, which I mostly made in construction tech this year with no prior woodworking experience. My own shape, sort of has a Jaguar type vibe to it. Mahogany body, maple neck, ebony 24-fret fingerboard (from stewmac). Side marker dots, but no fretboard inlays. It's not perfect by any means, but I'm happy with how it's turning out. Definitely had some quarrels with the router along the way -- for my next guitar, I'll have to pick up some actual quality bits. I'm probably going to finish it with a nice red stain. The knobs will be replaced with smaller ebony ones eventually. I'll probably make a white pickguard. I also want to add a string clamp that mounts behind the nut, like this one: http://www.basspartsresource.com/images/la...BP-0278-010.jpg so that the Bigsby doesn't become a tuning nightmare. Does anyone have experience with this type of part? Sorry for the marginal pic quality. Mock up: Body Back of body Neck Closeup of headstock Back of neck As of now, I need to do some significant reshaping of the neck... it's waaay too thick. Then I have to bolt on the neck, and do some shaping on the heel. Otherwise, it's just minor operations and colossal amounts of sanding before I can go to finishing and wiring. This will be the first of several, for sure. Thoughts? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dpm99 Posted June 29, 2008 Report Share Posted June 29, 2008 The more I look at it, the more I like it. It's got a real nice MIJ vibe going on. It also looks like a Goldfish cracker. Are you going for a vintage sound as well as a vintage look? I definitely vote for a pickguard. Please post more pictures as you progress. And good job. -Dave Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Xanthus Posted June 29, 2008 Report Share Posted June 29, 2008 Here's some $.02! The pickups are too close together for me, personally. And I'd vote against the red stain, because the mahogany is a nice color as-is. I don't know how well that nut clamp will work for ya, seeing as the Bigsby doesn't have fine-tuners. You do have the roller bridge, though, so that is going to help. What kind of pickups are those, and why white, if I might ask? I don't see the need for a pickguard, especially a white one, on a shape that is already cramped for space. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
J.Crowhurst Posted June 29, 2008 Author Report Share Posted June 29, 2008 Dave, I hadn't thought of the Goldfish thing; now that's all I'm going to be able to see when I look at it! An orange finish is definitely out of the question I expect it's going to have a somewhat retro sound; the pickups are an SD '59 in the bridge, and an SD Jazz in the neck position (with coil tap). Thanks for the kind words! Xanthus, I definitely agree about the pickups. I'm worried that there won't be a ton of difference in sound quality between the two of them, although it might help that they're each different models. I was worried about having enough room for the Bigsby, so they ended up getting a bit cramped. If I could do it again, I would move the neck pup right up to the neck pocket. Thanks for the tip about the fine tuners -- I didn't think of that. The pick-up cavities are white as I thought it would look nice and clean with a white pick-guard, black rings and white covers. However, if I do scrap the pick-guard, the white covers go with it. I'm going to have to see how it looks. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dash Posted June 29, 2008 Report Share Posted June 29, 2008 (edited) i really love the overall vibe of this guitar. the retroness (is that a word?) is really cool. i agree with Xanthas about the pickups, but if you are definately going with a pickguard, you could always use the old swimming pool route method to reposition them. the only other thing i'm not keen on are the controls all in a straight line, i think it could have flowed better if they followed the body lines, but hey, it's your guitar. anyway, don't take my opinions as a criticism of your design, because i love the shape (i may even steal it for my first build! ) keep up the good work, and don't forget to update with your progress, i will be waiting to see how it turns out. cheers darren Edited June 29, 2008 by dash Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dpm99 Posted June 29, 2008 Report Share Posted June 29, 2008 the only other thing i'm not keen on are the controls all in a straight line, i think it could have flowed better if they followed the body lines, but hey, it's your guitar. See, now I really like the controls in a straight row. It reminds me of an Eastwood Airline guitar. Besides, it helps it swim faster. J. Crowhurst, You're gonna get a lot of opinions here. Take them all for what they're worth, but in the end your guitar will come out best if you trust your own decisions. Somebody had to tell me that not too long ago as well. -Dave Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WAK Guitars Posted June 29, 2008 Report Share Posted June 29, 2008 Great Job J.Crowhurst! I really like the pickup covers without the pickguard, but as has been said, thats just me. What kind of shape are you thinking for the pickguard? The only reason I'm asking is that you've already have the back routed for the controls so I was wondering if your pickguard will actually go around the controls. I think a kind of Les Paul type pickguard that fit the shape of the guitar would be cool. A guy called Pukko is doing a really cool build right now, maybe a picguard like the one he made would be cool. http://projectguitar.ibforums.com/index.ph...31074&st=75 Anyway, as has been said, thats only my preference and its your guitar so take it for what its worth. Keep it up! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
J.Crowhurst Posted June 29, 2008 Author Report Share Posted June 29, 2008 Hey everyone, Thanks for sharing your comments with me -- I appreciate criticism as well as encouragement as it helps me to know what to do better next time, and what I can improve on. About the pickguard, I had a sort of unusual shape in mind. Here's a sketch that I did when I was initially planning out the guitar: Although the final design is significantly different, that's more or less what I still want to do for the pickguard. So, moving the neck pup forward is something I'll definitely consider. Thanks for the idea! Dave, it's funny that you should mention the Airline guitar... the initial design was somewhat influenced by the shape of those guitars. I wanted to make a sort of cross between an Airline and an SG. It's interesting that some of that still shows. I'll definitely get some more pictures up as I make some progress. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RAI6 Posted June 29, 2008 Report Share Posted June 29, 2008 I was worried about having enough room for the Bigsby, so they ended up getting a bit cramped. If I could do it again, I would move the neck pup right up to the neck pocket. The bridge size should have nothing to do with the space left for the pickups.... Scale length and # of frets, sure, but the size of the bridge? I hope you didn't move the bridge based on its size. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
J.Crowhurst Posted June 29, 2008 Author Report Share Posted June 29, 2008 Nah, the bridge was positioned according to the scale length. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
j. pierce Posted June 29, 2008 Report Share Posted June 29, 2008 I don't know, I have a guitar with the p'ups placed kind of like that, (although I think the bridge p'up is a little bit further back.) and running both of them at the same time gives me one my favorite sounds. As far as the locking nut - like others have said, if you do have a tuning issue, you just made things worse, as the Bigsby has no fine tuners to compensate, you'd have to unlock the nut, etc. Seriously, I haven't ever had too many problems with a Bigbsy and tuning stability, mostly as there just isn't the range of movement in one to start making serious problems. If you do find yourself concerned, a well cut nut and a set of locking tuners should help tremendously. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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