dremel????

[Snork]

my mother would like to know if the dremel multi pro cutting tool will allow me to cut some curly maple in place of a jigs aw

[Snork]

yes i know it will take a long time

[westhemann]

no a dremel is really underpowered for maple.you need the jigsaw too.even with that you may go through 3 or 4 blades with it.the dremel is barely enough for routing.fyi i used a dremel,jigsaw,and sandpaper to build my first guitar.(i bought the neck...a carvin neck thru)

it is the only guitar i play now...makes the others look and sound like trash

[Snork]

u sure bout dat?

[daveq]

Are you talking about routing pickup cavities or the body outline? I have used it for cavities and it works OK. I wouldn't want to use it for the outline though. The Dremel (or similar) is a great tool to have around. I'm really surprised at how many different things I have used it for (when building guitars).

Oh yeah, I use the spiral bits from $tewmac when cutting into figured maple tops.

[Snork]

Eh. i guess i'll just use a routing bit on it. ill see if it works. i bet it does.

[westhemann]

it will work for routing.it will not work for the outline.am i sure?i told you i have done it.it will not replace a jigsaw,and that IS what you asked.

and for routing it is still a pain in the ass.

why ask if you don't want the answer?

[ryeisnotcool2]

there a great tool to have escpecially for the price ! you can do inlays, binding,fret polishing, fret cutting, just tell your mom you want it for christmas! you wont be sorry!

id use a router for the pup cavities, and a jig saw will work for the body,or a band saw!

[westhemann]

he said "in place of a jigsaw"

they are great tools.but they will not replace a jigsaw and are a poor substitute for a router.i have used both

by the way the dremel is more expensive than a cheap router.

but if you insist on it get a base for it

[soapbarstrat]

pushing a dremel beyond it's limits. not too smart. I don't think they're so damn cheap that you can run them to death within a year. I baby mine, so the bearings stay good, and it'll keep making accurate cuts on fine precision work. It's not a tool to "rough-out" a guitar body. Even using it to rout a bridge saddle channel is pushing it pretty hard.

[Snork]

nah i have a dremel. and it cuts steel. i dont see how you cant incorporate teh same "slow grinding" technique to wood?

[soapbarstrat]

cuts steel---Yep, I do it all the time with those cut-off wheels, but only on small pieces of steel. You won't see me trying to cut a half-inch bolt with the Dremel. I'll go grab the hack-saw for that. If you're making a tiny little guitar that fits in the palm of your hand, the dremel can be your "body carving machine" ,etc.

I think you're determined to build a guitar using a Dremel, so trying to give you advice, so you don't burn up, or wear the hell out of the Dremel's bearings, might be useless.

I got my first Dremel when I was around 12. I made it do everything. Instead of rough-shaping wood shapes first with a saw, I'd just start right away with the Dremel. After a short while, the Dremel would always get real hot too fast, the chuck had a lot of play, because I put so much hard wear on the bearings.

That Dremel burned up after some years, then I got one of those long models in the early 80's, which was a poor design. So about a year ago, I sold it for 30 bucks, then sent my first burned-up one to Dremel, along with a check for something like 36 bucks, and they sent me the current version with the gray rubber grip body. I'm taking good care of this one.

My craftsman router takes care of most of the routing work around the shop. Dremel gets pulled out for little detail work.

"cuts steel" yeah, but how much steel ? Not much, just like it's not made for cutting out a big piece of hardwood.

[ryeisnotcool2]

i agree with you guys, you cant replace one type of tool with another totaly oposite type of tool, but you can get a "dremel"brand dremel at depot for 30$ now thats not with all the fun stuff but it is a dremel. i got the big fun kit wich was like 75$ and i really like it. ive since bought a bunch of bits,(wich wal-mart has the best prices!) but heck no would i ever even think about routing out a humbucker cavity with it!

ive used it to clean up cavities, i use mine for cutting fret ends on the fret board and i use it for inlays mostly, im gonna get another just so i can have a different bit in each one,im lazy! i also want another router, i'd like to have about four of them but i will settle for two for now.

now if you buy one of those other dreml type tools, im at a loss of the brand name right now. but there used by carvers alot, they have a hanging motor with a flex shaft, i use my landlords for shaping some of the areas on my guitars. they work great and are really powerful! but you'll also drop 150$ on it!

[soapbarstrat]

You must mean Fordom. They make the Dremel look like a Fisher-price kids toy.

Black & Decker makes a Dremel copy that some say is better than Dremel. I think Ryobi also makes one. I think even Harbor Freight tools sells a Dremel copy made by Chicago tools that's pretty darn cheap.

Damn, if they're going for 30 at Depot, I should have waited. Is that the variable speed model ?

[DividedByJames]

I have the Black and Decker RTX and it works well. I used those blades to cut thru a bolt (as thick as the end of a 1/4" guitar cord) that someone installed as a strap pin on my black Schecter C-1 Elite. I went thru 3-4 of the sanding blades but it made it thru. Then I got some mini files and cleaned it up.

My only problem now that I see is compatability with "Dremmel" products. Does anyone know if they are interchangable?

[ryeisnotcool2]

yeah fordom ! they rock! and for frakenstein i dont see why dremel tools wont work for you? as long as the rtx uses 1/8 or 3/32 shafts

[Guitarfrenzy]

I don't know if anyone has mentioned it or not, but the main reason I use a dremel is for inlays. That's the main use for it in guitar building, in my opinion.

[DividedByJames]

I spoke to a tech at Stew mac and Dremel-specific accessories such as the Dremmel Flex-Shaft are not compatable. Non specific items like bits (and StewMac jigs/bases) are compatable.

I guess that means I have to go trackdown a Black and Decker flex shaft.

[ryeisnotcool2]

well i have a flex shaft and i havent really used it at all, thats just me though. i dont like the feel of it, unless you have the dremel mounted way way obove you the shaft flexes to much and heats up and then puts to much stress on the motor.

[LGM Guitars]

I've got 6 dremels in my shop. Well, not really,

I have one dremel, one craftsman brand dremel, and 4 clarke brand dremels.

The clarke brand ones went on sale at co-op building center for $34.95 canadian WITH the flex attachment and the hanger for the. I have all 4 clarke ones mounted with the flex shafts, the craftsman one is the smallest, most powerful, and most rigid one of the bunch so I use it for all my inlay work. I had a mastercraft one which sucks, it is heavy, not as powerful, and just as expensive as dremel. The clark ones are also very large compared to dremel or craftsman, but since I use them just with the flex shafts it hasn't been a problem. All of the bits are interchangable between the dremel, craftsman, and clarke, as well is the flex shaft, they will all fit into my aluminum router base which uses the threads on the end rather than clamping (the dremel router base is a piece of ****).

The only thing that doesn't fit between them is the actual collets, they are all slightly different diameter on the outside, all the same inside for the bits, but you can't mix and match between the different models.

I have used the $35 clarkes a TON and they keep on going, for what they cost I figured if they each lasted a year I was doing good but the first one I bought is nearly 2 years old now and still works looks and feels like brand new.

I would never attempt to route pickup cavities or the like with one, the bits are very small, the tool very underpowered for that, and the bearings not rigid enough. For what a regular dremel costs vs a router, I would really say, unless you want teh dremel specifically for inlay, buy a router, it will be much more versatile for you in the long run.

[Snork]

ok....... i see that i have been royally dissed and A$$ raped for this thread..... i thought i would just take it really nice and slow with a dremel because i have nothing else to cut with and my mom made me ask before i started work on it. it appears that i have no real choice because this is all i have. I think ill just take it slow, and slowly grind away ath the wood and take breaks for the dremel to chill out every 20 mins.

[westhemann]

let us know how it goes

[Snork]

thanx for your help i will. didnt mean to question you

[soapbarstrat]

" i see that i have been royally dissed and A$$ raped for this thread..... "

Man, I hope you're joking, 'cause we're just telling you what the Dremel can and cannot do. Would ya feel better if we said, " yeah man, that's the way to go. Vintage Fender bodies were cut out of blocks of wood with nothing but a sharp dental pick " ?

[ryeisnotcool2]

dude dont worry about it! christmas is comming so put a router on your list! you mom could get you a raobi and some bits from depot for under 100$ so ask for that then you will be set!