jimmyb Posted January 8, 2004 Report Share Posted January 8, 2004 I used the ESP bolt-on explorer plans from www.guitarbuild.com(explorer13_pub.dwg). Im using 'Melleluka' wood, not sure what its like though my uncle whos a carpenter bought it for me because it had similar properties to Mahogany. I cut out the body and sanded it today at his workshop. its awesome, cant wait to finish!!! anyway i have a few questions: 1) does any one have that CAD file?can it be used for humbucker templates? If yes how deep should i go.I'll probably be using Seymour Duncans. 2)the cad has the neck pocket but again how deep do i go and on what angle? 3) the cad has the tunomatic and tailpeice on it. can i just drill at the end of them? If so what size drill bit should i use? Thanks Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jimmyb Posted January 8, 2004 Author Report Share Posted January 8, 2004 please help! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GuitarMaestro Posted January 8, 2004 Report Share Posted January 8, 2004 Don't route anything without having the final hardware in your hands. Especially the neck pocket should NEVER be routed without having the actual neck and matching it to the neck. The neck-poecket should be really tight arround the neck which cannot happen if you dont route it for a neck you can actually take measurements from. Just buy the hardware and neck you want to use and route accordingly. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jimmyb Posted January 9, 2004 Author Report Share Posted January 9, 2004 ok thanks man, im building the neck so ill route the neck pocket after. im buying the pickups off rhoads56 and they come with templates so thats good. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Drak Posted January 9, 2004 Report Share Posted January 9, 2004 I'll have to take a small friendly disagreement with maestro on this one. I use the Stew-Mac neck router template, and I've used Carvin, Stew-Mac, Warmoth, and various imported pawn-shop necks over the years, and without fail, that router template works excellently 99% of the time and it is soooo easy. If it didn't work I wouldn't still be using it all these years later, still using the same one every time. The funny thing is is that the only one that was too tight to fit the routered pocket was their own damned Stew-Mac necks! To me it would be a Tremendous pain in the arse to have to measure every single neck's heel before cutting a pocket, it would drive me completely insane. Not to mention trying to draw out the heels dimensions on a body and trying to router to it, oh God that would suck. Try the template, it makes life so much easier. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jimmyb Posted January 9, 2004 Author Report Share Posted January 9, 2004 ok thanks drak, im building my own neck...do you think that template from stew-mac will still work?? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
westhemann Posted January 9, 2004 Report Share Posted January 9, 2004 it will if you also use it for neck heel dimensions Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jimmyb Posted January 9, 2004 Author Report Share Posted January 9, 2004 ok cheers wes Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ryeisnotcool2 Posted January 9, 2004 Report Share Posted January 9, 2004 hegh ... bolt ons confuse me, i like neck tennons, i think there easier to do, or neck through. the only way the template will work for your own neck is if you make the neck the same as all the other necks that the template works for, so if your doin that you might as well make the template while your at it! save some cash! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jimmyb Posted January 9, 2004 Author Report Share Posted January 9, 2004 ok thanks Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GuitarMaestro Posted January 9, 2004 Report Share Posted January 9, 2004 @Drak: Interesting to know that the stemac template works that well. I still prefer to build the pocket for the acual neck, as this will avoid potential problems and give the tightest possible fit. Measuring the neck is no big deal really. I takes 5 Min. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Setch Posted January 9, 2004 Report Share Posted January 9, 2004 My top tip for neck pocket templates goes a little like this. Materials: The neck. a sheet of 1/2" or 3/4" mdf or plywood. Some doublesided tape. What to do: Take your sheet of mdf/ply and cut three pieces off it, approx 3" x 1". Ensure that at least one side of each is straight and square. Cut a rectangle of mdf/ply approx 6" x 6". Using a small piece of double side tape attach the heel of the neck to your 6 x 6 board. Apply tape to the three smaller pieces of mdf/ply, and place them tight up against the sides of the heel. Remove the neck. Using a bandsaw, jigsaw, scrollsaw whatever, remove the bulk of the mdf/ply where the heel was, then use a router (table or handheld) with a bearing bit to trim the template. The bearing rides on the three pieces taped to the larger board, and if you use the appropriate diameter bit to match the corners of the heel, you should end up with a perfect template. If this is confusing rather than helpful, ignore it and I'll take some pics and post them early next week. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guitarfrenzy Posted January 9, 2004 Report Share Posted January 9, 2004 Yeah, I agree, why route the neck pocket and hope that your neck will fit right. What Setch is saying is right, even though there are other ways of doing what he's talking about. It still comes down to having or making a perfect template for your neck design. The bonus feature is that with the custom made neck pocket template is that if you make it a decent size you get two things: One, you can glue shims under the template to give it the angle you want so you can route out the pocket at the right angle. Two, you have a great platform for the router to ride on, since you've already cut the body out, you won't have much wood to keep the router straight. Good Luck Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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