guitarnut Posted May 31, 2011 Report Share Posted May 31, 2011 Some of you may be following the carved top prototype that I'm currently building. This is a flat top version of that design. The plan: Mahogany body with flame maple cap, faux binding. Mahogany neck set at 3 degrees, Bolivian rosewood fretboard with flame maple binding, pearl dots. 2 HBs, Vol, Tone, 3-way switch. Not sure on finish yet. I started with a 1.500" thick Peruvian mahogany blank that I stored up last fall. This along with the extra necks I glued up during the first protoype build make this process so much faster. All chambered and ready for the top. Here I have the top glued up, rough cut and ready for clean up. The cut off at the right will be thinned out and used for the headstock veneer. I'll probably bookmatch an outer edge where the figure is strongest. To clean up the glue joint on the mating surface, I tape the top on the back of the body and run it thru the planer. This gives me a nice, flat glue suface. I also do final thicknessing at this point so I only have to take a whisper off the bookmatch side...just enogh to clean up the glue joint. Clampzilla! Glued up, trimmed and ready for edge sanding and routing. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
guitarnut Posted May 31, 2011 Author Report Share Posted May 31, 2011 No pics of the process but I have the fretboard tapered and ready to glue up. I'm taking a different approach to the fretboard binding this time. I ran into issues with slot depth and sanding buildup in the slots on the last fretboard I bound...my 2011 Build Challenge. I plan to glue the board to the neck blank, do dot inlays, do the radius, recut & radius the slots, then glue up the bindings. I can use a scraper to clean them up and avoid excess sanding at that point. We'll see how it works out. Peace, Mark Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
guitarnut Posted June 8, 2011 Author Report Share Posted June 8, 2011 Time for the neck pocket. Since I took the time to make a template on the carved top version of the guitar, this went pretty quickly. After a couple of shallow passes I removed the template. A quick test fit with the neck from the carved top build. Snug! Then I took it to depth...not final until I check the actual neck that's going on this guitar. I want to make sure I allow for the difference between the two tops before committing. What I'm seeing at this point is that the tenon needs to be a bit thinner or the pocket needs to be deeper. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
guitarnut Posted June 8, 2011 Author Report Share Posted June 8, 2011 've been thinking on this a bit. I'm leaning toward something with a vintage vibe. I did these in PS with a pic of the actual top. Either of these get me excited. And they both make the faux binding pop and compliment a natural mahogany back. Plenty of time to decide but I'm 75% sure on the 3 tone burst. A dark cherry burst. Or, a 3 tone burst. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
guitarnut Posted June 8, 2011 Author Report Share Posted June 8, 2011 If you're following my LPJ build, this post is going to seem redundant but it applies here, too. I have gotten some work done on the build but unfortunately my trusty Canon has bit the dust. It's suffering the widely reported CCD sensor problem that has been on gong since 2004. Canon will fix it but it's going to take some time. So, I only have a few shots for now. The fretboard has been glued up, inlaid and radiused. The neck has been profiled and fit to the pocket, binding is scraped, headstock shaped. I'm ready to cut the angle on the heel and glue the HS veneer. Then, carving and fretting. State of the 3 builds I have going. More soon. Peace, Mark Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
guitarnut Posted June 8, 2011 Author Report Share Posted June 8, 2011 A couple more pics...I remembered my video cam takes still as well. The bookmatch HS veneers are done. They're 2mm thick so I can get a faux binding on the edges. Since I plan to carve in a volute on the back of the necks, I'll take the extra thickness off the backside of the HS when I set up to mill the angle in the heel. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
guitarnut Posted June 14, 2011 Author Report Share Posted June 14, 2011 I 've made good progress on this build...namely the neck. I've had some questions about how I carve my necks and specifically, the volute. So I thought I would show some of the steps. It's easy enough to do once you have some practice. Carving is more of a feel than technique so I would encourage practicing on scrap before taking a chisel and file to your prized neck blank. :idea: Starting on the heel first, I use a 1/4" chisel and, working away from the line, I carve down the end of the neel into a slope away from the butt end. This shows half of the carve. After thinning out the back of the headstock on the band saw, I draw out a triangle with a line down it's center. The base of the triangle is at the glue line of the scarf joint. Then I use a fret saw or flush cut saw to down cut to the side lines of the triangle. Then I under cut to meet the first two cuts. This gets rid of most of the waste. Before doing anything more to the volute, I want to get the neck to rough thickness. I clamp it in an upside down radius blck so I can slide the calipers under it. Then I take it to depth in two or three places with a rasp, Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
guitarnut Posted June 14, 2011 Author Report Share Posted June 14, 2011 The length of the neck is taken to rough thickness with a combination of Ibex plane and a rasp. I work along the path between the two depth cuts I made earlier until the calipers slip over the neck all along the path. I try to focus on keeping the edges lower than the center so I have unobstructed access to the center with the calipers. Now back to the volute. At the base of the triangle, I run a half round rasp directly across the neck,,,bass to treble side...this puts the concave scoop at the bottom of the volute. It rounds down into the neck carve at the edges...this is one of those places where feel is important...no guidelines, just work it until it transitions smoothly. Pick it up and slide your hand into firsat position...this will tel you when you have a good, comfortable fit. The next step is to use a VERY sharp chisel and work down the edges of the triangle to the center line. You can see a bit of the line remaining here. Just stay on the proper angle until the top flat spot is gone. That's is! Block it out to clean up any saw marks or chisel slips...there will be some of each. I didn't mention this earlier, but leave the headstock about .050" to .070" thicker when you trim it down. This gives you plenty to work with when you're blocking it out. The neel is finished out with a half round rasp. If you have a glued on heel block, watch the glue line carefully as a guide. It will help keep you even from side to side. Again, pick up the neck and check the feel with your hand tight to the heel. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
guitarnut Posted June 14, 2011 Author Report Share Posted June 14, 2011 Peace, Mark Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
verhoevenc Posted June 14, 2011 Report Share Posted June 14, 2011 I can't say this enough: Not even diamond volutes on electrics! Nice job man! Chris Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
guitarnut Posted July 17, 2011 Author Report Share Posted July 17, 2011 The heat has been a bear lately and the shop has uninhabitable so I have made any progress on finishing. I've been able to spend a few hours in the mornings working on getting all my builds ready for finish. Here's the state of things. This build and the others are ready for grain filling (as needed) and finish. More soon. Mark Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ricky Anderson Posted July 22, 2011 Report Share Posted July 22, 2011 3tone burst please Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.