ScottR Posted October 2, 2013 Report Share Posted October 2, 2013 That is Osage Orange, bois d'ark, or hedge is what we called going up in the midwest. If I'm correct, let me throw a caution at you for how you are using it. While it is a brilliant yellow orange freshly cut, it goes as dark as walnut as it ages, kind of a deep honey brown. SR and we have a winner. Scott ,I know how it darkens- well aware. I have a couple of boards that I have had for oh lets see- 10 years+- and it has darkened up a bit. Which is fine- orange may look stupid on a fretboard- and if it darkens- so be it. Might end up looking better that way. I will post pics of the boards later this weekend. I had these "thins" for years- and wanted to use them up- I realized I only had enough maple thins made up for half a fingerboard- and so- eh- we will give this a try. So- prize time- look to PM- sending now. and you can post when you receive so everyone doesnt think I full of bs. Let it be known that Mr Natural does what he says he will do. My prize arrived in the mail yesterday, and a nice one it was too! Thanks Scott. Scott Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mr Natural Posted November 12, 2013 Author Report Share Posted November 12, 2013 so not much of an update other than I took the time to REALLY clean up my workshop/garage and get organized. I have 5 workbenches that I have built over the years- and they pretty much have done nothing more that become places to collect CRAP and sit tools on- my previous mode was clean off my "working" workbench, move the tool to it, hook it up, clean up, move the tool back. So I have learned that I only need one true working workbench-keep it clean and the others have become dedicated tool stands, where all I need to do is move the vacuum hose. The exceptions being my tablesaw- which doubles as my mitresaw stand- so I have to move the mitresaw to use the table saw- no biggy- and the 5th workbench which sits in the back of the carport to the left of the picture below- that is my official "crap stacker"- all work in progress- stuff I dont have time to put up- stays there. Still some items to clean up below on the workbench to the (front right)- but getting there Seriously folks- might not seem like a lot but this set up has saved me time with set up/clean up etc. I built some jigs this weekend- and it was pure joy in my workshop. The older I get the more I like to keep a tidy space- which is seriously a stretch for my garage- but I am getting there. I am always envious of those with tidy workshops. I finished thinning out the osage orange strips and got those glued in. will look better once its finished- I will be building up some poly on that fretboard. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ScottR Posted November 13, 2013 Report Share Posted November 13, 2013 Love the Marshall drill press. SR Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mr Natural Posted November 13, 2013 Author Report Share Posted November 13, 2013 Love the Marshall drill press. SR yep- and you cant read it from the pic- but that is a FULLTONE band saw as well. Surprised you didnt bust on me for the cassette tapes sitting on the router table. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ScottR Posted November 13, 2013 Report Share Posted November 13, 2013 My eyes aren't what they used to be. SR Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mr Natural Posted December 2, 2013 Author Report Share Posted December 2, 2013 behind on updates again neck template done (I do it on quarter inch mdf first then onto 3/4 in mdf) getting the neck lined up with the center line via laser- attaching router guides once this is done ran out of 3/4" mdf so I had to use the neck template as a router guide on one side. Most of the neck pocket you see (like over half) will be carved away in the end. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mr Natural Posted December 2, 2013 Author Report Share Posted December 2, 2013 so- the neck profile has this curve/point thing going on- and this was a bunch of fun. I used chisels- and now switching to small files and popsicle stick backed sandpaper to try and dial this in a bit better. you may not be able to see it in this picture- but the edge between the neck and body has some hairline gaps there ( starting 9 frets in from the end), the neck profile must not have been 100 percent flat (I thought it was- I checked it with straightedge)- oh well. I am going to dampen that edge with a water dampened rag and see if I cannot get the edge to puff up a bit and then sand it smooth. The joint is tight otherwise- but this is going to bother me. I am sure it would "fill" with glue- but I am afraid of what will be visible afterwards and since there is no going back- best to get it right now. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mr Natural Posted December 2, 2013 Author Report Share Posted December 2, 2013 (edited) it just dawned on me why I am getting a gap. As I am "dialing in" the butt end of the neck- I am sanding/removing ever so slightly material from the back end of the neck pocket- which is seating the neck further away from the original neck pocket cut- ie- the tapered neck is now moving backwards and away from the edge. duh. hmm, well- I learn something every time I build. Making a note in my "next time I build a single cut extended neck pocket memory bank. I fully understand now why I see some builders that do not attach the top body wood of the guitar until after the neck pocket opening has been fitted and cut. "ah ha" moment of the day complete. Edited December 2, 2013 by Mr Natural 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RestorationAD Posted December 3, 2013 Report Share Posted December 3, 2013 Its good to figure out why something went wrong. Makes it easier to deal with the cover up fix. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mr Natural Posted December 3, 2013 Author Report Share Posted December 3, 2013 Its good to figure out why something went wrong. Makes it easier to deal with the cover up fix. yep the cover up (dampening the wood) appears to be working. we will see in the end- but I think I will be able to get away with it. I started on the head stock overlay thingy (what ever it is called)- thinned down some poplar leftover from off cuts from the body - this is my home brewed thicknessing jig- 2 pieces of mdf attached to another piece of mdf- and the wood being thinned out is double sided taped to the mdf base. Not fancy- but gets the job done. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mr Natural Posted December 17, 2013 Author Report Share Posted December 17, 2013 headstock shape routed using "drill press router method as described on O'brien guitars you tube channel. start of first pass 20 minutes and 10 or so passes later- no tear out. its a bit rough -i didnt have/keep the bit sharp enough on this one- but its easily cleaned up with spindle sander. I would have destroyed that headstock with my regular router. Despite this method taking 5 times as long- I will be using this method again. no more worries about end grain blow out. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SwedishLuthier Posted December 19, 2013 Report Share Posted December 19, 2013 After your comment on the drill press routing method I had to look it up. I had seen O'Brians videos bfor, but only a fraction of all of them availible. I was sitting in front of his youtube chanel for an hour, bummer. Really nifty method, i recomend anyone that has experienced a blow out at the head (gutiar head that is) to have a look. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
H.neckel013 Posted December 19, 2013 Report Share Posted December 19, 2013 I tested a while ago using a drill and cutter, cuts very well just have not had the courage to use the guitar in hand, the wood in Brazil ta increasingly scarce, so I can do no wrong ... Your cut out perfect, congratulation! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mr Natural Posted February 28, 2017 Author Report Share Posted February 28, 2017 resurrecting an old build thread. I need to start on some of my old projects I left hanging when I bailed from building a few years ago. new pics coming in next few days, wanted to bump this thread so I didnt have to go looking for it (last post in 2013 (yikes). Mostly sanding scratches and dings this picked up being in a garage for last 4 years 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Andyjr1515 Posted February 28, 2017 Report Share Posted February 28, 2017 2 hours ago, Mr Natural said: resurrecting an old build thread. I need to start on some of my old projects I left hanging when I bailed from building a few years ago. new pics coming in next few days, wanted to bump this thread so I didnt have to go looking for it (last post in 2013 (yikes). Mostly sanding scratches and dings this picked up being in a garage for last 4 years Well, I, for one, am very pleased you are resurrecting it . It's magnificent Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Prostheta Posted February 28, 2017 Report Share Posted February 28, 2017 Yes....I can see how this might be right up your street Andy! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ScottR Posted March 3, 2017 Report Share Posted March 3, 2017 I'm ashamed to say I had forgotten about this build. I'm glad to see it's coming back, it was one of my favorites. SR Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mr Natural Posted March 4, 2017 Author Report Share Posted March 4, 2017 cocobolo "cats eye" attached to neck heel. Hen scratches to tell me where to carve and not to carve. I have never done a neck that was attached to the body this far up the neck before so this might be a learning lesson. The ugly filler strip from the truss rod incident this thing had reminds me I need to think about paint- grr. Notice the grain on the neck- there is a spot to the right that starts to run flat - its quarter sawn thru most of it but right at that spot it starts to run flat. glad its getting carved right there. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mr Natural Posted March 6, 2017 Author Report Share Posted March 6, 2017 started carving the neck Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mr Natural Posted March 7, 2017 Author Report Share Posted March 7, 2017 I cut and then thinned out an old piece of cocobolo for the bridge. I will have a volume knob for the undersaddle pickup in the bridge itself where the circle is drawn. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mr Natural Posted March 8, 2017 Author Report Share Posted March 8, 2017 bit of rain today in Georgia, so the ritter copy went into a closet upstairs, I took down the "spray tent" and went to town on this heel with my black and decker 1/2" belt sander. It took this: down to this in about 20 minutes. at this point I am done with the sander as I have 60 grit on it and its a bit aggressive., switching to chisels and files from this point.I just wanted to get the bulk of that cocobolo down to shape. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ScottR Posted March 8, 2017 Report Share Posted March 8, 2017 Hell's bells, that thing must have lost a pound in twenty minutes. That's a serious sander you have there. SR Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mr Natural Posted March 8, 2017 Author Report Share Posted March 8, 2017 truth be told- Poplar sands like a hot knife thru butter. you gotta watch it- with an orbital sander you can lose a 1/16th inch before you blink with 80 grit. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mr Natural Posted March 11, 2017 Author Report Share Posted March 11, 2017 (edited) starting to sand out the gouge marks from the chisel on the neck heel. I had a bit of a boo-boo- notice the cocobolo at upper left of picture- one of the chisels (or should I say "I") popped out that nice little chunk and left it perfectly squared off and perpendicular to the neck. That is going to be fun to fix/hide/mask. I dont want to sand too much there but will have to so it blends in. always something. I have a ton of sanding left here so maybe it will come out ok. Edited March 11, 2017 by Mr Natural Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Andyjr1515 Posted March 11, 2017 Report Share Posted March 11, 2017 It will take a bit of care but I'm sure you will be able to blend that in just fine. It looks a nice joint Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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