theodoropoulos Posted September 26, 2012 Report Posted September 26, 2012 Hallo there!! i am planning to make a stratocaster again....but this time i dont want to follow the cliche... I want to use padauk for body but i dont want to be flat...so i think i need another top...do you have any photos or ideas for such a stratocaster body ???and about neck also...i love full scalloped...but in maple?any other white wood like wood???? My other idea is to carve something small....i would appreciate your thougts.... Quote
ScottR Posted September 26, 2012 Report Posted September 26, 2012 RestorationAD has a couple of threads going currently of multiple builds that feature several with padauk bodies and various tops. They are super strats but they should give a few ideas about how padauk looks with different tops. SR Quote
iluvteles Posted September 26, 2012 Report Posted September 26, 2012 I've not log finished a super strat with a Padauk body with a Cocobolo top. Look in the "In Progress section" its called the Owl and the Fox. Its also in Octobers GOTM comp. If it like something you would like to build I have the full template set. Quote
RestorationAD Posted September 26, 2012 Report Posted September 26, 2012 Watch the weight on a full size strat. It will end up being very heavy if you go full strat thickness. I almost always attach Figured Soft Maple to offset the bright Padauk. Tops I might try other than figured maple... Claro Walnut Wenge Buckeye Burl Bleached Redwood.... Quote
theodoropoulos Posted September 26, 2012 Author Report Posted September 26, 2012 thank you guys,i will look all these and i will tell you later...but i have a major question....about this ihave drawn in photo..how i turn the top???i mean if i have an equal thickness of top then i must press in to match the body which is not flat @ this point... By heat maybe??i think this is the most difficult part.... Quote
Mender Posted September 27, 2012 Report Posted September 27, 2012 If the top is thin enough, you can contour the body and steam and clamp the top to fit. If it is a very thick top, you can carve the contour on the top instead without going through to the main body wood. Quote
theodoropoulos Posted September 27, 2012 Author Report Posted September 27, 2012 ok thank you guys!!! i appreciate your help!! Quote
pan_kara Posted September 27, 2012 Report Posted September 27, 2012 I think I've seen on some basses that people just glue the top on and carve through it - so basically the arm contour starts exposing the body wood. So that might be another option. I will have to consider the same thing as I have currently a 1cm thick top that I already glued to the body - flat. Quote
theodoropoulos Posted September 27, 2012 Author Report Posted September 27, 2012 sorry but i cannot understand it...i glue it on flat top...if the thickness is for example 2 cm equal and i start carving there,then there will be for example 1 cm in this area and then it will be obvious.....or i make a mistake???please correct me if i am wrong.... Quote
ScottR Posted September 27, 2012 Report Posted September 27, 2012 Sometimes a bevel that reveals the next layer of wood looks very nice. Check out what madhatter has been doing for a while. http://projectguitar.ibforums.com/index.php?showtopic=44471&st=15 This and his other builds that do this look very good to me. As long as you do it well it should look very nice. And everything I've seen of your work says you'll do it very well indeed. For another option look up a thread called How To Fold a 1/4" Maple Top or it's called something close to that. SR Quote
theodoropoulos Posted September 27, 2012 Author Report Posted September 27, 2012 Scott thank you very much.....You know, i have turned woods for ouds which were 2-3 mm thick pretty easy...but for those thickness it is very tough...next layer revealed is very good idea!!!anyway....i will look the "How To Fold a 1/4" Maple Top" !! thanks again my friends! Quote
theodoropoulos Posted September 28, 2012 Author Report Posted September 28, 2012 i found a fantastic strat which i wanted to share with you...By the way...where can i find buck eye burl??? http://eliezerlaraguitars.com/gallery/instruments/guitars/stratcustom/stratbuckeye00/index.php Quote
westhemann Posted September 28, 2012 Report Posted September 28, 2012 If you want to find those fantastic pieces of wood you have to do the work and sift through Ebay ,the rest of the 'net,and all of your local suppliers like everyone else.And they aren't cheap. Every piece of burl is not going to be great.You have to learn what you can use and what you can't. You can start by looking through everything Gilmer Wood has,but pay special attention to dimensions.And those pieces will not come ready to glue...you have to get the edges ready and stabilize the piece yourself. When you ask "where can I find buckeye burl",most of us hear "I don't know what I am asking for" There are no shortcuts for those crazy pieces...most of us spend hours every week just looking around and finding very little Quote
Mender Posted September 28, 2012 Report Posted September 28, 2012 ... There are no shortcuts for those crazy pieces...most of us spend hours every week just looking around and finding very little I'm still looking for something special that I don't have to take out a bank loan to purchase Quote
theodoropoulos Posted September 28, 2012 Author Report Posted September 28, 2012 (edited) i think you are right guys.....Here in Greece economic crisis is so huge that no one can afford such an expensive piece of wood...Westhemann i know what i am looking for, i told you but i cannot find here buck eye ..I have in mind another alternative.We have here plenty of olive woods.....I think it is easier to find than anything else....so olive wood burl is....something alternative....... Edited September 28, 2012 by theodoropoulos 1 Quote
ScottR Posted September 28, 2012 Report Posted September 28, 2012 I've never seen olive burl, but I've seen some very nice examples of olive. That should make a very attractive top. SR Quote
theodoropoulos Posted September 28, 2012 Author Report Posted September 28, 2012 (edited) maybe not "burl"so much.....but a bit close... Edited September 28, 2012 by theodoropoulos 1 Quote
ScottR Posted September 28, 2012 Report Posted September 28, 2012 Yeah, those are sweet. That would make a very acceptable substitute I would think. SR Quote
theodoropoulos Posted September 28, 2012 Author Report Posted September 28, 2012 question: olive over padauk for stratocaster,would it sound too bright ??? Quote
RobSm Posted September 29, 2012 Report Posted September 29, 2012 i found a fantastic strat which i wanted to share with you...By the way...where can i find buck eye burl??? http://eliezerlaragu...eye00/index.php Is the top contoured? It doesn't look like it, but it's hard to tell.. Quote
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