Prostheta Posted November 16, 2012 Report Share Posted November 16, 2012 Okay, let's try this idea out. We all do bits and pieces of work on our instruments or generally things involved with them and I am sure that most of this flies under the "build thread radar". So let's post incidental work here! Anything that you did today? Cut a few neck blanks? Tried a new work technique? Bought a new rasp? Tried a new truss rod? Hacking together a build and don't want to document it fully? Miscellaneous musings about ongoing projects? Want to sound off about some work that is going...not as well as could be expected? Or perhaps better than expected? The less discussion here the better! All trains of thought are welcome. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Prostheta Posted November 16, 2012 Author Report Share Posted November 16, 2012 I'll start the ball rolling. I spent three hours in the workshop this afternoon doing various jobs and specifically resawing a nice piece of flamed Birch I found in the woodpile into a pretty sweet 7.5mm thick bookmatched top and 2mm headplate. The "random" Gibson RD style build I am making in parallel with one of the tutors at my place of study as an example to teach him about luthiery will have this laminated on top like a drop-top. I should perhaps document this process. I've been working with the weirdest Sapele this week. Up until now, all my Sapele has been a medium Mahogany brown kind of colour and this is....wellllll....yellow baby poo mixed with mustard colour? I suspect that it is sapwood rather than heartwood. Maybe this is how farmed Sapele looks? It works well and is very stable for Sapele which is surprising. New air desiccator installed this week. At last, I can have dry air with which to get some paint practice in. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ScottR Posted November 16, 2012 Report Share Posted November 16, 2012 air desiccator Is that a European term? I suspect it is what we call a dehumidifier here. Nice thread premise BTW. SR Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ripthorn Posted November 16, 2012 Report Share Posted November 16, 2012 My multiscale build is awaiting the right combination of time and willpower. I don't look forward to sanding off all the color on the top, but it needs it. Oh well. I recently tried a new neck profile that I have handed off to a friend at work. All signs point to it being a very cool ergonomic design. If it pans out, I'll post more about it. Next on the radar after the multiscale build is a pair of 5 string multi scale basses. Think dingwall prima artist meets pre-Gibson Tobias. Should be fun. Bartolini's, home made preamps, really nice woods. I can't wait to start, but I'll have to since the schedule and wallet dictate otherwise. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Prostheta Posted November 16, 2012 Author Report Share Posted November 16, 2012 Same name, different thing. Air trap, air dryer, dehumidifer, whatever. Either way, I was getting sick of blowing wet air...so wet you could see it condensing on wood when blowing dust out of the grain! No way was I throwing that around with paint onto a workpiece I spent more than two hours on. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Prostheta Posted November 16, 2012 Author Report Share Posted November 16, 2012 Next on the radar after the multiscale build is a pair of 5 string multi scale basses. Think dingwall prima artist meets pre-Gibson Tobias. Should be fun. Bartolini's, home made preamps, really nice woods. I can't wait to start, but I'll have to since the schedule and wallet dictate otherwise. I'm getting that a lot recently too. The wallet can't keep up with the availability of the woodshop. I'd like to think that after I have time to get my paint techniques down right and get my tooling back up to snuff I could sell an instrument or two. Certainly not on a commission basis. Too pressuring. If somebody wanted to take one off my hands, cool. I might even make a couple of basic "icon" instruments such as a Frankenstrat, a Larry Graham bass, etc. just to bring some money back into the building kitty. Kind of selling myself on the street corner just to afford some street walking clothes. hahaha!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bob123 Posted November 16, 2012 Report Share Posted November 16, 2012 Going to go pick up some lumber today... should be interesting! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Prostheta Posted November 16, 2012 Author Report Share Posted November 16, 2012 Going to go pick up some lumber today... should be interesting! Got an idea of what you're off to get or are you going to see when you get there? I am hoping to acquire a load of white Oak soon to make a finely worked bed. Hopefully I can get this done cheaply via my place of study, get a discount and a load of nice toy lumber to boot! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dpm99 Posted November 16, 2012 Report Share Posted November 16, 2012 I'm building a wall hanger for four guitars. It's coming along well. I'm also working on a build, but my progress is so slow I'd need a time lapse camera to document the build. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bob123 Posted November 16, 2012 Report Share Posted November 16, 2012 Going to go pick up some lumber today... should be interesting! Got an idea of what you're off to get or are you going to see when you get there? I am hoping to acquire a load of white Oak soon to make a finely worked bed. Hopefully I can get this done cheaply via my place of study, get a discount and a load of nice toy lumber to boot! Sure do -> Honey locust for necks curly maple for tops, necks, fretboards Figured walnut spalted maple for tops ash, lots and lots of ash... tulipwood whatever suprises he has... small lumber supplier does his main work clearing farm lands and tree removal, and then he's smart, instead of chopping it up for firewood, he bought a 25,000$ machine to split and cut the wood into. I buy as much as possible when he has good stuff, because he sells to me for .50-1.50 a board foot. good luck on the oak, I love working with it, and its such an under rated beauty imo. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
demonx Posted November 16, 2012 Report Share Posted November 16, 2012 This week for me has been both a catching up on overdue paint (got three done) and some repair work. Picked up a Jackson Rhoads on wednesday with a broken headstock for $40, repaired it and sold it Thursday for $200. Have a customer coming today to pick up a guitar. He's driving about Ten hours (each way) so I hope he's impressed. The non paint days have been spent resawing, running pieces through the drum sander, waiting for the drum sander to cool down (overheats) and gluing up about ten multi lam neck blanks Add to that more work on my new website www.searlsguitars.com.au and I got called into four eight our shifts at the factory this week. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bob123 Posted November 16, 2012 Report Share Posted November 16, 2012 Well, I consider this a "good run" haha 16 blanks of 3.5" x 10" x 25" ash. Gonna bookmatch them and glue em up. 4 blanks of 1.5" x 8" x 48" honey locust for necks 6 blanks of same size flame maple blanks for necks 6 blanks of 1" by 7" x 25" blanks of flame maple to bookmatch top 1 blank of highly figured walnut to bookmatch, about 1 3/4" thick, 7" wide, gave me the spare end of walnut free, perhaps stringers for a neck... 2 blanks of ridiculous spalted maple! its 2" thick, and has a high amount of spalt all the way through the board! 3 blanks of 3.5" x 10" x 25" elm wood, same deal as the ash (looks and feels similar?) The lot : Curly maple, keep in mind this is rough cut with a CHAINSAW Walnut : I cant figure out why Im so bad with my camera, but its not showing all the spalting.... trust me, its there, I'll get some better pictures in the sunlight tomorrow ALLL the way through! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
curtisa Posted November 16, 2012 Report Share Posted November 16, 2012 Spent the last few days building a framesaw in between clearcoating SY8. I don't have enough space to fit a bandsaw large enough to resaw tops, and I'm not adverse to a little hard work, so I've given the oldskool method of resawing a shot. Put the saw through it's paces for the first time last night and resawed a 450mm x 150mm x 36mm block of myrtle in about 30 minutes. After I clean up the cut faces I should have two 14mm thick bookmatched pieces. I've just slapped some varnish on the saw and am now waiting for it to dry. Also waiting for the postman to deliver a more aggressive blade and will see if it works any differently to the one I currently have fitted. Will post pics once the varnish dries. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dean Posted November 17, 2012 Report Share Posted November 17, 2012 I have been working with tung oil ,and I think I have a good understanding of it.Been aplling it to the neck of the archtop I am building.I hope to pick up wood for the top this week.I think my skills are comming along. I have been looking at tools for the future.....first two I want to get is a bandsaw and a woodworkers workbench. And last but not least , NAMM is comming up ,it should be great. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Prostheta Posted November 17, 2012 Author Report Share Posted November 17, 2012 I'm going for it. Spent some pocket change on buying some barrel nuts and washers specifically for making my own single-action truss rods. Need to source a reasonable quantity of 6mm steel rod now. Good times. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bob123 Posted November 17, 2012 Report Share Posted November 17, 2012 Realized I want a tool that doesnt exist. A very small, handheld power sander. Thinking 1-2" discs Very small and light, used for detail sanding work in tight areas that block sanding will take too long to do, and more accurate then a dremel disk. That said, I DO have a few spare dremels in my shop, I'll take one apart and see what I can come up with. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Prostheta Posted November 28, 2012 Author Report Share Posted November 28, 2012 Sounds like a good project. I am sure that such tools exist however given the size they are more likely air-powered? Currently got a few projects on the go. One of them is a pair of Vs dedicated to one my favourite guitarists, Jed Simon. During his extended tenure with Strapping Young Lad, Jed mostly played a white ESP custom V since City. On that basis I decided to build a tribute and a 7-string version also. CAD fun. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
supplebanana Posted November 28, 2012 Report Share Posted November 28, 2012 Realized I want a tool that doesnt exist. A very small, handheld power sander. Thinking 1-2" discs Very small and light, used for detail sanding work in tight areas that block sanding will take too long to do, and more accurate then a dremel disk. That said, I DO have a few spare dremels in my shop, I'll take one apart and see what I can come up with. they already make one.... its called a rotary toothbrush! Just cut the bristles off & stick your sandpaper on! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bob123 Posted November 28, 2012 Report Share Posted November 28, 2012 Realized I want a tool that doesnt exist. A very small, handheld power sander. Thinking 1-2" discs Very small and light, used for detail sanding work in tight areas that block sanding will take too long to do, and more accurate then a dremel disk. That said, I DO have a few spare dremels in my shop, I'll take one apart and see what I can come up with. they already make one.... its called a rotary toothbrush! Just cut the bristles off & stick your sandpaper on! I actually thought about this, but it would be soooo slow and defeat the purpose. I have an idea for my dremel though Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sdshirtman Posted January 25, 2013 Report Share Posted January 25, 2013 Great thread idea but no posts since November. I thought I'd reactivate it with some pics of wood I scored. Monday I went into Frost Hardwood In San Diego for a periodical look around. The last few times I've done this I came back with out anything special but this time I found this in the discount scaps bin of all places. Its 1.75" thick x 11.75 wide x 24.25 long which ought to be just fine for a top. I just have to re-saw it. I'd love to see the piece this came off of. They had three others but I didnt have the budget to drop on all of them. In retrospect I should have got them anyways. They were all decent but this was by far the best of the four. This I ran through the jointer. If it were an inch longer I think it might be a good candidate for a neck. But as it stands I think its going to be the top for my next build. \ The best part? I only paid $24 dollars for it. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dpm99 Posted January 26, 2013 Report Share Posted January 26, 2013 I really miss the wood I used to get when I lived in San Diego. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Prostheta Posted January 27, 2013 Author Report Share Posted January 27, 2013 I really miss the wood I used to get when I lived in San Diego. HAR!!!! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Prostheta Posted January 27, 2013 Author Report Share Posted January 27, 2013 I spent a solid eight days of work building this for my wife's birthday. Solid downy Birch incorporating all kinds from waney, spalted, birdseye, flamed and Masur. Weighs the best part of half a tonne. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ScottR Posted January 28, 2013 Report Share Posted January 28, 2013 Nice score John, I'm looking forward to that build. Nice job Carl. I see the guitars are handy for those middle of the night jams. SR Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Prostheta Posted January 28, 2013 Author Report Share Posted January 28, 2013 Thanks :-) The rest are stacked under the bed (I factored this into the design in secret of course) plus several in the walk-in wardrobe. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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