KnightroExpress Posted December 21, 2014 Author Report Share Posted December 21, 2014 Thanks Geoff and Prostheta! I appreciate the tips and will certainly keep them in mind. The school uses the mill for fret slots, tuning key holes, the neck profile, even Safe-T-Planing. It's certainly handy, though not something that I foresee owning. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pestvic Posted January 4, 2015 Report Share Posted January 4, 2015 It looks really good! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KnightroExpress Posted January 4, 2015 Author Report Share Posted January 4, 2015 Thank you! Side note: class resumes tomorrow, so I'm hoping to have at least a few pics to put up within a few days. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KnightroExpress Posted January 6, 2015 Author Report Share Posted January 6, 2015 Hey all! Classes resumed today, and I was able to get my body blank prepped. Fresh from the saw. Yep, it fits. Jointed on the back and centerlines. Aaaand here it is in the clamps. Not much of an update for today, but I'll have this cut out tomorrow! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ScottR Posted January 6, 2015 Report Share Posted January 6, 2015 Gotta love those industrial grade bar clamps. I'm a fan of that wave form-like grain orientation too. SR Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KnightroExpress Posted January 6, 2015 Author Report Share Posted January 6, 2015 I like it too! I'm a little sad that I decided to paint over it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KnightroExpress Posted January 7, 2015 Author Report Share Posted January 7, 2015 Exciting day today! I removed my blank from the clamp monster and jumped right into shaping. Here it is! Drum sanded down to 1.75". I'm not too thrilled with the large amount of little knots, but this is getting a solid color finish so I'm not overly bummed. Rough cut on the bandsaw, ready to hit the edge sander. Now onto the spindle sander. Done with power tools, now it's down to hand work. Getting there! This is as far as I got. And there you have it! I'm hoping to finish the rough shaping by the end of class tomorrow so I can move on to routing and carving. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KnightroExpress Posted January 8, 2015 Author Report Share Posted January 8, 2015 Another good day today! I was able to get my neck pocket cut and the rest of the routes laid out. Finishing up the sides. Neck pocket cut on the pin router. Laying out a new centerline based on the neck. It looks like a guitar! Laying out the pickups, bridge, and control cavity. Bridge mounting holes. Here's the heel so far. It'll be contoured a lot more in a day or two. So this is where I'm at. It's incredibly exciting to finally see this coming to life. Thanks for taking a look! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Muzz Posted January 8, 2015 Report Share Posted January 8, 2015 That is charging ahead and looking fantastic, I love the look of that thin piece of the body under frets 20 - 24. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ScottR Posted January 8, 2015 Report Share Posted January 8, 2015 Methinks you are have a good time in this class. SR Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pukko Posted January 8, 2015 Report Share Posted January 8, 2015 I like your design! It does look a bit like SwedishLuthiers design and both your designs borrow some lines around the horns from the 80's Larrivée shred guitars. I assume you are doing a bolt-on neck joint? If that is the case, have you thought about that thin piece of wood on the high E side of the neck joint? I would be a little worried that it might snap off if and when you are taking the neck off a little too quick and careless, and also if the neck for some reason would shift a little, for example if it would take a dive when leaned against something. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KnightroExpress Posted January 8, 2015 Author Report Share Posted January 8, 2015 Thank you very much! This is indeed a bolt-on. That little extra bit on the treble side was left at the request of my instructor, to avoid a common issue they've had with other students and their pin router. Now that my neck pocket has been successfully cut, I'll remove the excess as part of my carving/contouring process. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pukko Posted January 8, 2015 Report Share Posted January 8, 2015 Ok, then I won't worry anymore! Looking forward to more updates. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KnightroExpress Posted January 9, 2015 Author Report Share Posted January 9, 2015 More pics! Got my pickup routes in. Control cavity and cover ledge. Time to remove that little extra bit. Needs some more, but it looks better already. Sanded the side of the pocket down to size, trimmed the side down a bit. That's better. Marking for neck screws. These will also be used as pilot holes for the ferrules. Coming along! I'm excited to get this bit smoothed out. So this is where I ended my day. I'm hoping to radius the edges and jump into carving tomorrow, but we shall see what happens. Thanks for looking! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KnightroExpress Posted January 10, 2015 Author Report Share Posted January 10, 2015 A big finish to the week! Check it out: String-through holes and 1/2" radius cut around the control cavity. Marking depths for the carve. The time has come! I've still got a long way to go, but I feel like I got a decent amount done today. Thanks for checking in! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ScottR Posted January 10, 2015 Report Share Posted January 10, 2015 Good week. You made a decent pile of sawdust. I like the offset carve. It looks to be following a principle I like to use. SR Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SwedishLuthier Posted January 10, 2015 Report Share Posted January 10, 2015 Nice! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
verhoevenc Posted January 10, 2015 Report Share Posted January 10, 2015 Love the body shape. I also like the headstock shape but I'm not yet convinced the two belong together? But I'm sure excited to find out in the end! Enjoying watching this come together! Chris Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KnightroExpress Posted January 10, 2015 Author Report Share Posted January 10, 2015 Thanks all! Scott- what principle is that? I'm always interested in learning new techniques. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ScottR Posted January 12, 2015 Report Share Posted January 12, 2015 I like to make the body thinner on the forearm side and leave it a bit thicker on the control cavity side. Instead of a strat like forearm carve and belly cut I like to remove that material but blend it into the carve-contour. Viewed edge on from the bottom, it looks a bit like a wedge and is quite comfy. SR Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Prostheta Posted January 12, 2015 Report Share Posted January 12, 2015 Well done on maintaining a clean working environment. Stray bits of crap here and there ALWAYS end up mashed under workpieces, causing scratches and dings. Controlled and deliberate work. All credit to you. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KnightroExpress Posted January 12, 2015 Author Report Share Posted January 12, 2015 Scott- yep, that's pretty much what I'm going for. My original inspiration for the carve was the 1980s Ibanez Radius series/ current Ibanez Satriani models. Prostheta- Thank you very much! I have to make a conscious effort to clean up as I go, but I'm hoping it'll just become more of a habit as I keep doing it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Prostheta Posted January 12, 2015 Report Share Posted January 12, 2015 It's a lesson that I failed to have learnt. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ScottR Posted January 12, 2015 Report Share Posted January 12, 2015 I resemble that remark. SR Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KnightroExpress Posted January 13, 2015 Author Report Share Posted January 13, 2015 I had a very productive Monday! Check it out: I made myself some sanding blocks to shape the edge profiles. Hopefully, they'll work. From here, I just did a bunch of rasping and scraping. My process here is basically "remove the bits that aren't a guitar". Work time was over, so I switched to taking photos. This shows how thin the bass side is. It feels very comfortable, even at this rough stage. And that's it! My goal for tomorrow is to get the edges shaped, so we'll see how that goes. Thanks for looking! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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