Andyjr1515 Posted June 10, 2016 Report Share Posted June 10, 2016 3 minutes ago, Prostheta said: Have you forgotten what they look like Andy? Forgotten? I've never known..... I thought clean, well clamped joints were the things of myth and legend, talked about round a crackling open fire by an old sage with a body length beard. "Long, long ago when warriors were brave, damsels were women and a gallon of ale was less than the cost of a bus fare to Tipton...." Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Prostheta Posted June 10, 2016 Author Report Share Posted June 10, 2016 Errrrrr. No. It's just about prep and applying the right amount of pressure. Squeezeout is a distraction because most people lay off as soon as they see "enough squeezeout". I didn't run the numbers on that one....let me illustrate.... 45mm x 1250mm is 0.05625m² or about 87in². At 250PSI (200-300PSI is about right for Birch and Maple) you should be putting in 87*250 = 21750lbs pressure. At least, according to Titebond specifications. I rammed those Piher clamps hand tight, short of using a cheater bar. I'd say 2500lbs each, so that's 15000lbs plus the additional clamps at maybe 750lbs each. Call it 17250lbs? Working back, that's a hair under 200PSI. In the range, just. I preach this stuff like crazy, I know. It does demonstrate the kind of lengths that clamping needs to go to sometimes. The proof is right there. Zero gluelines and bonded like the sky and an alkies plonk bottle. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Prostheta Posted June 10, 2016 Author Report Share Posted June 10, 2016 Talking of which, I have a nice glass of German Gewurztraminer awaiting my instruction.... 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Prostheta Posted June 11, 2016 Author Report Share Posted June 11, 2016 I'm starting to mark out the neck blank for positioning the fingerboard, nut, headstock and body angles, etc. This is how to align headstock wings either side of the blank; Two U-shaped cauls made from plywood or whatever keeps its dimensions nice and square. I simply ripped a strip of waste plywood to about 35mm-40mm wide, then cross cut it on the table saw into 4x 50mm plus 2x 120mm lengths. A dab of glue and chamfering the "pad" faces produces an excellent pair of headstock alignment cauls. Chamfering is not 100% required, however I don't like corners. Total paranoia, I know. The exact same idea helps with the body also. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ScottR Posted June 13, 2016 Report Share Posted June 13, 2016 You get some seriously nice plywood over there. How many ply is that? SR Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Prostheta Posted June 13, 2016 Author Report Share Posted June 13, 2016 19-ply, inch-thick. It's manufactured in Finland, so it's a good price for the quality. Still over €100 a sheet though. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Andyjr1515 Posted June 13, 2016 Report Share Posted June 13, 2016 I don't think I've ever seen 19 ply... I have to say, I'm starting to use 'marine' ply more and more (although the stuff I've been using is much more modest than this) - it is such a great advantage to have something that is SO dimensionally stable and yet relatively easy to cut and drill. I like the use of a ply jig for this kind of assembly because it's normally a bit hit and miss when I try to add wings... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Prostheta Posted June 13, 2016 Author Report Share Posted June 13, 2016 Definitely, which is entirely why I am using every scrap I can find of the stuff. Students cut it up and throw huge scraps out. Madness. This was all pulled from the bins.... I've considered the idea of making a large jointing plane using two laminates of that 1" ply. The idea appeals purely because it's bound to be frowned upon by some, yet hugely entertaining otherwise! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Prostheta Posted June 15, 2016 Author Report Share Posted June 15, 2016 Glueing on the headstock wings. That's about 6in² of gluing area with four clamps that put out about 400-600lbs. That's a clamping pressure of between 1600-2400lbs, or 400-600PSI. Understandably, I didn't crank 'em. It's difficult to manage on those itsy clamps though. I'll be in the range of 200-300PSI easily. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Prostheta Posted June 15, 2016 Author Report Share Posted June 15, 2016 Me using hand tools? Seems like something unseen, but is more like the rule than the exception. 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Prostheta Posted June 15, 2016 Author Report Share Posted June 15, 2016 I'm going to have to select a nice piece of Karelian Birch to make a headplate, I think. If I do that, I will certainly have to recess the tuners. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Prostheta Posted June 17, 2016 Author Report Share Posted June 17, 2016 Drilling for side dots using a jointed block of Pine as a guide. Done. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Prostheta Posted June 17, 2016 Author Report Share Posted June 17, 2016 I used dots that I made in this tutorial. A drop of CA and tapping them in place using the butt of a chisel is all it takes to seat them. Once dry, the epoxy files back nicely. No need to polish up or anything yet. That can wait till everything is on the neck.... Notice how the waste is glowing near my vise! 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SIMpleONe89 Posted June 17, 2016 Report Share Posted June 17, 2016 Wow that's cool! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KnightroExpress Posted June 17, 2016 Report Share Posted June 17, 2016 Yeah!!! I love the glowing dots! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Prostheta Posted June 22, 2016 Author Report Share Posted June 22, 2016 Cheers! I was very much tempted to do a full optical fibre or LED install. Thing is, I don't have good workshop time between now and August so I'd rather not rush things. I've got the intention of writing up how to approach both of these methods though. I wonder if it's possible to buy white-yellow luminescent powder....? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ScottR Posted June 22, 2016 Report Share Posted June 22, 2016 It is. Or at least it used to be. We used to use it to make glow in the dark ink. SR Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Prostheta Posted June 22, 2016 Author Report Share Posted June 22, 2016 Okay, cool! Was it a high-powered rare earth doped Strontium type like this blue? I might have to buy a bag of that. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ScottR Posted June 22, 2016 Report Share Posted June 22, 2016 No- or not that I know of; it was pretty much your standard phosphorescent powder which is a pale yellow. aka yellow white. It glows pale yellow with a slight greenish cast. We mixed it with a tinted clear to make it glow in different colors. That's a process we should be able to replicate easily enough to bend it to our purposes. SR Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Prostheta Posted June 23, 2016 Author Report Share Posted June 23, 2016 Note to self taken. It won't happen for this build, however I'd like to do a luminescent dot set that isn't the stereotypical blue or green. Whilst they're the most powerful and longest-lived, it gets old a bit quick. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Popular Post Prostheta Posted September 13, 2016 Author Popular Post Report Share Posted September 13, 2016 I've not updated this build in a while simply because most of my work focus has been on writing for the site! Oops. Guitar builders that don't build, eh? So anyway. The next job in the queue has been to edge sand the body wings to 240 grit and confirm that the outlines are "good" prior to binding. Any faults in the outline translate straight to the binding channels, so that is pretty damn important. Two channels were cut using the edge guide on my Makita palm router; one for the main tort binding and the second for the two fine purfling lines. The binding was arranged in order and "glued" at one end using only acetone; the binding dissolves in acetone, so it "creates its own glue". A few q-tips/cotton buds were used to liberally soak the wood, apply the binding/purfling and then wick a little more acetone top and bottom. Masking tape tensioned across the binding keeps it secure whilst the acetone evaporated. After 24hrs of drying, the binding was scraped back using a card scraper and a Stanley knife blade with a hook turned. Aside from a few stray fibres having torn out from the spalted top being "replaced" with binding squeezeout, everything is clean as a whistle. Next! Oh yes, the corner at the upper horn was heated with a hair dryer to soften it before easing around the tight corner. This alone took 4-5 minutes to patiently get right. 5 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
verhoevenc Posted September 17, 2016 Report Share Posted September 17, 2016 God I love that top wood so hard! Bass is coming along fantastically. Chris Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KnightroExpress Posted September 18, 2016 Report Share Posted September 18, 2016 Yeah, that's seriously beautiful stuff there, Carl. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Prostheta Posted September 18, 2016 Author Report Share Posted September 18, 2016 Thanks guys. It was the tree and the mould that did all the heavy lifting here though. The spalting is pink-brown in some areas. I'm sure that the oil-shellac schedule will drown it down to browns only, but we'll see. It reminds me a bit of flame Box Elder. I bet that would be amazing cut at 45° to the grain ring plane. I ran out of binding at the finish line which is annoying. One cutaway to do. My fault entirely. Not convinced about the weight of the 0,5mm pinstripes. They don't add enough to the finished piece in my opinion, so I might even rout it all away and add heavier binding instead. Maybe even T-W-B-W-B. Subtlety doesn't really line up with a bass that I'm naming Orgasmatron. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chris G Posted October 8, 2016 Report Share Posted October 8, 2016 Great Job cant wait to see more! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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