Mike T Posted February 21, 2019 Report Share Posted February 21, 2019 I picked this body up on ebay. Someone laminated 1/4" oak, mahogany and maple to 1 1/2" poplar to achieve a standard 1 3/4" strat body thickness. I didn't mind, in fact I kind of liked it. I always hated a blank white canvas so to speak, so here was something to work with and hopefully improve. I was going to go with the strat shape but got turned on by some research of the Paul Bigsby guitars of the late 1940's. Could I honor his aesthetics in my own build? Hope so. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mike T Posted February 21, 2019 Author Report Share Posted February 21, 2019 I drew some geometric shapes on the back to make it a little less plain. I plan on routing out and laying in some veneer. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mike T Posted February 21, 2019 Author Report Share Posted February 21, 2019 I cleaned up the routing with my dremel tool and layed in the veener. I've not done that before and it was fun. I think it came out awesome and exactly what I was looking for. 4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mistermikev Posted February 21, 2019 Report Share Posted February 21, 2019 wow, nice job on the parkay (butter). looks very impressionist. sb cool. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
komodo Posted February 22, 2019 Report Share Posted February 22, 2019 Say marquetry parquetry intarsia three times really fast. I'm going out on a limb and say that this is intarsia rather than parquetry. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mistermikev Posted February 22, 2019 Report Share Posted February 22, 2019 16 minutes ago, komodo said: Say marquetry parquetry intarsia three times really fast. I'm going out on a limb and say that this is intarsia rather than parquetry. well, I dunno - never could tell the dif between parkay and butter so... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Andyjr1515 Posted February 23, 2019 Report Share Posted February 23, 2019 On 2/21/2019 at 8:20 PM, Mike T said: I cleaned up the routing with my dremel tool and layed in the veener. I've not done that before and it was fun. I think it came out awesome and exactly what I was looking for. First of all welcome to the forum! I am amazed From where you started, I would never have thought you could end up with something that looked so, well, right! Great job. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ScottR Posted February 25, 2019 Report Share Posted February 25, 2019 Nice visual balance, too bad it's all on the back. that's okay though, I'm often told my backs look better than my tops. Welcome! SR Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mr Natural Posted February 25, 2019 Report Share Posted February 25, 2019 great job!. I didnt really like the look of the blank you purchased- but you have absolutely made it awesome. Well done. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mike T Posted July 20, 2019 Author Report Share Posted July 20, 2019 It seemed that something was missing from the back. I needed something to enclose all that geometry. I bought some lacewood because it fit with the warm tones already on the back, in fact the lacewood had the vibe of the sun to me. So I cut a crescent on my bandsaw and glued/clamped it to the end. I love the look. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mike T Posted July 20, 2019 Author Report Share Posted July 20, 2019 Thanks to those who commented earlier, I appreciate it Now on to the front. The strat blank was oversize so there was some meat to work with. I couldn't get lacewood in anything but 4/4 so after I added the lacewood crescent to the back, I had to fill in the same shape to the front. I cutout and glued/clamped poplar to the end. After a lot of measuring and routing I worked out the pickup/control cavities. There still ended up being some trial and error but that's why I love working with wood, so forgiving. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mike T Posted July 21, 2019 Author Report Share Posted July 21, 2019 (edited) I applied bondo and spot putty to the glue seams. I finished sanded, masked off the back and sprayed on a couple coats of black primer. I use and recommend Mohawk lacquers. I mixed up black and Sy Casual blue for the front. I applied several coats, varying the mixture till I was satisfied with my idea of a midnight blue. I used the purple Harbor Freight touch up cup gun to spray the lacquer. I was so happy with its performance. I clear coated the front and back and added a little amber to mellow the back. Edited July 21, 2019 by Mike T 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mistermikev Posted July 22, 2019 Report Share Posted July 22, 2019 just my humble observation... not neg in any way... please take in the spirit of friendly observation: I can't help but wish the back was the front! Such a beautiful back it's a shame to not have it up front on display. Really love it. The guitar is beautiful no doubt, and the front color choice is very nice... but a matching front would have really pushed this to another level for me. Just my humble and unfettered opinion. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mike T Posted July 23, 2019 Author Report Share Posted July 23, 2019 mistermikev, I think the build is just right and on the next level as it is! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mistermikev Posted July 23, 2019 Report Share Posted July 23, 2019 6 hours ago, Mike T said: mistermikev, I think the build is just right and on the next level as it is! tru dat mike T... tru dat. she is a beauty for sure. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mike T Posted July 24, 2019 Author Report Share Posted July 24, 2019 (edited) I wanted to use some metal on the front of the guitar and happened to score a few aluminum panels at the recycle center of my local garbage transfer station. The metal was about 2 mil in thickness and cut easily on my bandsaw and scroll saw. I cut a pickguard out of the aluminum and mocked it up on the guitar. It was a little overpowering, just too much metal. I tried different colors of 3 ply plastic and decided the black looked just right. I dulled it down to match the aluminum finish. This guitar is entered in the July 2019 GOTM contest. A link is below. http://www.projectguitar.com/forums/topic/49819-guitar-of-the-month-july-2019/ Edited July 24, 2019 by Mike T 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ScottR Posted July 24, 2019 Report Share Posted July 24, 2019 On 7/22/2019 at 10:32 PM, Mike T said: mistermikev, I think the build is just right and on the next level as it is! Sounds amazing too! Outstanding build no matter which number, but especially for the first. Obviously this is not your first rodeo when it comes to working with wood.....or aluminum...........or your hands. Bravo! SR Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mr Natural Posted July 24, 2019 Report Share Posted July 24, 2019 excellent call on the pickguard.. You balanced the look with that-especially taking the shine down. nice work. i like the pickups too- are you going to add in any mini-switchs to go between humbucking/p90/blade? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mike T Posted July 25, 2019 Author Report Share Posted July 25, 2019 Thanks guys! As far as the P-rail pickup switching, I used a three position toggle switch and volume and tone push-push pots. With that, I was able to go between the rail, P-90 and humbucker. I didn't want to use mini switches. I liked the pickguard design so much that I didn't want to busy it up. I posted a video of me demonstrating the different P-rail sounds in the July 2019 GOTM link below, http://www.projectguitar.com/forums/topic/49819-guitar-of-the-month-july-2019/ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mike T Posted August 1, 2019 Author Report Share Posted August 1, 2019 (edited) I cut out the maple headstock and marked out the tuner spacing. I selected a walnut veneer to laminate over the maple. I wetted down the veneer to easily follow the headstock carve. I then glued and clamped it. I trimmed off the excess. I fashioned a truss rod cover out of aluminum. I used a natural stain and clear lacquer on the walnut. . I used D'Addario 9-42 strings. Edited August 1, 2019 by Mike T 4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mike T Posted August 2, 2019 Author Report Share Posted August 2, 2019 The guitar is all I could hope for. It is a blast to play. If you like the project build, please vote for it in the July 2019 contest. http://www.projectguitar.com/forums/topic/49896-guitar-of-the-month-vote-july-2019/ Here's a short segment with a looper in 5/4 time. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Muzz Posted August 3, 2019 Report Share Posted August 3, 2019 Unique and beautiful, very satisfying to get the vid at the end of the build Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mr Natural Posted August 7, 2019 Report Share Posted August 7, 2019 i like how you mirrored the headstock in the truss rod cover-small but very effective design element. you did a great job on this guitar. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mike T Posted August 9, 2019 Author Report Share Posted August 9, 2019 Wish I could take credit for that design. I saw the truss rod cover on an original Bigsby guitar, a Keith Holter model. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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