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Best way to rough cut a solid body blank?


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Hey guys, as frustrated as everyone is that's home in these times... I've got templates, small router and bearing bits and some wood to build something. I'm stoked, but I don't have a reasonable bands saw to trim my body blank down to closer to my design. Anyone have and advice for this? Im thinking using the router around the template but go very, very shallow depth. I've got nothing but time.

 

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as I have been given this exact advice when i first start (not sure who to thank for that so THANKS EVERYONE!):

if you have a jig saw?  if not, you can get one for pretty cheap.  if you have a hand drill?  you are all set.

mark out your template with a pencil - one the wood in question.  drill holes every 1-2" apart with the edge of the drill be sitting fairly close to the line.  use a drill bit big enough to fit your jigsaw bit in.  then follow the holes with your jigsaw. 

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1 hour ago, bileshake said:

I've got nothing but time.

What @mistermikev said about sawing from hole to hole. A keyhole saw is just as good, maybe even better since jig saws tend to bend to one side when sawing thick materials. Even a chain saw can be used for rough shaping. No matter which tool you choose, it's highly recommended to get the bulk of scrapwood off before routing. Also remember that you may need the scrap pieces for testing or fixing at a later stage

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56 minutes ago, Bizman62 said:

What @mistermikev said about sawing from hole to hole. A keyhole saw is just as good, maybe even better since jig saws tend to bend to one side when sawing thick materials. Even a chain saw can be used for rough shaping. No matter which tool you choose, it's highly recommended to get the bulk of scrapwood off before routing. Also remember that you may need the scrap pieces for testing or fixing at a later stage

thanks biz.  not contradicting your wisdom at all (IOW Bizman's advice is solid) when I say the following: I've found that even the cheap black and decker jigsaw you can buy at walmart + a good quality WOOD blade... preferably an aggressive one - will mitigate all issues with blade bend.  that is not to say it doesn't happen... but IME with the jigsaw setup to take big bites and tight turns... you can do a body to 1/8" to 3/167" of the mark.  now... at that point you have to take off the remaining material which I've found to be pretty easy with a router.  the keyhole saw can and will get closer than that... and make for less work afa getting to the line... but it's more manual, and if you have a good router and do multiple passes you can make short work of that 1/8=3/16.

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Just now, bileshake said:

Thanks for the advice guys, I'm stoked to check this out. I've got a drill press to keep the holes straight and a decent jigsaw to join the dots. Can't wait to get this rollin!

def posts picks and show us how it turns out.  cheers

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4 hours ago, bileshake said:

I've got a drill press to keep the holes straight and a decent jigsaw to join the dots. Can't wait to get this rollin!

That's a good set of tools to start with!

If you have time and imagination any tool can be used to get a perfect end result. As I looked at some building videos the algorithm recommended a full hand tools build. The guy used a carpenter's saw to rough cut the maple body and a brace with a forstner bit to remove most of the material from the body chambers as he carved the body hollow. The same saw was also used for cutting the laminates for the three piece beech and walnut neck and the bog oak top. If you're interested: https://youtu.be/40CZe6bo9C8

 

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