Prostheta Posted August 28, 2020 Author Report Share Posted August 28, 2020 Next job was to establish the slope over the top of the nut. This was achieved by calculating the height difference front to back, scribing a new radius line across the front and filing to match. After this, the corners need radiusing back. Scribing a small circle on the front (lower) face and filing facets makes this a quick job. To keep things straight, I'm using a needle file and doing single strokes about 1 cm at a time. It's that sort of work. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Prostheta Posted August 28, 2020 Author Report Share Posted August 28, 2020 This is what we're aiming for, anyway. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Prostheta Posted August 28, 2020 Author Report Share Posted August 28, 2020 Polishing shows up a lot of scratch marks which I want to get out. Time to find some 400-1200 wet n' dry sandpaper. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Prostheta Posted August 28, 2020 Author Report Share Posted August 28, 2020 This turned out really nicely. 4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ScottR Posted August 28, 2020 Report Share Posted August 28, 2020 It's a nice look with those evo frets. Slots look a tad shallow though. SR 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Prostheta Posted August 28, 2020 Author Report Share Posted August 28, 2020 1 hour ago, ScottR said: It's a nice look with those evo frets. Slots look a tad shallow though. SR Thanks Scott. The strings'll grow into them! The brass does work well with the EVO wire, definitely. Matching hardware and the small bits can be a real balance in other areas though. I'm definitely leaning towards keeping these black hex bolts in the bridge. Different golds clash very easily. I might give those a quick dash of shellac to match the sheen of the bridge hardware. The nut will need sealing as well once I've gotten those filing marks out. Got to say, I love the reflective glow off the brass in that last photo. It makes an even greater case as to why I should use shellac and French polish this one. Just not 100% whether I should use garnet shellac or super blonde. The Maple is the decider here, so I might have to do some testers. Not sure how a pale wood will look with ruby-ish shellac over it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ScottR Posted August 28, 2020 Report Share Posted August 28, 2020 That would mighty brazen of them.... or, might they grow brass roots.... nah, I got nuthin'. SR 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Prostheta Posted August 29, 2020 Author Report Share Posted August 29, 2020 It seems that fingerprints are easier to photograph than polished brass! The nut was drawn over a 1/4 sheet of 600 grit and 800 grit before polishing with Autosol (aluminium oxide paste) and cleaning with alcohol. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Prostheta Posted August 29, 2020 Author Report Share Posted August 29, 2020 Maybe using a lens without such a short depth of field might be a better idea.... 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Andyjr1515 Posted August 29, 2020 Report Share Posted August 29, 2020 Nice job, @Prostheta Might be something in this over-thinking malarkey after all. Must try it sometime 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
komodo Posted August 29, 2020 Report Share Posted August 29, 2020 Photographing any angle of a guitar, anything on a guitar, anything about guitars, is so hard. Lens distortion, perspective, color, reflections and shine, curves, and size all make it nearly impossible to capture what you see in person. And you always pickup the fine scratches, dust etc instead of whats beneath. It is a great way to identify stuff that needs addressed! Great job on this build so far @Prostheta Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Prostheta Posted August 29, 2020 Author Report Share Posted August 29, 2020 Definitely, and thanks @komodo. I appreciate that. Yes, photographing is a great way of highlighting flaws and things that have plain been neglected. Literally a difficult lens that forces you to make everything stand up to scrutiny. I haven't had great light the last few days, so I broke out the 50mm f1.8 and 24mm f2.8 lenses. The latter is great for detail work, but you lose depth once you're in macro range and the latter needs more room to walk around the item. They make you tidy the place up anyway! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Prostheta Posted August 29, 2020 Author Report Share Posted August 29, 2020 I couldn't resist putting things together for a dry fit shot! 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
curtisa Posted August 30, 2020 Report Share Posted August 30, 2020 As much as anything this thread is a lesson in photography! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Prostheta Posted August 30, 2020 Author Report Share Posted August 30, 2020 Thanks Andrew - I'm hardly skilled in that field, and this is what having three different lenses forced me to learn. I bought the uber-popular 50mm EF lens plus the 24mm EFS pancake for their wide apertures, closeup performance and ability to work in less-than-ideal lighting compared to the stock zoom lens. The downside to that is the short depth of field which you can see in the photo of the nut from the side; even over that short distance the focus falls away. It does make what is IN focus the (erm) focus of your attention though, so in terms of photos leading you to the subject in question, they do the job really well. Those are two inexpensive lenses I would recommend to anybody with an APS-C (crop sensor) Canon body, however the 50mm EF lens is more like a 35mm since it's a lens intended for full-frame sensor bodys. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
komodo Posted August 30, 2020 Report Share Posted August 30, 2020 Not to completely derail your thread - I shot photography for a long time and used everything from 4x5 to pinhole. Now I only use a simple Panasonic GX7 mirrorless with adapters for vintage manual lenses. After trying a billion lenses, the best are old Olympus Pen F half frame lenses, and Swiss lenses made for 16mm Bolex movie cameras. The Swiss lenses are sharper than a scalpel, and the color is better than any lens I've ever tried. The Oly Pen lenses have ridiculously cool bokeh second only to some Zeiss. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Prostheta Posted August 30, 2020 Author Report Share Posted August 30, 2020 I bought these lenses as an affordable way to get into video, which went completely tits up. The kits lens is atrocious as you'd imagine, needing a furnace hot quantity of lighting to set anything up indoors. I appreciate beautiful photography, however my goal is to be able to create photos that demonstrate principles with the hopeful goal of video. APS-C bodies were a great way in, however I'm wondering how long its legs will continue to be now mirrorless has matured. I might add a couple more lenses, but at some point it'll become too much money invested in what will likely end up a legacy ecosystem. At the very least, prices of used lenses might bring four figure glass down to three. I'd like the Sigma 50mm f1.4 DG HSM Art, however I'm unsure how much it would return compared to the superb value legend Canon 50mm f1.8! 50mm is a handy focal length - even in a crop sensor body - and would certainly be fantastic if I added a full frame body to the gear. I get purple fringing off the Canon 50mm, which I think the APS-C body makes worse. New glass becomes a real rabbit hole, and I think the sweet spot for this sort of photography has to be 3-4 good lenses. The kit lens is a "worst case backup", but not trash by any means. I like the idea of the Canon 35mm f/2.8 Macro IS STM having a built-in ring light. That would be excellent for the sort of photography needing to be done around woodworking details. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Norris Posted September 14, 2020 Report Share Posted September 14, 2020 On 8/28/2020 at 5:03 PM, Prostheta said: Quick update, installed inserts for the pickup also. Same size, same process. I'd just like to congratulate you on the most concise update of the thread so far It's always interesting to see the extremes of method between yourself and @ScottR. This is a seriously lovely looking bass though. Can I have it? It would make a lovely stable-mate to my SB-1000 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Prostheta Posted September 14, 2020 Author Report Share Posted September 14, 2020 Thanks Norris, however it's staying here unless you can prise my cold, dead blackened-from-polishing-brass fingers off've it! I just sent the 1980 SB-1000 back to the client today, and beyond the shape and weight there's little comparison. This HAS a neck taper. It's also profiled more like a slim C than the big chunky D of the SB-1000. In other news, I forgot to order enough brass for the rear cover plates, so I only have one half I'm hoping to brush the brass to #240, maybe higher, then screw them down to a piece of plywood and polish them up with Autosol. Not enough to remove the scratches from brushing (well, sanding) but brings out a nice texture. Routing brass makes you fill your pants, and also covers you in bits of sharp conductive brass. I'm sure I'll regret this. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Prostheta Posted September 15, 2020 Author Report Share Posted September 15, 2020 Time to rout the cavity cover recess! Template copied from the laser-cut acrylic to plywood. Also, nice error that I had to fill with polyester.... Using my short template copying bit, I bottomed out the cutter on the surface and locked off the plunge base.... ....I then inserted a cutoff of the brass between the turret and depth stop, and adjusted the stop until the brass stays in place.... ....which means the depth of cut will be exactly the same depth as the thickness of the brass.... ....like that. 4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ScottR Posted September 15, 2020 Report Share Posted September 15, 2020 Nice. SR Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Prostheta Posted September 15, 2020 Author Report Share Posted September 15, 2020 I should probably mention that brass sheet can be routed to shape only if you're taking a couple of mm most in width and depth. It's precarious given how grabby brass can be, and you've really got to capture the waste rather than clean it up after the fact. Ask me how I know this....magic conductive death slivers around your tools is not the best of ideas. *~%'/ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
komodo Posted September 15, 2020 Report Share Posted September 15, 2020 genius! Slivers reminds me of another hobby, flintknapping (aka making flint arrowheads and spear points). As you chip away at the flint, you are covered in fine shards and chips, and regularly get an uncontrollable urge to sweep them off your leg. Bad idea!! It shreds flesh, and on such a molecular level that it just doesn’t stop bleeding. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Workingman Posted September 16, 2020 Report Share Posted September 16, 2020 I knapped flints for a flint lock at one time. Not nearly as precise work as an arrowhead nut less you have to take care of the shards. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Prostheta Posted September 16, 2020 Author Report Share Posted September 16, 2020 It won't be too long before we end up needing to brush up on our primitive tech skills, hunting mutie goats in the radioactive wastes! From what I remember, isn't obsidian glass the same with fracture planes in one dimension through the crystal? 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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