Modern Flying V Plans/Measurements

[BaldyBlues]

Hi all. As the title says - does anyone have dimensions or plans for the least loved Gibson of all time? I'm a long time lurker, but it's time to join in.

I recently got a cheap slab of ash. The pictures didn't look too bad. However, when they said it had a couple of knots, they weren't lying, but they weren't exactly truthing either: that knot you see in the picture is like a pipe popping out 30cm further down the plank on the other side! , Measuring up, there isn't enough useable wood for a conventional body and neck, but I can just about get a through neck and wings for a flying V out of it.

Thing is, why be normal? There are loads of self built flying v's out there, some absolutely gorgeous. I like to be different, so I thought, why not a mongrel, shaped like the modern but with the vee metal plate and string-through of the vintage V? Put the jack on the upper bout like the new Dave Mustaine signature, maybe a bit of a curve to the metal plate to match the curves of the modern. Lots of ideas!

Problem is, nowhere can I find dimensions or plans for the modern. I could improvise but I'm more craftsman than artist! So I thought I'd ask here. Any ideas? I've no intention of making a replica. "Inspired by" is a term I like. So it doesn't matter to me if it's not exact, but I'd like to get close. Any help appreciated.

[mistermikev]

u mean this one?  https://www.electricherald.com/gibson-moderne-templates/

there is a thread here by pshupe from mylespaul.com... some very nice details of this build... might want to search for that.

[BaldyBlues]

27 minutes ago, mistermikev said:

u mean this one?  https://www.electricherald.com/gibson-moderne-templates/

there is a thread here by pshupe from mylespaul.com... some very nice details of this build... might want to search for that.

Thanks for the reply! No, I mean the one they made (I think) only in 2018, picture attached. I know it's not popular, but why be normal?

I've actually got the Electric Herald site bookmarked (I've been lurking quite a while now). I spent time going through the plans on Electric Herald, looking for designs I could squeeze out of my rather sad chunk of wood, and the only two that seem viable are the Flying V and the Gretsch Billy-Bo Jupiter. Neither are like anything I've owned or even played before, but I just can't imagine the Jupiter with a natural finish, so a Flying V it is. I'd just like mine to be a bit unusual is all, hence the Modern question. At least I'm not in a rush (got to move house early next year, won't start building till we've settled), so I can take time doing research and plans.

The build threads on this forum are frankly the only reason I ever ventured into self-build territory, but the bug has definitely bitten. I've read through many of the build threads and learned an awful lot, but no matter how much you read, it's the doing that really teaches. I will definitely spend time going through pshupe's build thread too. Thanks for the steer!

[mistermikev]

29 minutes ago, BaldyBlues said:

Thanks for the reply! No, I mean the one they made (I think) only in 2018, picture attached. I know it's not popular, but why be normal?

I've actually got the Electric Herald site bookmarked (I've been lurking quite a while now). I spent time going through the plans on Electric Herald, looking for designs I could squeeze out of my rather sad chunk of wood, and the only two that seem viable are the Flying V and the Gretsch Billy-Bo Jupiter. Neither are like anything I've owned or even played before, but I just can't imagine the Jupiter with a natural finish, so a Flying V it is. I'd just like mine to be a bit unusual is all, hence the Modern question. At least I'm not in a rush (got to move house early next year, won't start building till we've settled), so I can take time doing research and plans.

The build threads on this forum are frankly the only reason I ever ventured into self-build territory, but the bug has definitely bitten. I've read through many of the build threads and learned an awful lot, but no matter how much you read, it's the doing that really teaches. I will definitely spend time going through pshupe's build thread too. Thanks for the steer!

 Well I have not seen that model before and I have not seen a design for it either. One thing you might consider is finding some good straight on pictures of it, using fret2dfind to create a fretboard of the same scale length and opening them both up in photoshop and scaling the picture up until it matches the fretboard.  then trace it in photoshop

[BaldyBlues]

3 hours ago, mistermikev said:

 ...you might consider finding some good straight on pictures of it, using fret2dfind to create a fretboard of the same scale length and opening them both up in photoshop and scaling the picture up until it matches the fretboard.  then trace it in photoshop

Great, I'll give that a go, many thanks!

[Bizman62]

As @mistermikev said, get some pictures. Instead of fret2find, you can simply choose the scale length you like and start measuring from there. Compare the length of the fretboard to the body. Other useful "known" measurements are the dimensions of the pickups and the bridge. Draw a full size picture to find out how the electronics fit and how the overall looks will be. You can even make a cardboard mock up to see how it fits you as a player!

On the image you posted it looks like the body is as long as the fretboard, the distance from neck pickup to the edge is about half of the width of the pickup and the distance from the bridge pickup to the edge is about the width of the pickup.

As long as the 12th fret is exactly halfways between the nut and the bridge, it's a playable guitar. The rest is cosmetics and ergonomics.

[BaldyBlues]

47 minutes ago, Bizman62 said:

...As long as the 12th fret is exactly halfways between the nut and the bridge, it's a playable guitar. The rest is cosmetics and ergonomics.

I'm tempted to have that in great big letters on the wall in my workshop (aka the shed). I knew joining this group was a good idea. Thanks everyone.