jowilmei Posted September 21, 2022 Report Share Posted September 21, 2022 I am just starting a les paul double cut inspired guitar. It should be noted that the shape is basically the only inspiration, past that it should be a wild ride. I plan on a single pickup set neck with 24 frets. Hopefully it will turn out the way I imagine. I'll be trying some new techniques so I thank you in advance for any help or advice. Here are the templates I made so far. I still need to figure out the control cavity template. The headstock is only a short 4.5 inches, so I'm hoping that means my break angle can be as small as possible because I do not plan on a scarf joint. Rather a graphite reinforcement and generous volute. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jowilmei Posted September 21, 2022 Author Report Share Posted September 21, 2022 Here is both the neck and body. Both spanish cedar (quartersawn for the neck). I plan on a simple shellac finish with truoil on the neck. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jowilmei Posted September 21, 2022 Author Report Share Posted September 21, 2022 I like the look of this bridge from guitar fetish. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jowilmei Posted September 21, 2022 Author Report Share Posted September 21, 2022 Here's a rough idea of the two put together. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bizman62 Posted September 22, 2022 Report Share Posted September 22, 2022 7 hours ago, jowilmei said: a les paul double cut inspired guitar. It should be noted that the shape is basically the only inspiration, past that it should be a wild ride. Ooh do I love that attitude! 7 hours ago, jowilmei said: The headstock is only a short 4.5 inches, so I'm hoping that means my break angle can be as small as possible I had to measure my headstocks to visualize the length. It doesn't seem to have issues. Mine are longer but looking closer I noticed that a) on my factory built Applause Strat the low E tuner is only 1" from the nut while on the Fender AmStd it's 1½". Another thing I noticed is that the tuners in Fender style guitars are only 1" apart while on the ones I've built using the PRS drawings (plus my acoustic) use a 1½" distance. So there's quite a lot of variation in the designs in "official" builds as well. I wouldn't worry about the headstock angle. On my builds it has been determined by the thickness of the blank instead of some optimal numbers. Some 10 deg is plenty steep enough. Also remember that you can increase the angle by using a thicker fretboard. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jowilmei Posted September 22, 2022 Author Report Share Posted September 22, 2022 9 hours ago, Bizman62 said: I wouldn't worry about the headstock angle. On my builds it has been determined by the thickness of the blank instead of some optimal numbers. Some 10 deg is plenty steep enough. Also remember that you can increase the angle by using a thicker fretboard. That's good to know. The Red Special is usually what I refer back to when thinking about industry "standards". That guitar basically threw them all away and has been functional for 50 years or so Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jowilmei Posted September 29, 2022 Author Report Share Posted September 29, 2022 I couldn't get my bit any lower, so double sided tape saved the day. I'm happy with the template I made. It was difficult to get the negative filed out. It's not perfect, but I think it looks alright. I can't decide if I'll even route the rest of the cavity out haha 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
henrim Posted September 30, 2022 Report Share Posted September 30, 2022 9 hours ago, jowilmei said: It was difficult to get the negative filed out. It's not perfect, but I think it looks alright. Looking good. I prefer to do the negative part first as it is easier to file the positive one to match. Or in some some similar situations (not guitar related) I have made a negative and used it as mold to make a positive cast. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jowilmei Posted September 30, 2022 Author Report Share Posted September 30, 2022 2 hours ago, henrim said: Looking good. I prefer to do the negative part first as it is easier to file the positive one to match. Or in some some similar situations (not guitar related) I have made a negative and used it as mold to make a positive cast. I thought about pouring a wax mold and then using that as a template, a sort of cheap and forgiving molding venture. Not sure if that would hold up tp a router bearing. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
henrim Posted September 30, 2022 Report Share Posted September 30, 2022 17 minutes ago, jowilmei said: I thought about pouring a wax mold and then using that as a template, a sort of cheap and forgiving molding venture. Not sure if that would hold up tp a router bearing. Maybe some hard wax would do. Although they have pretty low melting point and the router bit may get hot. Epoxy would be good but not worth the hassle if the template is only used for one guitar. And then if it's used for multiple guitars I would probably have it done on CNC. But so far for me every guitar has had a different template so I have just done the templates by hand. The good thing is a template bit with bearing is not picky on small dents and deviations. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jowilmei Posted October 4, 2022 Author Report Share Posted October 4, 2022 Phew... Truss rods are my least favorite thing about guitar building. A close second is neck pocket routing. Neck is starting to feel rather light. I hope this Spanish cedar works out okay. I've seen acoustic builders use it before, so I'm hoping it holds up over the years. What is the best way to glue in carbon reinforcement? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jowilmei Posted October 4, 2022 Author Report Share Posted October 4, 2022 Thinking about it more, the guitar will probably get a wipe on poly finish. Hopefully that counteracts how easily scratched the wood is. Is there a big difference between oil and water based in terms of hardness? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jowilmei Posted October 4, 2022 Author Report Share Posted October 4, 2022 Had a day off and decided to try again with the neck blank. I think my previous piece was just a bad example. The wood felt like Paulownia and I could scratch it easily with a fingernail. I bought another piece that has much tighter grain is feels significantly stronger and harder. Unfortunately there was some tear, so I conconted a laminate headstock to solve the issue. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jowilmei Posted October 21, 2022 Author Report Share Posted October 21, 2022 I have got the headstock angle cut in. Calculations led me to about an 8° angle (ignore the writing on the paper) This was my first real task with a hand plane and I cannot imagine how I went this long without the satisfying "phwip" of the blade. The headstock will have an 1/8" richlite laminate glued on top. Partially for strength and partially for looks. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Akula Posted October 26, 2022 Report Share Posted October 26, 2022 Nice jig. I guess you just ride the plane down over the MDF spacer and keep going until you hit the desired angle? I'd love a walkthrough of how that setup works. - Jam Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jowilmei Posted November 3, 2022 Author Report Share Posted November 3, 2022 On 10/26/2022 at 8:26 AM, Akula said: Nice jig. I guess you just ride the plane down over the MDF spacer and keep going until you hit the desired angle? I'd love a walkthrough of how that setup works. - Jam You’ve basically got the idea already. I did some math to figure out the angle I wanted and determined where the mdf needs to be relative to the break angle in order for the plane to rest on it and the very tip of the headstock when the desired angle is achieved. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jowilmei Posted November 3, 2022 Author Report Share Posted November 3, 2022 Progress made. Epoxied the rich lite headstock laminate on and routed the neck pocket to final depth. Lastly, I did a quick finish plane to the body to remove pencil marks and see the grain in all its chatoyant glory. Shame the camera doesnt translate it well 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jowilmei Posted December 22, 2022 Author Report Share Posted December 22, 2022 Alright, so after losing and subsequently gaining inspiration, I’ve started over on the neck. I’ve decided to use cherry as it gives me the warm and fuzzies in terms of stability and overall look of the instrument. I bought about 14 board feet of cherry and it’s been a dream to work with. I’ll keep the old neck for future projects. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bizman62 Posted December 22, 2022 Report Share Posted December 22, 2022 That's some nice looking wood there! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jowilmei Posted December 22, 2022 Author Report Share Posted December 22, 2022 1 hour ago, Bizman62 said: That's some nice looking wood there! I agree! I just found it in a local suppliers stack of cherry and they didn't upcharge me for it so I am happy. Hopefully, I can get a lot of use out of it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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