Stu. Posted January 18, 2023 Report Share Posted January 18, 2023 Still haven't finished the Tele, but I wanted to do something different at the same time. I'm trying to get the guitars moving again after finishing a couple of quick projects. This will be a single cut inspired by a very famous guitar. I'm calling it the West Poole to avoid copyright infringement (I've probably only been to Poole once in my life). The original plan was to use swamp ash for the body, however I decided it might be a bit weighty and didn't fancy relieving it. This will have an obeche body with a flamed maple cap, ovangkol neck, and ebony fingerboard bound with flamed maple. 24.75" scale, 12" radius, block MOP inlays, fibre headstock faceplate, EMG Het Set, other stuff TBC. I've since changed the knives in my thicknesser and also rectified the snipe. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ScottR Posted January 20, 2023 Report Share Posted January 20, 2023 That's some tasty timbers going into this. Looking forward to it Stu, SR Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stu. Posted January 20, 2023 Author Report Share Posted January 20, 2023 I'm enjoying working with obeche so far. It's quite delicate though, so I'm trying my best not to knock it. I also had a tiny bit of tear out in the control cavity, which I patched up and will tidy later. Hopefully I can get the top glued on tomorrow! The plan is to clamp the edges and then put a stack of weighted plates in the middle - I alway forget to try that! Main cavities routed: Top rough cut and trimmed down to ~20mm. Still need to get it closer to 15mm: That's a lot of chonk: Meanwhile, our smallest cat was channeling his inner Jedi: 4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stu. Posted January 20, 2023 Author Report Share Posted January 20, 2023 4 minutes ago, ScottR said: That's some tasty timbers going into this. Looking forward to it Stu, SR Thanks, Scott! Fingers crossed the timber gods are smiling on me 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stu. Posted January 21, 2023 Author Report Share Posted January 21, 2023 The top is now down to 15mm and the body is 41mm. I'm aiming for 6mm of the top exposed at the sides, so this should make the guitar slimmer than a normal Les Paul at the sides and the same thickness at the middle - with a marginally deeper carve. I really can't decide whether to bind the body. The original plan was to use spare flamed maple binding for the fingerboard and then faux binding for the body, but I do also like cream binding on a LP (body and fingerboard). If the glue-up isn't great, that'll make the decision for me Also, I need to get some nylon/PTFE/HDPE rod to cut down and use as indexing pins. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bizman62 Posted January 22, 2023 Report Share Posted January 22, 2023 13 hours ago, Stu. said: I need to get some nylon/PTFE/HDPE rod to cut down and use as indexing pins. Cocktail sticks are easier to find and work as well. Just a reminder. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stu. Posted January 22, 2023 Author Report Share Posted January 22, 2023 10 hours ago, Bizman62 said: Cocktail sticks are easier to find and work as well. Just a reminder. Maybe I'm doing something wrong, but I can never seem to get on with cocktail sticks - or maybe the ones we get in the UK are just useless. A bit of a photo dump from today's activities! I wanted to share the little Trend cutters that I use for cavity cover rebates and also for tight routing (e.g. direct mount pickups, battery boxes, bass pickups). And an impulse buy from StewMac that I'm finding really useful in all of my projects (guitars and others). I've since realised that the cutters are just replaceable heads from turning chisels, so I'll buy those if I need replacements. Clamps came off the body today and the join seems really good. I trimmed the edges of the top to meet the body and then sanded tooling marks out: Followed by sanding by hand: The obeche looks pretty nice with white spirit, so I'm going to just use vintage nitro for a slight amber tint: Followed by routing the binding channel: So we end the weekend with a roughed out body that's ready for cavity covers and cream binding: Side note: giving the ISOTunes Air Defender product a shot. I have normal 3M earmuffs which are decent and ISOTunes in-ear protectors, but they're not comfortable together. These new ones seem good so far! 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ADFinlayson Posted January 23, 2023 Report Share Posted January 23, 2023 Had a few days in Poole the year before last, you haven't missed much. LP looks fab, looking forward to seeing it carved. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stu. Posted January 23, 2023 Author Report Share Posted January 23, 2023 7 hours ago, ADFinlayson said: Had a few days in Poole the year before last, you haven't missed much. LP looks fab, looking forward to seeing it carved. It looks lovely on Google, however I can imagine it's a tourist trap these days Cream binding is on order from StewMac, because Rothko & Frost didn't have the 6mm in stock and SM actually ended up being cheaper. We're going for 14 x 2mm on the body and 6 x 1.5mm on the fingerboard. Plenty to do before it arrives... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stu. Posted January 29, 2023 Author Report Share Posted January 29, 2023 Only a very small update for this weekend. I've been unwell for a few days and also diagnosing a problem with my little CNC router, so minor tasks completed. New StewMac items arrived! Looking forward to gettting these both to the same stage, so I can do the tenon shoulder fitting twice in a row. The CNC issue was a bit of a headscratcher, until I eventually reproduced it. The Arduino Uno microcontroller basically corrupted the GRBL command interpreter. After flashing a couple of different versions and eventually finding the original on a USB stick from the original kit manufacturer (before I modified it), he came back to life! I was trying to vacuum up some swarf mid run and created the same problem again - it was caused by starting the cordless vac too close to the microcontroller! Anyway, quick prototype of my neck alignment jig. I'll make this properly with a new design and stock, because the bushings are pushing out of the plywood at the sides. It's just a mirrored array of 8mm bushings with 5mm ID - 5mm holes for the neck, fingerboard, and all of my other jigs, with 5mm delrin to cut down to ~6mm. Holes are placed for 25.5" and 24.75" scale, avoiding fret slots. There are holes for necks with full or narrow tenons (a la Les Paul). Also, LP cover prep: 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stu. Posted January 30, 2023 Author Report Share Posted January 30, 2023 Cavity cover incoming! If this looks bad and the joint is obvious, I’ll use single pieces of a contrasting wood. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stu. Posted January 31, 2023 Author Report Share Posted January 31, 2023 Really happy with how the covers have turned out. Here’s a look at my super safe way of routing them too - the router is always supported on both sides. 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ADFinlayson Posted January 31, 2023 Report Share Posted January 31, 2023 That Obeche (which I had never seen or heard of before this thread) looks really nice, what's it like price-wise? is it easy to find in the UK? 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stu. Posted January 31, 2023 Author Report Share Posted January 31, 2023 5 minutes ago, ADFinlayson said: That Obeche (which I had never seen or heard of before this thread) looks really nice, what's it like price-wise? is it easy to find in the UK? It seems pretty nice so far! It’s very light and works easily, but that also means it marks easily - kind of like a lightweight alder. This blank was £40 from Exotic Hardwoods. I was looking for something cheap and lightweight, whilst also having interesting enough aesthetics to keep natural. https://exotichardwoodsukltd.com/product/obeche-body-blank-20-x-7-x-2-2-pieces/ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
henrim Posted January 31, 2023 Report Share Posted January 31, 2023 Looking good! I like the support on the router! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
henrim Posted January 31, 2023 Report Share Posted January 31, 2023 10 minutes ago, ADFinlayson said: Obeche In Finland it’s called Apachi. It was pretty commonly used in sauna benches. Or maybe still is but I have feeling that nowadays more traditional Finnish woods are preferred. Like aspen and alder. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stu. Posted January 31, 2023 Author Report Share Posted January 31, 2023 4 minutes ago, henrim said: Looking good! I like the support on the router! After doing sketchy stuff in my youth, now I enjoy executing tasks calmly and safely Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ADFinlayson Posted February 1, 2023 Report Share Posted February 1, 2023 15 hours ago, Stu. said: It seems pretty nice so far! It’s very light and works easily, but that also means it marks easily - kind of like a lightweight alder. This blank was £40 from Exotic Hardwoods. I was looking for something cheap and lightweight, whilst also having interesting enough aesthetics to keep natural. https://exotichardwoodsukltd.com/product/obeche-body-blank-20-x-7-x-2-2-pieces/ Maybe it's just the sanding scratches but it looks fairly open-grained on the pics, like a slightly yellow mahogany. dents/scratches when working softer woods is annoying, I've taken to iron the backs of my bodies with a damp tea-towel prior to getting the oribital sander out to expand all the marks, I do a lot more work with a towel down on the workbench that I used to as well. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stu. Posted February 1, 2023 Author Report Share Posted February 1, 2023 16 minutes ago, ADFinlayson said: Maybe it's just the sanding scratches but it looks fairly open-grained on the pics, like a slightly yellow mahogany. Oh, it’s super open and roughs up just like mahogany. There are basically no sanding scratches on the back of the body, just open grain. It’s a fraction of the weigh of mahogany though. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ADFinlayson Posted February 1, 2023 Report Share Posted February 1, 2023 43 minutes ago, Stu. said: Oh, it’s super open and roughs up just like mahogany. There are basically no sanding scratches on the back of the body, just open grain. It’s a fraction of the weigh of mahogany though. yeah I was just looking at it on wooddatabase. On spec it looks very similar to african mahogany, about 2/3 the hardness and 3/4 the weight. I think it could be really well suited for a solid-body with TV finish, I think I'll get some! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stu. Posted February 1, 2023 Author Report Share Posted February 1, 2023 5 hours ago, ADFinlayson said: yeah I was just looking at it on wooddatabase. On spec it looks very similar to african mahogany, about 2/3 the hardness and 3/4 the weight. I think it could be really well suited for a solid-body with TV finish, I think I'll get some! Good luck! I’m pleased so far, although now I’m worried that it’ll be neck-heavy with ovangkol. I popped out to my workshop this afternoon for boring tasks. First was sorting through offcuts, ready to get rid of most of the softwood and awkward little pieces of hardwood. Second was setting up my ‘new’ bench planer. I took a punt on the Rutlands premium bench planer during a 24 hour flash sale. It’s a bit of a nightmare and left me wanting to collect my ~40kg SIP bench model with cast iron tables from Gloucestershire. This thing is light, but blade setting was infuriating to the extreme and getting the tables co-planer is going to test my limits. There are four screws and nuts inside to set the left and right planes of movement, and then three nuts to tension the infeed table against them. Tomorrow will be a rollercoaster. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stu. Posted February 2, 2023 Author Report Share Posted February 2, 2023 The bench planer is back together and the tables are mostly parallel. I ended up essentially setting it to a fixed 0.5mm depth of cut, because any adjustment takes it out of alignment. I’m actually tempted to try returning it now, but I’ll try with a homemade fence first. Just a bit of neck blank prep this afternoon. Ovangkol for the LP without needing ears, and then ovangkol/birdseye maple for another build. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stu. Posted February 5, 2023 Author Report Share Posted February 5, 2023 The neck now looks like a neck! I definitely had a workout with this one. This ovangkol is lovely, but pencil marks vanish in the blink of an eye. Luckily I had my tiny, tiny marker pen. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stu. Posted February 8, 2023 Author Report Share Posted February 8, 2023 I like to hijack my own threads and I’ve been preparing another neck blank in the background. I glued it up, cut/planed the scarf, and then glued again. After taking the clamps off today, it was painfully obvious that the scarf crept during clamping. I’ve added the ears, however I’m on the fence about whether to re-cut and fix the alignment. What do you guys think? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bizman62 Posted February 8, 2023 Report Share Posted February 8, 2023 If it bugs you, fix it or it will keep bugging you so much you'll never want to play that guitar. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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