Popular Post henrim Posted October 7, 2023 Author Popular Post Report Share Posted October 7, 2023 Machine head square. No matter how simple it is, every tool you make makes the day worth living. 6 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
henrim Posted October 8, 2023 Author Report Share Posted October 8, 2023 First of all, setup was easy and it plays and sounds really good to me. There are still some minor things to finish and polish. And then there was this one major fuckup. For some reason, which I can’t explain, the bridge was 1,5 mm off from the center line. Studs were properly spaced but the whole assembly was shifted towards the bass side. I only realized this after stringing the guitar. It didn’t really affect playability, but I just couldn’t leave it like that. Must have been a marking mistake. But it’s hard to understand how it happened and why didn’t I notice it before. Anyway, I plugged the holes and drilled new ones with a recess. I need to lacquer those spots at some point but otherwise a sound fix. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bizman62 Posted October 8, 2023 Report Share Posted October 8, 2023 A fix that had to be done for your sanity. Looks like there's never been anything like that done! That bridge looks fantastic, have you told earlier what's the brand and model? 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
henrim Posted October 8, 2023 Author Report Share Posted October 8, 2023 6 minutes ago, Bizman62 said: That bridge looks fantastic, have you told earlier what's the brand and model? That’s a Schaller 455. Unfortunately no longer in production. I bought two of these years ago and now they are both in use. I guess I need to start looking at secondhand market as I really like these better than the currently available models. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
henrim Posted October 10, 2023 Author Report Share Posted October 10, 2023 (edited) The top is so dark that the bare black pickup didn't quite work visually the way I wanted. I pondered different options to bring it up a bit. Wooden covers and metal frames. Even pickguards. Ended up trying an aluminium cover. I milled the cover from a billet, which of course was a highly wasteful process. Hurts, even though it's just a one off piece. But I'm not able to press form those tight corners or weld thin aluminium. Sheet metal construction from stainless steel or silver or something else would be an option of course. Anyway, for now, aluminium it is. Anodizing would be great option for finishing the surface. I have done smaller pieces at home but it's a nasty business and I'm not confident I can get an even surface without investing a lot of time, so I either leave it as is or paint it with silver paint and matte clear. With paint I could likely get closer to the color of the bridge and the tuners. Being paramagnetic, aluminium should not affect pickup performance. Does it affect tone? Probably to some degree like nickel covers do. Is it a bad thing? Don't know without trying. Needs final sanding at least. I'll attach it with double sided tape for now, but may end up making some kind of brackets. I thought it wasn't practical to do them on the same piece when milling. But as an after thought, I guess it wouldn't have been an issue. Edited October 10, 2023 by henrim 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bizman62 Posted October 10, 2023 Report Share Posted October 10, 2023 When you have the tools you can do things... I might have tested with aluminium foil, one side being glossy and the other matte. That might have given an idea about the looks before the "wasteful process that hurts". Then again, I can't even operate the machines you've used. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
henrim Posted October 10, 2023 Author Report Share Posted October 10, 2023 25 minutes ago, Bizman62 said: When you have the tools you can do things... I might have tested with aluminium foil, one side being glossy and the other matte. That might have given an idea about the looks before the "wasteful process that hurts". Then again, I can't even operate the machines you've used. I like to think I had a fairly good idea how it was going to look so didn’t make any mockups. What hurts is the fact that more material was removed than what was left in the final product. The bulk from inside was removed with an 8 mm end mill and the inside corners with a 16 mm bit. With manual machine the process is different than with a NC machine. That’s why the inside corners don’t match exactly with outside corners that have 9mm radius. Which were determined by the pickup pocket corners that I had done with an 18 mm bit. Outside corners of the cover were done by filing with regular hand files. I could have done them with machine too but it’s faster to do them by hand if you are confident with a hand file. Anyway with out a milling machine carving the inside would be next to impossible. Or so time consuming that that it wouldn’t be practical. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Andyjr1515 Posted October 11, 2023 Report Share Posted October 11, 2023 Great skills on show here, @henrim Ref the bridge position, I commented on my mini acoustic thread that it isn't that more experienced builders make less mistakes than rookies - it's more that they get MUCH better at fixing them. And that's a perfect example. Great job 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
henrim Posted October 11, 2023 Author Report Share Posted October 11, 2023 Don’t know if that cover affects sound all that much but it gives a very good shielding. Had I remembered to ground it before stringing the guitar life would have been even better. Oh well, gotta take the strings off once more. I gave the cover a directional brushed finish and clear coated it, only to find I didn’t like it that way. Stripped the coat off and brushed the surface more even matte and treated it with carnauba wax. Not so technical looking and it hopefully ages nicely with nitro lacquer. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bizman62 Posted October 12, 2023 Report Share Posted October 12, 2023 That grounding wire sure is sexy! But I'm 100% positive that it affects the sound of the low E string in a negative way in terms of rattling and buzzing. 1 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
avengers63 Posted October 12, 2023 Report Share Posted October 12, 2023 On 10/7/2023 at 3:51 AM, henrim said: Machine head square. No matter how simple it is, every tool you make makes the day worth living. OMG!!!!! I need one of these. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
henrim Posted October 13, 2023 Author Report Share Posted October 13, 2023 On 10/11/2023 at 11:07 PM, henrim said: Oh well, gotta take the strings off once more. Make it twice. When I first tested the covered pickup, it was nighttime and the amp wasn’t very loud. After making a ground connection to the cover, I put everything back together and cranked the amp a bit. The guitar was squealing like a little pig . Took it apart once more and potted the pickup with cover in paraffin. Much better now. At least it doesn’t squeal anymore. Not yet stringed though so I can’t say how it sounds… 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Popular Post henrim Posted October 14, 2023 Author Popular Post Report Share Posted October 14, 2023 This one is pretty much done. Set up and all. It has this country vibe but it does western too. 6 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Asdrael Posted October 14, 2023 Report Share Posted October 14, 2023 Looks awesome! I really like how the shape came out, and the balance with the single pickup and chrome bridge. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bizman62 Posted October 15, 2023 Report Share Posted October 15, 2023 Style never goes out of fashion. I'd be proud to call that mine! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ScottR Posted October 26, 2023 Report Share Posted October 26, 2023 On 10/7/2023 at 3:51 AM, henrim said: No matter how simple it is, every tool you make makes the day worth living. That's a philosophy I'd never considered! I cannot argue with it at all. That's an absolutely beautiful build, and it just screams precision. Well done sir! SR 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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