Quite a few questions

[ruinerr]

1. I am going to go buy a couple of mahogony pieces, i also need a router. I only want a simple get-the-job-done router nothing expensive or fancy but seeing as i am a bit of a hardware newbcake just wondering if there is a specific type of router that i should get.

2. Also what rout bits will i need to get, i also want a rounding bit for the edges of the guitar ( explorer ), is there a specific size that works best.

3. What wood and what thickness should i grab to construct a template for pickup and neck pocket cavities.

Ta for the help.

[Lex Luthier]

1. I would suggest a plunge router, not really sure what brand though.

2. That depends on what kind of routing templates you are using and how rounded you want the edges. You can get top mounted bearing bits that follow the template exactly, or just a straight bit, and use a brass template guide on the base of the router to follow a slightly larger template, like I do. See Derek's tutorail.

The roundover bit depends on how comfortable you want the edges to be. A Strat is 3/8" and a Tele is like 1/8", it's just personal taste.

3. I use 1/4" MDF, or Medite for all my templates.

[ruinerr]

Ta, what size should the standard bit be 1/4' ?

[krazyderek]

standard cutting diameter out there is 1/2" but if you look around you can find 1/4" 3/8" etc.. all good for various reasons when making a guitar..... there are 2 standards for the shaft diameter, 1/4" and 1/2"

are the edges of the explorer rounded like a normal guitar or are they angled?

i would recomend 5/8" or 1/2" thick plywood or that fake plywood to start out will, then you don't have to worry about the bearing lining up with the template as much... or do like a couple other people on here do and use more then one bearing on the shank(shaft)