MikeB Posted May 2, 2004 Report Share Posted May 2, 2004 hey guys, thought now that i can finally post my pics i would show my 31 fret B1 custom off... happy reading Firstly the body. Design was roughly based on an ibanez of mine, the RG320. But the plank of wood i had bought for the body was not as wide it is more slender looking than the ibanez. I wanted a more slender guitar anyway, so i win The wood i used was a very expensive pitch pine, in a previous thread i have posted hardness/shrinkage/warping/density details to prove that although a softwood it is infact very stable and hard. This is why i used it, i also wanted a different wood to the commonly used woods. This was let acclimitise for quite a while. The design on the wood: Next dad cut this shape outa the wood using the jigsaw, no access to a bandsaw, ,so made do with the ole jig. Then neck pocket waas routed, i think it was approx 59mm wide, for the slightly thicker neck at the higher frets. Then the trem was routed front and back: Then i began shaping the body, firstly i shaped the arm rest. Below shows this, ans also the beginnings of the carve on the body: To shape this i used a hand plane to get the angle etc... then for all subsequent carving i exclusively used a drill with sanding disk. This requures a steady hand otherwise you leave gouges in the wood all over! Below is the body clamped and beside is the drill with disk attachment: Below is a picture to try and show off the carve, but its it doesn't do the carve justice: This is a pic of the body with a bit more contouring. There is the gut cut in the back, and something similar to the AANJ heel shape. This is a more complete picture of the body, ,showing the carve a little better. i dont have pics of the pickup route atm, i will look for them now, and post the rest of this pictorial asap. Mike Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rob Posted May 2, 2004 Report Share Posted May 2, 2004 whoa! those contors look fab! the grain in the pine makes it look all the better! nice work! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MikeB Posted May 2, 2004 Author Report Share Posted May 2, 2004 thanks rob! yeh i thought the contours really added some depth to it Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MikeB Posted May 2, 2004 Author Report Share Posted May 2, 2004 i added a deeper cutaway to the lower horn to give me a better top fret access (which it does!) here it is: Mike Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jon Bell Posted May 2, 2004 Report Share Posted May 2, 2004 Looks amazing! How long did the body take? Jon Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MikeB Posted May 2, 2004 Author Report Share Posted May 2, 2004 i worked on and off at the body for quite a while, if you added up the time spent i suppose a couple of weeks working on it at night would have done it, perhaps a little less. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MikeB Posted May 2, 2004 Author Report Share Posted May 2, 2004 found a pic of my hardware for the guitar. no luck finding a pic of the pickup route, maybe i didnt take one... hehe! this is a pic of my pickup. its a pickup from my ibanez that i put emg's in. Its a powersound PSND1 pickup. This is a pic of the fretwire. Its medium sized to give the upper frets a little more room. after playing this wire i think i prefer it to jumbo. Mike Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Daniel Posted May 2, 2004 Report Share Posted May 2, 2004 That guitar looks sweet. Can't wait to see it all in the end Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
skibum5545 Posted May 2, 2004 Report Share Posted May 2, 2004 wow! The grain in that stuff is really nice. Does it have a good tap tone? What color is it going to be (and please don't say youre gonna paint it... ) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MikeB Posted May 2, 2004 Author Report Share Posted May 2, 2004 im not into tap tone really, it does sound very good tho. no imn not painting it its done btw, just coallating my pics... you will see it soon, so check this thread Mike Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MikeB Posted May 2, 2004 Author Report Share Posted May 2, 2004 to see the neck being built go here. Mike Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jammy Posted May 2, 2004 Report Share Posted May 2, 2004 Awesome work man - I LOVE the body shape *drools* Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MikeB Posted May 2, 2004 Author Report Share Posted May 2, 2004 thanks jammy! pics of the completed guitar on the way Mike Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MikeB Posted May 2, 2004 Author Report Share Posted May 2, 2004 Here it is, the final thing My first ever full build guitar... be gentle, hehe! The pickup cover is larger incase i want to slip a piezo in and experiment with it Here is the back, showing the teak cavity covers. The teak was laminated onto aluminium to give it strength and to shield the guitar. This is the headstock. The truss rod cover is made from teak also. Not the best of photos, sorry! A side view. You can see some of the carved body in this pic. Also the scalloped fretboard is visible. A pic showing off the top inlays and also the front of the guitar. And finally my cat, Sooty. No one let me call her snowball, unfortunately! Info on the guitar: 31 fret bolt on neck with AANJ style neck joint. MOP inlays 6mm until 24th fret, 2mm afterwards. Walnut neck, teak fingerboard. Full fingerboard scallop. Small volute on neck, barely noticible. Pitch Pine body. 1 Powersound pickup (which matches this guitar very well ). Active volume control. Series/Parallel switching. 3 Band Eq - Bass Treble, and a mid boost. (not wired as yet) Neck/Bridge pickup switch - simulates the sound of a neck pickup by switching a cap and resistor in, this rolls of the highs more etc... Reverse headstock with 6 in line gold tuners. Liscensed gold double locking Floyd Rose. Teak oiled finish, applied to everything. approximately in the range of 25 - 30 coats. this was sanded and polished after the oil was dry. Any questions/comments do tell! Mike Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
StreamLine Posted May 2, 2004 Report Share Posted May 2, 2004 that's very, very beautiful!!! how does the pine sound?? very very good job, a GOTM, possibly? the only things i didnt like that much was the pickguard - i think if you made one out of matching pine, it will look much better, as it would be 'hidden'.... other than that, that beauty deserves something better than an ibanez p-up imo! maybe custom bartolini? the neck profile looks to be anything but wizard though! i take it you prefer 'beefy' necks? good for you. but really, an oustanding job.... just for me, that pickguard looks a bit out of place, maybe a bit on the cheapside, if you dont mind me saying - on such an amazing instrument. Roman Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MikeB Posted May 2, 2004 Author Report Share Posted May 2, 2004 the pickguard grew on me, it is basically for when i want to put in piezo - if i want to. i may replace the pickup, ,but it matches the guitar really well! i do prefer the slightly thicker necks now, yes! better sustain perhaps? yes i should be entering GOTM! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jammy Posted May 2, 2004 Report Share Posted May 2, 2004 Excellent stuff - Im inspired to go carry on with my plans! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bluespresence Posted May 2, 2004 Report Share Posted May 2, 2004 Excellent Job!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MikeB Posted May 2, 2004 Author Report Share Posted May 2, 2004 cool!! i always found this forum was good to make me continue to try building. as wes said take your time with it... i did, and its a great guitar Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Defiled Posted May 2, 2004 Report Share Posted May 2, 2004 Whoa, that looks great. How does that cap switch sound? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MikeB Posted May 2, 2004 Author Report Share Posted May 2, 2004 it sounds great, im gonna toy with the best combination of resistor and cap to get the desired tone, it really work tho! thanks ansil! Mike Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lovekraft Posted May 2, 2004 Report Share Posted May 2, 2004 Whoa, that's gorgeous! The pine is beautiful. If anybody gives you grief about using pine for a body, be sure to remind them that the first Telecasters/Esquires had pine bodies, and they're worth hundreds of thousands now. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MikeB Posted May 2, 2004 Author Report Share Posted May 2, 2004 Thanks lovekraft!!! i figured that if the wood had better figures for shrinkage warping etc... compared to some maple why the hell shouldnt i use it! thanks for the support! Mike Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BLS Posted May 2, 2004 Report Share Posted May 2, 2004 That looks awesome! The fretwork looks great too, you wouldnt belive the crappy fretjobs ive seen on guitars with 24+ frets. Thats some interesting wiring you got on their too. And i love how the teak contrast with the pitch pine. You should DEFINETLY enter it in the GOTM. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MikeB Posted May 2, 2004 Author Report Share Posted May 2, 2004 thanks BLS!!!! i think this baby will be entered!!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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