skibum5545

How does a drummer get a date? He says he's a guitarist!

I like it so far! That LP is classy and well executed. While I don't know much about acoustic construction, it looks like yours is progressing swimmingly. Keep us updated!

I like the idea, and the general materials sound conducive to a veritable TONE MONSTER©, but I'm not too fond of the shape. The top horn should be shorter, the top cutaway should be deeper, and the notch in the bridge end of the body should be a bit larger. Right now, it looks a little top heavy, and looks kind of like you were trying really hard to create something unique, not necessarily something pretty. The shape as a whole just looks kinda off balance. Keep tweaking it, though, and I'm sure it'll improve. What finish are you going for?

I gotta say, man, that body shape is freakin me out.... Seriously, though, you're doing a really nice job with it. It's cool how you actually harvested the lumber yourself, too. That said, how long did you dry it before building with it? I just hope that it won't warp or crack after you've put so much hard work into it. Anyway, keep updating, and we'll keep reading.

It's always fun seeing two luthiers meet through PG.com and collaborate, especially when it's two very skilled luthiers like you two who both share a similar style sense in your guitars. I really can't wait to see this one finished!

I just had this crazy idea: What if you were to take a magnet, and wrap a coil of wire around it, and... don't tell me someones thought of this, too?! Actually, this guitar doesn't strike me as terribly bat-like, but it is certainly very cool. I look forward to seeing this thing come to fruition.

Here's where I'm sort of drawing my ideas for this one: http://www.markgoodwinpianos.co.uk/img/mg1...aha-g2/logo.jpg We have a Yamaha C3 Concert Grand at home with the same logo on it. The Yamaha logo on their grand pianos is solid brass, laid into the wood, and then the whole thing is finished with a thick polyester clear. IMO, there are few things classier than that brass-on-black logo under some good, thick clear. What I had imagined was not unlike the bound dean V you posted, but instead of binding, inlay a stripe of brass wire as a pinstripe 1/4" in from the edge, all the way around. Whether you want to go with flamed maple or anything is fancy is your call; I'd go gloss black or perhaps trans black over unfigured wood. You could even add a matching logo on the headstock in brass. It'd be easy enough to do with some sheet stock and a cheap jewelry saw, too. You're right, plain black isn't all that original by itself; however, applying classic piano styling to an otherwise extreme guitar like this one would look really cool. Anyway, good luck with whatever you end up with.

Oh, BLAZE! Welcome to the forum, flood.

Had to give it to MzI this month. I nearly overlooked it because the entry had no pics (only links), but I'm glad I decided to go back and review more closely. The purpleheart is just stunning, and the lighter wood sets it off very well. All the entries this month are very well done, so congrats to everyone just for building (and subsequently owning and playing) such kickass guitars!

I like the design, actually. In a strange way, it almost takes a standard V and makes it classier. That is, it has the potential to be classy. The "Goth Traffic Marker" paint job doesn't really do it for me. I'd like to see this one in gloss piano-lacquer black, maybe with a white pinstripe where that bevel line is on your original design, and gold fittings. Heck, if you could rout that pinstripe in and fill it with brass square wire, that would look even sicker, especially under a thick clear finish. This guitar could go either way at this point. You could take it in a direction that would make it much classier than most other V's on the market, or you could take it in a Metal/Hairmetal direction. Either is valid, but I think you'd end up with a cooler, more original, and more head-turning guitar if you went in the classier direction. Either way, it's entirely your call. Perhaps some inspiration Perhaps some more inspiration

As always, it's great to see new members posting full-on build reports-- especially when they're building basses, and especially(er?) when the basses are of this caliber. While I'm not too fond of the shape, your customer is, and that's what matters. Given the quality of parts and labor, this build will no doubt be spectacular when finished. Just for the record, PG.com get's kinda strict and uptight about picture posting rules, so you're not the first newcomer to get skewered for them. However, I felt the overwhelming peer pressure of this forum ( ) so I need to get on ya about one more thing-- when posting links, you can use the link posting button up on the toolbar so that instead of us seeing www.ambiguousphotohoster.com/user/photos/bigwoodbuilder/woodbassone/update6andahalf/0000100023040201b.jpg, we see My New Ebony Top (If you can't figure out why this link doesn't work, it's because it isn't a link.) Good. Now that I've done the necessary ragging, this bass is spectacular and will no doubt sound, play, and look wonderful. I'll be sure to check back here for updates!

Really nice work! It's hard to tell from your pictures how thick the carve is, but it appears very cleanly executed and classy. The grey one is one of the most original guitars I've seen in a long time; you should really considering entering it in the Guitar of the Month competition (Found pinned in the Announcements section), as it would really give some of the entries a run for their money. Anyway, I'd rather not see Perry Ormsby win again... In all seriousness, though, I really like it. If I were any good at carving, I'd be tempted to do something like it. The only change I'd make is switching that bridge out for a brushed chrome-- or even matching grey-- bridge, and get some matching silver knobs. You've got a great color scheme going for you; why not go all the way with it? On a side note, have you seen the guitars by this guy? I like your stuff better, but if you're into carving on guitars, this guy seems to be where it's at. Anyway, I look forward to seeing more work from you.

I'm really liking this guitar! It's classy, well executed, and will hopefully be a real winner when you get done with it. Is this guitar going to be for you, or your son, when finished? Purely out of curiosity, how old is your son? Anyway, good luck with this guitar. It'll be a keeper.

I'd say the "no wood" contest would probably yield the most interesting results. The cigar box contest has already been done, and a 2x4 contest just limits cost and variety. The no wood contest, on the other hand, will be an excellent way to encourage creative use of products in the creation of a guitar, and will have the most widely varied results. Perhaps we could also add a "no premade parts" rule, to keep things interesting?

Gotta go to Godin's Geetar! It's simple, beautiful, and god know's that's some NICE wood! Props also to Nitefly for the Ghetto-Fab approach, and to Jehle for the cool cutout soundhow.

I really like this bass! As always, it's nice to see another bass around here; especially one that's this well executed. Hopefully I'll be starting a neckthru bass in the not-too-distant future, so I might come back to this thread for tips.

I like it a lot! The only change I would make is the finish. Personally, I'd like to see this guitar done with a black-dyed flame maple top (sorta like this month's GOTM but darker)--gloss, of course--with a gloss black back and sides. Even a matte finish over the dyed flamed maple would look nice; I've just never been able to get into plain flat black guitars. They look too much like they're made of plastic. This design in particular has enough of a classic look to it that it would be wonderfully accented by a maple cap, while a black and possibly matte paint/dye job would keep it suitably metal. Whatever you end up doing, I'm sure the finished product will ! Oh, and shall we assume black hardware?

An all-maple body will certainly give you the brightness you crave, although it might come off as a little harsh. One thing you might want to consider when building this guitar is how you can improve on the design of the guitar to make the new model even more to your dad's liking. Is the neck thick or thin? Wide or skinny? Did he like the finished neck just fine, or would an oil finish work better? What kind of music does your dad play? That alone will make a big difference in your pickup and wood choice. Mahogany will give you a dark, growly rock tone (think Les Paul), while Alder will give you more of a classic strat tone. Maple will be very bright, but will sustain well and cut through the mix. There is also an infinite number of pickup choices, so let your ultimate tonal goal govern that choice as well. As for the pickup position, it's pretty simple. If your scale length is staying the same, just measure the distance from the bridge to the pickup, and you're done. If for some reason you have a different scale length and bridge position, figure out the pickup's distance from the bridge as a fraction of the total scale length on the original guitar, and just use the same fraction with your new scale length on the new guitar. Finally, one of the best things you can do to improve overall sustain and resonance on the guitar is to make sure that all of your wood-to-wood connections, namely the neck pocket, are tight. You may even want to consider going with a neck-through design (blanks are available at www.carvin.com) for incredible playability and sustain. Last, and probably also least, is appearance. If you want a clear finish, it's best to steer away from uglier woods like poplar and, often, alder. Also, if you use multiple woods for your neck, fretboard, and body, make sure they look good together. The other option is a solid color finish, but a quick spin through the finishing section will show you that a professional quality thick finish is harder to achieve than, say, a nice tung oil or Waterlox finish. Above all, have fun with this project. Make this guitar your own. I'm sure your dad will love it regardless of how accurate a reproduction it is of the previous guitar. Anyway, a well-built guitar made from quality parts is likely going to sound far better than a cheap strat knockoff any day, so don't stress the tonal things too much. Part o the fun is finding out what your guitar actually sounds like once you get it all finished!

What about buying some 1/4" brass tube from a hardware or crafts shop in your area? You can also get set screws at a hardware store, and between the two, you should be set. Of course, you could always do without the inserts and drill/tap directly into the wood. Koa and teak should be hard enough to hold a thread, especially with so little stress on it.

Actually, Algee may be onto something. The biggest problem I could foresee with this finish is getting all the detailed patterning to look clean and smooth, rather than rough and blocky. If you were to carve grooves into the top of your guitar and finish in a shiny or even colorshifting paint, you'd get a pretty cool effect. It wouldn't exactly be snakeskin, but it'd be something close!

I like it a lot, and the way you did the upper cutaway is really original. Only problem I can find is that you picture doesn't fit within the 600x600 pixel limit. You might want to fix that before one of the mods does. Just for the record, here are the posting rules: http://projectguitar.ibforums.com/index.ph...showtopic=11235 That said, your build looks to be top quality. I demand more pics!

Welcome! It's always good to get into building early. There's nothing quite like knowing your instrument inside and out because you built it yourself. Any plans for your first build?

Man, I just can't get over how much I like this guitar! It's original but classy, and the job you did on the carve is just top notch. Congrats!

It sounds like you have all the parts for a sweet custom build, if you're up for the challenge. My recommendation? Get a Carvin 6-string Neck Thru blank for $180, grab some mahogany from a lumber place, and build yourself a sick custom! It's pretty cheap as custom guitars go, and you've already got your hardware and electronics... what are you waiting for?

What would also work well to set off that beautiful top is to dye the mahogany black, so you get the defined grain, but a black background to set off the color of the top, whatever it may be. Oh, and don't get rid of that nice maple stripe of faux binding, whatever you decide. And just for the record, I'm really diggin' that lime green...