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mpatton

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Everything posted by mpatton

  1. Ha very true, I thought about that after I put the hardware in...might just have to save this hardware for another build
  2. Build is still inching forward...planning on finishing it up over the break. For now here's the initial staining.
  3. Thanks for the input, guys Green was my initial plan for the top and I think that's what I'll probably end up going with. Got some green stain that I'll test out a bit before I make any final decisions. Got the routing finished the other day, the frets hammered in and the hardware's placed in to make sure everything fits. It looks so close that I just want to throw some strings on and see if it works, but there's a lot of little things I need to do before getting to that point (though I guess the frets and nut are all that are really holding me back at this point).
  4. I used a table saw to do the ones on my neck. Ran the edge through the jointer first, then set the fence on the table saw for a about 1/16". A good table saw should get you pretty clean cuts, I just went over mine a bit with a scraper before gluing them up. I also cut my bindings this way, so you can make very thin, straight cuts as long as your sides are parallel.
  5. Got the trem routing done today:
  6. Well I finally picked this up again the other day, starting to do more work again. I like the idea Bryan, definitely would help make the design more unique...unfortunately I feel like it's a bit late to do something like that, would need to rebind and all. I'll keep that in mind for my next build though! After putting in the first two frets I went "Shoot...what about the fret markers?" Doh...so I took out the frets and did my first inlay work, which went about as well as I could hope for. Kitty inspecting the work Shot of the back, still some carving to do but very comfortable already. That's it for now, hoping to finally get going on the pickup and trem routes done soon so I can string it up
  7. Thanks for the reply. Yes, that was my main concern...I certainly wouldn't want the color to fade on me because I was too cheap to get some real dye. I was hoping someone might have some sort of experience with this, but as you say this is a "mystery ink," and I'd be surprised if anyone knew anything about using printer inks on a guitar Guess that means I'll need to pick some colors...any particular dyes you would recommend? I need to make an order from Stewmac soon and might get some of their ColorTone Concentrated stain, though I would be happier if I could find something a bit cheaper.
  8. Just a little update, finally got going on the binding, as you can see still have the other side to do. Also need to decide if I want to do binding on the inside of the horns...I was thinking I might sort of scallop them instead. Binding closeup Also while thinking of what to do about staining the guitar I noticed some printer ink refills sitting around, and wondered how they might work on wood. I experimented a bit on some spare wood, a couple different colors (black sanded back then blue, just plain blue, blue with a bit of yellow). It seemed to work well enough..still deciding on what color to do, but does anyone see any reason why to not use these inks? A couple quick photoshop mockups of color ideas...again I'm lost at the moment on the color, the hardware I've got is black. I kind of like the black, but at the same time would like something colorful to contrast with the red/orange padauk and white maple.
  9. Got the top glued up and sanded flush with the sides. The little black spot is a bit of bark that will be gone once the binding is routed.
  10. Little update. Got the neck glued in, a bit more carving done on the heel. I'm very happy with how comfortable it is to reach the upper frets, much nicer than my old guitar. Not so happy about the maple "accent"...at the time, I thought it would be cool to have something provide a bit of contrast, but now that it's glued up (of course) I think I regret using maple. Maybe ebony or something similar would have looked good, but I think the maple there just looks like some sort of hole in the neck. Maybe it will grow on my once it gets carved a bit more, if not I might end up staining that piece a different color.
  11. Glued a bit of maple on the headstock and roughed out the headstock shape...still need to do some tweaking, not real happy with it yet. Headstock Roughing out heel
  12. Started carving the neck, and routed the neck pocket.
  13. Thanks guys. The padauk's been great to work with, love the color and it's been easy to shape. It does seem to work its way into the figure of the maple when I'm sanding, but I've found that going over the maple with an eraser will clean it up. One other thing about padauk..err, how does one actually say "padauk?" I feel a bit foolish when people ask me what this crazy orange wood is and I stumble around the pronunciation.
  14. Spring break's over, back to work on the guitar. I got most of my parts in, so I can really start making progress. I glued a strip in to the bottom of the truss rod channel, got it to the perfect height. Got the Hot Rod in there with a little silicone, then glued on the fingerboard. Also got the neck to the right taper (still need take one side down a bit more to get the right width, but the taper should be good). Finally, I got the fingerboard sanded down to a 12" radius. Nice and shiny
  15. This may seem like sort of a silly question, but how are you guys applying your Tru-Oil? By hand (literally, meaning fingers, as suggested on bottle), with a brush, cloth, or...? I've just started experimenting with the stuff applying it by hand but I'm not sure that's the best way to do it. It's definitely nice to work with, though, cool to be able to apply indoors and not have to worry about toxic fumes and whatnot
  16. Thanks for your replies Wez, J, and Kenny, I appreciate your input. As it stands the thinnest part of the neck is now 3/16" thick, which seems very thin to me but I have nothing to really compare that to. I will certainly have to be careful with the carve, probably will end up with a different shape than I had originally planned but maybe it will all be for the best! Thanks again.
  17. Anyone have any thoughts on my truss rod issue?
  18. Thanks Bassisgreat, appreciate the response! Got the chambers routed to the right depth: Also finally took the time to get the neck set up for the truss rod route...next time I'll be sure to do that before adding the ears/cutting down the neck. Unfortunately on my last pass I guess I didn't get the depth locked all the way, and it managed to creep a bit deep on me as I did the route. I was shooting for 7/16" deep for the Hot Rod truss rod, but as it stands the slot is at just over 1/2" deep. Is this going to create any problems? Should I lay a strip on the bottom to get it back to the right depth, or will it not be an issue? Thanks
  19. Thanks for the reply, Jon, definitely glad to finally get going on this and put that FB you sent over to good use! The padauk's been great to work with, only complaint is that the vibrant orange dust requires me to be a bit more rigorous in cleaning shop
  20. Got the chambers mostly routed out. Still might clean up the edges some and go a bit deeper to get rid of the holes from the forstner bit...I know it won't be seen once the top's on, but I still like to feel that everything is "complete."
  21. Great looking build, I love the contrast on that fretboard and the top is stunning, keep up the good work!
  22. I did those on a spindle sander, I'll probably have to do the horn contours with rasps/files since I don't think I can get the spindle sander in there.
  23. Thanks for the replies. I was originally thinking of rounding the contours in, but I think the sharp look fits the look of guitar better so I'm planning on keeping them that way.
  24. Thanks for the reply, MexNoob. I'm still working on finalizing the headstock shape, but it will definitely be very different from what is shown on the original sketch. As for wiring, planning on going dual humbuckers, tone & volume knobs and 5 way switch for the pickups. Not much progress since before, but I grabbed some better pictures that should capture the beauty of the wood a bit better. Neck cut (almost) to width Sketched chambers that will be routed Back of guitar
  25. Well I know it's been almost a year since this topic got started, but I finally got started on this project. I changed the shape up a bit since I started this thread, could post the sketches but figured you might want to see the progress instead. Not a ton to see at this point, but should get some good updates in before spring break. I'll try to grab some pictures with a real camera instead of off my phone, doesn't seem to catch the color of the padauk or the figure in the maple. Body shot Neck Neck closeup Gluing up maple top Things are going pretty smoothly so far, but I need to start buying some parts before I can really get going. Once I get a truss rod/bit for routing the channel I can get that nice fretboard glued up then start cutting and shaping the neck. I realize now I should have routed the channel before gluing on the headstock ears...ah well, it's all a learning process. Padauk is a crazy wood to work with, you might not guess from my pictures but it creates the most vibrant orange dust, looks very unnatural to see this glowing orange coating everything I'll keep updating, let me know what you guys think, cheers Mike
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