guitar_ed

Sometimes, as an alternative to clamps, 25lb bags of lead shot are a good alternative. I use 2 or 3 of them at a time to hold my prjects down, it is effective, and faster than clamping & unclamping. Guitar Ed

Try Epiphone Dot Reissue guitars. A Dot Reissue Studio goes for about $350. The neck is straight, and it is reasonably well built. Guitar Ed

Hi Guys, Thanks for the words. I don't want to sound overly optimistic, but so far this is not a very difficult project. It requires patience and some tools and some creativity. But not too difficult. I think that by the time this is over I will have to eat my words, but that is OK with me. Guitar Ed

Hi Guys, I have added some updates recently. My Webpage Guitar Ed

Hi, There is a challege mixing MightyMite body parts with non-MoghtyMite. The heel of the neck is smaller than what you find on Warmoth/MusiKraft/USACG/etc. MM is Fender licensed, but not the same size. I do not know if their bridges are the same or different sizes, just the heel of the neck. Guitar Ed

Hi Guys, I am starting a new building project, this time an acoustic guitar. If you want to see me struggle with this, click Here. Scroll down and click on "My first acoustic". Take care, Guitar Ed

Lighting. Don't forget the lights. Guitar Ed

I don't know how to do it, but fixing a neck without a truss is called "compression" by my luthier. He did that to a Gretsch NYer for me. So he it is possible. Sorry I can't be of more help. Guitar Ed

Hi BB, It seems to me that you are ahead of the game compared to some of the people who come here looking for advice. You appear mature and thoughtful, and willing and able to honestly rate your skill set before just jumping in and wasting time and wood, not mention cuss words. Aside from the book you ordered and the search function on this part of the web site, check out the tutorials in the main part of the site. There is a ton of info there, and links to other sites that contain even more info. One thing to becareful is that building guitars can become addicting, and you can start to acquire a collection of them. Different woods, PUPs, body designs, bridges, etc.... Take care, Guitar ed

Hi, I was just checking out LMII and they have Maple, Koa, and Madagascar Rosewood mounting rings. I had a project a while back that would have been perfect for these...... Guitar Ed

I have built some good ones and some bad ones. Only one have I actually taken apart because I refused to play it. I gave one away because it was butt ugly, but I built it as a prototype guitar, and it proved my point on the electronics. So I gave it to my 6yo nephew who loves it. Guitar ed

Try looking through the tutorials on finishing. Lots of answers there for you. Guitar Ed

My luthier uses double sticky sided tape on the feet for archtops. Too thin to affect tone, and holds the bridge well enough to remove all the strings, as long as you don't do anything violent to the guitar. Guitar Ed

Singles or humbuckers or P90s or something else? Tele or Strat or something else? BTW: I am not a FR expert, so I don't know. But, I would assume (note the word assume) that a FR is Strat spaced, singles and Fender HBs. But that is a guess. Guitar Ed

It will depend in large part on which pickups you are using. Mainly, there is a difference between Gibson and Fender sized humbuckers. Strat sized singles seem to be Strat sized. Guitar Ed

Not only did they make a LP with those frets, but they made an acoustic too. I have a chance to buy one for $300. Needs some work, nothing major. I will probably do it after my other projects this year. Guitar Ed

One of the things that I have been trying to figure out how to do is inlay shell in a straight channel, like jewelery box lid. Sounds simple, but it is a challenge. What I used is: 1) The tiny Dremel router bits from StewMac, PN 1180. And Dremel with Router base. You will also need the 3/16" collet. 2) A strip of purfling, in this case maple, from LMII, PN PF1. The strip is 1mm thick. 3) A 1/16" chisel. In this case from JapanWoodWorker, PN 14.300.015 4) Some 2.5mm wide shell from LMII, in this case the laminate. 5) The Dremel is tapered, not straight. This means that the shell will fit pretty tightly. So what I did is take the Dremel out of the router base and used the same bit to clean up the channel, almost creating a bit of overhang. Adjust the Dremel so that the bit extends only as deep as the shell inlay. Make the first cut using the Dremel. Then make a second cut using two pieces of the purfling as a spacer. In both cases, using a straight edge. Then use the chisel, GENTLY, to knock out the center strip that you don't want. GENTLY. The strip will come out mostly at the same depth as the two side cuts. If you do this gently and slowly, there will be no tear out along the sides of the channel. Take care, Guitar Ed

Hi, Assuming that you are building a Tele, use the standard Tele measurements. They have 50+ years of experience, not theory, behind them, and they work. Guitar Ed

What kind of wood working skills and tools? What have you seen that you like? You can use pretty much anything you want, otherwise. Guitar Ed

Hi All, I just posted some bodies on eBay. Guitar Ed

Hi Syd, 1) The sunburst finish is most likely a part of the poly finish, so probably not. 2) If it isn't, removing the poly will probably still remove bits and pieces of what ever finish/stain is underneath it. Either plan on refinishing the whole thing or don't bother messing with it. Guitar Ed

I am so annoyed. My digital camera crapped out in the beginning of things. So no pix. Argh. Oh well. So today I did both the inlay and the binding. 1) The thin glue actually works better for inlay. It is tedious and time consuming. If you do it once, you will understand why people like Craig Clavin charge so much. Because they are worth it. 2) You will need some kind of sand paper or finger nail file to shape the ends of the inlay as you go around corners along the top and bottom edge. And guess what: A guitar is mostly round, rather than straight. 3) Some kind of a turn table would be nice so that you can work on one side and then the other. As the glue sets, turn the guitar and work on the other side. 4) For the binding, sometimes the thin glue, sometimes the thick. 5) The little notch just above the neck on the Tele is a pain to bind. It took three tries. Had I known, cutting and piecing together would have worked better than doing it in one piece. 6) StewMac sells their B/W/B binding in 54" lengths. One is enough for the top, but 54" is not quite enough for the bottom, if you do the bottom. 7) StewMac sells the abalone strips in 15" portions. You need 4 portions because 45" is not enough. 8) If you get CA outside of the purfling/binding channel, like I do, be prepared to scrape off the tape you used to hold the binding on while it sets. Guitar Ed

Hi All, I am doing some inlay and binding on a solid body that I am building. I have a few notes to share, things that I have learned. BTW: This is not intended as a tutorial. Just notes to work with and things to think about. 1) Cutting the purfling/binding/inlay/rabbet channel. The first thing that I learned is that these are all the same thing. Wood workers outside of the instrument world call it a rabbet. In guitar building, it seems that the channel is called purfling, into which we install the binding and inlay. These are more technical definitions rather than common definitions. StewMac sells a binding router guide that you can use to cut the purfling channel with either a Dremel tool or Foredom tool. I used it on mahogany flat top solid body guitar, and it worked like a champ. Get their carbide tipped bits, and you will be in business. Expect to spend some time setting up depths and distances. 2) Gluing in the inlay. CA or superglue seems be the way to go. It sets pretty quickly and dries clear. The good stuff comes in thicker and thinner mixes. So far, I am finding the thicker a bit better, because it does not squeeze out the way that the thin stuff does. There is also some CA solvent available. This will remove excess from your fingertips, as well from your work area. Just put a bit on a cotton swab (q-tip) and rub for a minute or two. Since I was working with practice stuff, I put some of the solvent on some AbLam from StewMac and there was NO de-lamination of the AbLam. So it would appear that this stuff is safe. As I come across other lessons, I will post them here. Guitar Ed

Hi, The way I do it is: 1) Attach bridge, after making sure that it is in the right place. 2) Drill thru the holes in the bridge. And you really need a drill press to do this right. 3) Drill the counter holes for the ferrules. Guitar Ed

Hi Jay, They are sold/marketed differently, but with the Stewmac version Foredom of the handpiece, they can be used for some of the same jobs, namely as a router or for cutting binding channels. And the Foredom seems to be a much more robust piece of equipment. If I were doing lots of bodies with binding, I would get a Foredom tool. Guitar Ed