avengers63

I haven't done much of anything lately. I've been a bit distracted. Ya see, I gots me one of these....

wow *sigh*

Now if only I could convince you to break out your pickup winder.....

Me too. I anticipate it being quite different. One can see how the grain on the lattice going at a 45 degree angle to the top in both directions would make the top stiff as hell. But it's still all pretty thin. And then there's the fact that I really don't know how to carve the braces properly.... So who the hell knows. And yes, it IS a 1979 Mercedes 450SL. At least that's the way it's titled.

And this is one reason I haven't been making much progress lately. Re-doing a bedroom, and making my own pine flooring. Pine isn't the best choice b/c it's a bit soft, but it's a bedroom, not a heavy traffic area. And this is where the disposable income went. Re-built Chevy 327, 4-barrel Holly, aluminum intake, reprofiled cam, and a re-built Chevy 4-speed automatic.

Acoustic updates, because ScottR told me I had to..... I honestly don't remember what I posted before and what I didn't. So if this is partial re-hash, oh well. This is the box for the 2nd real guitar for my benefactor. Cherry b/s, spruce top, granadillo & yellowheart lattice inlay. That lattice was a colossal PITA. It took forever to get the layout & spacing right. Then I'm routing 1/16" grooves into 1/8" wood... I was terrified I was gonna fubar it at every turn. Single layer black binding all around Box for my youngest daughter. Bloodwood b/s, spruce top, bloodwood/limba rosette, eventual multi-layer binding. necks for them both cherry/lattice box gets the walnut neck/cherry fretboard bloodwood box gets limba neck/buyana rosewood fretboard w/ block inlays

I haven't checked in for a while. Now it makes sense - y'all were taking my name in vain, and Scott is embarrassing us all again. It was calling out to me to come see.

And I still am Yes, shellac is the only thing that will keep in the oils of rosewoods and prevent them from rising to the surface and eventually becoming black, lifeless, ugly fretboards. You only need 1-2 coats to seal it in. And for other non-finished freboards, I do still like linseed oil. It's not to protect the wood, but to bring out the color. The protection it offers is minimal, and therefore negligible for our purposes. And now, Scott, I have more reason to hate you. I've been wanting to make an electric mandolin for a while. Now that you've done it, nothing I ever do will look any good at all. greasy pile of vajinal discharge

or the fretboard inlay for the Rhythm King

Personally, I prefer the japanese crane theme for my 1st acoustic

That would be this thin, which inspired someone else here to "one-up" me and do the same thing, but 1) more ornately appointed, and 2) in shell inlays.

Good God! You remember that? That was, like, 15 guitars and 8 years ago.

The chisel-carved volute is what makes me all wiggly in my special places.

Thanks! I gotta do this from now on.

Fair enough

Good to know some things haven't changed. 2 years later and I still hate you out of pure jealousy.

So I was routing the headstock for the neck on the lattice guitar yesterday and I blew out BOTH points. I was being uber slow & careful, and they both still blew out. This will be the 3rd neck I'll have bade this guitar. Really pissed.........

A '72-'82 Mercedes 450SL can be had for $10-$15K in great condition. The only drawback is the atrocious fuel economy. But they're built like a tank, and the engine survives like a Honda Civic motor.

The second guitar for by benefactor who fronted me the funds for the acoustic tools should have been done last Summer as well. The back/sides are cherry, cedar neck, spruce top. The woven lattice inlay of yellowheart/granadillo was a major PITA, but well worth it in the end.

Last Summer, I was supposed to make an acoustic with my youngest daughter. As my soon-to-be ex-wife chose to abandon her vows, that clearly wasn't possible. We wanted to do it this past Summer, but it just didn't work out. So before she completely loses interest, I'm making it for her myself. Hopefully, it'll be done for Christmas. If not, her birthday is in February. The back/sides are bloodwood, spruce top, white limba neck. I'm bracing the top with sapele. The rosette is bloodwood/limba.

I also managed to find a new shop mascot. Goofy story, but he chose me. He's a 2 y/o dachshund/chihuahua mix.

I really don't know how much I'll be posting again, but I'm fully operational again! It felt like it took absolutely forever to clean up the overwhelming mess from moving, so i can get get back to making a mess again. 120 linear feet of shelving in the garage alone, re-organization of all the lumber, new tables, casters on a couple of tool tables.... a crapload of storage shelving in the basement and their utilization... unpacking and re-starting my entire life... It's taken a hellofalot of disposable income and time. But I'm in a MUCH better place now. And I can put my uber-cool cat in the garage AND have plenty of work space.

I'm mostly moved into the new place now. Y'all know that the majority of the unpacking takes place in the first week, but the last 5-10% seems to take a year to muddle through. The workshop is another story altogether. I hope to start working on it next week. I still don't have all of the workbenches and shelving over here, and I have no idea WHEN I'll be ale to get them here, so when I can become functional is an unknown.

I'm supposed to be closing on the house Tuesday. Currently, the garage is filled with nearly all of my stuff. The almost-ex-wife is actually being cool about the small / valuable items. Putting it all in the garage in summer with no ventilation while waiting for the house to close....... Bad mojo. I'm on a 10-day vacation starting tomorrow morning, so I'll have all week to get the remainder, move it all into the house, and unpack. The workshop is another story. Obviously getting the house in order is the priority. But there is still a lot that needs to be brought over: workbenches, tables, shelving, small lumber, pegboard, etc. Getting the workshop completely in order is prolly gonna take a year. Getting it usable might be a month or so.

I finally got my own camera because I needed it for the house search. Since I have it..... I'm gonna HAVE to put a pickguard on it to break up the pattern. In other news, here's what my new playroom is gonna be.... It's an oversized 2-car garage that has already been set up to be a workshop. This was the deciding factor that made me go with this house. It's just plain huge - bigger than the garage I'm working in now. Notice the things in the back right corner..... That's 1) a thermostat controlled heater, and 2) a breaker box. The garage has it's own power drop from the pole!!!!! There are 10-12 outlets (i don't remember), and they EACH have their own line from the box. NO OVERLOADED CIRCUITS EVER. And since it was built to be a workshop, of COURSE it already has 6 light ballasts hung. All I'm gonna need to do is insulate it and put up some 1/4" chipboard to hold it in and I'll be set.