johnsilver

I'm getting started on a 7 string for my son. He already has a 7 string (Cort Viva 7), so we are making design adjustments for the new build based on some of the general specs he likes / dislikes about his existing guitar. He would like some additional width at the nut because he feels a little cramped there on his existing guitar. I can do that of course when laying out the neck taper, but I'm unsure how much additional width is reasonable since I'm not a player. My gut tells me that small changes will make a big difference in feel. So, is 1/16" or 1.6mm additional width enough, or too much? I know it is subjective but I'm looking for general guidance from you builders and players. Many thanks.

Exactly. I like my new calipers.

I just got a shipment from Grizzly. One cool thing is a digital caliper that reads in either millimeters, decimal inches or fractional inches e.g. 3/4". It really works. Hopefully, this will replace multiple calipers I use. caliper I also got a heat gun. It has two fan speeds and variable temperature so I'm hoping it will be versatile for things like softening binding, removing finishes or annoying the cat. At least I'll feel more manly than using my wife's hair dryer. heat gun Just for grins, I bought a cheap pneumatic nailer. My thought was to use it for light and occasional use for making jigs, etc. Not sure how long it will last. Maybe its like buying computer printers - they sell decent ones cheap and make the money selling brads / staples. nailer / stapler Its good to get new stuff.

Looks like I'm starting to get quite an extended family. Thanks guys. My youngest son is starting to get anxious for me to get going on his guitar, which will be a PRS-ish single cut 7 string. I have everything I need and the body blank is glued up. But I decided to invest the time to make some jigs so it delayed progress on the actual axe. Maybe I'll work on the jigs this weekend. I'm getting the itch to make some sawdust...

Are there inlays in the ebony? The reason I ask is that if you inlaid anything and had to use any filler (ebony dust and CA for example) for small gaps (like I had to), it will shine differently from the ebony if you go too high on the sanding grit and be much more obvious. I found this out from experience. So, I sand ebony to no more than 400 grit if it has inlay.

That plank is 25 board feet or about $3.84 per board foot, which is a good price. My main source of mahogany is Houston Hardwoods. They sell African mahogany for $4.65 / bf and Honduran mahogany for $8.20 / bf if you select the piece yourself. Its cheaper if you let them select it for you, but not sure anyone building guitars would let them do that.

Angus, Setch from this forum has a great tutorial on building a LP. Just search in the In Progress section under his name and you will find it. He also has a useful website you can find in his profile or signature.

+1

Hyunsu, its good to hear from you again. Great fire, and a good idea for my stack of failed necks.

Thats sweet.

The StewMac 18" hot rod with the 1/8" allen end is 17" from the outside ends of the two brass blocks. I used Hot Rods in the SG and LP I built - both 24.75 scales. No problems with length. You should be careful with depth though especially on an SG style if you are planning a thin taper neck. I carved my first attempt through to the truss rod route just around the nut. I'm now using the LMI truss rods which are 1/16" thinner. LMI's 18" rod is also 17" from end block to end block.

Congrats to all. I like something in every one of them, and everything in some of them. I found Skelf's bass most pleasing. Not sure why, but its an aesthetic thing. Just warmed me up when I looked at it.

I love em both. That Dragonfly is FANTASTIC. Good luck on the move, and be safe. Looking forward to the first of the West Coast Mykas.

++1 I was going to finish up my thicknessing jig this weekend, but now I see I have more work to do..... Suuuhhhhweeeeeetttt!!! Thanks Mattia.

+1

David, PM sent.

Sweet find Southpa. Opens up a whole new realm of possibiliities when my wife drags me to flea markets.

Duco Cement is ok. Don't know if you can get it where you are or not. A hobby or model shop may have it. I use cyanoacrylate glue (CA = superglue). I'll bet you can find that. The tiny tubes are uneconomical so try to find the 2oz bottles.

I'll take that as a good sign. Thanks Perry. Hmmm.... i'll reword it... I wouldn't waste any time thinking about it, id throw it away and replace it with something better. I dont think it looks like meranti either. Gosh, you'd think I'd understand Aussie-speak better after living there for almost 4 years. Oh well, I'll see what kind of sawdust it makes then relegate it to the "maybe I'll make something of this someday" stack.

At the risk of incurring derision, I'll try to be responsive to the originator's post. How about Blondie, or Baby or Baby G (the latter obviously in reference to that nice bridge). Although I like and / or am disturbed where this thread was going with references to girl friends or mothers. BTW, nice axe.

I'll take that as a good sign. Thanks Perry. Mattia, I'm not sure about anything with this piece of wood. It seems to look more similar to meranti than merbau based on the links below. I haven't tried to convert my lbs/board foot to kg/cubic meter yet. He he. Meranti Merbau

I looked it up and found similar info. The "mahogany" reference is clearly a misnomer. There isn't anything about this wood that reminds me of mahogany (except it has open pores) so not sure how it got that reference. Its harder and more dense than mahogany and a little brittle - seems more like ebony than mahogany, which is why I was thinking about a fretboard. Mattia, you're right, I'll just need to play around with it a bit. I'm not sure how it machines, so that may be the first test.

My father had a plank of wood in his shop for many years. I recall him referring to it as meranti. I looked it up and that seems to be right - dark red meranti with dark red and brown coloration. The wood feels very hard, is very heavy and appears to be brittle. It has open pores. I had to cut off a piece to get it to fit in the trunk of my car - it crosscut fine with a handsaw. The whole plank appears to be quartersawn. The plank is about 4' x 1' x 1". Any one have experience with this wood? I'm thinking about fretboards or neck lamination. Thanks.

Last weekend we went to visit my son and his wife. I delivered the completed LP to him then. It was really great for me to hear the guitar I made come alive in his hands. Here is a pic of the guitar as it was intended to be. My son's rig is a Line 6 Flextone II head into a Sunn quad cabinet. He got some great sounds from that with the Paul. Some really good rock tones. He tried to dial in a Slash-like tone, felt he got close. In any event, it was fun. I forgot to get a strap for him so we went to a local music shop to get one. What I found out is that if you pay enough for a strap, they throw in a used Fender Blues Junior amp for free. While we were in the music shop, a guy brought in the Blues Junior to trade. It was immaculate. As an older model, it had a Fender USA Celestion speaker. My son plugged in a Strat and gave it a test drive. Sounded good. Reverb didn't work so the dealer changed out the reverb pan and it worked great. We negotiated and got a good deal I think. The little Blues Junior will give a nice change to his current rig. I don't know much about them but it seemed to have a nice tone to play around with. Sounded good with the Paul, and really good with his old Tele. OK. Now to get started on with the PRS SC 7 for my youngest son. I have all the wood and the parts except the pups. Ready to get started with laying out the design. But first, off to the garage to build a thicknessing jig for use with my router.