Mr Natural

its Titan brand- I am not sure they make these anymore though. I looked on their website and didnt find laser levels of any kind. I have a 15 piece -there is a 7 piece on various websites for around $50 or so. Mine I think was more like (?) $200 I think. There are "heads" (prisms) that you can put in the end where the laser comes out. Those heads change the beam. this is the best picture I could find- click on the link- in the picture- you can see the heads in the lower left corner- those pop into the end of the laser level. it looks like the 7 piece includes a flat beam and 90 degree bent beam- so- no telling if that flat beam is thick or thin- if you can find that 15 piece- that is the one I have https://www.rakuten.com/prod/titan-tit15000-7-pcs-laser-level-kit/212939725.html

these may be a better comparison- even though you cant see the ruler face- thin first- thick second- laser is at 3 feet away for both.

my apologies for both the delay in posting and the quality of these pics. The thick beam first - the laser is approximately 6 feet from the ruler- I had a really hard time getting pics to come out- I actually ended up taking these with my phone as the dSLR wasnt having it without flash and that of course wiped out the laser That beam is approximately 4/32" or 3.175mm The thin beam next- the laser is approx 2 feet from the ruler here. That beam is a hair over 2/32 so maybe 1.75mm would be my guess.

Mt. FUJI!!!!!!!!

helps to read-(for me) and not work and check in on the group I obviously cant multitask very well. not this week anyway. I zeroed in on the p-90s comment- as in- RADs p-90s-(I did get that part right right?)and then took the sentence where you call out John's handle as meaning- you swore not john swore (the whole time thinking you meant to say Rad- Confused? I am. My 5 functioning brain cells may be a bit drained already this week. PS- cancelled that day of vacation again Scott- Asheville will have to hold off another week. Work. Work Work.

did you mean to say RAD there gramps?

I see your trip was successful. Congrats DADDY!

Welcome back RAD. I took a few years off as well. there are a few old timers popping back in now and again- good to see you back.

digging the colors on that cocobolo fingerboard.

I realize I am late commenting here but that orange is seriously bad ass.

@Ethereal Guitars- its a Titan brand laser. I tried looking it up online- I am not sure Titan makes these anymore- its a self leveling laser that looks like a bar level and comes with a tripod and mounting guide. I found a couple of 7piece Titan level kits online (ebay, aftermarket shops)-for approx $50 usd, but mine is 15 piece and I want to say it was more like $200. I have had it for at least (?) 20 years, possibly more after looking at your pic above- I am not sure what I am calling my "thin" line is much different than yours. The "thin line" head doesnt project well past about five feet- and what I am calling "thick line" is the head that appears to be for further distances from the level. I will take a photo in the next day or two and post to show you what I am talking about.

I simply use the laser line to align to the center line drawn on the body (which is clamped down), and once that is done its simply a matter of lining up the neck- and I have a white center line drawn on the fretboard-and two free hands to maneuver and clamp with. My laser has a couple of "heads" that allow for thin line, thick line and spot Once the laser light is lined up on the center line-its a cake walk- and I would say its more accurate than without it. you can immediately tell when you are off center using the laser.

+1 on the laser line up. I cant remember where I first saw a laser being used for neck alignment- either this site or maybe youtube- but i have used it ever since- so quick- frees up your hands and more importantly gets over the "landscape/elevation" issues - the light travels over the body and a raised neck/ fretboard- you can move and line up the neck vs having to hover over the neck/body move strings or rulers or what have you- so much easier. This is shaping up nicely. what type of bridge will you be using on this?

looks like something is up with the site- just fyi- a bunch of peoples avatars are missing. at least as of 10:39pm EST

bummer about the set backs- but the good news is you will remember it next time! and your repair skills have some experience in the bag now too! I feel your pain on those frets- as I did the exact same thing many moons ago trying to fix up a pawn shop find cheapo import strat. It did not fair well. Its pretty bad when the guitar ends up in worse shape than when you bought it to fix it up.

but like left overs you turn into a meal, I used whatever I had laying around. steel/aluminum/skateboard bearings would have required a purchase on my part. I like going ghetto.

congrats Andy!

so its finally been remotely cool enough (below 90 degrees F) around here to where I ventured out to the garage to try and finish up the last couple items on this project. the wife started up with honey dos before I could get far- but- at least I got something done this weekend on it. I didnt have any pre-made saddles, so instead of ordering one- just made one. start off by measuring width of saddle slot- incase it grew any while cutting it. (the whitish stuff you see on the edge of the slot (and all over the body and bridge) is wax) I havent buffed it yet) i often use corian as saddle and nut material (this one will get a cocobolo nut though)- for saddles I start off with the large size freebie sample of "white jasmine" from local home depot. cut off a length I have never been able to sand these things flat by hand- typically pressure is uneven- they sell a nice tool at stew mac but I am not sure I would get my value out of it- so I rig up a thicknessing jig on my drill with a drum sander. first I make sure the cut corian is thicker than I need then I push it thru my "jig". While this does not get the blank perfectly flat. it gets it close enough to where 10 strokes or so on 80 grit paper that is laid out against a flat surface will take out any bumps- and you can dial in the thickness with 250 grit while polishing it at the same time. In the pic below- the block of wood clamped to the fence keeps the blank tight against the table- I use the walnut block with holes in it to push the saddle thru- and the black mark on the top of the blank shows me the length of the saddle slot (plus some extra to round the ends)

now that you say that- I see it. and now that I see it- there is a fitting name. "Mithrandir" and if any of you get that without looking it up you are as big a Tolkein dork as I am.

the smiley thigh gap Ahole. Nice.

congrats on GOTM

you had me at Alembic

Luis- I hope that last sentence doesnt mean you will be bailing from guitar building all together. You are too talented and I hope all this means is that worst case- it just takes you a lot longer to finish one vs stopping all together. either way- glad you found a job and wish the best for you.

welcome to the group. If anything is on that wood-paint/glue/whatever- the dye/stain wont soak in properly. You will need to sand it until all paint/varnish/whatever is completely gone. The good news is maple doesnt have extremely deep pores- so a session of 80 grit ought to get that gone in no time- then you can go thru your other grits to finish sand. when you are sanding with the 80 grit-when you think you are done - clean the dust off- lightly dampen the body and look (at an angle) and move the body around under a light source and make sure you have gotten it all. dampening the body may help you see better. You may have this topic moved to another section of the site (finishing) by the admins- so dont be alarmed.

Bravo Andy- great job.