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Posts posted by joej
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extra info ...
That Bruce Weiart guy seems to have a bunch of inlaying going on, and ebays a lot of items.
I've ordered a couple things from him, just to see what the deal is.
He seems on the level -- very decent in email, promptly shipped, concerned that I was pleased with the items, etc.
I'm guessing he gets bulk/cheap materials over there, and the ebay thing is a side business to recoup more money from his efforts.
--joe
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You'll get lots of opinions on this one (and, yes, the tele sounds like a nice/easy introduction into making a guitar) ...let me start:
Simplest/easiest guitar is
- flat, solid body (no carves, bevels, etc.) ... 1 or 2 piece body
- single humbucker / simple wiring with only 1 volume control
- standard scale length
- simple hard-tail bridge
From here on down, the cost start rising ...
Easier?
- buy the body, neck, and parts
- finish the body yourself
- just assemble
Easier?
- buy a finished body
does that sound right, folks?
-- joe
Oh -- go buy the Hiscock book, too. Its worth it for this.
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... and tasty too !
Just kidding -- yew and hemlock are on the wood toxicity list. So, be careful when using them.
-- joe
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I'd used a brass tube, that I filed some serrations into the end, to cut small veneer "circles" -- for fret dots.
I placed them in the fretboard with a ring of the tube (drill, place ring, place veneer, lay down CA thing, level & polish)
It looked OK, but here is what I learned --- VERY interesting woods do not often look very interesting when you only have a small dot of them.
- Zebrawood looked great (try to cut dots so there is a nice dark grain line or two in them)
- Flamed, etc -- not so visible
- etc
...
-- joe
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quick scale/fret summary from my point of view:
1- Vibrating string with 2 end-points = your scale length
That is: nut to bridge saddles
2- Frets are laid out under this string at certain divisions.
Example: 12th fret = 1/2 the length
3- You can have ANY scale length, but remember that strings and human beings are built to work better at certain lengths
Examples: bass scale 30,34 inches with fat strings (hard to chord :-), and guitar lengths are 25, 25.5, 24.75 inches with thin strings (easier to chord), smaller (20" length scale) miniguitars are a PAIN to play and have to be tuned differently than 'normal' guitars
... So ...
Think carefully if you really want a non-standard scale length -- there are lots of factors into why history has settled down to the "normal" scale lengths.
Then, if you really want to -- go for it, but you have to calculate out the frets and make all the pieces (can't guy fretboard, neck, etc from off-the-shelf)
-- joe
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Careful ... I remember some woodworkers forum talking about some bad reactions to monkey pod dust. Make sure to use dust mask, clean up the dust, etc.etc
-- joe
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Why not naval jelly, then cover/protect the metal?
--joe
(or am I missing something here?)
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After watching this thread since the start ... I have 2 comments:
1- Holy moly, this could have degraded into a nasty battle
Kudos to the posters and Pr3Va1L for keeping the whole "we're all friends" concept in mind. THIS is why I like this forum :-)
and
2- Remember the "too many cooks spoil the broth" admonition?
Well -- you all proved that wrong, too. The design looks much better and the contributions are helping, not hindering. This is why I contributed to this forum (and need to again for this year :-)
Any of you get to Boston, I'll buy you a beer.
-- joe
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Sure -- easy for a drummer to say, you got strong arms :-)
I say we meet him at this guy's house, and have a little talk with him together!
-- joe (in boston, ready to go)
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I browsed Warmouth but their necks are very expensive. I only paid $80 for the guitar. I looked at Jemsite and they seem to have inexpensive necks so I will try to keep the price down as this is my first attempt at anything like this. If I screw up I won't be out too much money. The only problem with Jemsite is their isn't very much info on the necks. I will keep looking.
Tony..
Tony --
I was just pointing out the Warmoth site for the info they give. Yes, they're expensive.
Remember, the string path (nut, neck, fretboard, bridge, pickups and their setup) factors VERY strongly in guitar playability. Also, these are the pieces of the guitar that are dealing with the string tension, etc.
So ... I don't think there are any inexpensive necks out there, unless you watch eBay for good deals.
-- joe
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Some folks here can help with places to get decent and decent-priced necks.
Obvious things: (scale length is strat, neck pocket size, # frets, right/left hand)
Lots of other details:
- profile of the neck (fat, skinny, thin, etc. or other profiles: wizard)
- frets (jumbo humps up more, medium or normal is standard, I think)
- Want tuning pegs on that? if so, which make/model/kind?
- inlays are dots or something special
- two-way truss rod? or single action?
- etc.
Hit www.warmoth.com -> guitars -> necks ->strat®
That page lists out all the variables + shows neck profiles + etc.
After the neck is mounted on the guitar -- you still need to have it adjusted/set-up.
The neck adjustment + string height, nut, bridge configuration makes or breaks a guitar -- in my opinion.
-- joe
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Opinions and butt holes? Everyone has one.
Here's mine (opinion that is) ...
1- upper/bass body side looks so much larger/heavier than the bottom/treble side
It feels out of proportion. Its sort-of like the neck-through should shift downward a bit & the top should lose some weight
2- headstock look cramped / string angle break oddly
You may want to shift it "up" ... or widen the headstock a wee bit.
3- I don't know if I like the bottom horn or not.
I think I like it ... but that the line between the horns should sweep more than be a straight line. Maybe. Or, heck, maybe that little horn needs to poke out a bit more :-)
My photoshop skills are lacking ... but here is an example of just shifting the treble side up and the headstock shifted + expanded a bit (below).
-- joe
edit -- wow, my ps skills do suck: ignore the goofs ... I hope you get the general idea, though.
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Few more design notes from my travel guitar forays ...
1- I dislike the micro/mini amps ... they sound bad.
So, if I do stick a preamp/amp inside, then it'll be a MIMF preamp or a real amp circuit (not based on some audio preamp chip that sounds bad)
2- I like full scale, not some 19" neck scale
Playing an Epiphone Pee Wee Les Paul is like having the capo on the 3rd fret all the time. Ugh. I'd rather lose some upper frets by shifting the neck farther into the body than lose scale length.
3- I don't think I'd like headless
eTribe is headless
Neat idea, but I don't like how his tuners are mounted (angle is all wrong). I think more problems get introduced when you try to have the strings terminate at the body/endblock area. I don't know if I want that hassle.
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just a little question: has anyone here made a travel guitar? are the worth making or should I just put up with the few extra kilos?
I think its worth making a small electric travel guitar.
Check out www.etribe.com if you want some free plans & picts.
I'm in the middle of a similar style guitar now (small, mostly hollow, electric travel size).
--joe
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Willy is quirky (DragonMountain) -- but he has always been a straight-up guy.
I've bought parts from him over time.
He moves a LOT of parts/bodies/etc on eBay.
I would trust him -- but I don't know the quality of his guitar bodies.
But for that price ... oh my god. You can barely get decent wood and shaped for near that price (let alone finished).
-- joe
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I found a great tutorial on the web -- but now can't find it.
Anyway, google is your friend:
Uncle Tim shows your how to string your guitar.
eHow also shows how to.
With a trem -- its a bit harder.
No one I know uses ALL the string (wrapped up on the peg) -- except B.B. King does, I think.
I just measure a few inches past the peg, clip it with a wire cutter, then string it up.
I use something like Uncle Tim shows (around, under, then tighten).
-- joe
edit: adding Elixir how-to string link
Ok, I'll first say "Im still a beginner!!" Im sure re-stringing gets better with practice. I've been told that you use the entire string and not clip it, I've been told to just get enough string and clip the rest! Ok, so what's the BEST way?? I broke the 1st string on my Ibanez GRX45, so I restrung it, and of course, the bridge (trem) came way up. I would suspect because of too much string. Would that be the possible cause? -
Has anyone ever found a sitethat sells wooden inlay dots? I am looking for 2 sizes, small ones for the side, and big ones for the front. I had considered getting plug cutters, but therye costly, and dont go small enough. any suggestions? Thanks
For an overly-veneered guitar, I made veneer dots
See picts here
I bought brass tubes -- diameter should be the "dot size" you want.
make some dots from veneer:
Cut a piece off and filed some teeth at the end of that piece; chuck this toothed piece into a drill and cut out some dots with it
(use zebrawood, it looks nice)
work the fretboard:
Use drill bit to drill dots into fretboard; cut off small rings of the brass tube & set into these holes; blob some epoxy and lay the veneer-dots; sand down after dry to level
practics on scrap first - be careful, because its easy to sand THROUGH the veneer dot. You'll get the "how deep the hole, how tall the ring, how much fill before veneer dot lays on, and how much epoxy to lay on top to sand down"
-- joe
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I (and others) tend to read through the forums for a while ... to get a sense of what is posted, what has been answered, etc. When it comes time for a question, we read through the recent posts and search the forums for similar postings. Once we form some idea (or simply are more informed) -- we post.
This exact same postingwas put up very recently.
Same pic ... same question ...
It'd be funny or ironic --- if we hadn't just seen 3 postings like this: new people, not researching, just asking. Oh well.
Side note: this finish is similar to the "voodoo" .. You may want to search for 'voodoo' type finishing. Its the same thing (contrasting color pore/grain sealer over a stained wood).
-- joe
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Scale length = the length of the vibrating string from endpoint to endpoint.
So ... from nut to bridge, with the 12th fret in the middle.
Scale lengths are "standardized" at lengths with 24 3/4 (Gibson) .... 25 ... 25 1/2 (Fender) ... 26 ... 30 ... 34 (guitars, basses, etc.)
Scale length impacts sounds (longer = more ringing?) and playability (shorter length = less tension for easier fingering, etc.)
See some info: http://www.stewmac.com/FretCalculator/
-- joe
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Side note ...
There is some Brazilian shaping some interesting and fine looking bodies from local woods -- and selling them on eBay. You may want to email/connect with them to see what issues/solutions they had in bringing their wood to eBay.
Also, look at those bodies -- they have some nice wood combinations (imbuya tops, etc.) The user is 'guitar_exotic_woods' or search for 'brasilian' in guitar/parts/bodies
-- joe
these past weeks we've been looking for wood and we've come to find that there is a whole lot of awsome wood around here! (i'm in brazil, btw)
i tend to think i wouldn't be suitable as a one-piece body, but how about a top/back? i actually thought of selling this wood over the internet, but the legal hassle wouldn't be worth it
- daniel
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However his teacher took a measurement from a Squier bass body for the pocket and it is too deep, after sanding etc we are left with about 18mm which sets the neck too low so that the strings will sit on the top of the pickups.
background note ...
I've only had 1 pocket too deep on an electric (by a wee bit), to which I worried about: (1) getting the neck back up to the right height, and (2) ensuring the connection between the neck + body would be good for vibration transfer.
So, I laminated a contrasting wood to the "bottom" of the neck -- (i.e., ebony faceplate veneer). I shaped this to match the curve of the back/bottom of the neck & pocket profile. So, it looked like it was meant to be that way.
The surfaces were mated well, clamped/glued well. The neck was a bolt/insert mechanical connection, so I was less worried about vibration transfer loss.
my thoughts ...
18 mm seems like a lot to me ... so you may have to consider a couple approaches in concert (lower pickups a bit, raise pocket with shim, etc.)
Hopefully, someone more experienced may point you at some concerns I'm missing (weakness due to depth? etc.)
--joe
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I was given 8 boards, averaging 6ft in length some longer some slightly shorter, and it's all at least 6 inches wide and 1 1/4 inches thick. They guy that gave them to me, said it was African Mahogany......The thing is it looks nothing like the Mahogany I already had. It's a dark brown, has some red tint in it, even some goldish brown in it. I looked on a couple of sites, and it kinda resemble a rosewood, maybe even cocobola(spelling?!?).I just trying to find out what kind it is, and if it's suitable for making a fretboard out of. Just kinda trying to save on cost a little bit. Not cutting corners or anything just trying to find out if I can actually use this stuff or if I should just shell out some bucks and buy some more wood. I don't have a way of posting any picts, which probably doesn't help much. But if I can come up with a digital camera I'll get some up. Thanks in advance.
Lizard_King
Cocobolos and other rosewoods have variegated (sp?) grain patterns.
If this is a smooth, pretty even colored wood ... then it ain't cocobolo.
Santos Mahogany smells very nice/fragrant when you cut it. I like this wood.
Post a pic ... we'll ID it for you, if we can.
-- joe
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Gilmer is way nice but it's too expensive, he recently upped the prices too. I was about to get a mahogany blank that he always had for $65 and he is asking 125, and the ash piece that he is selling for $82
(1 7/8"x11"x48"), is tooo expensive, I just paid $40 for a 2"x8"x96" localy.
in Boston = Anderson-McQuaid
Any lumber yard should be able to get you wood you want, and cut/join up pieces for a small fee.
Rockler carries body blanks now (in Boston area).
-- joe
Endgrain To Endgrain Gluing
in Solidbody Guitar and Bass Chat
Posted
Ditto on what they said -- endgrain to endgrain is the weakest joint.
Biscuit joint is, dowel it, or do some kind of spline so that there is long grain to long grain gluing. Else ... the joint will fail.
-- joe