dpm99

I can see the subtle differences though. Great job.

Good point, Xanthus. And no, I haven't done that yet. Thanks for your kind words!

Ok guys, I'm sorry. Nicko, I apologize if I offended you. I'll confess I got a little sensitive, and will not offer excuses for it. Mickguard, I will be the first to say that my design, as a design, absolutely does not need to exist. It is far inferior to anything Fender, Gibson, PRS, ESP, Schechter, Dean, and a number of others have ever produced. I wouldn't even think of putting it up against a good strat copy, like a Yamaha Pacifica. The only reason it should exist, and I believe this is significant, is that if it did not, I'd never learn enough to build something someday that's really good. And I'd like to do that. Nicko, the large body was intentional. Of all my guitars, my favorite is a Taylor T5 (believe it or not), and it has a huge body. I just like big bodies. I'm not sure why. That's well said. It makes me think of how Led Zeppelin got their name.

Let's look at these three responses in context. The first two are pushing me more toward a strat-style body, and the third is pushing me away from it. Mickguard is right when he says I was pushed from my original design. I was also honest in saying that I prefer this one for my first build. If I'd built the Kawai-style body, and brought it into church to play, everyone would think the odd shape resulted from a lack of skill, rather than design. Also, as I said before, I know it's not entirely original. However, combining a strat and PRS isn't entirely unoriginal. I really think that trying to make a truly original guitar for my first build would be a bad idea. On the other hand, I don't want to just copy a Jazzmaster, because I'll have more satisfaction from building something of my own. Mickguard, to say my design shouldn't even exist....that's a little harsh, don't you think? You make a good point, but I'm just trying to learn here. I really believe the best way to make a great guitar is to make ten or twenty lousy guitars and learn as you go. Are you suggesting I should throw it all away and start over, or just not post it here? I don't think you mean either, but it felt that way when I read it. Sorry if I sound emotional, but I find it more productive than flaming. Seriously, thanks to all of you for caring enough to try to help. But I'm done with design. I only linked to this thread in the other for reference purposes. I'll design something else for my next build. This one is in construction. -Dave

After three months of research and planning, and after much encouragement and, truth be told, hand-holding by the people here I began cutting for my first build today. The body shape was developed in this thread: http://projectguitar.ibforums.com/index.php?showtopic=36245 EDIT: I just put that link there for reference. Let the thread die. It's a one-piece African mahogany body, and a one-piece African mahogany bolt-on neck. Currently, the plan is to have a floyd bridge and LP-style wiring with ceramic humbuckers. I've been planning on carving the top, but today I thought I heard it ask me for a pickguard. Yes, my wood has begun to talk to me. It seems to be a side-effect of the project. Without further adieu, here's some pictures! Obviously, the neck hasn't seen much progress. But the body template is finished. Ok, so it's not totally finished. I need to work out a couple of details on the neck pocket, so I've left some extra wood there, operating on the principle that you can always take away more wood, but you can never put it back again. Speaking of that, I still need to get rid of some wood in the cutaway of the body, but most of the rough cut is done. I just couldn't get the band saw to reach in there. See how the wood is gorgeous on the left side and pretty homely on the right side? That's why I think it wants a pickguard, but I'd love to do a carved top. Fortunately, I've got a couple of weeks before I'll have to decide. Hope you like it. If not, don't tell me. It's my first try, after all! -Dave P.S. Much thanks to jmrentis, who has not only helped me on these forums, but even met me at the woodworking shop and helped me get the right tools. This project will be cut with his old plunge router!

Yeah, I found the CF rods thread. I'm going to order some right now. Thanks for the help!

I think you want a kit! That's actually not a bad idea at all. I would recommend this one to you: http://www.universaljems.com/cart/ht10/ht10.htm If you go to projectguitar.com (home page) and click on supplies, then click on the "Brian Calvert Music" banner, you can find it under "HT-10." You'd have to wait a minimum of 2-4 weeks for it though, and you'd be working with a basswood body. In the same section, there are a number of other suppliers from whom you can buy a guitar kit. You can always add custom pickups and hardware too. Also, if you trying to chase the perfect tone, let me give you just a word of advice. You may already know this, but I throw it out there anyway. Before you worry about wood, spend your money on a great amp, great effects, and great pickups (not to mention great strings). Wood will be secondary to all those things. And most importantly, your real sound isn't in your instrument. It's in your fingers. Good luck, -Dave

Well, I already bought my neck wood, but I may contact you about your old router in a few weeks if I decide I need one. Thanks. I found a piece of 5/4 African mahogany that was pretty close to quarter-sawn, and had them cut 32" of it for me. It's about 5.25" wide, so I was thinking I could cut it in three pieces of about 1.5" each and glue them together, or go Fender-style and just leave it as one piece (except for the scarf neck I'm planning on). Hiscock's book illustrated a laminated neck that's 2.25" thick, but I see no reason 1.5" wouldn't work. What would be the recommended course of action, in this case? I realize that mahogany probably isn't as strong as hard maple, so I'm sure that's an influencing factor. And if I need to go buy more neck wood, I can always go tomorrow before band practice. (EDIT: Why do I have the feeling someone is going to mention Carbon Fiber Rods? Jason, is there a place to buy those in San Diego?) I also broke down and bought a band saw today. They had one of the 9" Ryobi ones at Home Depot that had been used once or twice, so it was marked down to $75. I also bought the $10 warranty, so if I ever have a problem with it, they'll replace it with a new one. Seemed like a good deal to me. So yeah, Saturday it's on. I'm setting up the band saw in the parking lot and seeing how much I can get done before the neighbors start complaining. I'll start a project thread this weekend, and through up some pictures. -Dave

+1 on everything Geo just said... I especially recommend Melvyn Hiscock's book. In it, he says that building a guitar is generally MORE expensive than buying a guitar - not less. However, if you just want a guitar that looks like a PRS, you'll be able to do it much cheaper than buying one, if your dad has enough tools already. That's gonna be a big thing. Here are a couple of links you might like also: http://guitarplansunlimited.com/ (For plans) http://store.guitarfetish.com/ (For keeping cost down) Hope that helps, Dave

Well, thanks to both of you. I'm definitely planning on buying a pre-slotted fretboard. I haven't completely lost my mind...yet. I have a fixed based router. Since my portable workbench has one of those tops consisting of two boards you can spread apart, kind of like this.... http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/images/B0...228013&s=hi ...but cheaper, I'm considering building a sort of insert from two pieces of MDF that would do nothing more than hold my router upside-down. Do you think that would be better than holding the router? I tend to think so. Also, with a 1/4" shaft, will it be long enough to reach all the way to the far side of the body, even with a template? Do I need some kind of extender or something. (I apologize in advance for being so basic here.) Thanks also for the tip on the Titebond. The guy at Rockler said I should go with Titebond III, so that's what I did (and bought it at Home Depot for about 1/3 of the price). I can exchange it. It was just eight bucks anyway. Wow. 12:30. Gotta stop thinking about this guitar and go to bed. -Dave

Ok, today I picked up a portable workbench, six good clamps, a 14" jack plane, a bunch of Titebond III. The other day I got cheap calipers, and a set of files. I've decided I'm going to try and build a neck as well. If I fail, it will be a good learning exercise, and neck wood shouldn't be all that expensive. So as for router bits, I was hoping somebody might help me know exactly what to get. My best guess is to order #3019 from this page: http://www.routerbits.com/cgi-routerbits/s...3759570_1473+47 It's rather expensive, but for a 2" body, that's what I need, right? I guess I'll also need something for routing the cavities. Your specific suggestions are welcome. Anyway, I'm heading to TH&H tomorrow for some neck wood. I'll glue it tomorrow night, and I guess I start cutting this weekend...which for some reason is scary to me. Thanks, Dave

I totally agree about the originality. The first sketch looks like an old Kawai guitar to me. I might make that guitar too eventually. As I've gone through these revisions, the project has changed a great deal. It's not so much a 60's MIJ guitar anymore. All the same, I like it. The problem with the first drawing, I think, is that a lot of people just wouldn't get it. They'd think it looked weird because I couldn't do any better. Since I've got this very modern looking shape now, I'm just gonna run with it. I think I may still incorporate some vintage elements. Not sure yet. But for my first project, the new shape will probably win wider acceptance among my friends and audience. I think I may make one more revision. I want to see what it looks like if I extend the left horn into the waist curve just a little more. Then I'll do a side-by-side and see which I like better. But today is my big final, so it'll have to wait. Thanks, Dave

1. Took 3/4 of an inch off the heal 2. Copied the left waist curve, flipped it and pasted it on the right. 3. Took some weight off the right horn. 3. Rounded a few edges. There are still a few rough curves, like the left cutaway, but they're an easy fix. What do you think? Any other suggestions, or does it look done?

Thanks Greg. I see what you mean. That's an easy fix. Tomorrow I'm gonna see what it looks like when I bring down the waist another inch. As for the size, I kinda like it huge. Also, if the body shape works well, I may make a second one as a semi-hollow body, and the size will be an asset there.

I hope I'm not getting annoying by posting all these revisions. I took your advice, Jason. I tried lowering it on both sides, but it looked kinda messed up. However, when I just lowered one side, I got a result I liked. Here's a side by side, with yesterday's version on the right, and today's version on the left. It looks a lot like a PRS, but the higher waist and the offset horns make it distinct. (How original can you really be with two horns over an ergonomic figure eight?) Thanks again for all the comments. I can't believe how much it's already changed from the first drawing. Every time I make a new revision, I think it's just right. Then somebody points out something I didn't see before, and after the next revision I like it a lot better. It's for that very reason I'm not really trusting myself yet. The first drawing doesn't look nearly as good to me as it did last week. So how is this one? Better? -Dave

Thanks. I'll sketch it out and take a look. Since I'm doing it on graph paper, it's not that hard to make a modification like that. I sort of like the high waist, as it looks kind of acoustic. The solution may be to discard the offset waist, and just lower the left side an inch to match the right. I'll play around with it. I'm in no rush.

Do you think it's ready? You guys have better eyes for this than I do.

Ok, let's call this version 2.0. This is the one I worked on last night. Now that I compare it with the Music Man side by side, they're quite distinct. It's slightly offset, but not as much as the other one was. I've penciled in a pickguard and stuff, but that's all preliminary. What do you think of the body shape? Here it is in a side by side comparison with the Ernie Ball Music Man Silhouette: Sorry for the poor image quality. I don't have a scanner at home.

I agree. I worked on a revision until about 12:30 last night, and now that you say so, it looks exactly like the Silhouette model (my new revision, that it). I think I'm gonna start over. Thanks for the help!

I think you're right about that. I'm working making it look a little thinner. Don't mind that 12th fret. I think I just stuck it on there wrong. I've sort of drawn the bridge in there. I'm not positive how to do this precisely with a TOM yet, so I put 25.5 in the middle of the bridge. It's that thing that looks like a single coil pickup. I think the Jazzmaster is about 14" wide, which is why I've planned kind of wide myself. I think I've fixed it by bringing in the waist to 13" and the horns to just under 11". As for making it a hollow-body, well.... That'd be cool, but I'd be nervous about doing it for my first build. Thanks for the help, guys!

Jason, I can't thank you enough. Today after work I went by TH&H, and they had a beautiful piece of 8/4 African mahogany that was around 16" wide!! They won't cut for you unless it leaves them at least 6' of board, and the board was 8' long exactly. So I had them cut off 22" of it for me and I got out the door with a one piece 22 X 16 slab of mahogany for $28.55. I wasn't necessarily planning on buying wood today, but I couldn't pass that up. It's nowhere near quarter-sawn, but I figure it'll be alright for a body. I took a picture to show it off, since I'm pretty proud of my little piece of wood. In the picture, it looks like it has some cracks. That's just the lighting. The wood has no cracks. Anyway, I'm aware it's not the perfect piece of wood, or the perfect cut, but I think it will be incredible for what I'm doing. And....no jointing, no messy glue. I also talked with my brother today, who will be sending my old jigsaw, random orbital sander, belt sander, and router by Fed Ex Ground next week. It's been a good day. -Dave

Ok, by first try, I mean two versions of a first shape developed from maybe as many as fifty preliminary sketches. It's drawn to scale. One square equals one inch. What do you think? They were inspired by the Jazzmaster. Both are offset body styles. The only difference is that the first one has an extra half inch on the left horn. I've drawn in a Jazzmaster tremolo plate, but I'm considering a Bigsby as well. I also drew in the bridge and pickups. It's supposed to be just a little bit weird looking, ala old MIJs. The idea was to design something that could have come from the sixties or seventies. I don't know if I've been successful or not, but each sketch is getting better. So what do you think? Make a template, or back to the drawing board? Thanks for taking the time to look! First shape (longer horn): Second shape (shorter horn): Thanks again, Dave

What about the side of a pocket? For example, a Tele makes solid contact on the left side of the neck pocket, while some other guitar bodies, particularly those made by Warmoth, just seem to have the base of the pocket hanging out there with nothing around it. Does having more contact on the side of the neck pocket help sustain? Also, is it scary to just have a base for your neck pocket hanging out of the body for a bolt on, from a structural standpoint? Thanks, Dave

Jason, I checked out the website for Rockler. It's right by my work. They look like an awesome store, but mahogany (5-3/4'' width, 1-3/4'' thickness) is $1.43/linear foot. With a body length of almost 20", that's $57.20. Is there a trick to getting it more cheaply? That's the same price as a pre-glued body blank. Todd, you're right about used tools. There's nothing on Craigslist now, but even ebay had some decent stuff. Thanks guys, Dave

Good stuff, guys. Definitely going to put a cabinet scraper on the list. That will be a great tool for me. Todd, I've already emailed a local lumber yard to see if they can help me. That was a great suggestion. Do you think their wood will be sub-par? If I can spend another fifty bucks, and it turns out significantly better as a result, it might be worth it to spend the money. Here's the local lumberyard I emailed: http://www.frosthardwood.com/ Looks like whatever I might get there would be of a good quality. A plane is just so stinking expensive! From the limited research I've done, it looks like an investment of around a hundred bucks. Not a bad investment, but I'd rather spend the money on pickups if possible. If I need a plane, I need a plane. It seems like ought to be able to get by without one for now, but I don't know. zyonsdream, you haven't convinced me to do a hand rubbed finish. Can't I just lay down a tarp on a patch of grass and spray outside? I do live in sunny Southern California.