Daniel Sorbera

Let me add it's good to seal the channel (and a little bit outside, say 1/2") with a quick coat of shellac before using CA as it can seep into endgrain and discolor your wood. This problem is especially bad on acoustics with all that spruce/cedar endgrain exposed.

UPS does not stand for united states postal service. It's not our mail. It's a private company that delivers large packages and an overwhelming number of packages have on problems at all. If even a very small percentage of their packages had issues you'd be hearing about it all the time because of the sheer number of packages delivered. Our mail is USPS and it's usually very very good, IIRC it's considered one of the best in the world for speed and low cost. So like Wes said, thats not a real complaint, it just sounds like you have an issue. You'll probably be happy to know that many of our members here are from Europe and all around the world. I'd say it's a 60/40 split of US and Europe with a few from other cool places. A company is only as good as it's employees and people is people no matter where you live.

USPS handles all of my stewmac deliveries and they generally get here in 2 days, and thats with the cheapest service.

Very nice indeed! I love the design choices (especially that bigsby!).

Ebay is a nice way to get burned. Don't buy wood from someone you don't know on the internet. I think he was suggesting that the people who got my wood might sell it on ebay. I already thought about that and checked out ebay but didn't find anything. EDIT: hmmmm I just realized I have not yet received the padauk fingerboard you sent me Jon. I hope this is not becoming a trend...

^^^^^^^ Thats my favorite guitar of yours, always has been. It's so classic, yet so unique. Perfectly balanced in appearance. Very well done indeed, obviously very well thought out. IIRC you shoot nitro correct? So how is the durability holding up for you after all these years? Sorry, I cant just admire, I have to ask questions and learn something

Yeah the thing about this one is the driver swears he delivered it to my exact address on the 27th at 6:18 PM and left it on the front porch. Only thing is we were all home that day and no one ever saw him or heard a doorbell (and we would have because we were eating dinner from 6:00-6:45 and could see the front door from the table. So best I can figure the driver is crazy and has no idea what he is doing. They had multiple extra drivers at the time to deal with the christmas rush and my usual driver (who is great, which is why I've never had a problem) was temporarily reassigned a bit north of us. So we had some driver who didn't know the area... I guess since it's been so long and they have no leads that they figured the package is gone for good. This is the first time I've ever had a problem with UPS, probably because the driver in my area is usually very good.

I've always loved that piece of "stair step" maple since you first started showing it off years ago. I can't believe you haven't finished that one up yet, that would be #1 on my to do list. Feel free to send it to me any time.... :D

The dealer I purchased the wood from was gilmer, and after working with UPS they decided to just send us new boards very similar to the ones previously ordered free of charge! Very good customer service.

UPS says their records show it was left on my porch at my address at 6:18 PM on the 27th. But I was home at that time, so obviously it got delivered to another front porch at that time. I know I can get my money back for the lost goods, but it was a really nice piece of figured mahogany and high grade spruce top for an acoustic. A bitter loss any way you cut it. I just wish there were more honest people in the world. I've had stuff wrongly delivered to our house before but we always took it over to the rightful owners house (obviously you know who, because the address is on it).

Although I'm sure that has happened before, I don't seriously think you could assume anytime something like this happens, it's from someone who knows you, that is a ridiculous assumption and a very negative outlook on life in general to assume such a thing. Daniel, I'm not trying to tell you what to do, but I'll say this: You are young. This won't be the first time something like this happens, so just look at it as a learning lesson, and not a lesson on how to gracefully accept a loss either. Maybe it will come to that in the end, but use this opportunity to learn what your options really are, you do have some options here. I have read so many posts about UPS losing or breaking goods over the years I have lost count, must be in the hundreds, so although I can't tell you how to proceed from personal experience, if it happened to me today, I would go visit my top 10 favorite guitar/amp forums, go to their search engine, type in 'UPS Lost', and start reading threads. I have read TONS of tips on what to do on these threads. Fortunately, I have not had to deal with it personally, but you will find many many many tips and clues as to how best to proceed from these threads...the information is right there for you, but you will have to invest the time and research, just like learning how to build guitars really. Don't just accept it so easily, and don't get too angry, just approach it calmly and figure that there is no better time than now to learn how to deal with this, because it won't be the last time probably. I really hope you look into it, don't give up, and either get your wood back or get reimbursed somehow. Don't just take UPS' word for it and let it go at that, they do not always have the last word in these matters. Oh I'm not angry, just a bit disappointed. I know I'll get my money back, the problem is I'll never see the wood, and it was a really really pretty piece of figured mahogany.

In case your wondering why there are no progress pictures yet, the wood got stolen for this guitar so I had to order some new stuff. Shouldn't get here till late next week.

[uPS] SO... About that..... wood you ordered... I delivered it already.... [/uPS] [ME] But...but....but..... WHERE IS IT? [/ME] So i ordered some wood back on the 21st of december for a customers acoustic. Around $215 worth and some of it was beautiful figured mahogany that is hard to replace. I called UPS today (because it's been a while) and they said they delivered it back on the 27th. I was all, WHAT THE HECK? So evidently he delivered it to the wrong house (because UPS says they left it on the front porch, but I was home at the time they said it was delivered), and the punk who received it stole it (ie didn't return it to me). So I doubt I'll ever see the wood again, so it's time to order some more... This is the first problem I've ever had with UPS and it's not been pleasant.

+1 I get great results strait off my hand plane with no wiping of acetone. I've done a few cocobolo fingerboards on cocobolo necks that way and they are holding strong two years later.

Like maybe a green that matches the lizard. Exactly what I was thinking.

The inlay looks good. Is that fretboard going to be bound?

The neck is almost done it just needs binding, the tuner holes drilled, and to be carved. Note: the sides of the fingerboard are not trimmed yet, thats why it looks a bit wonky. I really like the headstock design, it goes perfectly with the body. Headstock Body

It's important to realize that during the course of our lives you will lose some of your hearing ability as you get older. This becomes more pronounced once you get over 28 and you really start losing a lot of the high end of the spectrum. Matters get even worse for musicians like us that regularly listen to loud sounds over 99db. There is a test on the internet that plays different tones at increasingly higher hertz. You can then easily see how much hearing damage you've had over the years. I can hear the highest one (don't remember exactly what it was, been a few months since I did it) while my dad can only hear up to about half way up the chart. So while you personally may not be able to hear the difference, that does *not* mean that someone my age can not hear a difference. I can hear a pronounced difference in a blind test, but it's not something that makes such a huge difference that you really need one when playing.

Ha it took me a second to figure that one out. I always read the post and only every once in a while look at who is posting.

PM also sent. Your website is down right now (naturally ), but I want to buy that nice $13 padauk board up a few posts on this page (the top board on the december 21 post). It's going to go on a classical with padauk back/sides and a ceder top

Ahh I thought my uncle was the only person who has christmas as his birthday! Happy B day Marcovis!

Actually if no one else had their hopes set on them I'd be more than grateful to have them, I know someone who plays *very* well who I could give the guitar to that could do it justice. So to play along with this thread, here is my reason, because I'd build the guitar for experience than give it away.

I love everything about Eriks guitar from the limba/ebony to the Myka style control knob area. Very nice design choices on that beautiful guitar. I have no problems losing to that. As Wez said, acoustics just aren't as much eye candy.

Send them to me because I have no clue what they are. Never mind, just looked it up and I don't play classical guitar.

The next one will have a backstrap.