woodsman1031

Thanks, and the artwork on that body is awesome!!

Thanks to you Mike for posting the pics, and to everyone else.

This is the exact technique I was talking about!! Do you happen to have any pics?

I have some plexiglass!! Do you make each heel the exact size of your template, and then use the template to route?

How are these projects going? I am a little lost on the woods used, what type of wood is that grey stock? I really like that stuff, I bet it would really pop with an oil finish.

Good save on that chipped slot!!!! I. dont think it will be noticeable

I have mentioned here on another post about never completing a bolt on. I have a neck lying around here that I am going to make a body for. I am going to use this for some practice before using one of my necks. Several years ago there was a tutorial online (probably here) about laying the neck on body and gently clamping it in the correct position. The guy doing this tutorial clamped 1x2 hardwood that was held flush on the 3 sides of the heel. the neck was carefully removed and then the body was routed. This made a perfect pocket, and I really liked the technique. I think this was an awesome idea especially since ALL handmade heels will be a little different from each other. Can someone tell me where this was at? I have searched the forum as well as googled it without success. I would love to hear any techniques you all use to acomplish the same goal. Thanks.

You are going to be measuring from the fretboard side of your nut to the 12th fret, then from the 12th fret to the bridge. It would be good to get a measurment from the bridge with the saddles let out about three quarters of the way and then with them adjusted in about one quarter of the way from the extreme rear. What brand of kit is that? From the top pick on the left side of the pocket there appears to be a ledge about 1/16" or so at the bottom of the pocket. Is this an illusion?, Can you post a pic looking straight down into the pocket without the neck?

I bet that double action rod that ALLPARTS sells would be easier to duplicate, if you had access to a small stick welder or a torch. I dont know if you have seen one or not but it is a rod threaded on either end opposite direction screwed to either end of a flat bar. Its kind of hard to explain, but it is fairly simple. I have used these in 3 or 4 builds and they worked great.

Glad to see you are getting started! What style of guitar are you building? Do you have a way to post a pic of the gap you are talking about?

It looks like a great idea! I wonder if the T nut lost its hardness from the grinding heat. It doesnt have to get red hot for this to happen. Nice tutorial

Jeremy, That is interesting, did you stain the fretboard separate from the neck or both together? I used an oak fingerboard on one of mine as well, but it sure started looking dirty quick with only a oil finish. Stain would have been a big help hiding the "dirty look". What finish did you use on the oak fingerboard? If you did them separately after the board was glued down will you let me know how you kept the stain separate on the 2 pieces? Do you happen to have a pic of it? I have alot of "scrap" oak as well as some mahogany and black walnut that I plan on using to hone the skills before I spend money on some good lumber. I am betting a oak fingerboard would sound good on a piece of that mahogany. I think I will use that combo for my bolt on. Its really cool turning some old wood into a "work of art", if you can call one of my builds a work of art.

Thanks!!!

Mike, I guess if you know what I meant, I called them by the right name. I will look on ebay, what size is common for bolt ons?

Mike, Thanks for the input. 7/8" is what I used and I did use a separate fretboard, but of course it was thinned down quite a bit. I even built one with 3/4" oak with a separate fingerboard. OAK, yeah I know, but I have a habit of trying what everyone says wont work. That red oak I used sounded as bright or brighter than ANY maple neck I have heard. There are alot of things in Lutherie that I wanted to try, but I just didnt. I built a few neck thru's but never a bolt on neck. I tried a few bolt ons, but I just couldnt get it to go. After this neck thru bass I will have to try a bolt on neck guitar. Speaking of a bolt on, can anyone tell me where I can get some threaded ferrules for the neck bolts to put into the heel? Thanks

Hello, I havent been on this site in quite a while, maybe 4 years. I have built a few guitars from scratch, but I am about to build a bass in the next few weeks. I havent even ordered any hardware or bought lumber yet. I make my guitar necks from 7/8" maple, but I am not sure if a 34" scale bass can be that thin or not. Do yall make your fingerboards thicker on basses than you do guitars? I guess I am just wanting to find out from someone with experience with basses as well as guitars what differences I need to know before I buy my lumber. Thanks

That is an AWSOME tutorial!

Rich, I always lam another 3/4" piece on the back for the body. Tommy

Hello, I have a 1x3 that I planned on using on a neck thru project. It is 48" long and has about a 1/4" lift on one end, if its laying on the 3" side. I have never steamed or heated a piece of lumber before. I know that some people do this alot to correct such things. Would yall please give me some suggestions? Thanks Tommy

It sounds OK, it is just really soft. The one I built with a poplar body and neck will dent with just a light fingernail push even after a hardened oil finish. It is also really fuzzy and tears easily when you machine it. I may try it on some wings one day because I really like the purple green and yellow colors on it. I will lacquer it next time though. The different colors is not grain, I actually could not define the grain in the wood. Tommy It sounds OK, it is just really soft. The one I built with a poplar body and neck will dent with just a light fingernail push even after a hardened oil finish. It is also really fuzzy and tears easily when you machine it. I may try it on some wings one day because I really like the purple green and yellow colors on it. I will lacquer it next time though. The different colors is not grain, I actually could not define the grain in the wood. I put a HB in it and it sounded like it was made out of cardboard. I then put a cheapie single in it and it really livened it up alot. I guess poplar is allright, but not in the neck Give it a try! Tommy

I di not mention this in my last post, but I would definatly build another guitar out of oak! I have used nothing but mahogany since but would not mind another oak project. I like the way it smells when you machine it also Go for it use the oak Tommy

I made a neck thru using white oak with mahogany wings for my first guitar. The neck "blank" came from lowes and cost about $6, However I had to search a couple different stores to find one straight enough. It is hard as iron and has alot of pores, I sanded linseed oil in it to fill the pores and it looked great . It is holding together just great after quite a few years it is still straight. I have yet to touch the double action trussrod. I have robbed all the hardware off of it but I can post a picture of it if you want to see it Oak is VERY bright sounding and you will want to use humbuckers. I do not regret using the oak DONT USE POPLAR I tried that one also. Tommy

When you shape your neck, you want to radius the side OPPOSITE of the truss rod channel. Dont ask why I know this

I have used corian to make nuts as well as a bridge on a solid body. Just let the strings hold it tight to the body and "rough" set the intonation by moving it on the body and then "Tweak" it out with needle files after you set the string height. I have heard that Martin uses it Tommy

I dont see a link for the pictures. I would love to see the maple/mahogany lamination