orgmorg

So, what if i do it like this: This is using a LP style toggle switch, with the lead for the bridge pickup going to the middle lug of the tone pot. Am I right in thinking that this would make the tone control work only (or at least mostly) on the bridge PU? If so, I think that is the way to go, since who really needs a tone control on the neck pickup anyway? And this way I could use the 500k pots and if that makes the neck PU too bright, it can be toned down independently. Or am I missing something?

OK, I'm liking borge's resistor and capacitor filter idea best; I assume that runs between the bridge PU hot lead and ground? What resistor/capacitor values would be a good starting point?

If you had a Tele bridge pickup and a P90 in the neck position, and were otherwise wiring the guitar like a tele (3 way switch, 1 vol, 1 tone,) would you use 500k or 250k pots? I usually use 500k for P90s, but wonder if that would be too much for the tele PU.

I like the look, and I really don't care much for gold hardware, or even gold-top guitars. Cool.

That is one of the coolest things I have seen in a while. Did you make a plaster mold to form the bamboo mat in?

Different genre, musically, but no less fabulous. And certainly some Birch influence going on?

LOL but I was referring to the guitarist as much as the guitar.

Re: the Dave Hill pics; Wow, it just does not get much more glam than that!

Raga- no worries, and I apologise if I upset you. I was venting too, but more about feeling the effects of getting older. But there are some valid points here- If you are going to be "thinking outside the box" like this, and presenting designs that are rather different than folks are accustomed to (which is not a bad thing at all) you are going to encounter this kind of backlash. Finding a graceful way of handling that will help you reach that niche market you are seeking. It takes just as much practice as building the darn things, and is not always as fun. Good luck

So, was this one formerly owned by Pete Townshend?

Makes my hand cramp up just thinking about it.

Thanks all! Glad you enjoy them!

This may not be what you are looking for, but it has a lot of technical info on a lot of different kinds of woods: http://www.fpl.fs.fed.us/documnts/fplgtr/f.../chapter_05.pdf

John, a board will cup that way if it takes up moisture and expands, but when it dries/shrinks, it goes the other way. That's why you are right to do that for a deck, but a guitar is more likely to get too dry than too moist. I'm not quite an old timer yet, but I have watched many hundreds of boards dry ( I know, I need to get a life. .) The only possible difference in the sound I can think of (and it's a stretch) is that the sound waves would radiate differently from the face of the body, due to the difference in density between the summer and winter wood, in a convex vs. concave pattern; and that would only be detectible (if at all) acoustically and have no bearing on what the pickups "hear" But like you say, appearance is usually the best thing to go by.

Keep in mind that as a piece of flatsawn wood dries, it cups in a way that make it seem as though the rings are straightening out. I usually try to keep the "bark side" of the wood to the back of the body, so that if it ever got too dry and started cupping, the face of the guitar would be convex, rather than concave. Hopefully this never will happen, but it is a bigger issue on a one piece body than on a multiple piece one, where you can alternate the ring orientation.

Actually, I think Bill Jehle has used silverware on some of his cigar box builds.

Thanks! They are great tuners, but don't tighten the locking screws any more than it takes to keep the strings from moving (doesn't take much either) or you will end up with broken strings.

And that's who it was! Cool.

I remember someone doing something like that with small screws and ball ends from strings.

Hopefully I can get this posted before the sunspots flare up again. Finished this one up a little while ago. The body is built up from four sections of 2x4 maple rafters from an old barn. The pickguard is hammered aluminum, and as you can see, I need to modify it a bit to get the pickups better in line with the strings. Not sure how that happened, but shouldn't be too hard to fix. I did the "sunburst" shading with a propane torch, which really works nice on maple. Had to go back and fill the gaps where the glue joints started opening up, but I didn't want it to look seamless anyway. Hipshot grip-lok tuners, and headstock veneer sliced off another section of rafter. The neck is soft maple, with a persimmon fretboard. Hipshot trem, which took a bit of futzing to get right, as it's the first time I've use a fulcrum unit. I recessed it a little bit, and I need to go back and darken up the recess.

Will do. And I am still logged in! Must have been sunspots or something.

Well waddaya know? It worked! Woohoo!

Hi folks, just want to see if I can get a post thru without getting logged out before I finish typing. I live out in the boondocks, and have satellite internet thru a lousy provider. For many many months I haven't been able to stay logged in here or on any other forum long enough to post anything, but today it seems to be working for some reason, so I got brave and figured I'd give it a shot.

Thanks a bunch all! Wez- It does kinda look like PRS faux binding doesn't it? It's really just the way I routed the edges of the painted wood, but maybe that's how they do it too? And yes, I am really liking the color a lot, myself. Definitely gonna do more. Geo- no finish on the black locust. It's one of the hardest woods in the US. It has a somewhat open pored grain, though, so it will collect some grime.

Really like that finish!