cwoodall

YES!! I also use the flapper disc like Bluesp..... talks about. They work great on any hardwood. Take your time, don't get real aggressive, watch the angle of your grinder so you don't carve where you don't want to, and have at it. Cheap, effective, and dusty, so wear a mask. Good luck! Curtis

I don't know if this is any help, but it's a good check to make sure you have the right size bit before you mount stuff (I'm real picky about pilot holes and the various materials that I'm drilling). I always try to anticipate what I'm going to be working on well in advance so that when I drive by a Home Depot, or similar, I can run in and pick up a drill bit or two taht I might need. Let's face it, most of the holes we drill into wood, for wood screws, are going to be #2, #4, #6, #8, or #10. The pilot holes, be it for soft hardwood, or hard hardwood, are small, so the price of a fresh bit is usually just a buck or two. A small price to pay to have a smooth project. Believe me, I learned the hard way that the often times seemingly trivial aspects of fitting a piece to your work can be the show stopper. I've barbequed brisket over more than one piece of GOOD project wood..... http://www.boltdepot.com/fastener-informat...-Hole-Size.aspx

That's the way I was thinking, however, it's nice to know that you're not thinking is way out in left field. True, it wouldn't matter which was which as long as you followed suit, at least for each guitar setup. It would only really make a difference, I guess, when it comes to modelling authenticity/duplicating the originals. Thanks for the replys!!

I like to ask the questions that showcase my lack of knowledge in certain areas. I'm comfortable doing this because of my hillbilly ways and lack of self-esteem. Anyway............when winding pickups, there are two choices in winding direction, clockwise and counter-clockwise. Great. Now, which is which? My winder is similar to the Jason Lollar winder (horizontal drive shaft/faceplate perpendicular to drive shaft). If my faceplate is turning away from me, it is going clockwise, however, the wire wraps on the bobbin in a clockwise direction. If my faceplate turns towards me, it is going counter-clockwise, however, the wire winds on the bobbin in a clockwise direction. So, if we say that Fender pickups are wound clockwise, do I need to have my faceplate turning towards me, or away from me? Can someone set the record straight for me??? Thanks!

I understand the benefits of winding your own pickups as far as being able to wind forward, reverse, magnets with the north poles up, north poles down (assuming single coils), etc. I've looked in the archives, have Jason Lollar's book, etc. but seem to have overlooked or just can't find what the standard way to orient the alnico 5 0.1875" dia. x 0.625" long magnets.....north up, or south up? I don't have a strat-style single coil pickup handy to check. I seem to recall seeing or hearing that south was up as a standard. Maybe I'm ate up with it, or more likely, just have my head up, well, you know... Thanks.

I have some on order from SM too. I got the nitro lacquer, the vinyl sealer, some retarder in case I need it down here in the south. 35 psi, eh? I have a SATA Minijet IV that I've never used (or any other spray rig for that matter). Time to live and learn I guess. I heard the Behlen stuff was pretty good, that's why I opted for it. I also got some ColorTone liquid stain (blue) that I'm going to use to tint the nitro until I get a deep but transparent shade. Lemme know if you spray before I do so I can compare notes. Curtis

Yea, and I gues it simplifies one more step in my endeavor to wind my own pickups........no need to wory about those holes, just grab the awl and have at it! (of course the holes for the solder eyelets would be a different story....)

Your help will get me on my way. (BTW, I wired up a set of Texas Specials to it, plugged into a little Marshall MG15DFX and it actually made noise. And that's good seein's how I'm not a player and noise is all I will probably ever be able to make) THANKS! Hope you don't mind if I keep pumpin' you for info. Curtis

THANKS! I was thinking that, but dang-it, I;m about done with this project and everything has gone right. That's just not like me. Thanks again........there may be sound before daybreak....................

OK, Since I don't play, I haven't had much exposure to electric guitars. I am, however, sitting here with a set of Texas Specials in fron of me ready to go in. Am I stupid? (don't answer that) From the outside of the pickguard, doesn't it go like this: 1. Put screw thru pickguard 2. Put rubber tubing on screw 3. Place pickup cover on screw 4. Place pickup on screw and thread on. Don't the screws "self-tap" into the Forbon material of the pickup base? I'm not going to mess these up until I get some kind of response....... Dang! I feel stupid.................... Thanks, sincerely.

One thing I have is plenty of scrap. But all is not lost there either. Ash/maple-smoked brisket ain't half bad, especially at about 3 in the morning. I am still kind of wondering about using the dark (or black) filler first, then going with vinyl sealer to get everything leveled out real good. Then the tinted coats of nitro until the color and depth is right.......time to start doin' it and see what happens. Thanks again.

AlGee, Part of the reason of my post is because I haven't seen one that addresses my question. Is MetalCast compatible with nitrocellulose lacquer? If not, then it won't meet my needs, because I know what the final coats are going to be.....nitrocellulose. It's just the first preps and finishes that I have questions about. I can see where the black epoxy would give the open-end grain the dark contrast I'm looking for. How is it to snad compared with say a dark grain filler like the black ColorTone that StewMac sells? Anybody with similar experience as to what I'm looking for? Thanks

I have my ash strat body sanded to 320. The way the blank s were cut and glued up made for some nice grain pattern (kind of tiger striped). I want to end up with a very shiny blue finish that lets the grain show through, transparent blue I guess you might call it. Will this work? From where I'm at (320 grit sanded), fill with paste filler. Use dark filler to make the alternating grain more definite. Then use sanding sealer or Behlen Vinyl Sealer, as I'm going to use Behlen nitro lacquer later. Get the surface all leveled up with sealer (sanded between coats). Then use Behlen nitro-lacquer tinted with ColorTone blue liquid stain. Sand between each coat and adjust amount of stain to get the desired darkness of blue. Finish up with several coats of nitro-lacquer to build a thickness that will allow for polishing to high gloss (sanding between where applicable). I'm using a SATA Minijet IV spray rig. Does my approach seem plausible? I'm all ears for some good advice/help. Thanks, CUrtis

OK, now I'll spell it right............ Methyl Ethyl Ketone (MEK)

MEK = methy lethyl ketone It's a solvent kind of like acetone, but slower evaporating.

Osage orange...............................They also had quite a selection of osage. It is pretty wood as well. So many woods, so little dinero. I'm still on my first project and I already have project number 11, 12, & 13 in the back of my mind. They had a chunk of ebony, about 3 feet long, basically3" x 4" (it was kinda jagged along 1 side), and weighed about 50 lbs. $150............I'm scared of small chunks of heavy wood.................

OK, lemme set this up a bit. I have a SATA Minijet 3 spray gun and a compressor that has as much dry air as I need. I'm not a spray guru, rattle can, gun, or otherwise, but I can see when something looks wrong and have the patience of Jobe. I want to do an ash Strat body in a deep blue finish. The kind of finish that is somewhat transparent and lets the grain come through. Right now I'm still at bare wood, sanded to about 100-120 grit. I need to be walked through the rest. Sealer, stains/pigments, clear lacquers........If there is a brand for this or that that is clearly a cut above or known for outstanding quality, that's the one I want to use. I'm really wide open and ready to learn the right way, not the quick-get-it-playing way. I'm pretty sure I can get access to anything I need to accomplish this. When I do my first flame maple LP, I want to go into with some degree of confidence in the methodology, the skill, I'm sure, will come at it's own God-given (or not given) pace as long as I know I'm not using the wrong approach. I want a smooooth, hiiigh-glosss, mirrror, deeeeep, finish. Colored, but with the grain. Have at it. I have 1 mouth and 2 ears and prefer to use them in that proportion. Thanks in advance!!

Hi, I was just at my local wood supplier and was rummaging around for lack of something better to do. I know that tradition dictates that fingerboards are generally made out of rosewood or ebony and not without reason. However, I was wondering if anybody uses anything different? I picked up a piece of "Bloodwood" 3/4" x 6" x 22" and brought it home. I ripped it into 2 3" wide pieces, then resawed/planed it into four 1/4" thick pieces. My tools told me it was hard like rosewood/ebony......it has very similar grain pattern, and just seemed very stable. The color, as the name suggests, is a reddish color and not as dark as either rosewood or ebony. I'm guessing this wood developes a nice darker patina over time. Any thoughts? I also looked at some cocobola, wenge, padouk, purpleheart and some very strange visions going on in my head.........(only had 7 Diet Dr. Peppers this morning). Thanks, CUrtis

I'll second that on Houston Hardwoods. I'm just on my first project, but I have been dealing with them for years on other things. I like being able to buy wood locally, where it's had a chance to acclimate itself to the local climate. Nothing like buying a board from Maine or New Hampshire where there is no humidity and unwrapping it here in Houston where it's always 75% and above and watching your wood spring right out of the box! Sounds like a good project going on here. Keep it up! Curtis

Thanks guys, I'll post the file in a bit, I'm still tweaking some things. Lance, measuring with a metal scale is great. I don't plan on using any measurements finer than a 32nd of an inch, because when it come to sawing, sanding, carving, etc, who can really get cloer than that? Heck, I can't can't even see the white space between the 64ths on my drafting scale! So your measurements were precisely what I'm looking for. I'm cutting out the neck this weekend as I go. I'm a firm believer in the fact that you have to prepare yourself to make some BBQ wood along the way. Thanks again and I'll post what I have so far a little later today or tonite. Curtis

Hi, I'm taking all the best things that I can find as far as drawings and plans for a Les Paul double cutaway and making a good, but simple working drawing for my guitar project. Due to domestic circumstances, I'm living at my office, which also houses my shop. My design/CAD stuff is in extremely close proximity to my tools, and that's a good thing. I need some advice on some of the dimensions so I don't have to make false assumptions and possible errors. Here goes: 1) I don't play guitar, at least not enough to know which end of the racket the handle grip is on. On my drawing, am I OK using 3/32" (0.09375") for the string height (between the fret board and string? 2) I plan on using a TOM bridge so, the distance between my top and string at the bridge is 0.421" plus 0.078"-0.098" for the thumbwheel, so if I use 1/2" (0.500"), I should be OK, huh? OK, that's just for starters, I don't want to make anybody bored. It'd be nice if someone would look at my drawing file (.dxf or .pdf) as I go and head me off at the pass before I make a wrong turn. I'd be happy do any CAD stuff for anybody in return. Thanks! Curtis

ooten2, Houston Hardwoods is it. They have a lot of stuff for a small place. If you need anything done like putting a straight edge on one side or planing, etc, they can usually do it right then while you wait. A good bunch of guys they are. They are over off of Hwy 290 and 34th St. I'm just off of Hwy 290 and Barker-Cypress. Good to see a fellow Texan that has this sickness too!

There's a lot of good wood out there. Some priced good, some not so good. I live just outside the Houston area. I have a hardwood supplier just down the road about 10 miles. He does a lot of mill work for cabinetry, etc, but he stocks some of just about every kind of hardwood there is, domestic and exotic. I'm starting a LP project and bought some African Mahogany and hard maple. The top won't be as pretty as highly figured maple, but it has nice grain pattern. I really like the AF. Mahog. Anyway, I don't know what prices are in the mid and north US, but here's what I pay here: Af. Mahogany/$4.40 bd.ft. Hard Maple/$3.45 bd.ft. Ash/$4.00 bd. ft. Does that sound about right?????? I know I'll end up ordering a quilted maple or similar top on the next go-round. Thanks, Curtis

Jay, I have just recently purchased a Porter Cable 690 router.....same price at Home Depot/Lowe's.... You can't go wrong. It's a real workhorse. Good quality, smooth operation, and plenty of power. I wish they would have made the Off-On switch a little more handy, but I don't really care. It's a great tool IMO and it will make your building experience much more enjoyable. Curtis

You bring up a good point. Actually, I plan on using a Tune-O-Matic bridge and a 'Stop' tailpiece, so what you said on the intonation will be right on. I looked at the combination bridge/tailpiece, but want to stick to the afore-mentioned set-up. Am I correct in assuming concentric pots to allow seperate tone/volume for each pickup...as opposed to 4-knob/seperate pots for each?? Thanks!! Curtis