mledbetter

I gotcha.. i guess it's kind of the look i am going for.. contouring it as if the neck didn't exist.. then it will look as if the neck just enters the body shape undisturbed.. i'm not trying to blend the body to the neck so much. hey.. it's an experiment.. if it looks like crap when i'm done, the wood was free

You've done it MasterMind.. you've debunked centuries of lutherie knowledge.. if only we were open minded enough to see.. but alas we are sheep.. blindly following those who have BUILT GUITARS BEFORE. The discussion further back about string tension.. The NOVAX fanned fret system is interesting in that argument. The tension on a les paul tuned to pitch is less than a strat tuned to pitch because of the 3/4 inch difference in scale length.. While MM is arguing about force in the 2 dimensional world.. Scale length is the biggest factor of string tension. That's why 5 string bassists prefer 35" scale lengths over 34. Or why playing Drop D feels mushy on a paul. You can make the string longer by moving the ball end away, or the tuning post away but that really doesn't affect the tension. You'll find that the string tension remains the same as you lengthen the distance from post to end-pin, because it's the tension across the scale length that determines pitch. If the tension were any different, the pitch would be different.. that's pretty simple. It all has to do with the scale length. The novax necks play incredibly well because the lowest strings have the same "tension" as the high strings given the even spread across the multiple scale lengths. The compensated nuts work because they affect each strings individual scale length in minute values to correct for intonation problems.. so back to the reason this whole rediculous post started.. a compensated nut BEHIND a zero fret will have no impact because it's the fret that sets the scale length. And in turn a zero fret is not a replacement for a compensated nut because it does nothing to compensate for each strings individual scale length needs. If people playing zero-fret instruments have less intonation problems then great.. there's no need for a compensated nut. But the two really have nothing to do with each other.

I've never seen any either.. probably because drum sanders are primarily used for shaping, the fine grits wouldn't be of any value. You'd be better off getting the ultra fine grit pads and using those.. once you get into the finish grades you don't need much force behind it.

They should sell it on ebay as "carl thompson's first instrument" lol. That thing has some wicked upper fret access

I wondered about that too.. I was trying to get by with the wood that I had.. but i'd rather do it right than to go to all that rouble and have it break later.

A buddy of mine showed me a great tip too.. Nefore you route, do some planning.. take a pencil and draw direction arrows in areas where you need to be careful.. Then while you're routing you don't have to think.. Just go slow and follow the arrow. Always start at the end of an arrow and move till the tip.. then pick up and move to the begining of another arrow. Silly but for a minute of pre-planning it will save a lot of headache. I can't figure out why your board was splitting on the long end unless you had really bad grain runout or something. I've wasted 2 necks with tearout on the very tip of the peghead.. but never in the straight part.

I built Myka's neck pocket jig, so that won't be a problem. The neck isn't built yet. The jig lets you do the body first, then build your neck, then route exactly to fit your neck so it's a dead on fit.

Well he said he was winding his own is the only reason I mentioned it.. Would be fun to experiment with. Actually, it would be kind of neat to be able to switch between normal and overwound modes.. There are times when I like overwound pups but not for everyday stuff.. As to the 513.. I think they made up a complicated switcher to have a reason to patent. Scares off copycats and draws attention to themselves. But why the 3way. The 3 way could only make sense if it was single coil mode, humbucker mode adn hot humbucker mode.. OR it could be single, HB in phase and HB out of phase..

I've got a biscuit cutter, that might not be a bad idea. But i'm thinking if there is a decent amount of surfce contact, that joint won't be going anywhere.. Thanks folks..

I dont' remember.. just hit google for "wind your own transformer" It's a guy that makes guitar amps. My brother used to wind his own transformers. Not sure why, he was always making electrical concoctions.. usually hi-fi stuff. I know it's doable though. but.. if you're putting good money into a project like this it would be a shame to waste it all by using non-spec or otherwise suspect parts. With a marshall clone, or any amp clone.. the magic is in the components. It really does matter what you use and where it's from..

Are you talking about putting a tap in a single coil? If so then all you need to do (i'm reasonably sure) is pick the 2 output specs you want. Start winding and check your coil along the way (by sanding the wire and using a multimeter.. then put some lacquer on the wire and continue going unil you reach your target for the tap lead. .. If your tap target is 4k then at 4k you would stop, solder a wire to the bare spot and run it down the bobbin and tape it off somewhere. Then lacquer over the connection and keep winding. So if overall you have a 6.5k pup, if you used a switch to go from the main lead to the tap lead then you would cut your output down to 4k. To me though, it would be easier just to use some little passive component.. i guess a resistor, to pull some power off the coil. Once you get outside the coil though i don't know much other than looking at a schematic and following it. I defer that advice to someone qualified. to Paul: I had wondered early on if it was a stacked single.. but then someone elightened me that you can have a tapped single coil, as described above that isn't stacked at all. A stacked wouldn't work anyway because both coils would have to be in phase to chain and sound like a true singlecoil. The decision i think was that it's just 5 single coils and they have basically preset tone circuits to make them sound different ways depending on the 3 way switch.

man that thing is a beast. Still, even after the phase converter you're out less than you woudl be with a new 2-3 hp one. Not sure why you need 10hp.. other than why not! You ought to rent out machine time to some local door makers or something.. start making mouldings on the side. lol..

I need to make a PRS style set neck for my current project. One where the neck is .5 to .75 inches thicker at the heel so the tongue can extend under the neck humbucker.. I don't want to use mahogany and I have a bunch of 3/4 rock maple already. Could I simply laminate 2 layers together down at the heel? or would that be weaK? Thanks..

Update! Rough carving is almost done. Maybe now it doesn't look so much like an animal cracker! Here is a shot with a spare neck held up for reference. The curves are kinda strange but with a neck in place it's easier to see what they are up to. I've been racking my brains to figure out the best way to carve and the fastest.. I used a rabbeting bit on the router table to cut a "shelf" all the way around.. Then used a 3/4" flat chisel (very sharp one) to whittle the edges down to meet the shelf line. Next i'll smooth it all out with an orbital sander most likely.. The chisel worked great though.. only took me about 30 minutes to get to this point. Another shot without the neck I know it's a minor update.. but i'm excited about it it's great when you can start to see the instrument emerge frm the block of wood.

Lookin good man. I've got to get back to carving the top of mine. I'm slacking..

or you could just dive right in and try to piss people off.. Now is not the time nor the place..

man that is one bo-fugly guitar..

i still can't figure out why the heck you want a 200 watt amp!! Who are you trying to kill/torture..A 50 watter will blister any drummer and a 100 watter will play to any arena you might dream of playing in.. Besides.. if you get on stage you're just going to be mic'd and run through the house anyway.. If you are into vintage tone (judging by your pedal projects I assume you are) go for quality over quantity.. a good 30 - 50 watt unit will give you absolurely everything you need. Check out www.18watt.com It's a whole community of folks that have finished their amps. They are a killer sounding amp, clones of the vintage 18 watt marshalls. There are 100 different variations and schematics.. you really can't go wrong there if you are careful. Although I would dare you to find anyone there that would agree with using a PC power supply.. those things are horrible. It's easily worth the money for a real output transformer over the time and headache in converting a PC one. There is another site online that goes into detail on how to wind your own transformers if you are just looking for a project..

oh boy.. what a can of worms. As a protestant.. I have no beliefs in the pope as anything other than a highly revered religious figure. God is God and people are people. We don't really believe in specially ordained saints and such as the catholic faith does. I feel sorry for all who loved him and don't want anyone to suffer, but obviously he is in a better place so the mourning is for OUR loss.. not his. Jesus wept in the passage about lazarus out of his own sadness and sharing int he pain that was felt. When someone dies, the world mourns. And in someone so controversial as the Pope, some mourn, some rejoice.. Here in america, most of us could care less one way or the other. In other parts of the world, as RGGR mentioned.. there are strong feelings against the Pope for various reasons. But in many parts of the world, the catholic church is still seen as an oppressor of human rights. I hope those who mourn will do so and be of support to each other and not get drawn into arguments or debates about the controversial stuff. The struggle has been going on for centuries and will no doubt remain for many more. So in that vein, I offer peace and blessings to those who are saddened, as well as to those who are angered.

For shaping fingerboard radii.. there are a few jigs I have seen. They all involve the router sliding along 2 parallel pipes on lateral roller bearings. Then, underneath the rotuer is a pivot box. Your fingerboard sits on top and the pivots are set on each side.. basically however many inches from the face of the board as you want your radius to be. It works for compound just by having pivot points of different lengths. i.e. 12" on the heel end and 9 inches on the nut end. It's elaborate and expensive to build and I would imagine it's pretty fussy. I think one would be better off building a duplicarver. With that you could do the fingerboard and the beck profile all with the same setup.

oh.. i gotcha.. because the scale length is altered slightly, so the pitch is altered relatively as well. Makes sense.

are you making a body? or just making a laminated bodyblank? He should be able to get the wood planed and jointed from wherever he bought it.. He would be better off going to home depot and buying some titebond and some clamps.. Not to talk you out of a job but it might more trouble for youthan it's worth.. Tell him that for 50 bucks you'll teach him how to do it himself.. lol..

I wouldn't get the surround headphones unless it's just for enjoyment. For recording, unless you're doing 5.1 separation of your signal.. those headphones would be a nuisance. A friend of mine uses Behringer Truth powered mons with his video suite.. Those things sound incredible.. they are 279 for the pair and they will crank and sound completely transparent. Excellent value for a powered near-field. As far as phantom power.. I have done a decent amount of acoustic recording on the cheap and I have 2 methods.. All involve a little 12 channel behringer mixer that cost me a whopping 99 bucks. It has pretty decent sounding preamps and I paired it with a behringer B-1 condenser mic. Great acoustic sound. If it's solo guitar and needs to be really detailed i'll use that rig. Most of the time, when acoustic is part of the mix.. I use my baggs para-di and go straight into the mixer. I have a baggs i-bram pickup in the guitar and that things sounds as close to a mic as i've ever heard and i don't have to worry about it picking up my breathing, road noise, etc.. like the behringer does (i don't have an actual studio so bg noise is a big deal to me) That firepod looks neat. I've wanted to ramp up more in the digital recording area, adn that might be a neat way to go. Drums are always my sticking point. I am a drummer and would like to be able to record live, but I use drum tools with Acid to get my drum tracks. Since they are real acoustic samples I can get a very realistic drum track if I take the time to mix stuff up, customize fills, etc..