Barum

Thanx for the compliment. I built it for my wife, who does play. And I had more fun with this project than with any other traditional "woodworking" project. Next project will be for my 14 yr old son, who plays "shred" speed metal, a la early Metallica. HUGE custom work ahead. I figure it's gonna be a strange shape for a guitar, but... And others who have seen the project as it progressed have hinted at wanting similar work.

Thanx for the "Welcome!" You poor sots will be seeing more of my work, as I progress. Who knows. I enjoyed this one so much, I might just start cranking out bodies.

Hi, y'all. I've been a lurker here for about 6 months, reading, researching, and thoroughly enjoying my time here. It all began about 7 months ago, when my wife of 14 years saw a Carvin Guitar flyer and went "Oooh, Ahh!" over a Cali Single. I looked at it, and said to my self, "Self, you could make that for a lot less than $1500" And so I began. I don't play guitar, but I am a cabinet maker with access to a CNC. First off, let me say that I did MOST of my research here. Reading posts and following links. I bought my hardware and one of the woods on eBay. Oh, and a factory new Gibson LP neck that was "seconded" but not destroyed. (slight blemish on a corner of the peg-head.) I drew the body in ACAD, during off hours at work, and ran the body blank on the CNC after hours as well. I wanted to post pics to show off. Remember. I don't play guitar. I only knew about wood, and some electronics from back whan transistors were kinda new. Here's a lousy pic from a camera-phone of the front after shaping and a fistfull of sanding sealer: and the back after shaping and filling with autobody filler. (I'll explain why autobody filler upon request. I did have a reason. ) Yes, that's grey primer. You'll see why. It's a solid mahogany body, with a 13/16" quilted maple top. (probably more like 5/8" by now, after all the shaping and sanding...) 8 coats of sanding sealer, 4 coats of tinted laquer, (tobacco brown, from StewMac) and 8 light coats of clear laquer. Ok, here's a shot of the neck , just before install. Those are her initials, and in the lower left, you can see a small snip of the body back, and what happened to the grey primer after a bunch of tinted laquer was applied. And here it is after it was given to her for X-Mas. and: Just a couple of comments: The mahogany maple combo made the body just an amazing soundboard. It would actually ring in tune with the orbital sander. I used the autobody filler for its density. Famowood is fine for a jewelry box, but this guitar is going to get some wear and tear. The sound of this S.O.B. is amazing. running clean, straight into the amp, it is mellow, clean, not too bright, and can be over-driven with just the volume knob. (passive pickups) Details of harware and electronics available. Maybe in a later post. Thanx for putting up with my rant. I am REALLY grateful that you folks let me "eaves-drop" so much. And I'm really proud of the result.