Crusader

Interesting build, a lot of effort going into this and you seem to have a good attitude! I noticed earlier you were contemplating whether to have 22, 23 or 24 frets. One of my builds has 23 frets and I find it very confusing while playing, so I'd recommend 22 or 24. In regard to the pickup being on the 2nd octave node I experimented with it extensively and found it does make a difference, but its one of those things that you hear a great difference one day and another you don't. And it seems to have more effect on some guitars than others I've heard some people get wound up about a neck pickup not being on the node with a 24 fret guitar. My experience is it does make a bit of difference but if you want 24 frets just go with it. Having the pu on the node makes a bit of difference at the open string and the 12th fret, but for the rest of the fretboard its neither here nor there. A few of the guitars I've made have great long channels due to the experiments I did and now I wish I had just left them alone I have never been able to find a way to explain the 2nd octave node thing in a nutshell but consider this. As you play up the fretboard (regardless of position) the pickup becomes closer to the antinode of the fundamental

While you are playing a guitar it is 'live', when you listen to a recording it is 'done' (if you know what I mean) Yes I can hear the sound in a gigging situation, for example the ES-137 sounded great on its own but to me it just didn't sound right in the mix and it put me off. However another guitarist might have thought it sounded fine. And I don't think the audience would notice one iota

In 2008 I bought a Les Paul Studio and I always thought the higher notes around the 7th fret sounded 'raspy.' Then several years later I upgraded to a Traditional and it sounded much nicer in that area. However I made the mistake of keeping the Studio and was able to compare them at home. I discovered that the Traditional had absolutely no 'bite' in the bass. I just did not like that at all and sold it again losing $1000 Before I sold it though I bought a LP Axcess then the 59 Reissue, so I had 4 Les Pauls and an ES-137, and they all sounded different. Whether you could pick them from a recording or not is another thing. To me its more about how it sounds while you play But never mind all that. I often wish I had just kept the Studio and bought a new van!

I haven't read all the conversation but I used to compare pickups a lot, and what I found is my hearing wasn't always the best. After doing comparisons for hours I couldn't tell the difference between a Neck Pickup and a Bridge

I'm with Roland, it doesn't appeal to me. I like a new guitar to be new. If I were to buy a Greenie LP I would want it to be like it was before Gary scratched it up

A few years ago I made a couple of guitars with a flat fretboard because I was sick of trying to get a decent neck. Yes they worked, got a decent low action and I adapted to them, but I just didn't like them. I bought a Stewmac Radius Beam after that and all guitars since then have a good neck with 12 inch radius. Just recently I got around to pulling the frets and putting a radius on them and I'm really happy, although they still sound exactly the same! Here's the story in pictures

It should have dried after 15 years LOL

You said the HB mode is low and weird, does the Humbucker work properly on its own? Also as Curtisa mentioned, are you sure Humbucker mode is actually Humbucker? Check which coils are active by tapping them with a small screwdriver or something, at low volume but not too low

Yes it seems you need to be a member And by the way what I think about the whole thing is, of course the timber makes a difference and there's no need to go to great lengths to prove one way or the other. We know Strats with a RW fretboard sound different to Maple, A solid Mahogany Les Paul sounds different to one with a Maple cap, and an all-Maple guitar most definitely sounds different. So the experimenting has already been done HOWEVER I think its all a bit over-rated, its one of those things that people become too engrossed in. Like drag car racing, you have to spend ten times as much to shave another second off your time. Whenever I compare the guitars I've built with my Gibson 59 Reissue Les Paul they don't sound quite as good, but for goodness sake they still make a sound and what does it really matter? As long as the tone is reasonable and balanced. When you play accoustically then plug into an amp the electronics play a major role in the resulting sound, but to say the wood has no effect at all I think is ludicrous

I dabbled in a fanned fret guitar with a slanted humbucker and didn't notice any loss of volume from the top and low E strings, but I didn't like that the pole pieces weren't the same distance from the saddle as usual. It was almost a reverse slant as Curtisa mentioned. So I shifted one of the coils, putting the screws through the holes already there (see second photo) and it works out nicely, what a fluke! and I'm confident there are no adverse effects from this mod This project has been put aside for quite a while because it has some issues to sort out, ie. the pickup routes. And just for the record this is a simple procedure to me but if you've never opened up a pickup before.....don't do it. I was brought up by Bob The Builder so if I break something - no problem, I can fix it! No seriously my father's name is Bob and he was a builder ...the other thing is I'm nearly 60 years old and if I break something I don't give a hoot

Yes as I understand it, the strings adopt the tonal characteristics of whatever they are attached to. The vibrations of the wood, nut, saddle etc. affect the vibrations in the string and this is then is picked up by the pickups

I'm astonished! Are the tubes in the body? (maybe it says somewhere but I'm lazy) I think its an idea that crosses everyone's mind at some time but is quickly dismissed as impossible, so hope it goes well!

Don't work in bare feet Don't have your tools near your work when plugging them in (Make sure your tool is switched off before plugging it in) Clear your work area of other tools, parts, sawdust Make sure you can see clearly, keep your glasses or face-mask clean Never experiment on your actual job, do it on offcuts etc. Learn from your mistakes, don't think to yourself "I stuffed it up last time but this time she'll be right"

Ah yes that’s the one I’ve seen, it’s a Taylor so I didn’t study it much

Yes I see the light! that is a picture of a straight rod, I think I've seen it before but I didn't take much notice, I wish it was a clearer picture. It seems to be parallel with the fretboard which is interesting Yes it seems to me the rod forms a triangle with the line of the fretboard and I can understand that it would work in a neck with some girth, but in a thin neck there just isn't enough wood there to form enough of a triangle - at least thats how it seems to me I know from my own experience that a straight rod doesn't work when its not far under the fretboard - My first four necks with a single rod worked fine but on my fifth for whatever reason the curve was not enough and it just didn't do anything. It was a Fender style with a skunk stripe so I routed that out and glued in a strip of wood and re-routed the curve. It worked okay after that....what a job though! The curve isn't all that complicated. All I did was make a test neck and stuck about four 52g strings on it and tightened them up. Then I traced the curve onto a plan and that was it. I used that curve for the truss rod. Making the jig was the hard part, the thing of nightmares

Errr don't answer that... I understand why my 335 needed the U-bar. I perceive the concept behind that type of truss rod. I haven't been able to find any info or images of the old Gibson straight rod yet. But its exactly what I thought you could do instead of having the U-bar. Have the rod deeper into the neck Now I'm still trying to find any pictures

Interesting but now I'm even more bewildered, why would you want the rod to bend the other way? I thought those truss rods with a steel bar attached IS a double action rod. The 335 copy I got for my 12th birthday had a U channel with the rod inside it and I've seen variations of the same concept. It was about 30 years ago I saw an old Fender neck in a shop that had been cut right down the centre revealing the truss rod and its curve. I didn't know any terminology for them I just knew Fenders & Gibsons had one type and copies had the other Reading the discussion I mentioned I don't think the Gibsons had an extra bar attached to the rod or anything its just straight and set deeper into the neck. I have Googled this but haven't yet found any images. I'm finding it very interesting because I used to wonder why my 335 needed the U-bar

I've been doing some necks and I'm up to the filler pieces in the Gibson style. I've done them before but I just wondered if the filler has to be curved or if it can be straight (because its so thin) and just push it up to the truss rod when gluing. So I googled it and came up with more than I bargained for. On MLP people were saying Gibson truss rods were straight up until 1960 and this had me totally bewildered Some people were saying Gibson did straight single-action truss rods and others said they won't work and need to have a curve. I didn't read-on to see if they resolved it because the posts were from 2011. But it occurred to me from personal experience that really thick necks (ie. 1950's) don't really need a truss rod. Its only when necks started to become thinner in the 1960's they need it. The age of the timber may also be a factor (drier, stiffer) Does anyone here know about this? Does this mean my '59 Reissue would have a straight truss rod?

I don't where I'd be without a router and a table saw

This might also help explain what you're asking about On one of my semi-accoustics I made a type of "post" (like a violin has) to strengthen the top. I experimented and when its out the tone is much deeper When the post is in it stops the top and back from vibrating in full length. Something like doing a harmonic at the 12th fret, where the whole string is vibrating but you only hear the octave because its vibrating in two halves. When luthiers put bracing in a top or back it limits the modes of vibrations in much the same way but its a lot more complicated

That's great but I would have used a router to ensure the channel is clean and straight using @Bizman62's idea of using a fence (because the repair would be off-centre) However if you're happy with the repair its all good Just for the record here is a picture of my truss rod jig. I do a single action truss rod so it has a curve (ie. up and down not sideways) For a dual action rod it just needs to be straight. It takes a lot of time to build jigs and templates, in fact you can spend more time making them than the actual guitar. But you absolutely need them to make sure your routering goes according to plan (By the way I use routers for EVERYTHING) A lot of people use hand-tools but I mess things up using them When I first started I ruined 4 necks before I got it right but at least I was only using cheap local timber! Whatever you do, don't rush things. When I do this groove I do several passes at about 2mm deep each time. Every time I do one I am on-edge, totally stressed out that I will stuff it up. Notice I keep the bench clear so the lead doesn't get snagged on anything. And by the way the jig is secured to the bench with screws underneath the neck This jig took a tremendous amount of effort to build, experimenting and coming up with ideas on how to get best results (so the trimmer glides smoothly and stays centred etc.) I hope you don't follow the exact way I do things. You have to figure out what works for you and I'm sure you will find ideas if you google around

If you want to save the neck, what I would do is router out the bodgy area and glue a piece in, make sure the glue is completely dry (ie. continue the next day) then re-router the truss rod channel. It will be under the fretboard, never seen and you will completely forget its there. Use the fence technique that Bizman62 suggested

I can understand why the OP was confused, the more curve in the fretboard is a smaller radius while less curve is a bigger radius!

Be cautious how you go about it. I did this a while ago and got impatient and caused myself a whole lot of work. My LPC3

I concur with all above advice, glue the piece that broke out back in. And when taking the frets out I use two putty knives with sharpened edge, one left and one right