Crusader

Looking good, I'm drooling, Spurring me on!

Moving right on with the next project while the lacquer is drying on the previous ones, here's a few pics The ES-2, the Big Les Paul and the Les Paul 4 I was tempted to stick a neck on this and see what kind of sustain I could get! I hate turning mahogany into sawdust, so this is my answer to that problem To get the three bodies out of one blank I had to line them up at the waist. The trouble is they all want that piece of real-estate at the neck join. So the two hollow bodies have to have work done at the cutaway. I was nearly tempted to give the LP a pointy ear so the Big LP could have less joints but I decided to stick to the plan The one I'm looking forward to the most is the Big Les Paul. It is exactly the same shape as a Les Paul but 12% bigger (And its not going to have any f-holes!)

Good point, also seeing as the other guitar didn't have cracks until I cut f-holes in it "Its those f-holes gosh darn it, they're the cause of my misery!"

I was just thinking back on this again. Could wet sanding cause cracks? The water being rather cold would make a sudden change in temperature. There were a couple of cracks before sanding and polishing but many more afterward

How about right in the middle of a V?

Yes tapping and tuning tops is a whole different level beyond me! I really have no idea what I'm doing, just experimenting and taking notes When you said "balancing bed" it reminded me of this, my "Over-sized Les Paul" a couple of years ago. I found this method quite hard because you have to also get the neck supported in the right place. The object here was to determine the body nodal line but I also took note of the "tap-tone" frequency - not to be confused with the resonant frequency of the chamber

Well here's another one of the crazy things I do, trying to find the Nodal Line on an accoustic is pretty hard so I resorted to this and it seemed to work, and it just confirmed where I thought it was from tapping. And its right where I need it to be, just behind the bridge! - errr, that's if I have it all figured out correctly

Well the people I know would have cracked up LOL

Update on progress Although the sound post idea is a success, I also strengthened the top with one of the methods I previously had in mind. This has had some very interesting outcomes. First some photos Here we see the end of the neck joining underneath the top. This is the joint that gave way when I heard the loud "crack" and that little joint was stopping the top from caving in under pressure of the strings. So I thought if I strengthen that area the top will be strong enough. It really did the job, I'm amazed at how strong the top is now and the Sound post is now optional So now I don't need the Sound post for strength but it brightens up the tone, very interesting! Its too boomy without it. So I did more experimenting with and without the post and although the tone is too boomy without it, I quite like the bass in the low E. And I got to thinking why do violins have the post only under the high E? I put the round post under the 1st and 2nd string and the result is a brighter tone in the high notes and more bass in the low end. However its still a bit boomy so I want to experiment more and try a post that goes under strings 1 to 4 By the way who laughed when I said "I heard a loud "Crack"?

With things turning out okay with this guitar (just thought I'd mention) the top is very thin, and a couple of areas are all bent out of shape like a Satriani solo and might not stand up to strumming with my Jim Dunlop 1.5mm plectrum!

Excellent idea I will make that my next task LOL yeah I've made it a rule because when I look at old photos I often have no idea what I was doing

I've done some experimenting and I tried the bridge positioned at the tailpiece. The result, still not strong enough This is the first attempt at a 'sound post' and it sounded a bit muffled I tried a few different ideas for the Sound Post. The round one was poking a hole in the back, so I quickly ditched that idea The third one, quite by accident I made it wedge shaped and I positioned it like so; It gave me a better sound A view of both the saddle and the post: Made me decide to switch it around At this point I installed the Trapeze Tailpiece At the same time I turned the post around so its slightly behind the bridge So now I'm getting a much better sound and I don't know if its because of the Trapeze Tailpiece or the sound post positioning or both At first I wasn't in favour of a Sound Post because I read that they dampen vibrations but since then I've read good reports of guitars that are made with them, and mine sounds totally fine. So thank you Bizman for suggesting it. I might not have tried it otherwise Its amazing what you can do by sticking an iPhone through an f-hole

Yes that would be amusing LOL, but I might be better off not knowing. Ignorance is bliss! Here is an article that shows the history of violin f-holes http://www.openculture.com/2016/01/why-violins-have-f-holes-the-science-history-of-a-remarkable-renaissance-design.html The evolutionary path of this elegant innovation—Clive Thompson at Boing Boing demonstrates with a color-coded chart—takes us from those original round holes, to a half-moon, then to variously-elaborated c-shapes, and finally to the f-hole. That slow historical development casts doubt on the theory in the above video, which argues that the 16th-century Amati family of violin makers arrived at the shape by peeling a clementine, perhaps, and placing flat the surface area of the sphere. But it's an intriguing possibility nonetheless.

Yes exactly. I wish I had noticed the difference between the 137 and 175 before I started building. A bit of a blunder considering I wanted this guitar to be more accoustic. The Gibson Citation also connects at the 14th fret and I didn't notice this while I was studying the headstock LOL The thing I'm talking about is deep science involving the Chladni patterns of guitar plates and the nodal lines which are talked about in this article https://www.acs.psu.edu/drussell/guitars/electric.html which states "There are two nodal lines (places where the guitar does not move) - one is near the free end of the neck, and the other is close to the middle of the body" Perhaps the centre block on the 137 shifts the nodal line but mine does not have it, although the top is solid 15mm thick down the centre to the tailpiece. Who knows what effect this has! But truth be told it sounds pretty good the way it is. With the block under the bridge at first it sounded a bit muffled but I don't notice it any more. If it sounded this good without all these "problems" I would be very happy! Although if it still bothers me I could try using a trapeze tailpiece instead of the stop-bar All is good, I have some doors to fit. Life goes on!

Cool thanks for that Funny he marks the bridge both sides of the string, just the same as I do! Something of interest, I know they set the bridge at the middle of the f-holes. Now my guitar is copied from an ES-137 which is more of an electric guitar, while for example the ES-175 is more of an accoustic. And have you ever noticed he difference between them? The ES-175 has only 20 frets, and joins the body at the 14th fret, which means the bridge is set further back and is - guess what? at the middle of the f-holes same as a violin. So my guitar being copied from the ES-137 with the bridge set further forward may present a problem with positioning a sound post. The optimal position might be further back than the bridge So many problems!!!! but lol its all fun and games!

Interesting video it sounds like "slap bass" LOL I got around to having a look at it today and it seems the best way to reinforce the top is right under the bridge pickup which gets in the way when you're installing the wiring harness So just for now I made a block to act like a post as you suggested and it works! It does however dampen the sound. Its not as loud and its a bit dull, no top end. I know luthiers sometimes spend a lot of time putting a post in a violin because it has to be in just the right spot, so I don't know how I would go with that (I wanted this guitar to be more accoustic than electric) Oh and another thing, I discovered what I think made the "crack" - the glue joint at the end of the neck where it connects to the underneath of the top. So I think the top is okay, its not broken!

LOL you’re absolutely right! Yes I’ve heard of some guitars using them, trouble is they dampen resonance. Not a problem with a violin because they use a bow. And you know the sound of a violin being picked...? they go “plunk” i should be able to glue in something to strengthen it up, under or beside the bridge pickup “Its just a flesh wound”

Thank you for your kind words Well its going to take even more patience now. Tonight I strung it up and did the nut slots and played it a bit. It sounded quite nice and was very playable. Then I did the saddle slots and when I re-tuned the last sting I heard a loud CRACK! But at least the Lacquer isn't cracked! I'm not surprised this has happened seeing how thin the top was. I was relying on the thickness going down the centre but the pickups took too much out. I have already contemplated what I will do in this situation. Replace the top? Is that possible? I've got ideas but on the other hand if I can strengthen the top along the pickup area I might be able to save it. I just don't know how I would get pieces of wood in there long enough Here she is lookin good.... And then kaplunk As I said I was half expecting this to happen so I was prepared and I'm not devastated I will get on with other things and maybe something genius will come to mind

I forgot to mention that I remembered to spray slower passes as you suggested. I used to always be scared of getting runs but now I'm using Nitro its not as big an issue. Thinking about it, I suppose I'm subconsciously copying how they spray on the Youtubes I've watched. As for the reason for the cracks, out of all the suggestions I think it was a case of "All Of The Above"

So an update to this troubled build. Here it is being polished looking good, then discovered cracks in the lacquer I concluded there were numerous reasons for the lacquer to go like this and it was suggested to leave it and spray again later but I decided to crack on with it and sanded it back to bare wood again. Here's a couple of shots and I almost decided to leave it natural rather than stain again.......... From this angle it has a cool natural appeal But this photo convinced me to put the stain back on again it just looks awesome I tried repairing the cracks... Later on I noticed there were cracks elsewhere in the finish. The one in the base you would think is a scratch but I studied it hard and its definitely a crack Not going for a Relic finish sorry! The crack in the base gave me a clue as to the main problem (spraying too thick on first coat) I remember I sprayed it over and over because its an area that sometimes gets neglected So the problems I concluded that caused the cracks were; Air pressure too low and spraying outdoors made it dry too quickly, which made me spray too thick to get a wet coat Spraying too late in the afternoon and storing in uninsulated tin shed overnight where the temperature drops too quickly And lastly, the timber is probably not suitable for guitar tops and needs time to adjust to its new shape Thanks to you guys for your comments and suggestions - it takes a while but eventually the penny drops. I sprayed it again today (inside under lights) so it will be hanging in the shed for a while ........the BIG shed which is insulated!

What a Stirling idea, I tend to do that while I'm making guitars!

Thanks, I will concentrate on that and something else just crossed my mind, I could narrow the fan a bit Before I spray the ES137 again I have the LP copy to do and I can hopefully get it right while doing that!

Actually I am mistaken, my spray gun is not a HVLP, its an LVLP...and after Googling more and more I found one guy who recommends them. So you get people recommending things from one end of the scale to the other! What I find is it sprays the neck and edges of the body okay but does not seem to put out enough for top and back. It has a 1.4mm tip and I'm contemplating going up but how far? The shop where I get my stuff has 1.6 and 2.0mm in stock, but should I just get a HVLP?

It just occurred to me I did something similar, I put clear plastic tubing on my guitar stand. It originally had rubber and it had perished over the years

Yes I imagine polyester would be difficult to sew, and I've never done anything like that, just hems on jeans etc