ScottR

The body shape complements the heastock nicely.

SR

I hate to tell you this, but I used that acrylic laquer clear--Duplex I think--and 8 months later it was still getting impressions in it from the shirt I was wearing. Apparently it behaves differently on wood than it does on metal. Mayyybe Krylon is better.....but I doubt it.

SR

That's what I was looking for. I'd say I got that button well and truly pushed.

SR

In my opinion it's only a black guitar from the side. I think it's a gorgeous purple guitar with a walnut back. And that finish is soooo deep.

Really nice Paulie.

SR

I'd be afraid to set those points of tha vee on the bare concrete like that

SR

Very, very clean build.....like always.

I know you don't like rings, but those white bobbins would look pretty nice surrounded by the same black as your bridge and knob.

SR

Your straight down headstock pics are creating an optical illusion that's messin with my head. You cannot see the HS angle and that make it look like the truss rod access hole is going to punch out the back of the volute.

Foreshortening and perspective and all that....

SR

Sweet and sexy. I like the hardware choices. Well done. Like I said before it's easy to forget that the neck and back are one piece.

SR

I remember seeing John's now that you mention it. You've told me that blades are hot or blades rock or something to that effect. I've never played any. How does the sound differ from a pickup with poles?

SR

Welcome Bill.

You're in good company if you enjoy making sawdust.

Looking forward to your projects and points of view.

SR

Loooooove the headplate. It has echos of a cow skull in it.

Dang boy, if someone wasn't paying any attention, they'd think you did this all today. Any chance of seeing those blades without the covers....or is that a trade secret for now?

Nice.

SR

This will be a long build (about 20-25 weeks) as the customer is still making up his mind on most of the hardware

You getting anything done on this Paulie, or are you in a waiting on the customer mode?

SR

Wow. this has got to be the longest and most entertaining "Hello my name is (insert name here)" post I think I've ever seen here.

Yer settin' the bar pretty high Josh. I'm looking forward to some good reading from you. And yeah, post up some of your amp stand builds. I posted a bear build for cryin out loud. As long as it's good, or cool or at least entertaining, we'll join right in.

SR

This is coming along nicely.

What is that mark on the neck wood, facing the cut out? It almost looks like a burned in logo, but it's surely going to get removed during the neck carve.

SR

So I am already busy with a couple of new builds.

I recently finished a rebuild of a trashed Gibson ES335. I re-used the neck and most of the hardware and built a new body for it. For this I had the luck to run into a guy in Traverse City, MI who is producing the ES335 laminates like Gibson did in the old days. He sells fully assembled bodies or the parts as a kit. I bought a kit back in January to see how well it would go and was very satisfied with the end results.

As I was finishing the ES335 body, I thought that it would be nice to make a complete scratch build of a guitar I've been wanting to have: a 59-spec'd ES355, mono-wired with a Bigsby TP. Considering that I already have the molds and fixtures for the body assembly, I ordered another ES3x5 body kit, which should be arriving within the next few days.

This meant that now I have to build a neck "Gibson Style", that is: with a simple TR, no CF bars, one piece construction and a mortise/tenon style of joint.

Now that got me thinking… Why not make two Gibson styled necks while I am at it ?

Three years ago, when I built the LP-ish guitar for my son, I prepared and jointed two heavily flamed maple top-sets. I put one apart for my own use, but when I cut the shape of the top or my son's guitar against the mahogany body I happened to cut the top I was keeping for myself by mistake.

That top could be nothing but a LP after that, so back then I even cut a honduras mahogany body to match it and the set got shelved... Now is time to resurrect it.

So the plan is to build two different Gibby Tribute guitars:

- A Les Paul, with a mastergrade maple top, honduras body and neck and a brazilian RW fretboard. Built along the lines of a reissue/replica 59 as much as possible, but with a pair of P90s (simply because I want one).

- An ES-355, built as a good reissue. Body and neck following late 50 specs, materials and construction. Of course an ebony board, multi-ply binding, pearl inlays and gold hardware. This will be wired mono and finished in faded cherry (as it was common in 59). I think of it as the reissue I can not get from Gibson.

I'll try to keep this thread informative and will try to build them like replicas as much as possible, and explain when and why departures are made.

It's a bit of a challenge for me as there are quite a few firsts in the way things will have to be built.

So, this should be fun.

(hooray)

SR

This is an awesome looking morphed tele. Is the core wood padouk?

SR

Regretfully... I swear at some point I am going to build a superior guitar with Padauk as the core body wood (Padauk necks usually sound great). I think chambering is going to be the answer. I came pretty close on the RedWitch... it is awesome and getting better as it ages. However I had to build 3 sets of pickups to get it right.

Padauk is so hard it can be very bright/harsh... Especially when combined with a eastern maple top (like this one). The softer western maple top seems to tame it better.

Weight is an issue as well. Oh well I have a special set of P90s for this one... we will see.

I expect they will sound awesome in it....mine do.

SR

I started adding details to the scarfs to extend some neck blanks that were very short. I had seen it done here a few times before... Now when I have to scarf in the neck I use this method. I prefer to scarf in the headstock but most customers request the crazy scarfs.

They say it looks wicked

That's what I thought. Being an older fart with more traditional tastes, I find the extra accents in the scarf a bit distracting....but I says to myself, self, I bet these shredders he's selling these things too ask for those especially because they think it looks cool, modern, agressive...in short, wicked.

Carry on with this wicked build sir.

SR

It is pretty much going to look very much like it did wet when it is finished with clear. If the maple is figured, there are a number of things you can do with dye to accentuate the figure, but if you liked it when it was wet(and you can use mineral spirits or naptha to wet it without raising the grain), then you should be happy with it when it is cleared.

SR

So these shots of the burl are dry? Or have then been moistened with something to bring the color up? Because it looks d**** nice.

I've got a question about your clientele, and your necks. From what I've seen of the bands that play your guitars, and from what can be surmised from your builds, most of your stuff gets sold to shredders. A fair number of your necks tend to have many contrasting accents in the scarfs and multiple contrasting laminates. They are an excellent display of craftsmanship. Is that a selling point for your guitars, or something that is requested specifically?

SR

This is an awesome looking morphed tele. Is the core wood padouk?

SR

I guess if someone will pay it, then that's what it's worth.

SR

I just walked pat the TV where my wife was Watching Antique Road Show.....

They had just put a value to a 1962 left handed strat.....bought new for a 9 year old kid, and left in the attic for most of the time since. So it's in good shape and every thing ins original. They valued it at $48,000. I told my wife that was 10 times too high.

Who's closest to being correct?

SR

Not only yes but H3LL yes!

Of course.

SR

Personally I think it should have been left alone..... not knocking the work..... just preferred the original appearance.

thats not to say that I wouldn't have it as it is....

Can't argue with that either. When it comes to customers, there's no accounting for taste. It happens to me in the printing business all the time. Sometimes I have troulbe getting my guys to print something really fugly that a customer has designed. I tell them: boys, there's no accounting for taste.

Sometimes you got to print some ugly sh!t.

This is not ugly Paulie, in fact it is very nicely done. But your original design suited my tastes better too.

SR

One option for the headstock cap would be to bookmatch it so you could double up what figure you do have, and carry over that chevron shape you're getting from the figure in the bookmatched top. RAD did that once....and didn't really like it, but I think that was because of the difficulty of making it fit on a Parker Fly inspired headstock. I liked his and I think it could look good here too.

SR