SwedishLuthier

File Name: Gotoh Vintage style tuners, oval knobs File Submitter: SwedishLuthier File Submitted: 26 Apr 2014 File Category: Component Drawings 2D CAD in .dxf format of Gotoh Vintage style Tuners with oval knobs, both 6-in-line and 3-a-side version

File Name: Gotoh compact bass tuners File Submitter: SwedishLuthier File Submitted: 26 Apr 2014 File Category: Component Drawings 2D CAD of Gotoh "Compact" bass tuners

File Name: Gotoh compact bass tuners File Submitter: SwedishLuthier File Submitted: 26 Apr 2014 File Category: Component Drawings 2D CAD of Gotoh "Compact" bass tuners

File Name: Gotoh Vintage style tuners, keystone knobs File Submitter: SwedishLuthier File Submitted: 26 Apr 2014 File Category: Component Drawings 2D CAD of Gotoh Vintage style tuners with Keystone knobs

File Name: Gotoh Vintage style tuners with scalloped knobs File Submitter: SwedishLuthier File Submitted: 26 Apr 2014 File Category: Component Drawings 2D CAD of Gotoh vintage style tuners with scalloped knobs

More Tru oil tips: if you use Birchwood Casey they have a thin foil cover on the bottle neck. I poke a small hole in the foil rather than just ripping it off. This slows down the drying process in the bottle and increases shelf life.

Great stuff as usual Chris I don't use the circular motion but rather along the grain and I don't get the swirly pattern Chris mentions. I think I might get the same type of "drag marks" but as they are in line with the grain they don't show up in the same way. Some things that Chris and Carl stresses better than I did: -Get it on super thin, think "polish" rather than "apply" -Look for the "comet trail" of drying oil. Then you know it is thin enough Also good to remind us of the self combustion risk Chris, can't stress that enough. I usually use a thin disposable vinyl glove when applying Tru Oil and just wrap the cloth in the glove to make sure no air gets to the rag, thus stopping the violent curing (oxidation) process.

You are not telling us if the wood you are trying to finish is porous like mahogany or if it is non-porous like maple. If you need to fill the pores Birchwood Casey makes a filler/sealer that is made for Tru-oil. If it is the final touch we are talking about, this is my order of work. First couple of layers, go thin. wipe off all excess. Use a lint free rag or more or less anything to apply the oil. Do not let the oil get too deep into the wood, especially on acoustics. Then, when the surface has begun to look wet, just add layers until you have a build up of finish. At this stage you can go a tad heavier on every layer. Next is to level the surface, using 1200 grit paper of similar, making sure to not sand through to bare wood. After that you put on as thin layers as possible, using a quite dry rag of a coffee filter, the last is my preferred applicator for this stage. And yes, the layers will dry almost instantly. And you will still see the scratches from the sanding after one, two or even three layers. Byt add new layers, avoid spilling or dripping or drag marks and with time you will get there, creating a smooth and semi-glossy surface. If you want to get it up to full gloss, you need to cut and polish the film created by the oil just like you would with a lacquer (describes in depth all over this place). Birchwood Casey does make an aerosol version of their Tru-Oil but I have yet to test it.

I have done similar repairs by scoring the fretboard with a knife, lifting fibers. Then pack dust in there and wet it with low viscosity super glue. The lifted fibers will give the dust/glue mix a better bite, and also give the patch a bit more realism as it will not be completely uniform in color, something I learned from Frank Ford: http://www.frets.com/FretsPages/Luthier/Technique/Frets/FBoardDivot/fboardivot.html

Definitely an unique top you got and I think I will end up liking it, but it will probably take a wile to get used to the blue/brown striped look. However It gave me some ideas to try on Zebrano, using more "natural" shades, maybe red or amber or similar to se what happens. I am by no mean an expert on Tru-oil but my experience with the filler is that it will for sure fill pores a bit better than the oil itself, and it will for sure dry/cure much faster and harder. But it will not fill the wood completely. The filler seems to dissolve the older layers and this not going on ash thick as you might think. So what I'm trying to say is; don't expect the filler to completely fill the pores. But you might have better technique and more patience. I'd love to see how it works out for you.

Well, not necessary. What I do is that I balance the output, meaning that if I have a high output pickup, I might make a normal output neck pickup, or one that is just a tad over wound. If I however make a more standard output bridge pickup, the neck pickup often ends up a bit under wound. I totally agree with Carl, High output pickups became "the thing" in the early 70-s starting with the DiMarzio Distortion and similar pickups. Back in those days the amps didn't have that much gain and you needed a high output pickup to drive the input stage of the amp to get a lot of distortion. Today the amps have much more gain available and the need for a high output pickup just to get the distortion is obsolete. OTOH, a overwound pickup have a distinkt sound that many people like. Me, I prefer my pickups in the range of slightly under wound to just a tad over wound. Often SCs benefit for a bit more "meat" but HBs kan really shine and let so much more of the overtones and sweetness of the string come through if they are a bit on the "cooler" side. But really, that can aslo be achieved, to some extent at least, with different "tricks" on a high output pickup. For the request of "lots of mids and lows" that is really a bit of contra-dictionary to the wish of good articulation. If you overwound a pickup the treble always take a bit of a hit. To counter that you can play with factors like unbalanced coils (wind one up to 10% hotter) or try to reduce any metal, magnetic or un-magnetic in the proximity of the pickups (i.e. covers, base plates etc). Check out the fibre base plates Mojo sells. And go easy on the unbalancing of the coils for the bridge pickup. That is often more beneficial on the neck pickups. Carl, if you think ceramic magnets sound ice-picky, let me share a trade secret: "High power" AlNiCo 8 magnets. The output and "attitude" of ceramic magnets, but with a bit "sweeter" high end.