SwedishLuthier

It will probably take you through a single guitar. Otherwise you can just return it. The ad says 2 year warranty. The most risky part could be the bits. If a bad bit brakes during use, it could destroy the body completely. I remember a thred ot long ago about that. It has also hapened to me, but I was lycky, and no damage done.

I’d say buy the router, and get a few, high quality bits.

Peter

England and US is going metric...inch by inch

"resonance transfer" is a crock of hooey in all it's forms.

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Don’t agree 100% with you on that, but it is indeed a bit overrated.

I choose Tone Pros to test them. The company uses coupling to the body as a marketing concept to promote their stuff. They are supposed to lock very well in the body. That’s what Tone Pros themselves talk about, and that’s one reason why I tried them. Obviously not completely true.

The other reason is that I'm building a top of the line guitar for my first public appearance. I thought that another “brand name” (even on a so small thing as the studs” would contribute to the attention I (hopefully) will get. The fair take place during a guitar show in late October in Stockholm, Sweden, and I'm using top notch stuff on this:

- GOTO tuners (I think they are better than Shaller, more even in quality)

- Pigtail bridge (like I said earlier, they have got a little attention, and it look fine this far)

- the Tone Pros studs (A little disappointment there…

- quilted maple on a carved top…

- and my own make of pickups.

I have just received an order from stewmac with a pigtail bridge and the tone pros Studs/bushings. Here’s a shot report:

The bridge looks really good. I agree.

But for the Tone Pros studs, I NOT impressed. OK, the studs lock the bridge all right (no play there), but the posts are really loose in the bushings!!!! So what’s the ¤”#%¤”#¤% point?. I mean, I will get a rock solid joint between the bridge and the posts, but I will have to trust string tension to get the string vibration transfer to the body. The whole point of Tone Pros is to get a good coupling with the body, but I would say that both my BADASS and a GOTOH bridge (don’t remember model, but Stewmac carried it a wile ago) have better coupling to the body. No more Tone Pros for me!!! Probably the most overrated hype in the guitar community for the last years

I like it just as it is, but I like big guitars. Its an original design. To few of those arround. Go for it.

Try "The Fender Telecaster" book by A.R.Duchossoir. It got original Fender plans included. The plans is scaled down, but I just threw the book into a photo copier and enlarged them. Worked fine. It also gives you all necessary, and a lot of unnecessary, information about the Tele.

Peter

I am mounting mine upside down, with the adjusting nut on the top.

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Ive done that on a strat a couple of years ago for the same reason as you. Works really good

If we could get Stew Mac to build a version of the Hot Rod with the threading reversed, this would be really slick.)

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I second that

I've been using the Stewmac version for over 5 years. Been working fine all the time. I radious after slotting too. No problemo

Also:You might consider adding a SMALL amounth of grease to the side of the saw to reduce friction and get a smoother usage. Using too much will get the saw dust to stick to the saw side and it will get REALY messy

Waahooo!!

Fantastik paint job!

Great

Another very good combination is a neck with three thick mahogany laminates, like 15 mm, and two thinner maple laminates arround 5 mm. Killer looks, and mega-strong. A little more work maybee....

BTW: I've never heard of anyone using the scunk stripe as an laminate. Fender use a valnut skunk stripe to cover up the trussrod installation wich is done from the back on their guitars. If its not a Fender (or a Fender clone/copy/ripp off) it is probably a all-trough laminate and not just a skunk stripe.

Peter

More Qs:

Brand of guitar?

Model of guitar?

Pics of guitar?

Makes it easier to help...

As for the expansion/comtraction issues Lindy brings up, they've got to be minimal, since paraffin has been used for eons to seal glass jars, and even with the temperature cycling from cupboard to refrigerator, I've never seen a seal that was broken.

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Actually I've seen quite a lot of sels that where leaking. And those were of cause done with only canning paraffin. Don't know for sure that it was caused by differenses in teperature. Better safe than sorry, I figure.

I think that Drak sprayed the neck pocket to stop the blank from desintegrating. Remember he had a WERY rotten piece of wood. With a good pice of wood I would stay away from spaying the neck pocket if possible. I often get a bit of overspray into the pocket, but I try to scrape it away befor screwing the neck into place. I think that laquer stop the sound transfer from the neck to the body a bit.

Also; if you attach a laquer finished neck before all solvents have evaporated, you might end upp with a neck that is sticking into the neck pocket and is impossible to remove. Happened to me with the old stewmack vaterbased finish. I waited a week before I buffed the finish (a few days is sufficient according to the manufacturer) and another couple of days before attaching the neck. A few months later I tried to remove the neck but it was completly stuck. I actually broke off a piece of the side of the neck pocket while trying this!

They are perfect, FOR PLAYING SLIDE!!!!

I think that they look very worn. Could be just grime but dont look like that to me

I'd say ebony. It'll balance the mahogany with more pronounced highs, preatty much like adding a maple top to a mahogany body. The rosewood won't do that.

Peter

Awesome! Thos boards should do you nicely for quite a few instruments.

A note on glues, though: Superglue is a lousy choice for structural repairs under tension. Inlay, binding, that sort of thing? Fine. Laminates, headstock repairs? Nuh-uh. It's brittle, has very little heat resistance, and given a hard enough whack, will simply pop loose. Polyurethane or epoxy are better choices for glue-ups that never need taking apart, although poly in particular needs very good clamping, and may leave visible lines.

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Dont agree about the heat resistance. Also have a look here:

http://www.frets.com/FRETSPages/Luthier/Da.../gluechart.html

One more person that think SG is OK for stuctual use strengthvise. Having said that, I must add that I woudn't use it when building a new guitar. I've got stuck on the glue one time to much, and having to cut my self loose with a knife.

I also would hate to have the mess all over the shop when the clamps start to press the glue out off the joint...and sticking to everything... including the clamps...and the clamping blocks...and the bench...and everything else

Try this:

http://www.stewmac.com/shop/Electronics,_p..._Coil_Wire.html

As always with StewMac: A litle bit pricy, but you find all things needed there, even a very expensive readybuildt winder.

I have actually built two instruments with teak set necks, an electric mandolin and an electric ukulele! (OK the second one was mor of a toy) It worked fine for those instruments and the sort scale I was using. One thing to consider is that teak has very much oil in it. I always (nearly) have angeld heads, cut from a straight board and glued on, and I had a glu failure in the head joint on the mandolin. I think it was caused by the glue not getting enough "stickum" to te oily wood. For that joint I used white PVA glue (i think!). For the repair i used thin viscosity superglue, and it still holds the head in plase after about two years.

Peter

Make sure the wax is not above 150 degrees, 20% parafin 80% beeswax mix

I've used straight canning paraffin (Gulfwax), and even bayberry scented candles in the past without issues - why is beeswax important? Some beeswax won't even melt below 150ºF! Don't you think it's a lot more important to mention that one should never heat wax over an open flame than to recommend a specific blend of wax?

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I think the idea of the beeswax is to crank up the melting temp. I have used just paraffin and the guitar sat in a shop window for an afternoon. The paraffin melted in the sunlight and ran down the front of the guitar. Ever since I have used a 70-30 blend of beeswax paraffin blend respectively. Then again I haven't put a guitar in that situation again either, but I think that is the idea behind it.

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Nope, the idea is that the two different materials move (expand) different when heated (warmed) by body heat. The beeswax is softer and will compress slightly when the paraffin expand. Haven't tested it sientificaly, but is sounds right.

BTW, and this is IMPORTANT, it should be 80% PARAFFIN and 20% BEESWAX, not the other way arround

Peter

Stay away from the locktite and just cut of a small piece of the spring!!

Also: check the string angle over the bridge sadles. I had a similar problem when changing between string brands (on a 5-string bass, but you might get the same problem). I noticed that on the B-string the string, when tuned to pitch actually didn't followed a straight line from the bridge to the nut. It was slightly curved!!! IMPOSSIBLE to intonate. I just pressed lightly on the string to kreate a small kink over the bridge saddle and I was able to intonate properly.

Probably a more common problen on basses but check it out

Mattia is on the spot, exept for one thing (and I think he knew this was comin). I never radious befor I cut the recess for the inlay. It is a bit harder to sand the board if its full of MOP, but you get better support for your router/dremel if you have a flat board.

Peter

Just be aware. Guitarbuilding is addictive

Am I the only one that think that Jason Lollars book is overrated? OK he show how to build a automated winder, BUT fail to discuss some important things that is of more interest for beginers. Like bobin design, magnet design (rods vs screws) ets.

Steven Kerstin share more info than the Lollar book (IMO). Check out www.skguitar.com

Havn't tried metal shims, but I don't see any reason that it wouldn't work. Why not test both wood and metal shims and tell us the difference in sound!

Fan-tas-tic