ryanb

I agree. The refret seems like an easier and better solution. Unbound rosewood is an easy case to start with too.

Ecxept the Jem 7V comes with a vine, not dots ... so that either is a fake or has already been changed before the dot replacement. Drill a smaller hole in the middle of the dot, heat it up, and pry out the rest of the dot. Then you can figure out how you want to fill the holes and clean up the board.

Dan doesn't discuss speeds on the video because the speed on his DeWalt (and most RO sanders) is not adjustable. If you do it that way, you have to keep it moving and don't let things get too hot. Just be careful. Frankly, it isn't too much worse than using a drill. The RO part does help, and it is really easy to go too fast with a drill and an 8" (or so) Stew-mac pad. Of course, that could be said of a pedestal buffer too.

No problem at all ... unless you are licking it.

Why in the world would some bonehead put black spray paint on a neck in the first place, much less over the existing finish? Must be a really sticky neck. If you could figure out exactly what type of paint and what type of original finish, you MIGHT have a slim chance. I think you are still going to have to sand it off though. If you are really careful, you can probably sand off the black and leave enough of the original finish to polish back to something nice (assuming it is a poly finish). Otherwise, you just get to recoat it again the way you want (or use something like Tru-Oil). As mentioned, see if you can encourage the paint to chip or peel off. Good luck.

You could put the inlay back in. You could fill it in with some maple, but you will never get it to the point where it won't show. Same for the dark spots. Bleaching may lighten the spot but will lighten around it too, and likely will end up looking worse. And if it is a knot in the wood, it won't bleach out anyway. It really depends on how picky you are about the appearance, but the best thing you could do is to cover it with some other inlay that covers it up. You would be a lot better off if it were ebony or rosewood instead of maple.

Or if you want it to last and not look like a sticker ... you do it right and order the replacement pickups with the correct color bobbins ... but the toppers are a good way to experiment.

I have also found that the lmi boards are pretty thick. The edges are not supposed to be finished, so that might account for your rough edges. It isn't very hard to take material off the bottom if you have a jointer. I can't comment on the deep slots, because I don't buy the pre-radiused/slotted boards (in that case it is nice to have them too thick as opposed to too thin). If the slots really are that deep, you would probably want to take the top down anyway. In my experience, the Stew-mac boards are definitely closer to the finished dimensions. Don't know if that is always the case. I would suggest you try them and see if it suits your needs.

Rikon equipment is generally excellent -- especially the large band saws. I can't comment on that drill press in particular ... but it looks like a good deal for $199.

I don't see any reason why not -- assuming the Metalcast is compatible with the sealer and top coats. You need the gray base coat if you want it to have the anodized metal look it was designed for. But it sounds like you are looking for a transparent candy finish. Test it out on some scrap. If you are happy with the result, then go ahead.

One option is to try to grab the screw head with locking pliers and turn it out. But you probably can't get the pliers in there. If the head breaks off, you can remove the tuner and grab what's left of the screw with the pliers. Otherwise, you need a screw extractor. Usually that means the spiral kind where you have to drill out the center of the screw first and then turn the screw out with the extractor. That won't work with screws that small. You need the type of extractor that digs into what's left of the screw head ... like this example : Craftsman 7 pc. Drill-Out/Screw-Out Power Extractors Sears item #00952157000 Mfr. model #720SR (Not to endorse Sears or that product, but it's an example ... search on the web site ... the URL is ridicuously long so I didn't post it here.) Another idea is to cut a slot in the screw head with a Dremel and try to turn it out with a slotted screwdriver.

You might want to rethink that base coat. The ReRanch paint is nitrocellulose with pigment added. Mixing NC with other finish types (acrylic and/or poly), either under it or particularly over it, is often asking for problems. You might end up with the clear peeling off. The poly top coat is a good choice over white for the non-yellowing aspect (another reason to question the NC white base) -- though two-part automotive poly would end up much more durable. The best route would be a white base coat and urethane clear coat from the same product line ... applied by someone with a proper spray booth, like a body shop. You could do the intermediate graphics with something like the Auto Air paints, etc. There are some other threads with similar ideas. If that isn't an option, you could probably do fine with an acrylic or something that you can find -- using the same products for the white base and the graphics. As long as it is completely dry (which can take a long time with some products), you most likely can put the urethane over it (pretty much anything but NC should work). Just my $0.02. Test first and see if it works....

The Stew-Mac fretboard nut slots are flat bottomed, not radiused like a Fender. That bump in the middle of the bottom edge on the 1866 is there for flat-bottomed slots, and should be removed for Fender radiused slots (according to the Graph Tech site). It should work, I guess, but I would prefer to start with the blank one and not have the gap underneath. You will still have to re-radius the top to match the 12" board or you will have lousy action -- but you will have to work on the slots anyway if you want a good fit for your guitar. There are some more options of the Graph Tech site (and their online store). You might want to look there or at other dealers. BTW: There is no such thing as fitting a nut without doing any modifications ... (except maybe for a locking nut)

It doesn't take any more tools to make a new body than it does to cut blocks to fill in the existing routes, sand it down, re-route from the back, clean it up, finish it, etc. In fact you could probably argue that it takes less.

There are also lots of small sandblast guns the size of a small jamb gun that are plenty small enough for what you want and run off any compressor. I got one at Harbor Freight two weeks ago for 20 bucks or something.

That is possible ... especially if the body will be painted. However, it probably won't matter, since the Floyd route would probably take that wood out anyway. (I'm not looking at the dimensions right now.) Filling in the screws is probably the least of the problems with that job.

Stay away from locking nuts for that trem. (You could use locking tuners if you want.) There are plenty of suppliers where you can get nuts.

Yeah, the wood block filler idea is a good start. But frankly, why would you bother in the first place? It would be a lot less work to just build a new body (or buy one already routed the way you want).

There are a lot of different ways to do it, depending on your preference and budget. One option is to only get a couple nut files ... say 11 or 12 thou and something in the middle of the string size range. That would be a good start. For another option, you could rough out the slots with a razor saw (like Xacto for a few bucks) and finish off the shapes using pieces of guitar strings superglued to the edge of popsicle sticks. That method is very cheap and will work if you have the patience. It's mostly about technique and getting creative with what you have. (Of course, the set of files is still the best way to go if you have the means.)

There is some very good advise in this thread. I second all of it. I have had bits come out of the router before ... cheap junk bits. In one case, i had one actually fail and come apart (one cutter flute came off while routing). The resulting imbalance tore the bit out of the chuck, broke it into three or four pieces, and sent them flying across the shop. One piece hit my face shield (I always use a full-face shield when routing). The others, thankfully, missed me. One was stuck in the wall. I never went near those cheap bits again. Those Chinese bits from the discount tool vendors may seem like a good deal, but they aren't worth it. Get a good router. Get good quality bits. Learn to comfortably and confidently use the tool. Practice first. Wear all the safety equipment and never shortcut safety procedures. Never rush the job. If it doesn't feel safe to you, it probably isn't -- so step back and re-evaluate things first. When working with ANY power tool, always think first about what would happen if the tool were to fail. Where would the cutter go if it broke -- make sure none of your body parts are there. For example, never put any body parts directly in line with the blade of a table saw (as much as possible anyway). If the blade fails, it will (usually) leave in the plane of the blade. And after you've done all that ... enjoy your router because it's a wonderful tool.

You can repair the binding pretty easily by "melting" it back together with a little acetone. It looks like there is a good chunk missing however, so you will have to find something to patch it in with.

I suppose that depends on what kind of work you regularly do. While i'm sure it would be nice for lots of things (mostly because of the visibility issue), there really aren't many things you can't do with a regular router table. The one in that article looks a bit scary to me. I doubt it would be cost-effective to build one instead of buying one anyway. I have seen some pretty reasonably-priced commercial units. It depends on what value you put on your time that you have to spend building it (and how much free machine work you get out of your family). But then, if you are REALLY doing it for the sake of doing it, then go for it.

I was kind of thinking of water (moisture) getting under the finish. Hard to see anything in that picture.

First of all, do not strip your existing finish all the way back to bare wood. There is no reason to do that (it's hard work), and you would be giving up a very good factory sealer coat. Just sand it back so the new caots will adhere and start with the new finish (assuming the materials are compatible). A lot of people say to do a flat finish by simply not completing the buffing. That does give a flat initial finish, but it will slowly become more glossy in the wear areas (which get "buffed" over time) and will look like crap. It also doesn't look the same as a properly buffed finish. The best way to do a matte finish is by adding a flattening agent to the finish. It then is buffed out the same as for a gloss finish. No amount of buffing will ever make that finish go glossy, but you don't have the fine sanding scratches in the finish.

It certainly would be strong enough. (Apple is great for making wooden mallets.) I don't know about its tonal qualities. I would guess it would work pretty well ... assuming you can get a clean cut of wood. Let us know how it works ... you may start a trend.