transambytrial

I'm not done setting up the guitar yet, but it sounds nice, plays nice, sustain is really good, eventho it's a fancy element when playing metal, at least I think so.. I now have to shield the cavities and make a cover for the back one.. I have to say that I'm very pleased with the way it came out as far as sound goes..next to my 5 grand les paul this 400 dollar explorer is a beast!! I certainly could've done a better job.. just gotta wait for the next build to better myself..

So I finally Got around to do the paint and then I got an autobody shop to clear coat it.. here are a few pix..The result is ok, I'd say 8/10 for most people which would around 5/10 for me! lol pb being the clear coat which is not thick enough..that's what happens when you're cheap!

If you radiused your fretboard to 12" then the radius of the top edge of your frets would be 12.08" ish depending on the crown height. Your 12" radius block is actually a little tighter than you need and that's why the edges got sanded down so much more. You are better off using a long flat block to level the frets, being sure to level along the string paths. SR Understood, I will do so.. Thank you for the reply, that helps a lot..

A lil more routing, shaping, sanding, and off to paint..

I clamped the guitar for about 4 hours and then unclamped it to let it sit overnight. Today, After checking out "Killemall8" 's pictures, I decided to change the neck joint so I grabbed a couple different files and sandpaper to work on it..then I put a lil coat of primer after sanding it with 400 grit..

I will have to recrown the frets, but I dont have the right tools..I'll look around to see if I can find a way to get it done without the recrowning tool..So in the meantime, I decided to glue the neck to the body..Titebond original glue + a couple clamps..

Yesterday I leveled the frets using a sharpie and a 12" radius wood block and 500 grit sandpaper..I actually had to sand it down quite a bit, especially on the edges..maybe the 12" radius fretboard wasn't quite there..should've checked it with the 12" radius block instead of the straight one..

I used a grinder to take the excess off and then sanded it down to the right feel, at a 35deg angle.. used 2mm drillbit to add the side dots..I used wood glue for both application..

Thought I'd level the neck then put the frets on the fretboard..first time and it worked out just fine..

Then I worked on the neck shape, mimicking the one from strat that I really like..made it a lil thinner though..

Been busy with school but I got a lil time to work on the guitar.. First, I finished the headstock..I'm ok with it but I think I could've made it a little better..took too much wood off at the edge.. ">http://http://s1248.photobucket.com/user/Transambytrial/media/FTW%20Exp%20White/05_zpsd31a585e.jpg.html'>

You are right, but without the proper tools, I find it hard not to be sloppy..so I'm doing my best with what I can afford to buy right now..I will have to look into making templates for the next guitar. As for the bridges holes, I actually have a gibson explorer template I aligned with the neck, I verified it with my black beauty and it seems to be the same.. The holes for the tailpiece are underdrilled, I will take it to some guy I know to get the holes drilled to the right size and get them to be straight..

Then I worked on the pocket and adding an angle to the neck because of the gibson tune o matic bridge..I did the neck routing not with a specific angle in mind but just by putting together body and neck and figuring out with a straight edge how it would have to be..I read that a 2 to 4 deg angle is fine but I thought it'd be better to angle it to my specific need..dunno if that was such a good idea we'll see in the end.. A major mistake I made was not using a guide for the pocket, I drew it with a template of a gibson exp found on the internet and then I used a guide made out of a block of wood to drive the router but I messed up.. The joint is still tight, I finished it by hand, but I am very disappointed because my mistakes make a poor fit..Eventho it seems it will hold well and it is well aligned and I think well angled, you can see gaps I do not how to fill..a tiny piece of wood? wood filler? I sanded the edges of the fretboard with a block to try and respect the lines of the neck eventho it was about 47mm at the nut before I started and wanted it at 42mm, which is where it's at now..my hand hurts!! lol I will route the cavities better but now that's how it looks like..for me it's a real pain since it's the first time I use a router but I'm learning..You can see here how I messed up twice with the router..first time I used it I left it on top of the body, not thinking It would drill a hole in it..well it did..learned from this mistake..I always wait until the router stops completely before putting on the side of the body..second thing is the mark you can see right between the bridge pick up cavity and the bridge..lifted up the router while using..major mistake here also..I will fill these holes later but that's a major disappointment also..

I sanded the top of the neck and the bottom of the 12" radiused Ebony fretboard in order to glue them together with titebond glue..

I Started with the neck, I got to try out the router and shape the headstock first before working on the pocket and neck/body joint.. I'm not done yet but part of the work I do by hand so it's taking a lil bit of time..