mistermikev

sorry, this one. looks 3d.

I think with that in mind... and knowing my skill set or lack thereof... it'd be more wise to cut the body shape... then route a channel using some sort of guide... leaving very little wall... then sand through afterwards. or perhaps even doing card stock walls... have to think on that some more. thanks for the advice.

my bad... page 9 the natural one - now that I look again - is that a thicker top or a really well hidden veneer (either way it's stunning)?

i think I may have seen that but walked off because I have no cnc. ah yes - he pointed out that without precision your channel would likely not be uniform...

well... eh-hem...would love your thoughts if you can spare them @Andyjr1515

abso beauty as usual. I recently thought to myself "I should get a tamo ash top"... now I know why you just don't see 1/4" tamo ash tops on guitars a whole lot. I can't afford the veneer! also, in general the quality of wood you work with is outstanding. where in the world does one find a quilt top like THAT?

so I've done some looking around at ideas for radius fretboard jig... was planning on taking a shot at it. my plan was to mount my router to a 24" board and do a radius cut... then move back an inch (compensating also for other side of blade) and cut another line. do that twice to make two 12" radi cleats. attach together with a 3/4" square in the middle to mount my router on either side of it. Should be able to make radius blocks, then flip over and radius a fretboard. if that makes any sense. my question is... anyone use this type of jig and comments on how well the idea works? pitfalls? I'm guessing your best results will be running the router up and down the wood length-wise and then moving along the radius for another pass?

just throwing this out there... If I wanted to build a template for a guitar I didn't have... I'd find a straight on picture of it using google search -> 'tools' -> set to 'large images'... then I'd copy and paste into photoshop... then use the 'pen' tool to plot dots while zoomed in really close to make an outline of the body... build a fret2find fretboard and set opacity to 60%... then scale up the image/shape until the fretboard matches the actual. works for me anyway. cool tele btw. you can find that f hole by searching google... it's from a national.

so.. in that scenario you just cut the body a hair large and sand/rout after? or perhaps just do a channel prior to ever cutting the body... interesting and creative solution. I've seen folks do cardstock and wood molds but your idea is much more practical.

interesting... love the metallic looking stuff. gonna have to learn how to do a poured binding and build a white falcon w gold sparkle binding!!!

recon stone stands for reconstituted? lots of potential there... sky is the limit afa color. I suppose solid surface might be cool depending. I have some turquoise dots that are kinda nice... but how to get a matching binding with turquoise? thanks for the responses gentlemen!

I would say that is a lot better than ok... looks great!

thinking about inlays... was looking at flat beads... why? well 1) $70 for decent 'cookie cutter' inlays might be good on a build or two but then what 2) might try something unconventional on a future build for stand out color/texture been looking around and you can find paua and mop beads in differing sizes... I really like flat oval. could get enough for a set of inlays for less than $20 and some good looking shell. they tend to be a bit thick... just over an 1/8"... but I suppose one could work with that. There are lots of other jemstones that might work like onyx... but I'm guessing you'd want that burried and then epoxied in so you don't have to sand it. other ideas would be crushed stone of whatever type, then fill with epoxy. I've seen this with turquoise and we have a lot of it in az... what else? can you tell me some of your unconventional inlay ideas/experiences?

I better get started then! ;) I sincerely hope someone finds the info useful.

thank you sir, don't want to wear out my welcome!

sorry for so many posts lately! so last week I (also) ordered some tops from 'downhomewood' on etsy - has anyone else tried them? You don't get to pick between quilt/flame/burl - it's random chance between those 3. Liz from DHW, assured me "you'll be happy - look at our reviews" (they do have good reviews). They are 1/4 tops for $30 ea and shipping is $15 for up to 3, so I snagged 2 of them. I just got them in the post (last night) and am pleasantly surprised. One is quilt and the other is sort of quilt/flame. Just the other day I almost pulled the trigger on a 1/8" quilt top for $125 on evilbay. DHW def scratched that itch! Just wanted to pass along the tip - in case anyone was on the fence like me - I think it is a super deal. What do you think? Pics below. quilt: the flame/quilt

as promised... figured redwood birdseye my take - both boards seem to be straight with no noticeable bow or cup the redwood: stands out as stunning to me. love the color and the figure the most. light weight. the birdseye: in person it's got some really pretty wavy grain lines going up the center. the board has a lot of light "quilting". the birdseyes themselves are light in color and all over it. all of that seems to be washed out in the photo - that's probably on me. I bet it will really show nice with some dye

I hope this isn't inappropriate or stepping on projgtr vendors at all - if so lmk... I know guitarwoodexperts has been mentioned here by others but just thought I'd 'pass it on'... they have some neat deals right now... birdseye top 'med grade' 1/4" for $20! torrified version for $25! they also have 2A redwood for $25? http://guitarwoodexperts.com/birdseye-maple-drop-top-medium-grade-roasted/ dan cook over there is about the nicest guy I've ever dealt with. I asked "if at all possible - can you pick one with chevron figure"? He sent me picks and allowed me to pick from 3! So in short, not only the cheapest in town... but the absolute BEST customer service ever! $20 in shipping for two tops and a birdseye fretboard so shipping is more than fair too. I will post picks when I get them sometime next week. I just hoped this might qualify as giving back to a community that I am very thankful to have found. cheers

thank you zeke, I appreciate your thoughtful comments. I've built my template for the body shape and checked the belly cut... but good point - def something I may want to plan to tweak later. Like you, I suspect the neck pocket should have plenty of surface area... but less assured of two things: A - this is an 'almost' fully hollow build. 1/8-3/16" maple top and 3/16-1/4 min thickness on the back. with no bracing - structure is a bit of a concern. This is based on a popular guitar but I've never actually seen the inside of this model... I've read that it does not have a central cross block like it's brother the dc59. B - Neck thickness: Not sure if getting thicker wood(3/4 neck heel vs 1.5") would be wasted here. Ie I could double the side surface area while reducing the body thickness through the pocket. another concern is that there will be no channel for the wire going to the 3 way toggle I plan on the top right. on the one hand... loose wire may be annoying... on the other - assuming a wire channel somewhere, once this thing is closed up, if I want to rewire I'll never be able to thread it through. I know the gretsch country gentleman has a set of upper toggles and I wonder how they managed the wires. anywho, thank you again

must.... buy..... more.... wood! $16 for these two... 7/8. make a nice mild top if I just match up two pieces(not bookmatch)? Have my doubts.

yep, I caught that part and duly noted thanks for the tip either way!

either way that's what I'm taking away from this thread: dye progressively lighter colors while sanding back each time. Mental note to "scott r method".

I was watching that finish going "ok, dark red then lighter red and sand back... looks pretty good..." then the amber and blamo... looks like a million bucks. Tiger stripes - nailed it! Also nice piece of flame. Like the finger cutouts for the back plates. really great looking build. nice work.

really hard to capture the beauty of wood in my garage and in general but...

good news guys... they had a special on fiddleback masonite at my new fav place... will post some pics asap!