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GarrettS

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Everything posted by GarrettS

  1. Mods — please move this to whatever forum is most appropriate (I can't figure it out). I'm looking for a builder for my own design solid body electric, chambered. It's a large body ergonomic build. Here are Solidworks renders. It's 7cm thick. I would have liked it to be thicker than it is, that requires use lighter materials, such as sandwich core, and that requires making molds. For a one-off, that's expensive. I want the fretboard milled out of stainless steel. That'll require some planning and materials selection. If I can't get that, I want a hard wood for the fretboard. For the body, aged flame mahogany or black limba.
  2. Is there any three way selector that can be mounted internally, without any screws on the face of the guitar? It's for the look. Thank you.
  3. Looking for someone to finish the CAD part of the project. Should take 10 weeks to complete the CAD part. Modern long body guitar. Headless, neck thru, lightweight, HH + Piezo, sleek, ergonomic, lightweight design. I'm pretty clear about what I want. Project is on GitHub with specifications and CGI. Looking for a pro to finish the job. It's necessary to calculate center of mass using the software program. TODO: * Neck (spec'd, filler CAD) * Body (partial CAD design) * Electronics & cavities (partial design only) * Cavity covers (needs revamp) Guitar Plans CNC stopped working. I complemented his good work, organized the remaining tasks, and offered about ~40% more to finish said tasks, paid out in fortnightly payments as he completed "sprints" of tasks which we would iron out every two weeks. He said he like the idea, then made excuses for months, then finally admitted he hadn't planned on doing anything else.
  4. 1. It's about $50 more than the truss rod. Not much, considering what's going into this baby. 2. Were you thinking of using a D-Tube and a truss rod? 3. To balance the guitar, the proportion of weight from the neck to bridge must increase. The body is chambered, the neck and fretboard will use heavy woods. the neck at the lower frets uses extra jumbo frets. The decided strap button position also affects the balance. Reducing the neck weight with D-Tube would solve that problem. It's 50 grams and weighs less than the wood it replaces (especially true for the heavy woods I've chosen). Truss rods add weight in the neck all the way to the "headstock" (which in my case is just a tiny piece of wood useful for a guitar hanger). D-Tube not being adjustable seems like it might be an issue. If we could see large numbers of builds using D-Tube that were 5-10 years old and working great, that would really improve my confidence in them. It's unproven and not without risk.
  5. The long body headless guitar design progresses! It'll be a 24 fret neck-through with a slim, asymmetrical neck. I'm thinking 9-piece flame maple neck with ebony and holly stripes, and one massive flamed purpleheart or bloodwood spine. Something like the below. How can I lighten the weight of the truss rod? Will a D-Tube alone suffice? If not, how can I lighten the truss rod? This is not my guitar, it's a Barlow Guitars guitar. https://dragonplate.com/carbon-fiber-d-tube
  6. I want, inside the chamber: mic. blend knob for mic / piezo blend knob for that system (mic + piezo) / magnetic The guy from LR Baggs told me the anthem system wouldn't work like I want with mag pickups. He said there would be impedance issues causing popping and dropout switching between mag/piezo. So, if it's not possible, I just won't use the mic in there.
  7. My guitar design is coming along well. The physical model is really shaping up! We next need to calculate center of mass and, for that, need to know the electronics configuration. I'm in over my head and need help, either free or paid. Suggestions and offers welcome. I need help planning the electronics scheme for this: H H + piezo 3-way mag selector 3-way selector for mag, mag+piezo, piezo Output jack w 2-way switch (TRS stereo, mono) Internal knobs, inside the cavity, for piezos; bass, treble, and volume Battery for the piezos Sophia Tremolo 2:92 Pro [with GT Pro]
  8. I've played on nickel silver (NS) frets forever and I like the sound, but I filed them down through playing, using wide vibrato with harder strings, NXYL. I was very optimistic about stainless steel (SS) frets, but now, owning a guitar with them, I realize I dislike the silverware ping sound they produce. I would rather have frets that sound good but wear out than frets that sound like shit forever. Do Jescar EVO gold ping like SS? Or is there a way to make NS frets last longer? Who makes them? For my build, I decided to use three fret sizes to achieve a gradation, or tapering of fret width from very wide in the low frets, to super slim on the high frets. I based the sizes on Jescar EVO gold but I don't know how they sound. After hearing so many guys rave about SS frets and then finding I don't like how those sound, I feel like I'd rather play it safe with NS frets. Can NS frets be bit harder? Can I get the sort of fret width taper of Extra Jumbo to Slim Tall with harder NS frets?
  9. Sorry. What I meant was having some frets SS and others EVO. I do not like the sound of SS frets as much Nickel, and the flame maple amplifies the harshness. I heard of cryogenic Nickel/Steel but couldn't find it anywhere. I love nickel steel frets but I bend a lot and that wears them down fast.
  10. It's a neck through design. You helped me with some of that before regarding neck pitch, The modeler is using less neck pitch, 3°, because he couldn't make it work right with 5°. Now as for the bridge, I've contacted CSL and they said they can slot a bridge for graphtech, so I'm going to go with that.
  11. I guess the other question would be which pickups to use to get these sounds. I've used Air Norton, True Velvet, Tone Zone. The guitar I'm designing has a large chamber cavity with a small soundhole on the body. It will probably use roasted swamp ash with a maple cap with a 1mm layer of cocobolo middle layer.
  12. As a guitar player with no experience in guitar design, I'm designing a guitar. The guitar is designed to be headless, for lightness and balance; and to have a tremolo. I would like to have better clean tones and I think piezos should help that. How will that possibly work in the Sophia bridge I'm planning on putting in it? I chose the sophia bridge because it seems to be a good trem that can work with a headless design. But how can I get a piezo system to work with that? And if it won't work with the sophia bridge, then which bridge can work?
  13. My guitar project planning is coming along. The body shape, which is the hard part for this project, is nearing completion of initial 3D draft. So, on to pickups… H-S-H vs H-H Switching from HSH 5 way to HH 3-way — it'd simplify switching sounds while playing. That can be challenging. Why not? Can I still get roughly the same sounds? Can H-H position 2, split neck get the power ballad sound? Would split humbucker get a single coil bridge and neck sound? How does a split humbucker compare with a single coil? The middle pickup can tend to get in the way with picking. It's only slightly annoying. But it is slightly annoying. In my 5-way HSH strat, I use positions 1, 4, 5, and sometimes 3. 1) Neck: Punchy neck leads 3) Neck split + Middle: Hendrixy leads / less gain 4) Bridge split + middle: Power ballad ("Pull me Under", "Wind of Change") 5) Bridge: Rock chords (AC/DC) Metal riffs (Maiden, Ozzy). leads. I also want better clean tones with piezos and I don't know if that will work in the Sophia bridge I'm planning on putting in it. Probably should go in a separate thread
  14. "The body is a convenient place to hang the electrics and strap buttons but, functionally, it doesn't actually need to do much else" The body shape largely affects that balance and positions the guitar. My design aims to get it further away from my body and more to the left. As for the router person, she offered to do the CNC toolpaths, too, then decided that that's all she'd do, then quit. MakerNexus shop teacher, Jeannie Llewellyn, decided to take the project on, came to my house to gather details, hit on me, ignored me, wrote up a plan to do the prototype and CNC for the project using foam and basswood, made excuses, ignored me for weeks, tried to invite herself over again and, failing that, she sent a cryptic text:— At that point, my confidence in her was lower. She later followed up to text me at 1:45 AM that "the retainer ran out". The next day, I text replied asking what that meant. She read the text and ignored it. I issued Venmo a request for refund. She then rushed to send out some 3D image that does not match what is spec'd, and of course, reneged on the deal.
  15. I like the triangle soundhole. I like the curved back. How thick is your neck through? looks like 3cm in that photo. Where are the strap buttons? @Andyjr1515 The objective is lightweight, ergonomic guitar. Weight can be decreased by chambering and holes (like monkey grips, etc). Chambering with holes creates sound holes — holes that emit sound (bonus). The design is to be flat along a spine, from fretboard to bridge contoured, arched back along the sides, and with a deep with a deep forearm contour, . Arching the lower side puts the controls further out of the way of my right hand, when strumming. Because I tend to anchor my fingers, a lower height on the lower side should make it easier to maintain a nice break in the wrist when picking. This should help me pick faster with palm muting while I anchor my fingers. Although anchoring is considered "wrong", a lot of guys do it, and especially guys who play with downward pick slanting, including Zakk Wylde, Michael Angelo Batio (who is left handed), Yngwie Malmsteen, and John Petrucci. I practiced for almost a year not anchoring and eventually went back to anchoring. Contouring the upper side reduces mass. A deep forearm contour makes room for my forearms and also helps me get that favorable break in the wrist. NOTICE: The Solidworks Designer Cut her hand and has not been very responsive. I may need to hire someone else. Contact me if interested.
  16. WOW! Thanks, everyone for the awesome responses! I wanted to reply earlier but there is so much to think about and respond to. @Bizman62 comment about the neck pitch changed my perspective. I realized that neck pitch will affect the forward tilt. More on this in the video below. The removable back plate would fit snug and be attached with tiny magnets. The purposes are 1) to provide fast access to the bridge and controls, and 2) to cover the chamber. I also considered 1/4 turn release latch with spring release latches, as in the drawing. Turn the knob, pull opposing latches, and open. Problems: Harder to construct than magnets, might break. Benefit: won't accidentally pop off and should be easy to remove by hand. @curtisaIf I put any sound hole port(s) on the front, they will be set further away from the pickups to avoid feedback. Still undecided on this, but it would look cool, would reduce weight, and would provide a sound port for unamplified playing. The bowl shape will be about what you've depicted in your blue crescents. @Drak The point of the rear back plate is fast access to the bridge and all components, including the output jack. Here is a video about neck pitch: Thank you ,everyone!
  17. I have been designing a guitar for the past 12 months and I now have questions about Construction Design and Soundholes. The goal is to make a guitar that is more ergonomic for me to play. It will be thick, very heavily contoured, and lighter by use of massive rear chambering. It will be more left-shifted by having a longer rear bout. It will be neck-through with ~4 cm thick top woods. I thought to make a rear chamber with a carbon fiber backplate to cover it all. Total solid thickness, excluding chambered-out areas, of top and back woods would be ~2.5cm (1"). Distance from face of guitar to back of horn: 7.5cm This will leave a massive chambering less than 5 cm deep (due to curvature). The neck thru will be 4 cm thick (not the full 7.5mm thickness (too heavy). The neck thru will be sandwiched between the top wood and back wood. The top wood will cover the neck thru. the back wood will cover the neck thru. The back wood will be notched to fit the neck through. There will be one large carbon fiber back plate to cover the rear chamber. Will this work? What's good about it? What's bad about it? What should I watch out for? How will sound ports on the face of the body, through the top woods, affect the tone? Where should I consider placing them? Thank you. Video describing it: Side view sketch:
  18. How can I move this thread to the CNC forum? I still haven’t found anyone local to Mountain View, CA.
  19. I'm developing a prototype for a neck-through electric guitar.I want to find someone to develop the G-code and then to use the CNC mill shop. Who can help with that? (I've attached an incorrect 2D model and a video explaining what I'm looking for.) 1. Develop 3D model 2. Generate CNC code 3. run the CNC mill 4. Glue neck and wings together, 5. Reiterate if it's way off (step 1) 6. modify result by hand I have a guy for step 1 & 2; do the 3D modeling, calculate the center of mass, and generate the CAD files.He's in a foreign country and there is a bit of a trust issue with this random dude from Facebook, so I'm open to working with someone local on that, too.I’ve attached the 2d draft and a 2 minute video explaining the differences between the 2-D draft and what the prototype should look like. I need a local CNC router and operator to build a prototype in Mountain View, CA. The prototype will be just unplayable and have no strings or anything on it — just wood shape. For the 3D model, I found a guy online who can do the graphical model, and calculate center of mass, in software, and generate CNC codes. The 3D dude is in one of those South American countries like Venezuela or something. It seems a bit sketchy to send him $600 up front, but he did actually listen to what I was looking for and sent me something kind of similar based on that. So if I pay this dude for his 3D model, I'll need someone locally to run the CNC code. I tried local maker shop "Maker Nexus" but couldn't find help there. Tried the Shapeoko beginners Facebook group, too. Nobody there, either. GS-Custom.pdf
  20. I'm looking for someone who can do 3-d modeling for a custom guitar for me.
  21. How do you use carbon fiber and wood in your builds? Maple and mahogany, Alder body, maple neck, rosewood or ebony fingerboard – these are classic wood combinations. Maple can be too heavy and bright for a body wood, but works well as a top wood. Nowadays, people are getting fancy with pale moon ebony, bloodwood, and carbon fiber. How do you use carbon fiber and wood in your builds? How would you use it on a body? How have you used carbon fiber with wood in a guitar body? How would like you use maple, mahogany, one other wood, and carbon in a two or three layer body. You can use two to five woods for your construction. Explain your reasons. Thank you!
  22. Really appreciate the feedback. I don't know shit about wiring, so I'd leave that up to the pros. I imagine it's possible to have the Piezos wired to the middle switch and then have a blend knob to blend them in. For weight, the p90 might add 1/2 lb — about 8% of the weight. Balance is important, so less weight matters and less weight on the face of the guitar especially matters because of the guitar shape and strap button placement. If I can get a substitutable tone from a split between the bridge and neck, that would save at least some weight in a place I want to avoid extra weight. As for string pull, I don't know. I heard pickups add string pull but I don't know about it.
  23. Yes, piezo in the middle with a split, and a blend knob to blend in piezo. Bridge Bridge split + piezo (blended) Neck I could add a Gold Foil P90 in the middle. That'd give more tonal variety for low gain crunchy rock. But it comes at a cost of an extra pickup, more weight, string pull, and wiring. In that case, it'd be Bridge Bridge split + p90 + piezo (blended) Neck So it sounds like what I want would be best achieved with an an audio taper pot.
  24. I'm trying to decide a few things for electronics and need some guidance. I'm building a neck through guitar with a maple top, ebony board for everything rock, from The Beatles, to Van Halen, Scorpions, Ozzy, Metallica, AC/DC, Pink Floyd, etc. What are some considerations for electronics for that? Thinking: Volume knob, 500k Linear taper pot Three way selector: Bridge (Series), Split (Parallel), Neck (Series) HH How do you make the volume easy to ride? Passive pups with the volume knob are loud until almost all the way down, at which point they get quiet really fast. This makes it hard to ride the volume knob because to get a very backed off sound requires controlling the knob to somewhere very specific between about 1.5-2.5. Anywhere above that and it's too loud, anywhere below and it's nearly silent. What about having volume knob turn down all the way physically to have that sweet spot of "2" and then use a killswitch or "soft stop" in the knob to shut it off all the way. Or is there any type of "volume cut" switch, not killswitch, to cut the volume by half, at which point it might be easier to ride the knob? Tone for this music should be bright and loud. Should I go Bareknuckle, DiMarzio, or something else? On HSH, I use three settings: Bridge (for riffs/leads), bridge+ middle (for clean tones), neck (for leads). Piezo for clean tones in the split position are desired. How can that work that in the configuration. But 3 way selector is better than 5-way and I'd rather have two pickups if I can get the right sound. Two Pups are lighter and pulls on the strings less compared to 3 pups. This is really like three questions: 1) What volume config is good for riding? 2) How can the sound be loud & bright? 3) Can the pups be set for 3 way selector, for HH config, with piezos for the middle position?
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