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ihocky2

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Everything posted by ihocky2

  1. I just went back and ran the saw blade through to clean them. Do it once dry, but within 24 hours and it seemed soft enough to not chip out.
  2. This is a little late, but minimum you need a respirator with activated charcoal filters. Still not as good as a fresh air system, but better than nothing. If you have a beard, fumes will still get in. At least put a coat of vaseline on the edge to create a better seal. Nitro is flammable even once dry, but needs a source. Nitro cures by evaporation, so it does not generate it's own heat like linseed oil. But put a match to it and you'll see a nice flame. It's base component is used in gun powder to give an idea.
  3. I've done two coated fretboards, one each way. Spraying first is easier than cleaning up the frets and works well pressing in the frets, but I would be nervous hammering in case of an errant strike. Fretting first takes a little more time which is why you probably had lacquer on your Fender. They will do a nice job, but at minimal hours. Cut the edge under the fret with a sharp exacto and then scrape off the fret. Once dry the lacquer comes off the fret easily and cleanly.
  4. Any reason on a neck that wide you are using a single truss rod instead of two? Not that two are always needed, but with that much room I would have done two just two allow for more adjustment on each side.
  5. I love it. I like the lines carrying through the body, but do agree with AD on keeping the headstock dark.
  6. I’ve never been a big LP fan, but i like this one. The wood looks nice, I like the carves and I love the shape of the F holes.
  7. Light weight and easy to work usually don’t describe ash, you definitely got lucky on that piece. I did a thinline Tele from ash years ago that is light after then chambering but was hell on tools. My work bench is mostly ash and the thing weighs a ton. Before you settle on a set neck, make sure to do some trial fit up. Make sure you like the fret access and still have enough wood for side support.
  8. I would venture a guess that the dealer should still be there. There is a nice thread or tutorial about painted taped off patterns, the main point was heavily thinning and getting color with minimal build. I think you want the color ratio to be based against the thinned volume of lacquer, not pre-thinned. That will increase the ratio of color to lacquer. At worst I would try some different mixes on scrap. practice is the best tool. When I switched to poly it was learning all over again and then going to an HVLP gun I had to change me entire technique.
  9. I’ve done the small buffs in a drill for inside the horns. Works great but watch where the nut on the buff is and where the drill chuck are. I won’t say how I know that. No need to fear with the boiled linseed oil rags. The problem comes with them piled or wadded up. Hang them out to dry and they are fine. The heat builds up are the oil cures, if they have surface area to let off the heat then they just dry. Piles of rags builds up and holds a lot of heat.
  10. Sounds like spraying too heavy still. I think more of it is coming from being unthinned. Your are laying down a lot more solids which is the heavy part, causing the runs. I would try thinning 50%. Especially with the color coats you are looking for something to carry and bind the color, not necessary build thickness. Also watch your distance to the work surface, lighter coats up close don’t disperse as much and will lay down heavier. Remember your 50% overlap patterns, even with the Preval.
  11. Remember, your best tuning stability comes from straight string pulls between the nut and the tuners. Once you have a full scale drawing it will be easier to tell where everything falls.
  12. Either using the dye in alcohol and dying the wood like Mike said or think about mixing the dye into some lacquer for a translucent finish. Use a few light coats to seal the wood and then spray the color coats. By sealing first you eliminate the blotching problems. Ive never used paulownia, but if it is soft like poplar just be careful until you finish it. I’ve done several poplar bodies and they dent just looking at them in the raw state. You’d be amazed how much harder they get once they soak up some finish though.
  13. It’s been a few years that life got in the way of my building and playing, but am starting back at both again. I don’t get to play everyday, sometimes not every week, my strings seem to corrode pretty quickly from just sitting, will coated strings help extend their life. Being double the cost of regular strings, should I expect double the life or more? With so many brands offering coatings now, are any better than others? i don’t gig, I don’t record, right now it’s just building my chops back up so tone is not my highest priority. Feel, playability, and string life are more important right now.
  14. That’s pretty much the same way I do blade slots. A template and small router but would be nice, but I always feel more comfortable with hand tools for precision work.
  15. I believe that one at Home Depot is nitro, best way to tell is the label. It should list cellulose nitrate if it is nitro. Remember with rattle cans to only use about 50% of the can, after that you get more solvent and propellant which leads to more orange peal. Nitro being harder than poly is actually easier to wet sand. Poly is soft and tears when sanded, nitro is harder and the sand paper cuts, seems counterintuitive. Spend a little more on the spray gun and you can use a 30 gallon air compressor or maybe less. Look at the mini-HVLP guns, they use low CFM’s. DeVilbiss makes nice ones, I have a Finex 1000 made by Sharpe that I love. A good gun makes a world of difference in the final finish. I started with a cheap one and learned the hard way; but once, cry once.
  16. I’m not gonna day these are the best quality, but the price is right and work nicely if you don’t try to cut too much at a time. https://m.harborfreight.com/20-pc-carbide-rotary-micro-bit-assorted-set-62379.html
  17. You have a few questions I am not familiar with, but can help on some. So I guess that makes me a nitro jester. I would either wait for others or do more research on Minwax, my understand is that it is an acrylic lacquer not nitro. I know Mohawk makes (or at least used to) a nitro and so does Deft. Deft is more clear than some other brands and is supposed to not yellow or crack with age. Mine has not over 10 years. Deft is harder than most other nitro, to the point it chips easier than some others. So it has good and bad points. I have not had trouble with any of the common fillers. I’m not familiar with lacquer over tru-oil. You could test it, but long term effects won’t be seen for years. Nitro melts into the previous coat very nicely, so no scuff sanding required between coats. I would still pull the tape while wet, but you have more of a window. Sanding sealer is a higher solid lacquer, sometimes with an additive to make sanding easier, less corning of the paper. I’ve gone both ways, and will use just lacquer if that’s all I have on hand. The main purpose is to seal up the pores and start building a film faster but easier to sand. Alcohol dies work great with lacquer. Test on samples for initial color and color build. Couple more tips, humidity is your enemy. Blushing in nitro sucks and is better to just wait for another day instead of forcing it on a day this is more humid. Use a better quality thinner, it actually makes a difference. Nitro builds a lot slower than poly, you’ll need a lot more coats, be careful of sanding through. Nitro takes a long time to cure before polishing, I go 4 weeks and then thumbnail test. If you have time wait even longer, you’ll have less shrink back the longer you wait.
  18. I have a Porter Cable set from Lowe’s, cuts nice but not in metric. I does have smaller increments and goes well over 1”. The Harbor Freight set us nice for bulk removal since they are cheap and actually sharpen up nicely with a file or stone. I did pick up I think a 9/16 forstner from Lowe’s as a single bit. Woodcraft and Rockler should be good for single bits.
  19. Loving the progress. I’ve been hoping for the garage to finally warm up to 26 so I can start working again. We got as low as 3 degrees two nights ago.
  20. You definitely want to try on some scrap first, but that looks more like transparent green over top the wood, not dyed. Even then, the base color of the wood will affect the final color of the transparent. Like ScottR mentioned, the neck pocket almost looks like the wood may have been bleached. Testing on scrap is always the best way to start if you’re not sure.
  21. I’m not sure how their black is, but check out Vintage Forge guitar parts on amazon. I’ve been very impressed with their hardware finishes so far.
  22. I’ve done two Thinline Tele styles, one with a traditional f-hole and one with a deer footprint. Both where done by hand. Drilled out the bulk of the waste, I used a Drexel with a 1/8” router bit to get closer to the outlines and from there jewelers files and sandpaper on small sticks. It wasn’t the fastest, but I could fine tune as I went. I understand trying to work around the weak points in your skill set, but unless you work on them they will always be your weak point. Don’t rush it, take your time and do some practice runs on scrap first.
  23. I had not thought of flipping the inlays, but I do like the idea. I’ll take a look at it. I’ve always like the V styles. Not sure if I’ll keep this one or sell it, so I figured I would try for a vintage tone since the rest of my guitars are set up for rock and metal. Easier to justify keeping it with a different style tone.
  24. I am just wrapping up the last of my planning stage for this build and hope to start cutting some lumber in the next few weeks. The goal is to be ready for paint just about when the weather breaks for spring. The design is based off a '67 Flying Vee with some minor tweaks. The neck will be profiled the same as my Soloist. Recessed TOM bridge, Seymour Duncan '59 pickups with gold covers. All hardware will be gold. The neck I am planning on using a 3 piece laminate of lacewood and either mahogany or cherry. The body will be mahogany wings with a wenge top which will cover the neck. The head may or may not get a wenge face, I'll decide which I like better when the time comes. I'm torn between a bloodwood or an ebony fretboard, again I'll decide once I can lay the pieces together and choose the colors. The inlays will be gold MOP.
  25. I know this is a very old thread, but as I cruise through tonight I have some input if not too late and at worst good for future reads. The link you posted looks like it is painted. But if you want to use wood, try and find some holly (yes the bushes with the spikey leaves). Larger bushes can produce some useable lumber and it is very light in color, much lighter than maple. I’ve been told it is close to ebony in density, but can’t prove it. It will still need a finish to keep it clean. I’ve fretted before and after finishing. I prefer to finish first if I can. Sanding and leveling is easier without the frets in the way. Some builds it is just not possible though.
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