malmsteen

Does any one have any information on building a portuguese guitar?

At the end of the day you could do it with the frets in but i think half way through you'll ask yourself: why didn't i just pull the bloody frets out in the first place !

Just my pennies worth,

Jem.

so how do i take the frets out? wont that wreck the slots that their in?

and another question regarding inlay:

instead of drilling out cavities for the inlay is it possible to just cut out a piece of the fretboard (drill a hole right through) to make it easier? and if it'll effect the sound couldnt you glue a thin piece of rosewood at the bottom of the hole?

There is a very good image in the advanced download section? Obviously I cant tell if its the same as the one you already have, but thats all I know.

- Dan

wheres the advanced download section?

Im looking for a free Tree of Life inlay pattern. The best i can find is a picture of it that i can try and copy. If you know where i can find a pattern let me know. I've got an old ovation guitar with a broken soundboard that im going to repair and i would like to do a fancy inlay on it while im fixing the rest of it. I have a question regarding the inlay though. Can i leave the frets in when drilling out spots for the inlay?

The best resource you can get is The Art of Violin Making by Courtnall and Johnson. It's expensive (about $120), but well worth it. There's also a series of books by Henry Strobel that's really good. They're much more affordable. Start with Violin Making Step-By-Step. Under no circumstances should you waste money on the Bruce Ossman book Violin Making: A Guide for the Amateur. Everything in it is wrong.

Don't try to duplicate the kit to make one from scratch- get some real plans. The best source is the Strad magazine. They sell posters with full size photographs of classical instruments. The back of the poster has an accurately-drawn outline, thicknesses, and measurements. The "Milanollo" Stradivari violin is a good one to start with.

If you're looking for a forum devoted to violins, try the Pegbox forum on Maestronet. There are quite a few very good makers there who are very helpful.

thanks for the info. the only reason i was planning on copying it was because i couldnt find plans on the internet and i havent had time to find some books. but thanks for that message board site. thats what i was looking for.

thanks for the sites. what im planning on doing is ordering the kit from stewmac and then duplicating all the parts so i have one completely from scratch and one from a kit and then i could sell one. Lex Luthier, how long did it take you to complete the kit from stewmac?

I wasnt sure where to post this but this seems to be the most popular board.

Has any one here ever built a violin? If so how hard was it and how long did it take? Im thinking about building 1 this year but i cant seem to find much information on the internet. If you know of any sites like this one (but for violins) or you have any information and/or are willing to give me tips please let me know.

has any one been to or heard much about the Summit School of Luthiery out neer victoria. im looking for a good school to go to next year so if you have any suggestions let me know.

got any tips on building necks, i'm about to attemtpt my "first", out of cheap pine, just for practice and to learn...

Don't use pine. It'll warp like crazy over night. For all the work it takes, i'd make the real thing right away. Just measure 3 times, use a test piece, and check at this site frequintly to see if your doing it right.

this may sound dumb but what kind of pickup are u using with that type of cavity?

Litchfield Custom Gutars got it right. A Dogeared P-90

looks great....Malmsteen would not like the guitar though....

ya probably not. Maybe if it had scallopped frets.

The pics seem to be working fine now at least on my computer so hopefully you can all see them. All i have left is to put in the hardware so i should have pictures of the completed thing very soon. Thanks for all the positive feadback.

I need help with how to wire and i need a wiring diagram. I have a P-90 which only has one wire coming from it, 2 pots, and the output jack. help! what do i do?

you cant really tell from the pictures but its black blended into red blended into the natural brownish tone.

Heres some pics of my almost finished guitar. Sorry if their a little big.

Im going to post more pics once i have it all finished with the hardware and stuff put in.

This is my first time building a guitar and i built it all from scratch. (including the fretboard) The neck is hondurous mohogany, the fretboard (which you cant see) is brazilian rosewood, and the body is maple with a Sapiely(sp) Pommelay(sp) veneer.

If you like you can mail them to me and I'll upload them.. I have lots of extra space.

k thanx. i dont have much time right now to edit the pics and stuff but ill PM you in the next day or so.

I've got pics of my guitar so far (it has the stain and one coat of finish) but i do'nt know how to post them. i have them on my hard drive and not on a website.

The two lower holes in the pic are the mounting posts for the thing that the strings go thru and the upper holes are the mounting posts for the thing the strings go over... !

ohhhh. now i understand the picture. i was getting very confused.

Some bridges like "tune-o-matic" style bridges should be installed with an angle when its tail-piece is installed 90 degrees to the neck's center line. Like on Les Pauls. But this is just because of these kind of bridges have limited adjustment range on their saddles. With angling the bridge, you will get bigger adjustment range on saddles for the right intonation. Intonation should be done with adjusting each saddle while tuning the strings. Normally, the bass strings should be slightly further back than the trebles. It can't be done while mounting the bridge. So the idea is to leave maximum adjustment range for intonation after you install the strings.

Most of the other bridges and tremolos have enough adjustment range on each saddles, so no angling required. And tremolo bridges should be mounted 90 degrees to the center line for the right "tremolo action".

Here's an example drilling diagram for my tune-o-matic bridge and tail-piece. But it may be different on other bridges.

which bolt is the scale length?

im building a les paul so i have the thing that holds the strings and the thing the strings go over. (i dont know the names of the things) My question is how far away is the thing that the strings are held in to the other thing? also, should i put the thing the strings go over at an angle, or can i just leave it straight?

I might as well ask this before some one else does,....got any pics??

not yet. im for sure going to take pics of the finished guitar but i might take pics of what of got so far. im just doing finish sanding right now so when im done that i might take some pics.

k i finished vennering yesturday. i cant remember what type of wood it was (some crazy name) but it looks really cool. it was actually pretty easy. it was just glued down with clamps and stuff. the hardest part was the curves in the guitar. once it was glued on i had to take an exaxto(sp)-knife to cut out the holes for the pickup and stuff and then sand it smooth and flush. that was tediis(sp) because i could only make small cuts at a time so i didnt snap off the veneer. veneer gives you the option of more exotic woods and isnt too hard.

im going to veneer my maple body in the next week or so. this way i can have the tone of a maple body but the look of an exotic wood. right now im probably going to use madagascar ebony.

Please let me know how it turns out, and your procedure.

im getting my dad to help with the veneer. he's a professional cabinet maker so he knows what he's doing. i think what you do is cut out the shape you need and cut out the holes and then iron it on. thats all i know right now. tomorrow hes taking me in at 7 until 5 to finish building it and then the tuesday i should be ready to veneer and stuff.

im going to veneer my maple body in the next week or so. this way i can have the tone of a maple body but the look of an exotic wood. right now im probably going to use madagascar ebony.

why would you need a pickup ring for a P-90? i thought only humbuckers use rings.

thanx for the help guys. Im going to check out a craft store in the next few days. if i cant find anything ill use tooth picks.

instead of ordering the router bit (it costs something like $36) take a 6/32" router bit and set it just off center. use a test piece the same width as your neck and see if its the right size. Then run it across twice and it should be 7/32".

The thing is im at the point where i dont have time to order anything. Im going to check out a craft store or something i guess. How wide is the stuff?