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update: i've been focusing on my other guitar in progress, but this one will get all the attention in a few weeks once the other one is almost done

i've neglected updating for a while, mostly because im busy, but i've gotten plenty done in the past few weeks. pickup cavities body close up fingerboard inlayed and radiused back neck shaped 1 neck shaped 2 Lastly, I need some help with this one: I ordered a fingerboard from LMI, slotted but unradiused. I put in my own dot inlays, however when sanding the radius with my 12" Stew Mac block I noticed that the fret slots were a bit shallow on my fingerboard. You can see that there is nearly nothing left for depth on the sides, however in the middle of the board there is enough depth to put the fret in. What would the best way be to deepen the fret slots without having to worry about it being too shallow that I'd have to put the frets out if that were the case as I were fretting? HELP! Pic below: fingerboard side view, fret slots too shallow

yeah, it is a scarf joint with some semi-thick lams between that i cut out of some spare wood. i'll get some pictures up within a few days. i've made loads of progress since my last update but have been too lazy to post pictures. id say by friday or so i'll have some pics of this guitar and the other one ive been working on, along with the workbench i built

doug, yes thats what i plan on doing setch, thanks for the clarification!

I am planning on doing Gibson style binding on my guitar (where the binding actually has a lip where the fret ends). I was wondering if I could tap in the frets before gluing the fingerboard to the neck, or would that be too risky? I would think that the fingerboard may be too weak to tap the frets in with it not attached to the neck. I wanted to do it this way so I could put the frets in, square them off with the end of the fingerboard, and then glue the binding on, then lastly glue it to the neck. Anyone have an opinion?

i live in a dorm where we have a music venue dedicated to the 20 of us that run it, so i practice with my bands there and have a smaller amp in my room

hmm, didnt know that! ill see what i can do to get some good prices. only if they fix my cab though!

Jon, thats a great set up. I'll have to get some of those squeeze clamps so I can do that too! I just got done doing some work. I used the sander to do the carving on the top and sides, it worked incredibly well. Later this week or next week I will post pictures in the two threads I have going for these guitars. I also got my bookmatched top jointed and glued! Thanks everyone!

billious, thats funny, i actually originally bought that sander on an impulse buy last week. i took it home then did some research on it and found that people were having major issues with the belt tracking. i ended up returning it and found a ryobi on sale that was a little more, and had variable speeds and was way more heavy duty. i just got back from jury duty, so i have the rest of the day off to work on guitars! ill let everyone know how my sander works out by tonight. im off!

Thanks for all the input guys, but I'm not sure all of you realize that I was talking about a handheld beltsander, not a stationary one! Anyways, I am thinking about looking into one that is a little smaller than 21" now after reading some of this, but maybe I can make do with this one. Its pretty heavy duty, and the sides are square so I could toss it in a vise and use it as a table mounted belt sander too!

Totally understandable, but for me its either GC or the internet

I hate Guitar Center. At the end of last summer I bought a Marshall 1960A cab and decided it would be a good idea to buy a "no questions asked" replacement plan with it seeing as how I would be using it a ton and taking it all over. That sounded like a great idea, no problem, pay $70 extra and get a little peace of mind knowing that if something happens like a speaker blows or someone falls into the grill and destroys the thing it will be fixed or replaced at no charge to me. Great. Well at the end of the semester I noticed the casters (wheels) on the bottom of the cab are pitted and completely trashed. Two weeks after this one of them rips out of the insert that connects it to the base. Its MADE OF PLASTIC. Who the heck designs a "road worthy" speaker cabinet with a cheap plastic threaded sleeve? No problem, its ok, I can get the casters and new sleeves replaced for free. Cool. Last Saturday: I go into GC with the parts taken off the cab, showing my recept and slip with all the coverage information. They tell me to call a company called AEON who manages their replacement plans. Fine. Last Monday: I call AEON. They quickly tell me to call GC to get Marshall's phone number. Fine, I'll live. Wednesday: Call GC during my lunch break, they tell me to come in after work. I do so. They again tell me to call AEON. Now I am starting to get annoyed. Friday: I call AEON again. After spending my ENTIRE 30 MINUTE LUNCH BREAK on the phone with them giving them every detail they need, they tell me I need to deal with GC or Marshall. Then they tell me that after I settle the information with GC I would have to SHIP MY SPEAKER CABINET TO THEM. Are you serious? The parts I need can fit in a padded envelope, and I can screw them in myself. O my, I'm dripping with frustration now. Today: Back to GC, ready for destruction. Walk in, immediately asking for a manager. I don't have any more patience. I tell them I've been getting the run around, and that if this isn't settled this week I will never walk into a GC again. I also add that I've spent more money than I can even image on amps and guitars in the time that I have been playing, which is 11 years of my life. Thats over 1/2 of my life, and I'd say thats a loyal customer. Also I added I was considering buying a Les Paul as a college graduation present for myself at the end of my senior year if I had any money put to the side from this summer. They tell me they will call Marshall tomorrow when they are open and sort things out. DOUBTFUL. Heres to you, Guitar Center.

I just bought a 21" x 3" hand belt sander at a great price. I've always wanted one, but I am fearing that it is a little overkill for guitar building. Anyone have any thoughts before I actually use it? It would be used mainly for cleaning up where the body wings join the neck in through neck guitars, and for things of that nature.

I saw that a while ago, but it seems like it would be better to just use a cabinet scraper or a flat razor blade, files, and sand paper.

So I've done a bit of homework on this binding method. I went to Guitar Center today to play a SG Standard, and the way Gibson does it doesn't seem too far out of reach. In fact, I am quite confident that with a little patience (god help me haha) it will come out quite nice. Any last incite before I place a Stew Mac order for some cream plastic binding? Should go nicely with the cream binding I am doing on the headstock, and both sides of the body...

thats interesting that they would taper the fingerboard after the frets were on, just seems like more work to cut the steel on the board. but i suppose that would make the fret ends perfectly square against the side of the board

could you explain this? i dont really follow

I love how Gibson overlaps their neck binding with the ends of the frets, however I am perplexed as to how they accomplish this. Here is what I am talking about: GIBSON BINDING. I want to do this to one of the guitars I am working on, but what I don't understand is how they are able to have the fret ends either inside or under the binding. If you've played a LP or SG Standard you'll understand what I am trying to say. Do they install the frets first, then the binding? If so, how do they have the binding actually covering the fret ends! HELP!

and if anyone has some Morley wah mods to share, that would be great too!

I haven't had any luck with the search or with Google. Does anyone have any good sources for mods to do on a DS-1? Thanks

one thing i didnt consider was the extra wood where the strap button screw would go. for that i will definitely have to had some wood its a little embarrassing that i missed that, but hey, live and learn, and its under the maple top.

it is a little narrow yes. i may end up gluing some wood where the TOM would go just to give it some extra support. there is about 5/16" on either side of the ends of the lugs without it though, so we'll see. although i did take that into account in my template the bit ate about 1/4" under the template on one side, so i evened it out on the other. i'm not concerned seeing as how it will be covered, and with the location of my f holes it will be impossible to see the blocks if i glue them in.

i got the control cavity templates cut on the laser cutter today, and also cut the neck height down a bit for the TOM bridge, jointed the body sides each about 1/8", routed a cavity in the side of the neck for the pickup wires, drilled into the lower wing an inch or so to connect the control cavity to the pickups/neck route, and glued the body wings. busy day! pics will follow!

i got the neck pocket template and control cavity templates laser cut this morning, then routed the control cavity. i'll take pictures by the weekend! i'm still working on a f hole design to laser cut a template for, but havent come up with anything i like. hopefully i can draw a decent one by tomorrow so i can have that done since i leave for home and wont have access to the woodshop here since the semester is over

tell me about it, teak is soooo pricy