ElRay

Ricky, No that you've had this for a while, how's the sound with the straight pick-ups, yet "slanted" scales? For a lot of folks, that's a "deal killer". I can see the bridge pick-up sounding a bit Tele-ish, but I don't have an idea of what the 24-22 Fret-ish sound of the Neck would be. Ray

Out of curiosity, why the perpendicular nut? I can see a perpendicular bridge (so you can easily use off-the-shelf hardware), but I missing the utility of a straight nut/zero-fret. Ray

In addition to the "make your own carrier for off-the-shelf saddles" (good enough for Novax), there's Ola Strandberg's headless system, Rick Toone's headless system (IIRC, it can handle multi-scale) and Khaler makes multi-scale capable trem and non-trem roller bridges. Ray

Beauty. Ray

... and the other thing that would hurt him is that he published pictures of it long before he started down the patent/licensing route. and: which is why I'd gladly ask "permission" for using any of his stuff, even if there's technically no legal requirement. Ray

I got back from Afghanistan in Nov. Where are you now? The pict looks like you're in deployed digs. I left a 7-string and a Digitech RP-50 in theater when I ripped-out. Ray

Referring to this one? I tried to link to the image, but the URL is formatted in a way the site won't link to. Ray

Here's my take (from a mostly furniture building background) on PVA/Polyurethane/Epoxy/Urea-Formaldehyde/Hide glues: PVA for most joints, but nothing under tension, that will be touched or visually relies on the surface being smooth. I've experienced creep in bent laminations and have seen and felt glue lines rise and fall with seasonal variations. You also have to make sure the glue has cured and the wood dried before you do any final surface prep. I've seen work that's been sanded too soon, only to show divots/grooves a few days later. They're also nice when you need something with a high degree of initial tack. They're also very limited in gluing wood to non-wood. Polyurethane glues can be messy and expensive, if you apply them like PVA glues. If you apply an appropriate amount (much less than you'd typically use for white/yellow glue), the mess tremendously reduced and the cost per joint is reduced too. Also, if you're a "wipe the glue with your finger and then wipe you finger on a rag, apron, clothes, etc." kind of person, you will temporarily stain your fingers. The glue line can also be noticeable (visually) if it contrasts too strongly with the woods used. They're only gap-filling if you're putting on some kind of a solid finish. The foam has no structural strength. I have no experience using polyurethane to glue wood to non-wood. They can force joints apart, but if they fit well, and you use cauls/clamps appropriately, it shouldn't be a problem -- unless you can't clamp the joint well, or you need your glue to be sticky and have some degree of holding power right out of the bottle. There's tremendous variations in cure time, color, heat resistance, etc. with epoxies to make any definite general statement. You need to read the info about the specific epoxy you want to use. That said, I'm not aware of an epoxy that is not structural in it's own right. So, they are truly gap filling. Because epoxies are structurally strong, they're good for gluing woof to non-wood -- especially if there's some texture for the glue to bite into. I like Urea-Formaldehyde for a lot of joints. It has all of the advantages of polyurethane glue, but doesn't foam and set's up a bit harder/stiffer. I usually use it for any joint that will be under constant stress (bent laminations, etc.). I like traditional hide glue for veneering. It softens the veneers, and shrinks when dry, so it locks them down. It's also easy to fix bubbles with an iron. Also, it's decently "gap filling" if there's small holes in the veneer. It also takes stain well enough that it can hide flaws in many veneers. If I had a glue pot, I'd likely use it for fretboards, but I have no experience with this use. I also have no experience with liquid hide glue vs "the real stuff". Ray

If you haven't nailed-down your scale and spacing at the nut, use something like FretFind2D to lay-out your fretboard and make a cardboard mock-up so you can play with the string spacing, scale length, etc. I'm a big fan of 28-5/8", because it's essentially just two frets "behind" the nut of a 25-1/5" scaled guitar. Ray

Was pointed to this post from OLF: Ray

Right now, I'm looking at no fretboard. Something like this: I may change the design and add a fret board (like they've done with the Lestar), but right now, I'm trying to avoid that. I've also read that the only reason a maple fretboard is finished is to prevent dirt and grime from being a problem. I've experimented with "sealing" a maple board with epoxy and sanding it down to 600 grit. I'm OK with the feel of that, but will that provide enough "protection"? Sorry if this is getting annoying, but I'm trying to understand why things are done the way they are and not making choices just because "that's the way it's always been done". I am getting to the point that dealing with a maple-non-board may be more work than changing the design and adding a board. Part of the issue is that this is "just" a travel guitar, I'm planning on splurging a bit on the pick-ups, I'll need something POD/RP-ish and adding a "typical" fretboard would be an additional purchase I wouldn't otherwise have to make (right now, I have all the wood I'd need). Ray

It's a travel guitar and it will be along the lines of an AMS MiniStar, Castar, Rockstar, etc. I'm 99.9999% sure it will be maple. Ditto. I'm not super enamored with them either, that's why I'm looking for alternatives. Ray

Any ideas how BRHV would work on the fretboard? Maybe a thinned coat or two, but not as many as the rest of the guitar? Ray

Wow, this has some good reveiws: Sawmill Creek Reveiw #1 Sawmill Creek Review - Over Epoxy rec.music.makers.guitar.acoustic There were also some reports of it being "chippy", but as best as I can tell, that was due to the varnish not adhering well to the sealer and/or previous layers. I've also seen as many coments that BRHV is less "chippy" than Nitro. I'd chalk "chippy" problems up to user error, and not really problems with the product. Ray

I'm planning a travel guitar and I'm looking for a relatively easy (as in technique) durable finish for the neck (and what little body there is) and fretboard. I'm not adverse to something labor intensive (as in do something today, come back tomorrow, do it again, etc.), I'm looking for a DIY finish that won't be rough, get gummy/sticky with heat (the guitar likely will be going to the Middle East), pick-up dirt, etc. Unfortunately, I'm at that information saturation, insufficient hands-on experience stage. When it comes to finishing wood, my experience is with paint and "heirloom furniture" (good appearance, reasonable protection, semi-easily repaired) finishes, neither of which I think would be suitable for a guitar. The times I've encountered poly-urathanes, they've all been essentially plastic encased wood that will pick-up imprints from fabric of you're not careful, feel sticky, etc. Can poly-urethanes be put on thinly so they don't make the wood feel like it's been shrink-wrapped? For the body/neck, as long as it's reasonably smooth without being slippery and provides decent protection from dings, scratches, etc., I'll be happy. I don't really care about color, film vs. penetrating, wood vs. automotive, etc., just protection and durability without negatively affecting playability. Tru-Oil sounds like it would fit the bill, but how would that compare to lacquer over epoxy? Or an automotive (not necessarily) clear coat? I've used the Duplicolor Mirage on a mountain bike, and it's held-up well enough, but I don't know how suitable it would be over wood. Duplicolor's Metalcast has an odd kind of coolness to it, but I can't see it being particularly scratch resistant or good over expanding/contracting wood. For the fretboard, I'd prefer the "bare wood" feel, but if I'm going with a film, then something like the Thor Epoxy finish would be good. I've already experimented with multiple coats of epoxy and sanding down to 600 grit, and I like the feel, but how's the protection? If I did want to do something like the Thor Guitar Labs epoxy finish, what kinds would give sufficiently high build without being too soft? If I were to go with a lacquer, how do Deft Nitro (aerosol), Behlen Instrument Lacquer (aerosol) or KTM-9 (brushed/wiped) compare? What about UncleJ's LTV (linseed oil, turpentine and varnish) finish? Ray

I think this is the key point. The ultimate accuracy of the printer isn't super important, but the printer's precision is. As long as any error is consistent, your fretboard will be suitable. As others have said, you may get a 25.49" or a 25.59" fretboard, but as long as you don't have significantly different %-errors at different locations, your fretboard won't throw-off your intonation. Ray

You also don't need any fractional marks past the first major division (that's why a lot of engineering/drafting scales actually have the only fractional marks before zero). If you need 7.5 mm, then measure from the 1/2 mm before the 10 mm mark to 17 mm mark. If offsetting by 10 will take you past the end of the scale, then you can measure from the 2 mm mark to one more than the total distance you need for the whole numbers, and then use the marks before the 2 for your fractional amounts. If you're going to hand measure, try finding a drafting supply place and buy the longest scale they have. Another alternative is to use FretFind 2D, print-out your scale, and use that as a template. Ray

Thanks all! I'm working on the final design aspects and will start a build thread in the not too distant future. Ray

Exactly. My only concern is that they might sound a bit wonky because the lower treble strings would have that "22 fret sound" and the higher ones would have more of a "24 fret sound". Similarly with the bass -- Lower bass strings having more volume because they're being sensed further from the bridge. Ray

It's for a travel guitar, so aesthetics are only mildly important. The AlumaTone P's are bass pickups (but the folks at Lace say that their response is flat enough that they should be suitable for use in a guitar) that come as two separate pick-ups. They're typically mounted right next to each other, but I was thinking about mounting one near the bridge and the other near the neck. I'm looking for more of a difference than you can get simply by angling the pick-up. Ray

I'm planning-out a "simplified" 8-string, multi-scaled build, and I'd like to have the "warmer" neck pick-up sounds from the treble strings and the "tighter" bridge sounds for the bass strings. One idea that popped into my head was to use Lace Alumatone P's; however, I'd have to keep the pick-ups straight, even thought the frets/bridge is slanted. Anybody see problems with straight pick-ups in this application? I know folks here have done that, but I couldn't find any feedback regarding how it affects the sound. Another idea would be to make custom bobbins and have somebody wind them, but I have no idea of the cost or who would be amicable to wind four, four string coils. Anybody have better ideas? Ray

But don't PVA glues have creep? Wouldn't a plastic-resin glue be better for a laminated neck? I've never seen a bent-lamination for furniture glued-up with PVA glue exactly for that reason. You do have the down-side of a thin brown line, but that's only a real issue if you're only using light-colored woods in the neck. To be a total glue-geek, I'd say use PVA glues for the body (wings, top-caps, etc.), plastic-resin for neck laminations and hot-hide glue for veneers and attaching fingerboards to the neck. The hot-hide glue is messy, but it is really nice for veneers, plus it's fairly easily reversible, if the fingerboard needs to be replaced. The one area I'm not too sure about would be the neck-pocket for a set-neck. I can see the advantages of PVA, but plastic resin is "stiffer", so you might get more of a bolt-on "snap" that many bolt-on fans love. Ray

It looks like ETS has adapted to the death of Mr M of ABM. From Building The Ergonomic Guitar Blog: Be sure to bop on over to Rob's site for full info. Ray

One thing I've noticed is that they only two leads out, so if you want to do a coil-split, capacitor by-pass, etc. then you're out of luck. Ray