Thread: Cocobolo Str_t neck build

thats a nice bit of wood mate!!!!
i want one lol

keep the updates comming

i really like that wood.. lol

Originally Posted by Andrew_B

thats a nice bit of wood mate!!!!
i want one lol

keep the updates comming

i really like that wood.. lol

thanks Andrew

hopefully tomorrow i cut some fret slots, sand strip to size for channel insert/glueing (think i might need 2 pack epoxy cos it sure is oily!) and get some clamps to glue the strip in as well as cut the neck to size and use the off cuts to make 'ears' for the headstock..

then some tricky routing to get the neck heel right with a overhanging bit cos i am going for 22 frets...it be like a faux fingerboard look lol...the neck pocket on the body basically for a 21 fret neck so i might have to do this bit

then the drilling in neck heel to receive the adjustment nut...this has to be just right ...i am nervous bout this step lol

and then and only then do i go clamping/glueing up the channel strip (hopefully by tht time the 'ears' be done) making sure the rod don't rattle ...stew mac advises bathroom caulking sealer...anyone got better idea than caulking sealer?

hopefully all this stuff be over by the weekend when i can get down to me fave part ..and tht is carving the neck profile

sounds good man,

i reckon you should spend some time going through your fretting procedure for us,
will help me out as i start to do some frets soon

if you google it.. theres a few tutorials/run throughs on doing the truss rod slot of the fillet and the holes....
since you have used that style truss rod you dont need the hole at the headstock or the curved slot....
so you have got it off pretty easy....

i reckon the way to go is clamp the neck down flat and make a block of wood into a guide by drilling a hole through the centre at the height you want... and then just clamp up and drill

something i did recenty was take an old stripped phillips head screwdriver and i ground the end to a point.... i use it to mark my centre points when drilling....
a lil tap with my pin hammer and yippie ki ay, straight drill holes

i think i understand what you mean when your talking about the overhang on the end of the fretboard,,,
you should be right... maybe mark your line and run your fret saw along it before you rout ....
you'll be right

aye Andrew

i wanted the easiest way to make the one piece neck with a trussrod and i reckon this might be one of the easiest methods ...everything square ...heh

yeah i saw the block of wood with a hole guide as a jig on tdpri forum where a fellow is quite ingenous with all his jigs and templates....might well make one of those sometime soon heh ...but i was just planning on using the furniture maker's drill press to drill that particular single hole in the heel accurately

each time i pay a visit to the man it's 5 bux hehe

he is a nice fellow though so all is well

with the fretting i guess i will describe as i go along ...all quite ad hoc really

ok...onto cutting out the neck heel/overhanging bit

clamp neck blank using workmate...fingerboard below for support...mdf board above for router support and the straight edge on it will be used via roller bit to cut a straight edge on the neck heel
http://i238.photobucket.com/albums/f...1/100_1743.jpg
http://i238.photobucket.com/albums/f...1/100_1744.jpg

i also used the strips in clamping the neck blank ..majority of routing done already
http://i238.photobucket.com/albums/f...1/100_1747.jpg

once mdf board removed...position neck blank so it ia as level with workmate as possible then i used the edge already routed as a guide to rout to final depth
http://i238.photobucket.com/albums/f...1/100_1749.jpg

turned neck blank on it's side and placed trussrod where and how it will rest
http://i238.photobucket.com/albums/f...1/100_1756.jpg
http://i238.photobucket.com/albums/f...1/100_1760.jpg

mitre box with saw (i have another thinner one for fret slot cutting) to remove off cut
http://i238.photobucket.com/albums/f...1/100_1761.jpg

and this is the overhanging bit
http://i238.photobucket.com/albums/f...1/100_1765.jpg

strat neck ontop of neck blank and it is a thin line between triumph and disaster
http://i238.photobucket.com/albums/f...1/100_1762.jpg
note off cut will used to make the 'ears' of the headstock tht is obviously required

and a couple of days after freshly sawn ...the yellow of the cocobolo strip is beginning to darken ...quite an interesting ongoing transformation
http://i238.photobucket.com/albums/f...1/100_1766.jpg

Ahh now I get what you were up to with the cutting.

Interesting idea. How much depth have you allowed for your neck shaping?

the neck is currently just under 1 inch ...24 mm to be close

i had to make sure the truss rod channel i routed was deep enough so that when i shape the back of the neck i can go thinner to say around 21 mm and not hit any truss rod

as it is the rod will rest around 7 mm from the fingerrboard side surface...the truss rod is around 11 mm tall ...so i get around 6 mm from the back before i hit the rods

hopefully i can control myself when it comes to using me woodcarver

ok...so today i got a bit o time in the arvo and i bring my blank to the furniture maker to get the hole drilled for the truss rod adjustment nut

as it happened, when i arrived, Joe was about to go and measure up a job onsite somewhere else (he builds jarrah furniture) and was closing up shop ...

so i ask if he could help drill the hole with his drill press cos it needs to be accurate and all...

he looks at it ...saw my trussrod and how it was going to fit then proceeded to clamp the blank on his bench vise..found a bit slightly larger than the nut and before i could utter another word ..loaded up a hand drill with the bit and proceeded to drill the hole freehand!

extraordinary!

the hole
http://i238.photobucket.com/albums/f...1/100_1768.jpg

so, i go back home a lil shaken (but not stirred) and discover that the nut is ever slightly wider than the rods which means i have to get out a file and file the channel end at the neck heel a little wider so the nut can slip in...once done i install truss rod ....timbeeerrr!!

http://i238.photobucket.com/albums/f...1/100_1770.jpg
http://i238.photobucket.com/albums/f...1/100_1771.jpg
http://i238.photobucket.com/albums/f...1/100_1772.jpg
http://i238.photobucket.com/albums/f...1/100_1773.jpg
http://i238.photobucket.com/albums/f...1/100_1774.jpg

so i go measure the depth at each nut to check all is well...

well..all is not well cos one nut appears to be sitting a lil higher than expected

this was the cause
http://i238.photobucket.com/albums/f...1/100_1776.jpg

out comes the dremel with a burr bit
http://i238.photobucket.com/albums/f...1/100_1777.jpg

having burred away the errant bits of wood, measure the depth again at each nut
....better...
http://i238.photobucket.com/albums/f...1/100_1778.jpg
http://i238.photobucket.com/albums/f...1/100_1779.jpg
http://i238.photobucket.com/albums/f...1/100_1780.jpg

so now i am ready to do the strip using the araldite and clamps i just bought from bunnings ...but i am exhausted and a lil shaken

thus it might have to wait till tomorrow

hahaha !!

looking good man

ok...back to the neck after some days of being ill and not quite 100% healthy enough to be around power tools and sharp objects ...

used this site to get me some fret calculations for 25.5" scale (i actually used 650mm)

http://www.manchesterguitartech.co.u...calculator.php

...and of course i don't even have accurate long ruler...so off to bunnings....got myself a 65 cm ruler with imperial and metric (to half a mm) ...nice

...so, the first thing was to find where the 21st fret would be relative to the cut i made..

...then from this 21st fret i found the nut location...

...then i used my old fret slot saw and it cut it quite cleanly

...then ...i marked the fret slots with pencil (now using nut slot just cut as reference) AND using the edge of the blank tht i used for the edge guide when i did the truss rod channel (i call this edge X...important edge...reference edge)..

...i should have also bought a square cos it is easier to draw in the slot lines perpendicular to the edge X..but i ended up using the ruler by lining up the measurement markings on the ruler to edge X ...adhoc

...then i put the neck blank into my yellow mitre box and proceed to cut shallow slots which i will deepen later out of the mitre box (mitre box really only used to cut the initial slot in square with the edge X which is used as the guide in the mitre box)

...problem...

...this cocbolo is darn hard and it finds out the sharpness of your tools in a hurry...

...in my case me old fret slot saw gave up the ghost after the 1st fret and started to skim across the surface rather than produce crisp cutting action/./..

...time for replacement saw...

...got one for 75 bux...would u believe ?! ...a japanese saw with a kerf of 0.028 mm

oh well...since i will be making a few necks i thought ...might as well ...

...and of course this cocobolo also showed up my ill health cos a few slots were cut terribly and the obligatory thing to do was fill with super glue and coco dust and do it again (yes...the myth about superglue not working on cocobolo is wrong )

...measured slots again from nut and 1st fret against me printed out fret slot calculations...re cut the messed up slots

...then onto abalone dots which i found left over from a decade ago ...as it is there were only 10 ...exactly wht i needed heh

...found the centreline on fingerboard surface (it is basically taken from the truss rod channel in the back) and proceeded to drill....

...because the holes drilled arnt flat, i used the dremel with the burr bit i showed earlier to burr out a flatter surface in the holes for the dots

..then once again super glue + coco dust used to put the dots in...

http://i238.photobucket.com/albums/f...1/100_1783.jpg

i used the dremel with a drum sanding bit to sand back the protruding dots before goin over with sandpaper + block...dremel saves time and elbow grease and since i survived this 'mega toxic' experience of fine coco dust + fine abalone dust i feel many myths about this wood starting to disappear....pic shows prob a few slots needing to be filled in again and re-cut....me fine cutting skills way rusty ...

http://i238.photobucket.com/albums/f...1/100_1784.jpg

oh yeah ..the coco dust was obtained from sanding down the truss rod channel strip which i have been patiently doing bit by bit every day so as to get as perfect a fit i can for it to match the routed channel

Originally Posted by R3R

since i survived this 'mega toxic' experience of fine coco dust + fine abalone dust i feel many myths about this wood starting to disappear....

Just because you didnt have a reaction this time doesnt mean you wont in the future. The allergen reaction is accumulative, ie it will only become apparent when it is too late. Ask any older woodworker about dust reactions. I realize you arent 50 yet but I want you to be making great instruments long past your 50's! In the end its your health, not mine thats at stake. There are plenty of sites dealing with these issues, dont get cocky.

Nice work! I love Cocobolo, pity its so expensive, great thread, I look forward to the finished axe.

heheh thank you Sebastiaan56

i should have worn a mask at least ...and you are right...it does sound cocky espc later when i have emphysema or sumthing like it

which i am expecting btw since i havnt given up smoking either

thanks for your observations...it sure is a most beautiful wood to work with ...just have to make sure all cutting tools are sharp to have enjoyable experience heh

will take it easy for a while till my health is fully restored...i think i was a bit too optimistic earlier

ok...feelin a little better ...and i discovered one thing from me last lil session

...the saw i originally bought cuts too thin! kerf 0.28 mm (it appears i was confused between this kerf and the 0.023" kerf i required which is around 0.5mm)

...so i go back to shop and got another saw with the 0.5 mm kerf

however i had to keep the thinner saw as it is very accurate indeed and i prefer it to cut the initial fret slot ...the wider kerf saw is then used to widen the original slot for the frets...if i left it as thin slots i prob would be facing a backbow situation after i go hammer in all me frets ...

then i discovered how rusty i really was at accurate woodworking

i go measure all the slots again each time from the nut and discover quite a few tht was out by one mm or more which is unacceptable to me ...the largest margin for error on the fret slots measurement would be 0.5 mm imo

so i go fill up the errant slots with super glue and coco dust once more and i had to do this 3 times before i got an acceptable set of fret slots...fortunately the errors wernt too big so tht when the frets eventually go in ...they will cover up the fill in ...hopefully hehe

here is pic of final effort at the fret slots...with the 2 saws i bought and the ruler and the printout

http://i238.photobucket.com/albums/f...1/100_1791.jpg

then onto the truss rod channel strip which i finally sanded down to the size i want ...ie it has to go into slot with some force but not so much force that i cant pull it out! heh

it cant go in too smooth as i want a good tight join at the sides of the channel strip

made sure it went in the proper depth by marking out on a dry run and measuring...made sure nothing is in the channel ...blow and blow again then scrape then blow again ...

...make sure too tht the truss rod is actually in the slot

i used araldite as i was not confident titebond might do the job with cocobolo and i used a toothpick to mix and spread the araldite (on a scrap piece of perspex)

then clamp em up after spreading a thin layer on the strip and the sides of the truss rod channel making sure no glue gets on the actual rods

http://i238.photobucket.com/albums/f...1/100_1792.jpg

used the toothpick to spread the araldite in any gaps i find espc around the ends where the fit was hard to make clean

http://i238.photobucket.com/albums/f...1/100_1793.jpg
http://i238.photobucket.com/albums/f...1/100_1794.jpg
http://i238.photobucket.com/albums/f...1/100_1796.jpg
http://i238.photobucket.com/albums/f...1/100_1795.jpg

hopefully by tomorrow i can get more done once the glue is dried...

ok...glue dried and time to trim off the excess strip (which i can use for another neck build)

started off with a fret saw but the cocobolo blunted the cutting edge after a few inches of cutting, and i was perspiring a little too much for my liking

so i switch to the trusty dremel with a cutting wheel and proceeded to cut from both sides a groove
http://i238.photobucket.com/albums/f...1/100_1797.jpg

you can see the place where i stopped the fretsawing and here are closeups of the grooves
http://i238.photobucket.com/albums/f...1/100_1800.jpg

http://i238.photobucket.com/albums/f...1/100_1802.jpg

which help the excess piece snap off like a ticket stub
http://i238.photobucket.com/albums/f...1/100_1803.jpg

then i use me straightedge wrapped with 80 grit and sand away
http://i238.photobucket.com/albums/f...1/100_1806.jpg

then i find this
http://i238.photobucket.com/albums/f...1/100_1808.jpg
and this
http://i238.photobucket.com/albums/f...1/100_1810.jpg
so ...super glue + cocodust once more ....then sanding again ...then i get this
http://i238.photobucket.com/albums/f...1/100_1819.jpg

not bad...even with the typical R3R fill in tell tale signs

onto routing out the nut slot ....pics soon but i think i need lunch now ....