Your guitar building tools!

[AwDeOh]

Hey all,

First post! Came across this place in my travels looking for guitar building sites in Aus. Anyhow, just started gearing up to build a few solid bodies. Got the sh**s trying to find something with *exactly* what I want, so I'm going down the build path. I'm interested in what all you guys have so far in your workshop. If you've got the time, I'd love to hear about all you've got - tools you can't do without, the ones that are worth their weight in gold, and the ones that'd make good presents for people you hate! :o

So far, I've bought myself an Ozito Router, Ozito Rotary Tool (I'm also going to get the Dremel plunge router and shaper table attachments, for inlay work), a few wood planes, chisels, etc. Next on the list is a Drill Press for doing tuner holes and to use a drum sander bit on, a surform, spokeshave and a whole lot more clamps.

Sorry if this has already been discussed before (couldn't find another post on the topic so far), thought it might end up a good thread to go to for the basic 'must haves' for guitar building.

[kiwigeo]

Okay,

Heres a list of the tools I use most in my modest workshop:

1. a good set of quality paring chisels. 1 x 25mm, 1 x 10mm and 1 x 6mm. Get a few bench chisels as well. A crap chisel for cleaning off glue is also handy.
2. a decent smoothing plane (#3 or #4) ....I use Veritas planes mainly.
3. a decent block plane.
4. a few cabinet scrapers and a file and burnisher to keep them sharp.
5. an Xacto craft knife and sharp blades.
6. a stiff backed tenon saw.
7. a couple of Japanese saws.
8. a fret saw (guaged to suit frets I use).
9. A decent router....a Trend T5. The Ozito might be ok but check the depth settings dont slip once theyre set. Also a selection of straight cutters and a Stewmac binding channel cutter kit. I also have a dovetail bit and associated templates for doing steel string dovetail neck joints.
10. A Drill Press....handy for drilling square but not essential if youre on a budget. A dowelling jig with a 10mm brad point bit is handy for drilling classical headstocks.
11. sanding blocks and sanding sticks...you can make these up yourself.
12. Various files for nut and fret work.
13. a straight edge.
14. a selection of metal rulers.
15. spokeshaves....a couple I bought in NZ for $15 each.
16. scraper plane...handy for working with mahogany, rosewood and other wood with rogue grain.

I think thats about it.

A drum sander.....spend the money on a decent router unless you plan on building lotst of guitars. I thickness my tops with a plane/ scraper plane and then work to final thickness with cabinet scrapers.

The Dremel.....handy for inlay work but for cutting rosette and binding channels IMO its underpowered and the router attachments Ive used are too flexible. I use the T5 for both jobs and the Dremel only for inlay work.

The above my opinions only of course but based on my experiences so far as an amateur luthier.

Cheers Martin

[contrebasse]

aaaaah .... sanding sticks, yes.

Definitely the japanese saws.

A bandsaw is very nice too.

[kiwigeo]

Your right Matthew....bandsaw very handy. I forgot to add it to the list. A 14" bandsaw is fine for cutting out tops and other guitar work. If planing on resawing then go for something bigger. Ive got a Carbatec 14" bandie which performs ok. As far as blades go.....I use 6mm and 10mm blades supplied by local sawyer here in Adelaide (Norwood Saws..great service) and alot cheaper than the stock Carbatec blades.

[bricks]

I have an assortmant of basic home power tools

Jigsaw
Cordless drill
circular saw
reciprocating saw

bucketloads of different clamps
Good set of wood chisels
planes one big, one small.

I don't own, but use a mates router when I need to. Simple bosch one.

Sanding blocks galore-

Various scrapers and blade tools- saws, hacksaws, knive's

Buffer/ grinder

Good sturdy work bench with good vice. ( pads for the vice)


You'll soon see what you can and can't use in various situations, alot of tools you'll buy as you need them, or adapt from something else- I use a simple home engraver kit for my inlays for example.

Good work light is essential

Something to hold your guitar in various positions, parrot vice or buck bag for example.

Would love to have...............

dedicated fret saw
bandsaw
spokeshave set
belt sander
table sander
dust extraction fans

[rockola]

Hey all,

First post! Came across this place in my travels looking for guitar building sites in Aus. Anyhow, just started gearing up to build a few solid bodies. Got the sh**s trying to find something with *exactly* what I want, so I'm going down the build path. I'm interested in what all you guys have so far in your workshop.
Don't have a workshop at the moment :( but here's what I used to use a while ago:

Bandsaw (for cutting body overall shape, etc.)
Handheld router (for cleaning up after the bandsaw, body cavities, ...)
Table saw
Belt sander
Jointer/planer (for dimensioning body blank and neck pieces)
Drill press (for drilling holes :D )
Handheld drill (for drilling that funky hole through the neck pocket that connects your pickup cavities if you don't plan on using a pickguard)
Workbench with vise
A LOT of clamps (for laminating necks, body blanks, ...)
A pair of 1m steel rulers (handy for eg. getting the neck on straight)
Assorted hand tools (rasps, chisels, scrapers etc.)
Spokeshave (neck shaping)
Soldering iron (connecting electronics)
Multimeter (figuring out why the electronics don't work :p )
Pencil (IKEA is a very good and cheap source for these :D )

Special tools:
Whetstone (fret leveling)
Nut file set
Fret crowning file
Fret slot saw

Not all of these are absolutely essential. Some of these are only used in one or two building phases. Some can be substituted with others. I've probably forgotten something that absolutely needs to be there. Only one per customer. Conditions apply.

[old_picker]

Ummm I just go for my favorite most used
Metabo ROS
digital vernier
6" engineers square
dremel

I have a lot of tools but my fave of the bigger machines is the router table with the woodpecker fence and the orange router hangin off it

TS, BS, 9" sander all get plenny used

i like machines an use em a lot. I got a crook shoulder so if i can use power i will
i aint no darksider thats for sure.

[AwDeOh]

Awesome, thanks for your input guys. I've got some of that stuff, and plans on getting the rest soon. The main thing will be a big order from Stew Macs for the specific stuff like nut and fret files. Looks like you guys are using the majority of tools that most internet building sites seem to list, give or take.

Can anybody recommend a Bandsaw that'd have enough working room to cut out a body blank of say, 300 x 500 x 50mm? I was looking at this:

http://justtools.com.au/prod2868.htm

Also, would a decent quality handheld belt sander be able to substitute for a table sander?

And while I'm being nosey, has anyone found an electric planer to be useful for necks/bodies, or do you guys prefer hand planes?

[kiwigeo]

Electric planer.....don't know about electrics but of no use for building acoustics. A jointer is handy for getting neck stock straight although I dont mind doing it by hand with a smoothing plane.

The Ryobi Bandsaw...looks a bit small. It might be ok if you're just cutting out bodies for electrics but for acoustics you'd need more height for doing things like trimming a Spanish heel on a classical. My 14" Carbatec is just high enough to handle the latter. The motor on the Ryobi is a bit gutless too. Id also be sceptical as to the quality of the fence and the blade guides on the Ryobi.

I'd go for something more powerful and able to handle larger stock. My Carbatec cost about $600...you might find something second hand for a bit less.

Check out here for specs : http://www.carbatec.com.au/store/index.php?main_page=index&cPath=180_320_490_500

[black1]

timbacon have there two bandsaws on special 1 $369 the other $589 till the fifth of may:2tsup:
have got the european style and it works alright so far:2tsup:

[zenobia]

Hi, I have slowly built up my tool set over the past 12 months mostly from carbatec.
I have a 14 in duluxe bandsaw
a 400mm thickness sander
A drill press
a drop saw which is great for scarf joints
dust extractor
a small jointer which I also use to plane, and
a router table
plus a bunch of things like rasps, surforms, a few chisels, etc
I can pretty much do anything with this stuff.
Last week I got this beautiful Gordon plane for jointing plates. I can't believe how nice it is to use. I have bowl full of perfect rosewood curls on my coffee table. Cut it like butter.
Dom

[kiwigeo]

Ya cant beat the sound and feel of a well tuned plane slicing into wood. A few hours ago I was running the Veritas #3 smoother over an Indian Rosewood back and the perfect rosewood curls were coming off the plane like music out of a fine guitar....almost a shame to chuck the shavings in the trash.

Ive been meaning to get my hands on some of those HNT Gordon planes for some time now. Might do a bit of early Christmas shopping next week.

[old_picker]

forgot to mention drill press
1st big tool i got
use it more than any other - its a cheapie and wisht i bought $300 better

Forget the ryobi as 14" is bare minmum. have a real nice jet deluxe which is worth every cent of the $820.i paid [6" riser kit essential] You got to think about resaw capability as that is where the bandsaw is the champ - A 14" BS doing a resaw of a 8" block of maple is very slow and pushing ur machine to its limits. The jet has a 1.25 HP motor whereas the Carbatec is a bit less depending on what you buy.

If you want cheap to cut out bodies get a decent jig saw. You can even mount it upside down if you get the right one and cutting out bodies out of blanks is a snap. save ur dough for a decent bandsaw.

Matter of fact I got GMC that i would sell which is 1/2 decent and done little. tricky to mount upside down but doable

for a sander get one of these (http://www.carbatec.com.au/store/index.php?main_page=index&cPath=180_430_2740_19282)or these (http://www.carbatec.com.au/store/index.php?main_page=index&cPath=180_430_2740_2770)
i used a belt sander upside down in a vice for a while which is ok for small bits of wood but the above extends the range of doable stuff a lot. i got similar to the 1st of the above and find it usefull but a bit of a luxury item. I wish i had of put the dough into a better drill press

No such thing as cheap tools
they give you a taste for the real thing which you end up buying as well in the end and you usually can't sell the cheapie so you end up with a lemon to remind you

[AwDeOh]

I didn't realise a Jigsaw would handle thick hardwood, I guess I expected the blade to twist and veer around, but I'll give that a try. Given that I just used one a fair bit to make a computer desk, and plan to do a few more pieces of furniture, I wouldn't have any problem spending a bit more on a quality one.

Okay, another question - as for getting straight edge on necks and body joins (my first build is going to be a 5 piece laminated neck, neckthrough construction), what's my best option? I don't think I want to pay for a thicknesser *yet*, and if I can do it myself, I will - would a router table with a straight cutting bit and a straightedge guide, following by some planing, get me there? Or could I do the job better with just a long planer?

Hope the questions aren't bugging you, I haven't really found alot of alternative ideas in Melvyn Hiscock's and Martin Koch's books.

[AwDeOh]

By the way, since I can see myself spending a fair bit of time bugging you guys for questions and hanging about in the Instruments section, should probably introduce myself - I'm Mitch, another Kiwi export :2tsup: but Aussie born. Up in Mount Isa working in the Copper Smelter, one of those 'get in make your money and get out' kinda life choices that seems to be becoming too lucrative to get out of. I work a 4 on, 4 off roster which gives me a whole heap of time to burn, so I've looked at guitar building and thought that it'd be something I think I'd enjoy, and if all pans out, something I might be able to turn into an on-the-side business, making customs, etc.. Been playing guitar for 10 odd years, also a qualified Audio Engineer as well.

Nice to find a forum for this stuff, there's a fair bit out there on the web, but this is about the only quality forum I've seen with guys actually building guitars and discussing them. Good to meet ya'z :)

[kiwigeo]

Welcome to the Ubeaut forums Mitch,

I work the oil rigs as a Geologist so can relate to your lifestyle. Guitar building and ideal way to kill time during days off and its an ideal antidote to the stresses of working weird hours in weird places.

The questions dont bug us at all...quite a few of us in here are learning as we go with luthiery, myself being no exception.

Cheers Martin

[old_picker]

Okay, another question - as for getting straight edge on necks and body joins (my first build is going to be a 5 piece laminated neck, neckthrough construction), what's my best option? I don't think I want to pay for a thicknesser *yet*, and if I can do it myself, I will - would a router table with a straight cutting bit and a straightedge guide, following by some planing, get me there? Or could I do the job better with just a long planer?.

you can do it with a hand held router and a piece of 2" x 24" aluminium L section

just screw the board to the L section and clamp it down with the overhang on each end and zip up with a flush trim bit running along the ally - leave around 1/2 to 1mil hanging out to trim. - a little more fiddling around than with a router table but it comes out perfect and very low tech.

BTW get a good router [triton 1400 is perfect]

Also the darksiders will tell you to do it with a jointing plane but that will cost more than a 1/2 decent router will

[JupiterCreek]

I make solidbody instruments ranging from soprano ukes and emandos to lap steel and tenor guitars, so my list is more agricultural that the acoustic instrument luthiers in here, but here goes:

Power tools:
GMC Belt and disk sander
Ozito Router (I never kept the docket for the GMC one that blew up!)
Pissy little GMC bandsaw (better than nothing... one day I'll get a 14")
Oscillating spindle sander
Scrollsaw (adapted for Junior saw blades for cutting brass and aluminium extrusions)
Bench drill (with WASP attached)
10" GMC tablesaw
7" GMC tablesaw set up with a Stewmac fret slotting blade
Supercheap autos Dremel clone
Random orbital sander
Ozito planer (only ever used for the arm carve on Strats!)
Soldering Iron
Vaccuum cleaner
Cordless drill
Cordless screwdriver
A couple of IXL-tastic globes in holders for drying finish when it's humid.
Radio/CD player so I don't feel like a total hermit while I'm working.
A lighted headband magnifier
A couple of fans, a couple of blow heaters and a secondhand airconditioner.

Other tools:
Dozens of templates and measuring sticks, made as and when required.
A few nifty things from Stewmac like their string action gauge, string lifter, and nut slotting files
Digital vernier
Set of aircraft drills
Multimeter
Boss TU-12 tuner and a cheap Korg tuner
Way too many files
More files
Lots of things like bits of wood with sandpaper attached for fret levelling etc.
Several vices ranging from a 6" woodworkers vice, drill press vice and a couple of little hobby vices.
A handful of quick action clamps
A handful of C clamps
150mm, 300mm and 600mm steel rules.
A 500mm school rule
Zillions of screwdrivers, pliers, Stanley knives, odd guitar strings, a cheap packing tape a ball of string, and a few old chisels for scraping off glue squeeze out.

There's more, but I'm sure you get the idea! ;-)

You start off amassing the things you think you'll need, then after a while you get the things you've learned that you really need, then after a while more you realise that a lot of things you thought you needed were a waste of money. There are worse ways to spend your time and money!

[Malibu]

I don't think anyone mentioned it, but I might have missed it...
An sturdy island bench just big enough to hold the guitar that you can get around all sides (or at least 3 sides) is a big help :)

[Allen McFarlen]

Don't forget your imagination. I can't tell you the number of times I've looked at a building procedure and thought I needed a new tool to get the job done. After pricing out that new tool, and factoring in the freight, exchange rate etc. I've had another look at the problem and figured out how to tackle the problem with the tools on hand.

For me the tool list goes:

14" Bandsaw (would like a table saw too but the bandsaw really does most of what I need it for)
Good Drill Press
Forstner Bits
Brad Point Bits
1/2 router (mounted in a home made router table)
Flush cutting bit (use it for duplicating multi part molds etc.)
Selection of straight bits
1/4 laminate trimmer
Dremel Tool
Set of chisels
Old Stanley smoothing plane
HNT Block Plane (the best plane I've ever used)
Japanese Saw
Fret Saw
Electric Hand Drill
Fret File
Nut Files
Small Ball Peen Hammer
600 mm Steel Rule
Steel Pocket Rule
Lots of Clamps
Screw Drivers
Reamer
Sanding Blocks
Scrapers
Japanese Water Stones.

Learn how to sharpen your tools. There isn't a substitute for a chisel or plane thats razor sharp. No power tool will give you the satisfaction of being able to take shavings so thin off a piece of wood that you can read the newspaper through them.

I've found that with a few tools, most of the the rest can be accomplished by jig building
. I regularly stop by the local "Tip Shop" and look through the treasures. I've saved myself thousands by picking up bits and pieces there and building what I need.

Anyway, good luck with the new hobby. For a lot of us it's become an obsession.

[gratay]

initially I bought a

bandsaw
drill press....w/drum sander bobbins
router

these we're to aid in making jigs which seems to consume a lot of the time.

digital verniers
scrapers
japanese saw
engineers square
wagner safe-t-planer ......attachment for drillpress used to thickness
silicone heating blanket ....for bending sides...
block plane
#5 jointer plane
#4 smoother plane
veritas MK11 sharpening honing guide
a good set of waterstones (800 to 4/6/10000)
6" rule
a longer straightedge rule (mines 33")
chisels
spokeshave

jigs >>>> shooting board, bending form, various tables for the drill press,
radius sanding dishes (required 2 or 3 jigs to make these)...

so far this is what i have ... I have bought things as I've needed them ....so more jigs and a few tools will be needed to get to the end...

The other thing you need is timber which if you buy at the start...can sit around aclimatising to your environment while you get set up .....

[kiwigeo]

A few more useful tools:

A square
A sliding bevel.....I use an 8" Veritas. Handy for marking up headstock scarf joints and also getting neck rake right on steel strings.
White pencil for marking Rosewood and other dark woods.
Everyone else has mentioned clamps......whatever number of clamps you decide to buy...double the number, I never have enough of the things. You can get by using cam clamps for bridge work but the special long reach bridge clamps are really handy of you can afford them.
Cork sanding blocks. I slice them up and use the thin pieces of cork for facing clamping cauls.
Superglue......handy for fixing knots and other defects in tonewoods. I use the hotstuff glues. If youre bending and you notice a crack starting you can often flood the wood with superglue and the crack wont turn into a major break.
For fretwork.....a good pair of fret nippers. A pair of fret pulling pliers are also handy but not essential.

Cheers Martin

[AwDeOh]

Thanks guys, good input. I'm on days off now.. so I'm going shopping shortly. :) Got a workbench to build these days off too, and I'm gonna send off an order for the wood to start my first electric. I'll start a progress thread soon :)

[black_labb]

im a uni student who has just finished my first solidbody not too long ago, but i dont want to spare my money for many of the tools, especially those that seem to be expensive for no reason other than because their specialty tools. for example, instead of fret files i bought feeler gauges and notched them instead of fret files. they worked very well for a bone nut. if you cant find one thick enough for the low e string and have some accurate calipers, you can get some fine grade sandpaper and put it around the gauge and measure the thickness. because the sandpaper didnt bend perfectly square, it gives a small radius. i got a cheap jigsaw to cut out the body. i am working out at a butcher shop on saturdays so i might see if i can use the bandsaw for my next one, it cuts a straighter line. im going to make a shank mounted copy router bit by getting the right sized bearing with a 1/4" inner diameter and an outer diameter matching the router bit (probably 3/4" / 19mm). i didnt use one on my first guitar as i used the router to clean up the edges and then alot of elbowgrease and 40 grit sandpaper. saves alot of money on the lutherie specific tools, as their pretty expensive.

[bricks]

Hey black labb, good to see you here.

Just adding to my list that I always have clean rags laying around to wipe my guitar down with.

[kiwigeo]

Clean rags handy but even better are a clean brush for brushing off dust during sanding or routing/planing work and some tack cloths (available from paint shops) for cleaning off dust prior to a finishing job.