Thread: Andrews Projects (bass + guitar/s)

Originally Posted by tim290280

Looking good so far Andrew.

I've just ordered my wood so I'll have a build thread soon too.

thanks man

tell us some more about your build


and while its o my mind, is there any acoustic builders here?
i would like to have a chat about bracing

Originally Posted by black_labb

looking good. the bass design seems to be well under way.

i got my magnet wire from http://www.yellowpages.com.au/onlineSolution_moreInfo.do?iblId=235993&iblName=Blackburn+Electric+Wires+Pty+Ltd&headingCode=25739&listingPosition=3&originatingPage=ListingPage&authToken=11ff06e4a04|8d8723c934faf1e2df2a32c42e2733e9&pageNumber=1&st=cs&productVersion=0&z=&productId=0

they are in kingsgrove. i called up and got 1.6kg of awg 42.5 as it was the smallest roll they had of wire thats roughly the right size. picked it up that afternoon. handy spot if you are in sydney, was roughly 50$. i've wound (and rewound) a number of coils and seem to still have quite a bit left.

only issue is most of what they have is on 3-4kg spools, and thats alot of pickups.

thanks for the link man,

i actually sent them (along with 4 other aussie companies) an email a few weeks ago... sadly no reply....

theres another place in wetherill park or something, i might give blackburn and these other blokes a call or drop in and see what they have....

i will probably grab a 3kg spool,
as i plan to screw around with pickups a fair bit....
(i have a head full of wierd ass ideas lol...)
hell if i found a spool a few years ago like i planned i would have built alot more guitars by now.........

if i can get my hands on a spool then i dont have to design my guitars with comercial pickups in mind.....
i can design my pickups around the guitar
and iv also realised i am able to make my own bridges and things (just gotta find out about chrome plating)
which will open up all new design features, blah blah blah
(if that makes sense to anyone other than me lol)

(also have to figure out where to get magnets)

Originally Posted by Andrew_B

you need to read up on truss rods?
me too....
i understand them a bit.....
but there is more i would like to know...
example, what different types do, why some are bent, why some have straight chanels and some have curved chanels etc etc etc
i will probably add whatever articles i find on the subject into this thread when i get too it....

Look forward to it. I've bookmarked a few things and I've skimmed them but I will need to sit down and get my head around it when the time is right.

Originally Posted by Andrew_B

although... if i cant figure out how to weld an anchor on the end of the rod then im a little bit screwed LOL......

I have no doubt you'll work it out. I'm assuming you have access to a tap and die set so that you can put a thread on that sucker? Can you put a thread on the anchor end, screw an anchor on to it, and then blunt the thread with a hammer so it doesn't move? Or is that a bit neanderthal? I'm guessing you'll refine your welding skills!!

Originally Posted by Andrew_B

but that build is a secret so lets pretend you never heard a thing

Don't worry ... I'm illiterate ... so I haven't read a word you written

But struth ... how many builds do you have going?!? I've taking a bit of a breather after my first three ... plus my wife has a bunch of jobs waiting for me ... but you're making me feel embarrassed!!

[quote=black_labb;913410]i got my magnet wire from http://www.yellowpages.com.au/onlineSolution_moreInfo.do?iblId=235993&iblName=Blackburn+Electric+Wires+Pty+Ltd&headingCode=25739&listingPosition=3&originatingPage=ListingPage&authToken=11ff06e4a04|8d8723c934faf1e2df2a32c42e2733e9&pageNumber=1&st=cs&productVersion=0&z=&productId=0
they are in kingsgrove. quote]

There's a place in Kingsgrove that sells bearings and they stock a few that are ideal to put on router bits for use as template cutters ... can you pick me up a few while you're getting your wire

Originally Posted by dadovfor

Look forward to it. I've bookmarked a few things and I've skimmed them but I will need to sit down and get my head around it when the time is right.



I have no doubt you'll work it out. I'm assuming you have access to a tap and die set so that you can put a thread on that sucker? Can you put a thread on the anchor end, screw an anchor on to it, and then blunt the thread with a hammer so it doesn't move? Or is that a bit neanderthal? I'm guessing you'll refine your welding skills!!



Don't worry ... I'm illiterate ... so I haven't read a word you written

But struth ... how many builds do you have going?!? I've taking a bit of a breather after my first three ... plus my wife has a bunch of jobs waiting for me ... but you're making me feel embarrassed!!

yea i have a tap and die set,
i thought about threading the rod and screwing an anchor on and smashing it with a hammer....
but i just dont trust that method...
i would much rather have it welded and not need to wrry about it working lose in the future or anything

i dont have THAT many builds going, do i? lol

V
bass
7string
acoustic
other electric which might not happen lol
two 1x 12'' speaker cabs that i started 4 or 5 years ago....

i think thats all....
see not many....

and you have to remember 3 of those are more or less still only in the design stages....

i like to go from project to project,
i dont really know why....
i just like doing that, keeps my mind ticking, keeps me busy
but i also have to stop one and move to another untill i can get more money at times..

like right now, im back into designing the acoustic while i wait for parts for the guitars and bass

i have been going through the welding section of the woodwork forum....
cant find anything telling me how to do it properly though lol....
also looked at every stick welding video on youtube...
im still not too confident lol

You do have alot of builds. but ya can never have enough guitars can ya. my fiance always tells me i have to many. now that im getting into building them, she thinks my music room's walls will be full in a year!!!...(they would be if i had enough money)
looking forward to seeing your progress but. some top ideas man.

hahaha my girlfriend used to say the same thing....
i just manage to squeeze 6 or 7 guitars on my 8 guitar rack (acouctics take up alot of space)

i have plans to build a rack specificly for unfinished/in progress guitars when/if the new shed goes up soon-ish.... hoping to get quotes before june....

hmm
i started the truss rod today (might post some pics later)

and i also popped the top off of a ?????? acoustic i pulled the neck off of a while back...
i wanted to study the bracing....
i was not impressed when i got the top off....
damn chinese guitars... the braces look awful, half finished....

anyways.. maccas is calling... will add more later lol

my acoustics just sit beside the 5 guitar rack. ill have to invest in a new one now coz i dont want my electrics sitting out.

lol gotta love the chinese!!

dont you know maccas isnt good for ya dude!!

YAY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
i just got a package from ALS

lets see what we have here....

a fret saw... oh its look sexy....

fretwire....

a bottle of titebond....

a 3 in 1 fret file...

and a couple of free picks...

hell yea!

brilliant!

i just spent the day setting up the planer in its triton attatchment to see how well it does at flattening out the sides of planks....
if it did well then i was planing on running them through that and giving them a light sand then gluing them up....
guess what....

i actually did a good job of setting it up lol.. and it planes some good edges....
dont know why i never thought about all these triton attatchments before... i have a few laying around...

so i guess im off to cut some wood and glue up a blank

pictures time

heres the fret saw, fretwire and 3 in 1 file...


and here is the almighty titebond i keep hearing about..... i will soon see if it lives up to its reputation



and heres the titebond and my glue puter onerer haha... and half of my back blank for the bass (not sure of the species)



splitting the tassie oak for the top cap of the bass (yes my arms are now dead)



glued and clamped back blank for bass



my truss rod so far (yes i know the anchor is big at the moment.. i did that so i could hold it easily in the vice and give more area to weld since i am no welder... lol)




thats all for now...

will take the blank out of clamps tomorrow and give it a once over with the orbital too see if anyone can tell me what timber it is....

and umm.... i need to make up a router jig to help me plane down the top since my saw cut was a bit crappy in the centre of the boards.... but that doesnt matter it will all dissapear when i get it down to appropriate thickness....

im also thinking about binding....
and i need to find a fingerboard.... so maybe matching fingerboard and binding or something.... will see how we go

oh and, how are you guys storing/protecting your fret saws?

I'm not sure what happened ... but Santa Claus stopped coming to me some years back ... so a package arriving from ALS (or somewhere like that) is about the next best thing. I dead set feel about 8 years old when my wife or the kids ring me and tell me there's a package waiting for me

I'm enjoying this thread (and Floody's) keep it up. I'm probably not going to get much building done myself for a little while (just a bunch of other Dad-like priorities) but you've got me itching to have a go at a few things that I've avoided so far.

And well done on splitting that Tassie Oak ... I'll bet you've now got one bicep that's twice the size of the other!!!

hahahahaha!!

yea that tassie oak was a bi**h.....
and its still being a bi**h.....
problem with it was that the edges were split but the middle was fine...

so after a bit of crafty cutting i got as much of the split sides off as i could....
then i was met with another problem... they arent all that straight lol....

one of those times i need a thicknesser!
i tried to put them in a jig and run the router over them and it works a bit....
but just them not being flat on the bottom made it akward....
so i decided to glue it up and deal with leveling it later....

i bookmatched it best i could...
should have some nice grain when sanded...



cleaned up a bit and glued






some close up pics of the back piece
not the greatest pics in the world...








will do more tomorrow or monday i guess...... depends if the missus has plans for the weekend.. lol

in the meantime.....
the rubber/fabric thingy between the base plate and the sanding belt of my belt sander died (RIP)
anyone know where i can get a new set? or get the materials to make them?
its a makita

Ok, now your getting somewhere. Looking good Andrew. I'll look forward to seeing more progress,

Cheers,

Peter

Glad to see some progress on this one. We can't sit around talkin' all the time, eh ?

Just wondering about the AB on your Glue bottle. You expecting someone to pinch it ?