Thread: First Guitar

sawdust sawdust we want sawdust (dont forget your dust mask )

any chance of getting an extra template done up for the right price?

Originally Posted by ficfac

any chance of getting an extra template done up for the right price?

there you go mate....
make some money to put towards you build
oh and give your dad a lil for the work lol

I think I heard Andrew say he wants one too

Originally Posted by ficfac

I think I heard Andrew say he wants one too

Yeah Floody ... tell your Dad that mine will be a reverse iceman bass, single pick up, with a 30" scale length

lol

lets just say.... when i get someone to turn my drawings into cad files... ill be asking a favour floody ol pal

lol ill see wat i can do. the main factory of the kitchen company i work for also has big CNC overhead routers, so maybe down the track i can get the odd one done from mdf. i would get mine done but there too busy at the moment.

as for the dust masks, i just got a whole box from work so im all stocked!!
im hoping the neck will come tomorrow. it was sent yesterday from vic so it shouldnt be too far off.

oh and dad, how old are your kids? coz im 23 and am thoughful of my dads time but i can assure you, when i was 16 i wasnt lol

The neck arrived today so i thought id post a few pics





sorry about the pics. there off my phone. i dont know how to resize either. my dad is hopefully doing the template tomorrow so i can try and get it started this weekend.
Should i do the neck pocket first or just do the body?

centre line,

neck pocket,

mount neck,

get 2 lengths of string,

tie the string where the E's would go on the guitar, on the bridge and machine heads,

line the bridge up so the string is alighned with the neck,

mark bridge position,

could mark pickup cavities while you have the string on the neck and bridge,

draw body,

cut out,

rout.

that should be ok



neck looks alright.... and by the looks of that last picture you got a free hair with it? hahahaha

Originally Posted by Andrew_B

centre line, neck pocket, mount neck, get 2 lengths of string, tie the string where the E's would go on the guitar, on the bridge and machine heads, line the bridge up so the string is alighned with the neck, mark bridge position,

Agreed. This has been discussed a few times in recent posts and I think none of us is a million miles apart. You have your neck (good score!! and a free hair too!!! ) so you can now make an accurate template for the heel ... that's pretty well my starting point.

Take your neck and with the aid of your full size blow-up / drawing of your finished body, clamp your neck to the body in a position that makes best use of your wood. Pay attention to where the heel of the guitar will be to make sure that will fit in with your design. Centre it reasonably accurately using a string line and work out where you want you neck pocket to go. Route your neck pocket using your template and securely fit the neck.

If you stop at this pont you'll have a Bo Diddley "Lucille" guitar ... look it up on the net

I think you'll get some different opinions from this point on ... but that's just personal preference. If you start by carefully lining up your neck and securely attaching it, the rest will fall into place much more accurately.

My preference from here ...

Draw in your body, bridge, and pick up placement. I cut the body out next 'cos with a flat top body, you'll still have a stable surface to route your pickup cavities, and a recess for the bridge if that's what you need.

Hopefully this all makes sense

lol i dontated the hair to the neck actually. that all seems to make sense... i think??
im good with my hands but not the worlds best thinker. wat are the dimensions for a usual neck pocket? my neck has the last fret over hanging the heel. it measure about 19mm to the bottom of heel. so do i do the pocket 19mm deep? obviously width is an easy one but wat about the length of the rout? like how much of the heel goes into the body?

Your scale length and fret spacings are about the only absolutes in guitar building ... there's some flexibility with the rest.

Regarding the depth of your neck pocket, you'll probably need to draw a full size side profile ... something like the one below.


This one was put together by Perry Ormsby ... W.A guitar maker extraordinairre and member of this site (Rhoads56) ... plus seller of parts.

Now ... you don't necessarily need to angle your neck, it can be a flat route, but you probably need to do the above to work out your desired action and the depth of your neck pocket route. By planning in this way you can decide how deep to set your neck and whether you want to recess your bridge etc.

Looking at my son's strat, the bottom of the fretboard sits about 3mm above the body. Try that in your drawing and see how that will work with your bridge.

And how far should the heel go into the body ... you decide. But back to my son's strat, the heel route starts just past the 16th fret. So the neck pocket is about 70mm long on a 21 fret neck.

Other advice anyone??

Thanks dad!
70mm was wat i was thinking just going by eye.all the planning time hurts my head lol
i just like to get in and do it. I guess if i wanna build a good axe, i have to plan properly i suppose.

anyone else have some advice

I'll be going for my first one too soon.

I'm a full time student this year at Sturt school for wood. I have access to all the equipment and my whole day every day is in the workshop.

So, when I pull my finger out and get started, the pics will come. I have a nice slab of rock maple which I can get tops for two bodies from.

One will be for me and one for another fella in my class who has done some courses with Gerard Gilet.

We're both as keen as mustard and he has all the gear and a bit of knowledge, I feel priveleged. Keep going strong Floody, and definately put the planning time in I reckon.