First Guitar

[jchumley]

Well, I am in too far to stop now. My kids are learning electric guitar and doing very well (14 year old is into AFI and 11 year old into Metallica). They are having so much fun I had to join in. Therefore, naturally, I am making a guitar! I have already made most of the design decisions but I still have a few questions. Here is the design:

It is semi hollow body and sort of based on my Martin D18VS.

I had originally planned to glue the neck on but am thinking about going with a removable neck in case I find the neck has a problem and needs replacing.

Question. The body is 2" deep. If I bolt the neck on, how much wood should I leave under the heae (how deep should I rout?) I have seen pictures that show anywhere from about 5/8" to 1" under the heel.

Question: How high off the flat top should the bridge be (approximately)

I am planning to use a jB at the bridge and a Jazz at the neck with a Phat Cat in the middle. Takes up a lot of real estate under the strings. Will there be a playability issue because of it?

Thanks.

 

[JacksonMIA]

Re: First Guitar

I'll let the luthiers answer the dimension questions, but as for playability you shouldn't have any problems. There are several guitars out there that have three humbuckers, so you should be alright. That should be an interesting pup combination. I'm interested to hear how the phat cat sounds with each of those buckers.

Nice looking guitar. Have you decided on a color yet?

 

[Rich_S]

Re: First Guitar

Are you yet aware of the Musical Instrument Makers Forum? If not, become so.

I like the design. It has that old-school, funky National/Airline vibe about it.

Setting the neck height and angle is one of the toughest parts of designing and building a guitar. It looks as though you plan to use a Gibson stop-bar bridge/tailpiece. Those pretty much require that the neck be set at an angle. Do your research at the MIM Forum before asking; I'm sure it's been covered in depth a zillion times. Also, look into the Leo Quan or Schaller replacements for the stopbar - adjustable intonation is a wonderful thing.

Good luck and welcome.

 

[marvar]

Re: First Guitar

Yep, looks pretty cool, keep in mind that setting scale length, and figuring out where to place the frets can be a time consuming job. I also think that you should think about a solid headstock vs the acoustic guitar type.

 

[Guest]

Re: First Guitar

Cool plan, love the Lightning F-hole.
Will it be flat top or archtop? I assume flat top.

Rich S, I don't know but couldn't he sink the bridge so as not to need a neck angle (at least not much)?

JC, have you ever built a instrument? I'm starting my own and I got my hands full. If you are make sure to plan absolutelly everything ahead.

Go to the MIMF and remember to keep us posted.