Lessons learned in my first week trying to build guitars

[Chistopher]

Taylor is really good at being ecological.

 

[Chistopher]

Another big question:

As far as specialty tools for building guitars, what is worth shelling out extra for? Looking at stewmac as a chief offender.

 

[ehdwuld]

Hardened tools like nippers and cutters

Files are less expensive somewhere else

Calipers are not special

 

[jeremy]

stewmac has great stuff, but its usually expensive, and so is shipping, geez. they also make things that no one else does that makes it much easier to do somethings. that said, you can usually find what you need cheaper elsewhere

 

[blakejcan]

Allparts has some good stuff too. Ask Stewmac & Allparts to be part of their boutique builder program and you can get stuff at cost.

 

[Chistopher]

Where can I find details on that? I assume it's kind the sort of thing SnapOn has?

 

[blakejcan]

Wholesale Pricing Program for Small Businesses - StewMac

Our wholesale pricing program for small businesses includes great discounts on everything in our entire inventory — more than 7,000 items!

www.stewmac.com

Premium Builder's Club

Allparts Premium Builder's Club program ensures you get the parts you need, on time, at a consistent price, making it easier for you manage your business.

www.allparts.com

 

[Chistopher]

What's the best way to start building necks?

 

[ehdwuld]

The guys at Texas Toast guitars have some videos on building them

He built a jig to cope the fretboard

 

[ehdwuld]

Take a 2x4 and see if you can form the back of the neck

Then shape a headstock on the 2x4

Then on a new section of 2x4
Route a slot for truss rod and graphite support rods

The fret board will be a quarter inch overlay overlay

 

[orpheo]

What's the best way to start building necks?

Let's assume you're going to make the most simple of necks.

Make sure the neck is level. At least the front part that will get the fretboard. the bottom part is not nearly as important.

Lay down the length of the trussrod out on the neck blank. Take into consideration the headstock's length, nut depth etc.

Mill the trussrod. I have a template and a tiny router bit because I HATE setting up the router table. I rather use that 1 router bit, destroy it, complain to Stewmac that their router bit failed, get a new one, than set up that table and not be centered because my router table s u c k s.

Cut the neck to size and mill it with the template to size. Now you have a square "headstock" that is unprocessed, and a neck behind the nut that has the proper trapezoid shape.

Glue the fretboard on. Cut off the excess, mill it to size with the neck as the template.

Cut the headstock; first thickness, then shape (I find that more convenient but the other way around will also work), carve the curve behind the nut like Fender does it (I don't, I use a scarf joint but for a first project, let's not do that), line up the tuner holes, drill them on the pillar drill.

Level the fretboard. NOT with a radius block, but with a long flat beam. I have many reasons why the former is inferior to the latter, but mostly, lack of control. Use a radius gauge to check your process. If you want dot inlay, do that before you even touch the leveling beam.

Fret the neck. Press the frets in GENTLY first, then go at it again from nut to heel with a fret rocket, press as necessary. Pay close attention, you press the frets in too deep very easily with maple and rosewood. Seal the fret ends with superglue, file the cured superglue smooth, then side dots.

Now you should have a complete neck but without the shape. Use a spoke shave (for your first!) to get the thickness right, and then microplane or rasp for the rough shape, and then files, and then sanding blocks. never free-hand sanding with sandpaper because that will create dips. Always a sanding block. Freehanding sandpaper only grit 220 or up. Imho.

 

[Chistopher]

Thank you orpheo, that's all extremely useful. I do have a few questions though:

So you think I should start from a neck blank instead of from a board?

Also what's the danger of pressing frets in to deep?

 

[Coma]

Fret the neck. Press the frets in GENTLY first, then go at it again from nut to heel with a fret rocket, press as necessary. Pay close attention, you press the frets in too deep very easily with maple and rosewood. Seal the fret ends with superglue, file the cured superglue smooth, then side dots.

Now you should have a complete neck but without the shape. Use a spoke shave (for your first!) to get the thickness right, and then microplane or rasp for the rough shape, and then files, and then sanding blocks. never free-hand sanding with sandpaper because that will create dips. Always a sanding block. Freehanding sandpaper only grit 220 or up. Imho.

What's the rationale for doing all the fret work first and shaping the neck afterwards? Wont the time and materials used be wasted if you slip up and ruin your intended neck shape?

 

[ehdwuld]

What's the rationale for doing all the fret work first and shaping the neck afterwards? Wont the time and materials used be wasted if you slip up and ruin your intended neck shape?

I think what Chistopher means is:

I suggested practice run on a scrap board

Not a glued up neck blank

 

[Chistopher]

Is a hand router suitable for neck pocket and cavities? My router table setup is kind of hard to free the router, and I don't want to have two routers of the same kind if I don't have too

 

[uOpt]

Is a hand router suitable for neck pocket and cavities? My router table setup is kind of hard to free the router, and I don't want to have two routers of the same kind if I don't have too

I did those with a hand router. Worked out, even an angle change on a neck pocket.

 

[jeremy]

i always used a hand router for neck pockets. good template and strong double stick tape