Thanks for the PMs everyone. I may be re-shaping the lower horn and the upper part near where the strap button will go. I used a template that was from another project and will adjust the shape as I get to the carving phase. Remember that the extra around where the neck pocket will be is purposely left there so it will support my neck template. It will be removed after I cut the pocket.
Here you can get a basic idea of where this project is going.
Now let's get some face and side dots going.
The customer wanted a simple layout of black plastic .25 inch dots on the face and small black plastic dots for the side. A good look for a Maple on Maple neck.
Dots are simple, I just used a 1/4 inch forstner bit to create the small cavities for the plastic dots to go into. Add a drop of superglue and Bob's you Uncle. The black plastic dots were about .06 thick which leaves plenty of room to sand them back level with the FB. I then re-radiused with fine grit sand paper attached to the radiusing beam that I used earlier.
Same process as the face dots but with a smaller bit for the side dots.
Once the fret board has been prepared, I finish the face with several coats of varnish and let it cure before pressing the frets in. This makes a cleaner look when completed. You do have to be careful not to ding it up while fretting and carving the neck. Some varnish gets into the fret slots but I clean them out after each coat to keep them clear.
Now while the varnish dries...I will move on to the joining of the body to the neck. Many of you who have seen my other builds know that I use two pieces of wood on either side of the neck to make a template for routing the neck pocket. Sorry but I did not get any pictures of it this time around.
I first set the neck onto the body about where I want it. Check to make sure it is centered using the center line (glue joint) down the center of the body and some yardsticks. I then use two sided carpet tape to stick the two pieces of my wood template down each side of the neck heel. This forms a template for which the router can travel along. I remove the neck and use a forstner bit to remove the extra wood. Then I get the router with a bearing bit and route the pocket. I then use the chisel to square off the corners. The pieces of the wood template are tapered so that the neck pocket has a slight angle to it. I hate putting shims under the neck so this eliminates that need.
Once the neck is fitted to the pocket, I drill holes for the mounting bolts to go through. I use a small tapered bit set with the stop on my drill press to make it so that just the tip of the bit sticks out of the back side of the body. This leaves tiny holes on the back of the bass.
I use the small holes to align the spike on my 5/8 forstner bit which cuts the recesses for the neck bolt ferrules. I then drill the holes bigger to fit my neck bolts.
I can now pop the neck into place. After checking everything over, I can drill the holes in the back of the neck heel to accept the mounting bolts. I clamp the neck into place and drill from the backside through the mounting holes I just drilled. I tape my bit so that I do not drill through the FB.
Also, you can see that I fretted the neck just before this process ( which you can see in my other builds). I do this so I can check the angle to the bridge. I want the neck to sit in the pocket so that I can lay my straightedge along the top of the frets and have it rest on the saddle when it is set at the lowest setting. This allows full adjustablility of the bridge during setup.
Well that's all I have time for today. Please check back for more progress.
Thanks for looking.
there will be a humbucker right at the end of the fret board. A Curtis Novak Fatbucker will take up residence there. The single coil looking pup will be in the bridge position.
