I don't think that. If you leave extra wood at just the corners, you can pull off a round over. I would have the top and back be thicker than 12mm then route all but the sides to the desired thickness, and that will leave enough for rounded edges. On my semi hollow build, my top and back are 1/4" and the sides are a bit under 1/2". I also left wood for arm and stomach contours, and a neck transition, but the rest is pretty much hollow. The lower wing feels to be about 1 lbs roughly, but i would need to borrow my friends fish scale to weigh it accurately though. I used a maple top as well, but with flame figure, instead of spalting. the mahogany wood i used for the core was pretty light to start with though. What is your core wood?
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2nd build:poplar neck-thru
- Thread starter Rochey6957
- Start date
I don't think that. If you leave extra wood at just the corners, you can pull off a round over. I would have the top and back be thicker than 12mm then route all but the sides to the desired thickness, and that will leave enough for rounded edges. On my semi hollow build, my top and back are 1/4" and the sides are a bit under 1/2". I also left wood for arm and stomach contours, and a neck transition, but the rest is pretty much hollow. The lower wing feels to be about 1 lbs roughly, but i would need to borrow my friends fish scale to weigh it accurately though. I used a maple top as well, but with flame figure, instead of spalting. the mahogany wood i used for the core was pretty light to start with though. What is your core wood?
Haven't you seen the title of this thread?
And about the thickness of the sides: yes, if you leave them thicker around the corners, you have the possibility of rounding them. But that's the same as what I said: just take care and take into account: making the sides too thin wouldn't make it easy to round the corners later on...
I did, along with the beginning posts saying that he had planed to do a poplar neck. he did also say poplar for the core, but i understand there have been a few changes.
Hey, still planing on having the neck and fb be the same piece?
Hey, still planing on having the neck and fb be the same piece?
yeah there have been several changes. the core is oak because my dad had several pieces in the shed. the neck is solid walnut (at this point at least). the fretboard and the neck are one solid piece. for the truss rod i'll do a back access rod like fender does. that's where i want to use the poplar for the skunk stripe. might use it for pup covers little stuff probably.
good luck with the fender style rodding. It always seemed like it would be a pain to do.
I've got strap buttons fretwire, pots, side markers and a truss rod ordered and on their way from this site called grizzly industrial. still need to get my hands on pickups and an input jack.
Now i need some feedback from the LC community.
First off for the wiring i wanna put a tone knob on each pickup then from there wire them into a three way balance pot and then to a master volume. for the tone pots should i put caps (or any of the pots for tht matter) on them if so what kind?
Since my top is spalted maple its rather brittle and im gunna be puting some sort of soundholes in it what can i do to make the wood stronger and less brittle? i thought about taking a thin piece of wood (1/4" or less) and then gluing that to the back of the splated maple then cut the soundholes. Also how would i go about cutting the holes i mean other than using a router or drill bit?
For the truss rod since its going in through the back of the neck how would i prevent the glue from getting on it when i glue in the skunk strip? Maybe after i put it in put a piece of tape above (but not on) the rod and put the glue on the skunk strip.
since im the bridge is going to be a floating bridge im debating on using a tailpiece or not. if i do then would it be better to use the tailpiece as an achoring point for the ball of the strings or string through.
I cant really do to much work until i get the parts in but i have to try and coax the neck back straight because its nice and bowed after i stupidly leaned it up against a wall for a few weeks.
ohh well i know better for next time.
ill try to take a few pics of the heel and neck profile tommorw.
Now i need some feedback from the LC community. First off for the wiring i wanna put a tone knob on each pickup then from there wire them into a three way balance pot and then to a master volume. for the tone pots should i put caps (or any of the pots for tht matter) on them if so what kind?
Since my top is spalted maple its rather brittle and im gunna be puting some sort of soundholes in it what can i do to make the wood stronger and less brittle? i thought about taking a thin piece of wood (1/4" or less) and then gluing that to the back of the splated maple then cut the soundholes. Also how would i go about cutting the holes i mean other than using a router or drill bit?
For the truss rod since its going in through the back of the neck how would i prevent the glue from getting on it when i glue in the skunk strip? Maybe after i put it in put a piece of tape above (but not on) the rod and put the glue on the skunk strip.
since im the bridge is going to be a floating bridge im debating on using a tailpiece or not. if i do then would it be better to use the tailpiece as an achoring point for the ball of the strings or string through.
I cant really do to much work until i get the parts in but i have to try and coax the neck back straight because its nice and bowed after i stupidly leaned it up against a wall for a few weeks.
ohh well i know better for next time. ill try to take a few pics of the heel and neck profile tommorw.
I've got strap buttons fretwire, pots, side markers and a truss rod ordered and on their way from this site called grizzly industrial. still need to get my hands on pickups and an input jack.
First off for the wiring i wanna put a tone knob on each pickup then from there wire them into a three way balance pot and then to a master volume. for the tone pots should i put caps (or any of the pots for tht matter) on them if so what kind?
Since my top is spalted maple its rather brittle and im gunna be puting some sort of soundholes in it what can i do to make the wood stronger and less brittle? i thought about taking a thin piece of wood (1/4" or less) and then gluing that to the back of the splated maple then cut the soundholes. Also how would i go about cutting the holes i mean other than using a router or drill bit?
For the truss rod since its going in through the back of the neck how would i prevent the glue from getting on it when i glue in the skunk strip? Maybe after i put it in put a piece of tape above (but not on) the rod and put the glue on the skunk strip.
since im the bridge is going to be a floating bridge im debating on using a tailpiece or not. if i do then would it be better to use the tailpiece as an achoring point for the ball of the strings or string through.
I cant really do to much work until i get the parts in but i have to try and coax the neck back straight because its nice and bowed after i stupidly leaned it up against a wall for a few weeks.
ill try to take a few pics of the heel and neck profile tommorw.
For stabilizing the top, try epoxy both on the bottom side and top. Helps keep the chipping down on it.
As for the floating bridge, I forgot which TBer ( im sure a few have though ) used a brass stop inlaid into the back side ( think were the strap buttom normaly goes ) as a tail peice. It looked pretty trick to me, and since brass works rather easily, shouldnt be to hard to make a basic one.
For cutting the sound holes, I would advise a coping saw or fret saw (not the one to cut fret slots, but the other 'regular' one).
And show us some pics of where you're at
And show us some pics of where you're at
For stabilizing the top, try epoxy both on the bottom side and top. Helps keep the chipping down on it.
What kind of epoxy should i use because i have some of tht two part stuff that you have to mix to activate.
here are those pics i promised
the bow in the neck
neck profile
heel
all epoxy is 2 part 
I would try something that is a bit thinner then the hardware store stuff. System 3 or westcoat, both are a bit more liquidy, and flow out well, Just be sure to mix it corretly, and when you apply it, use a spreader ( bondo card or old credit card ) to sort of push it into the wood.
I would try something that is a bit thinner then the hardware store stuff. System 3 or westcoat, both are a bit more liquidy, and flow out well, Just be sure to mix it corretly, and when you apply it, use a spreader ( bondo card or old credit card ) to sort of push it into the wood.
all epoxy is 2 part
I would try something that is a bit thinner then the hardware store stuff. System 3 or westcoat, both are a bit more liquidy, and flow out well, Just be sure to mix it corretly, and when you apply it, use a spreader ( bondo card or old credit card ) to sort of push it into the wood.
thanks i didn't know that all epoxy was two part. learn somethin knew everyday. got all the parts i ordered from grizzly in today. once the bow in the neck is relieved i can start doing some work with the truss rod.
Since summers over and every time I looked at this thing half finished gathering dust it made me sick i figured i would get back to work on it.
I ended up still doing the fender style back access roding. It wasn't really difficult more tedious with trying to get the slides and stops perfectly square, getting the bass to stay steady,accommodating the adjustment nut, and drilling the access hole(which still needs a little work). Never the less the rod is in good and TIGHT!
Its kinda hard to see but around the adjustment nut its a little bit wider than the rest of the channel.
For the cover strip i thought about using poplar but i thought maybe a red oak or a cherry would look better. So i got a chance to go down to home depot and pick out a piece but they didn't have any raw pieces of cherry that i could see. So i got a piece of red oak and some Red mahogany color stain. I did a quick test on a bad piece form the end of the board.
I think it will look better than the poplar would because the oak and walnut kinda have a boring normal color nd this pops against that.
I ended up still doing the fender style back access roding. It wasn't really difficult more tedious with trying to get the slides and stops perfectly square, getting the bass to stay steady,accommodating the adjustment nut, and drilling the access hole(which still needs a little work). Never the less the rod is in good and TIGHT!
Its kinda hard to see but around the adjustment nut its a little bit wider than the rest of the channel.
For the cover strip i thought about using poplar but i thought maybe a red oak or a cherry would look better. So i got a chance to go down to home depot and pick out a piece but they didn't have any raw pieces of cherry that i could see. So i got a piece of red oak and some Red mahogany color stain. I did a quick test on a bad piece form the end of the board.
I think it will look better than the poplar would because the oak and walnut kinda have a boring normal color nd this pops against that.
Poplar does look pretty darn good and it can get some really funky colors in it. But i think its kinda soft when u feel it. Too soft for a neck wood.
I tested out some epoxy thined with isopropyl alcohol a piece of the spalted maple to see how hard its gunna be to stabilize. it seems to be stabelized ok with one coat on one side but it turned the wood like a wet color
which makes it hard to see the blackline unless you hold it at a certain angle.
im gunna do some more experementing to see if i can lessen the "wet wood" look.
Any tips are always helpfull.
I tested out some epoxy thined with isopropyl alcohol a piece of the spalted maple to see how hard its gunna be to stabilize. it seems to be stabelized ok with one coat on one side but it turned the wood like a wet color
which makes it hard to see the blackline unless you hold it at a certain angle.im gunna do some more experementing to see if i can lessen the "wet wood" look.
Any tips are always helpfull.
Last night was a pretty good night i got the bookmatched tops glued to each other (no warping!!!)
I also got the red oak cover strip glued into the back of the neck.
The cover strip wasn't perfectly shaped to the channel so at both ends there was a little bit of a gap. Nothing a little glue and wood dust wont fix.
When I went to put the clamps on the cover strip and i turned the bass around I almost $h!T a brick when i saw this:
The cracks about 1/16'' wide and it runs almost the entire length of the fretboard. It had to have split when I was tapping the cover strip into the channel. i made it snug but i didn't think it was going to be so large that it would split the neck!
Hopefully i can fix it by forcing some titebond into the crack and clamping it together.
However, tonight i made progress on shaping the cover strip to the neck.
if you look for it you can also see the two little patch jobs i did at both ends of the cover strip.
i also made the adjustment nut access a little wider and i cleaned it up a bit.
well i guess its back to sanding the cover strip for now.
I also got the red oak cover strip glued into the back of the neck.
The cover strip wasn't perfectly shaped to the channel so at both ends there was a little bit of a gap. Nothing a little glue and wood dust wont fix.
When I went to put the clamps on the cover strip and i turned the bass around I almost $h!T a brick when i saw this:
The cracks about 1/16'' wide and it runs almost the entire length of the fretboard. It had to have split when I was tapping the cover strip into the channel. i made it snug but i didn't think it was going to be so large that it would split the neck!
Hopefully i can fix it by forcing some titebond into the crack and clamping it together.
However, tonight i made progress on shaping the cover strip to the neck.
if you look for it you can also see the two little patch jobs i did at both ends of the cover strip.
i also made the adjustment nut access a little wider and i cleaned it up a bit.
well i guess its back to sanding the cover strip for now.
I hope an experienced luthier can comment on this.
My instinct, and interpretation from knowledge of mechanics is that you shouldn't clamp and glue the crack back together, re-locking in those extreme stresses. The tension across the front face and compression across the back are what split the front; if you force the crack closed, glue, then remove the clamps, you will have the same situation again as you had before. I would expect another crack to open up either immediately or eventually. And until it does, the neck may warp.
Rather, you should remove (by routing or whatever) the filler strip, glue the crack closed, and then redo with a filler strip that is properly fitted along its full length.
In other matters, how did you finally get the top into shape without darkening it too much? It looks nice.
My instinct, and interpretation from knowledge of mechanics is that you shouldn't clamp and glue the crack back together, re-locking in those extreme stresses. The tension across the front face and compression across the back are what split the front; if you force the crack closed, glue, then remove the clamps, you will have the same situation again as you had before. I would expect another crack to open up either immediately or eventually. And until it does, the neck may warp.
Rather, you should remove (by routing or whatever) the filler strip, glue the crack closed, and then redo with a filler strip that is properly fitted along its full length.
In other matters, how did you finally get the top into shape without darkening it too much? It looks nice.
Last night my dad suggested that it would be easier and maybe just as strong to remove the fretboard and replace it with a new uncracked piece rather than routing out the old cover strip and gluing the neck back together. I think it should work because there is only the thickness of the fretboard(1/4') to the truss rod. so if i get rid of the old fretboard and put a new one on it should hold the neck from cracking or shifting in anyway. right???
If this would work i was thinking maybe a nice piece of purple heart for the fretboard. or should i go with ebony or a more exotic wood?
If this would work i was thinking maybe a nice piece of purple heart for the fretboard. or should i go with ebony or a more exotic wood?
