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making my first wooden pickup covers

Discussion in 'Luthier's Corner' started by tjclem, Dec 7, 2005.

  1. Dec 7, 2005 #1
    tjclem

    tjclem Commercial User

    Jun 6, 2004
    Central Florida
    Owner and builder Clementbass
    I have 2 sets of 5 string jazz pickups a set of Fender Mex jazz and a set of Fralins. I am thinking about using Mahogany as the body of the cover and Wenge veneer as the tops. How wide/thick do you make the walls? Any tips or tricks?
     
  2. Dec 7, 2005 #2
    HeathW

    HeathW

    Nov 15, 2005
    Northamptonshire, England
    the tops must not be over 3 mm, but around a 1.5 mm is good, sides don't matter just means a bigger pickup so a bigger hole, I keep my sides around 2 mm.
    take as much out with a small forstner drill bit first, then set it in a jig, make one or use a piller drill vice and rout out the rest with a small (4mmish) router bit or even better a dremmel (in a dremmel router base) with a small sprial bit, make sure you leave enuff timber around the holes.
    of corse if your thinking of just droping in already finished pickups in to a wooden cover forget it. it needs to be a bare pickup that gets fixed into the cover with epoxy.
     
  3. Dec 7, 2005 #3
    Hookus

    Hookus

    Oct 2, 2005
    Austin, TX
    A mortise jig for your drill press will work well, too.
     
  4. Dec 7, 2005 #4
    Phil Mailloux

    Phil Mailloux

    Mar 25, 2005
    Brisbane, Australia
    Builder: Mailloux Basses
  5. Dec 7, 2005 #5
    tjclem

    tjclem Commercial User

    Jun 6, 2004
    Central Florida
    Owner and builder Clementbass
    Well I built them the Wenge is clamped on now. I think my big mistake was not making it wide enough. It will be tight putting in the mounting screws. For anybody thinking of making them just make sure you don't make that mistake. Hopefully somebody will learn from my mistake. :rollno: