I could imagine a heat gun would be tricky. I bend plastic binding using my acoustic side bending iron, which is nice because the temperature control prevents you from overheating the binding. My iron is just a length of pipe, a heating element, and a rheostat. Probably not worth it to build one just for binding, but heck, once you have one, you can go make an acoustic guitar too!
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The Hossenfeffer III Build
- Thread starter Gilmourisgod
- Start date
Paging @Christopher DBG formerly known as smithcreek and knowing a thing or 17 about building mandolins...
And here's a use for my hot air rework soldering station! It purports to have 1 degree control, though I can't say I've checked it with an outside standard thermometer. But variable temperature variable air volume over a pretty wide range...could be useful?
As the person possibly to blame for option 2.22, I'm delighted to see you going for it, even though it's somewhat frustrating.
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Rôckhewer
Commercial User
- Feb 28, 2015
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- Owner/Builder- RockHewer Custom Guitars LLC
Good golly that thing is gorgeous 
Here's what I came up with.
I ran an initial 5/8" radius around the whole body.
The only areas that stay that radius... AND... retain any "flat" edge?...are the horns, and the interior of the heart omega.
Everything else has various degrees of radii.
So I decided to buy one of these...
I ran that from about the middle of the "waist" all the way around the lower bout until right before the flair of the heart omega...then blended in and enlarged the initial top 5/8" radius with a Shinto... as needed.
The forearm bevel area is actually more than a full roundover... it's fairly egg shaped.
The control side of the lower bout... not so much
I've never held one in my hands.. but from all the pictures I studied when I built both my BalK copies.
Here's what I came up with.
I ran an initial 5/8" radius around the whole body.
The only areas that stay that radius... AND... retain any "flat" edge?...are the horns, and the interior of the heart omega.
Everything else has various degrees of radii.
So I decided to buy one of these...
I ran that from about the middle of the "waist" all the way around the lower bout until right before the flair of the heart omega...then blended in and enlarged the initial top 5/8" radius with a Shinto... as needed.
The forearm bevel area is actually more than a full roundover... it's fairly egg shaped.
The control side of the lower bout... not so much
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The binding is looking good. I feel your pain with heating too far, etc. It's a balancing act for sure.
One thing that I have found is that the rubber sleeves from my oscillating spindle sander make excellent clamping cauls for binding on inside curves.
One thing that I have found is that the rubber sleeves from my oscillating spindle sander make excellent clamping cauls for binding on inside curves.
Hey @Rôckhewer , did you get away with running the router bit around the inside of the heart omega? I keep picturing the pointy bit flying off into space. Lots of light passes and prayer?
Rôckhewer
Commercial User
- Feb 28, 2015
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- Owner/Builder- RockHewer Custom Guitars LLC
The pointy bit in the middle wasn't much of a worry.
One pass... climbing cut.
The protruding bits however... I did not run a router around those. Too sketchy for me.
I shaped them by hand.
Yeah, that sounds about right, I should be able to blend those by hand if I take my time. Just ordered an MLSC 5/8" roundover bit with 1/2" shank, all the elbow relief and belly carve will be either by hand or maybe a disc sander. I had a thought on using the zip ties with less damage, maybe a piece of surgical tubing or heat shrink wrap? I tried making a slightly tapered dowel, but its really hard to get even pressure on the binding all around an inside radius. Just noticed the little figures indicating Go and No Go on the photo, nice demented little touchThe pointy bit in the middle wasn't much of a worry.
One pass... climbing cut.
The protruding bits however... I did not run a router around those. Too sketchy for me.
I shaped them by hand.
View attachment 4480713
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Rôckhewer
Commercial User
- Feb 28, 2015
- 2,922
- 9,029
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- Owner/Builder- RockHewer Custom Guitars LLC
I just zoomed in on your omega layout.
Your center pointy bit is way longer than mine.
Looks cool... but I would be scared of that too.
Your center pointy bit is way longer than mine.
Looks cool... but I would be scared of that too.
turindev
Commercial User
- Jul 1, 2005
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- Builder, m7bassworks.com
Just had to stop by to say.... This thing is looking gorgeous!
I’ll give the long pointy bit a try, I can always cut it back a little shorter if it goes awry on me. Definitely doing that part by hand. Hope to get some build time in over the long weekend. Happy T-Day, All.
Binding Boy, Part 2:
The damage from the zip ties was limited to the part that got scraped away flush, so I dodged a bullet there. I had a couple tiny voids I had to spooge in with dissolved binding paste, but overall came out pretty clean. To play it safe on the other half, I used some shrink wrap around the ties to cushion it a little, seems to have worked. I much prefer just tape, but couldn't get enough force into it to hold these curves. I ran out of my Stewmac binding tape and just used fiberglass strapping tape, which seemed to work as well or better.
Another binding job...survived. I'll probably never bind something this tight again, that was pretty nerve wracking. Still a lot of scraping and sanding to clean it up, but the worst is done.
I got MLCS 5/8" roundover bit, did a nice job, and looks better than the 1/2" roundover. Couldn't resist a mockup with the fingerboard, which I guess it's time to glue on. When do other people glue on the board in your process, before any neck carve? Seems right, then I still have some flat surfaces to clamp to.
Thanks for looking, have a leftover turkey sandwich on me. I feel like a bloated tick, with gravy oozing out of my pores.
The damage from the zip ties was limited to the part that got scraped away flush, so I dodged a bullet there. I had a couple tiny voids I had to spooge in with dissolved binding paste, but overall came out pretty clean. To play it safe on the other half, I used some shrink wrap around the ties to cushion it a little, seems to have worked. I much prefer just tape, but couldn't get enough force into it to hold these curves. I ran out of my Stewmac binding tape and just used fiberglass strapping tape, which seemed to work as well or better.
Another binding job...survived. I'll probably never bind something this tight again, that was pretty nerve wracking. Still a lot of scraping and sanding to clean it up, but the worst is done.
I got MLCS 5/8" roundover bit, did a nice job, and looks better than the 1/2" roundover. Couldn't resist a mockup with the fingerboard, which I guess it's time to glue on. When do other people glue on the board in your process, before any neck carve? Seems right, then I still have some flat surfaces to clamp to.
Thanks for looking, have a leftover turkey sandwich on me. I feel like a bloated tick, with gravy oozing out of my pores.
Good work my man. I’m glad to see this build coming along.
I know you look at that omega as a ton of stress and effort, but I bet every person that you show that bass to is going to point it out. That week or so of work is going to pay off in compliments for ever.
Stunning work. You do that Ulmia bench proud!
Stunning work. You do that Ulmia bench proud!
I could use some advice here:
I'm making a brass nut for this one (first one from scratch) and I'm thinking I need to cut a little dado for it to socket down into. I had a little flat spot machined into the neck right at the nut, but kinda lost part of it sanding the headstock. I could probabaly re-file in a flat and rely on a dab of glue to hold it, but seems like a weak connection. I'm thinking I should cut a notch for this, maybe 1/16" deep, BEFORE gluing the board on, so I don't slip and trash the board. What are other pople doing, notch, or just let the nut sit on a flat? Also, how best to cut it? Router sled with a downcut sprial straight bit? Dremel on a router base? By hand with a file or chisel? I don't love the idea of interupting the clean binding line with a notch, but have seen it on plenty of other basses done that way. Bat signal up to @Rôckhewer, what did you do on your Balance K build?
I'm making a brass nut for this one (first one from scratch) and I'm thinking I need to cut a little dado for it to socket down into. I had a little flat spot machined into the neck right at the nut, but kinda lost part of it sanding the headstock. I could probabaly re-file in a flat and rely on a dab of glue to hold it, but seems like a weak connection. I'm thinking I should cut a notch for this, maybe 1/16" deep, BEFORE gluing the board on, so I don't slip and trash the board. What are other pople doing, notch, or just let the nut sit on a flat? Also, how best to cut it? Router sled with a downcut sprial straight bit? Dremel on a router base? By hand with a file or chisel? I don't love the idea of interupting the clean binding line with a notch, but have seen it on plenty of other basses done that way. Bat signal up to @Rôckhewer, what did you do on your Balance K build?
I don't see why just sitting on the flat with a tiny dab of CA under each side wouldn't work just fine. I don't think a slot is necessary. It looks like your piece o' brass will have a pretty wide footprint, should be nice and stable.
I've done lots with just a flat. Probably 2/3rds of my necks. Tiny dot of weak glue (white elmers or normal wood glue) is plenty to hold it in place. CA would make me nervous that you'd take a chunk of wood with the nut if you ever had to remove it.
I've done a few with a slot, usually I just leave a very faint lip on the backside, like 1/16" or less, versus a legitimate slot (which looks weird to me on anything but a Fender style neck). Bottom of the slot is even with the top of the neck, the lip is cut into the headstock veneer with a file. Then I use masking tape to hold the nut in place while gluing the fretboard on (wax on the nut to be sure it releases) to help position the fretboard correctly.
If I were in your shoes, with the chance to cut a lip without cutting into the binding gone, I'd probably just leave it as a flat ledge. I agree that cutting into the binding would be a shame. Unless you were going to use a nut material that matched the white binding, but a brass nut would stand out notched into the white binding.
I've done a few with a slot, usually I just leave a very faint lip on the backside, like 1/16" or less, versus a legitimate slot (which looks weird to me on anything but a Fender style neck). Bottom of the slot is even with the top of the neck, the lip is cut into the headstock veneer with a file. Then I use masking tape to hold the nut in place while gluing the fretboard on (wax on the nut to be sure it releases) to help position the fretboard correctly.
If I were in your shoes, with the chance to cut a lip without cutting into the binding gone, I'd probably just leave it as a flat ledge. I agree that cutting into the binding would be a shame. Unless you were going to use a nut material that matched the white binding, but a brass nut would stand out notched into the white binding.
I can't imagine the nut's going to have a chance to move around in any direction once this is strung up.
