@eddie6string I'm glad you enjoyed the videos, they were great fun to make. If you can post a photo of the pump I'll let you know what I think. 250W isn't an especially big vacuum pump and, so long as it is reaching a sufficient level of vacuum, then it is probably fine for all sort of instrument related vacuum process as well as for laminating.

@darrenking

Cool.

Will do pic when battery charged on phone

Thanks 

@darrenking

That’s a serious production line there @eddie6string.

Is that your own spraying work on “psydelic lady”?

@tv1010101

Psydelic 'Neon' brushwork. 

Has to be sealed with clear before you flatten, otherwise the colours bleed.

Warmness 

E

That's been interesting reading all your stories, so here's mine.

I grew up watching my dad making things. My pal's dads would buy things that they needed, my dad would make what he needed if he could, that seemed perfectly normal to me and I still have that mindset. So I grew up making things too, I remember getting a "toy" carpenters toolset one Christmas that included a real saw, imagine giving a saw to an eight year old nowadays. My mum had a guitar back then that I  used to try to play, it eventually fell apart, probably because I put steel strings on it when the nylon ones broke ( I know now that wasn't a great idea)  At school I preferred the practical subjects, the only higher I got was engineering drawing. Then work, I was an apprentice engineering technician in a foundry, Falkirk's main industry at that time. By the time I retired a couple of years ago, I was a design engineer for the transport and offshore industries.  Iv'e always wanted to play guitar and tried to learn and given up often.  Iv'e spent a lot of my time during lockdown with my guitar, a Tanglewood Tomkat, and have improved a little. While google searching to find how a truss rod works and how adjust it, I stumbled over Mark's livestream, making a neck and installing the truss rod. That really caught my interest, and iv'e only missed a couple of livestreams since then. I had no intention of making a guitar, but then bought a load of bits and assembled a partscaster. That didn't satisfy my need to make something though, so I started making a les paul type body from scrap wood from under my caravan just to see if I can do it, thats coming on well, and I'll be starting the neck next week. Iv'e also got a kit ordered from Carol for my next one.  Looking forward, I think I'd like to build an acoustic at one of Mark's workshop courses.

Sorry this was so long, got a bit carried away there.

Thanks for sharing @robin

Sounds like you already getting sucked in to building, building and then building some more!

I keep building them, just because I can now ... you might find that you amass quite a few.

@robin

And the story continues .....

I didn't know you could get a Carol kit?

E

I didn't know you could get a Carol kit?

Prizes for the best punchline ...

?

I didn't know you could get a Carol kit?

I think my wife would draw the line at me building my own Carol out in my hut.

@robin

Ha, my wife Cal, is (a) Carol!

I have been playing guitar (badly) for quite a number of years, playing in a number of bands and started building CBG’s (cigar box guitars) a few years back for a bit of fun.

About 5 years ago my daughter came across the Bailey build your own and design your own course on Udemy and bought it for my birthday. Thankfully they now have there own guitar making.co.uk site for courses.

I built my first guitar soon after getting the online course and the rest is history....

I was hooked and decided to take it further and go to the Bailey workshop a few times to hone my skills under @markbailey expert eye. Experiences that I will never forget.

Ive built a number of guitars since and even a few more CBG’s when someone’s asked.

Recently work had taken over and the builds stopped.....until lockdown and the live streams. These have helped get my mojo back and I’m hoping to get back into the garage/workshop and start building again very soon. I first need to tidy the space and plan some ideas. I still have 3-4 half built projects that still need completing so I will start with them first.

Deej

@deej

Sounds ideal!

I popped in on the late Norman Reed who started the Totnes school of guitar making, a few times, but he was only teaching acoustic instruments at that time in 1980s.How short sighted I was, only focussed on Electric. 

Nice bloke and taught me a few things on intonation and action etc.

To have Mark Bailey within popping distance would be coolio!

Q: what's rule No 2)?

A place for everything and everything in it's place (then measure twice as to how long it took to tidy the workshop up???

until lockdown and the live streams. These have helped get my mojo back and I’m hoping to get back into the garage/workshop and start building again very soon.

The livestreams really do have the same effect on me.

🙂

I was in training in the first half of the year (training for retirement), so had plenty of time to have workshop time.  Life's a bit busier again now, but Saturdays are generally still workshop days.

@eddie6string Hi Eddie,

You’d need to stick a vacuum gauge on to it to check the level of vacuum it generates. Does it run? If it gets up to around 80% vacuum then this would certainly be ok for laminating sides but you’d probably want more if having a go at an arch top lamination. I can’t see if it has an oil reservoir but if so it is likely to go up to around 99% and so should be good for pretty much everything.