There is this horrible feeling of quickly devaluing the worth of one's bit of wood with every ever-escalating disaster potential. I don't like it!
I have made a f*ck*ng pig's ear of getting my neck bolted on yesterday... you make it look so simple Mark. Surely there is a better way of drilling this preciously fragile bit of wood? My barrel nut positioning was awful, I damaged the actual heel via the 10mm drill bit, which felt horrible to execute, and I took the heel block holes up to 7mm to allow for proper neck set. The damn soundboard lip that I had allowed when brad-pointing the tenon, had magically turned into a lip on the bloody neck. ?
And after all that, the bridge clearance with a 5.5mm fretboard on, is a stonking 13mm. Furious I am!
Low point. I feel like I've just made sculpture. A nice one.
Trip to Ayr?
Maybe you could use a Maccaferri style bridge with a tailpiece and pretend you meant it...
You need a pretty thick skin to be a guitar maker...it can be heartbreaking when things are not going to plan..I understand...
It is not a million miles away - You are more than welcome to bring it round and I'll take a look...no problem!
Measure twice, cut once...
1- I'm redoing my barrel nut holes with some plugs to get a better aligned anchor for the bolts. Made a wee jig to hold the neck in the drill press for these scary 10mm holes. Will re-assess bridge clearance after latest neck set.
2- I've ordered an arbor press to do the frets... throat capacity is 117mm. Can I fret the neck with fingerboard glued on? I'm not sure how I would position the fingerboard once frets are in. You mentioned it in the vids at some point.
2- I've ordered an arbor press to do the frets... throat capacity is 117mm. Can I fret the neck with fingerboard glued on? I'm not sure how I would position the fingerboard once frets are in. You mentioned it in the vids at some point.
You need to make a jig that the neck sits in - a fancy neck rest. The frets over the body are a bit more tricky...I've demonstrated the best way I can think of on the course (without spending even more money!)
Measure twice, cut once...
Flushed maple binding.
I'm so pleased with my home made router holder- I recommend this massive saving to any budgeters out there 🙂
Now... this bridge blank is 10,55mm thick. It just nips the straight edge, which is resting on the newly sanded fingerboard. Result?
R O S E L I N E
Now... this bridge blank is 10,55mm thick. It just nips the straight edge, which is resting on the newly sanded fingerboard. Result?
YES! That will do nicely...as we normally aim for around 9mm it is a tiny bit chunky but best left like that rather than having a saddle that is too tall or a fretboard that is too thin.
You are so close now I can almost hear the music!
Measure twice, cut once...
Can you tell me what you think of these grubby black marks on the lacewood sides? Seems to be part of the wood, but looks like it's been down't'pit.
Hmm...yes they do look like fingerprints...have they been there from the start? When did you notice them?
I would gently sand the area with 220-320g on a flat block and watch very closely to see what happens - if there is no change then it is in the wood.
Measure twice, cut once...
2- I've ordered an arbor press to do the frets... throat capacity is 117mm. Can I fret the neck with fingerboard glued on? I'm not sure how I would position the fingerboard once frets are in. You mentioned it in the vids at some point.
You need to make a jig that the neck sits in - a fancy neck rest. The frets over the body are a bit more tricky...I've demonstrated the best way I can think of on the course (without spending even more money!)
Ok... so DON'T buy the 1/2 tonne arbor press with 117mm throat.
Once the caul is installed you can't get the heel under the press.
I'm gonna take it back and go full tonne!
In for a penny eh?!
Just to be clear to folks - You do not need a fret press to build a guitar using my methods - it is rather a luxury tool usually reserved for larger workshops making several guitars a month or more.
Use of a fret press does not guarantee success - there is still some skill involved - not least in making the jig for the neck to sit in (and possibly different jigs for - bolt on, set neck, acoustic etc).
My fret press sits in the corner mostly unused...I still prefer to bash them in with a soft faced hammer.
Having said that there is a certain undefinable pleasure in pressing them in...ooooh yeeeah!
Some tips:
- Practice on scrap - make a test piece of fretboard with some fret slots to practice on until you have a technique.
- Try to apply even pressure on each fret - make sure you don't crush the wood with that thing
- Try using a smaller radius to press the ends in first (simulating my hammer technique)
Anyone else got any good Fretboard Press Arbour tips? Please chime in!
Measure twice, cut once...
Hi
I have to say that I'm really impressed with your workshop and extra-'specials' tools, and clamps. Did you make these after build 01? More to the point, how long was it between the completion of 01 and the commencement of 02? My wife is wondering when I'm going to put all my clamps to good use again.
Gymnasiom Maple floorboarding puts my bamboo to shame. Not that I'm competitive or anything, but it's a great use of a nice wood.
Cutting the angle of the tennon, and desperately trying to chisel a neat edge, and then dropping ut below the top edge by a whisker, was quite hard (no, really hard). Listening to a craftsman who uses measurements like "about 16.5mm", who naturally uses a ruler with 0.5mm units and whose hands appear to have the ability to adhere to these measurements, makes me question the strength of my reading glasses.
Also hearing someone say that it should look like it "grew there" tends to up the ante a bit. Though if one is going to learn from a Magister then it's worth paying attention and trying one's best (more on that one later)
aw thanks man- I've always had a vision of this ghostly guitar, and now I have the tools and materials!
All credit to Mark for inspiration and guidance. I built my first BYO Bailey in 2005... so that's a good while ago now.
I am taking three friends through the process as well, so we set out to build about 40 clamps before any luthery happened, which was great for initiating tool and workshop practices.
More to come, hence my wishes to get the right equipment for repeatable process.
I think I need to pay more attention to what's under my nose. I didn't see the "NEXT" button and missed pages 2/3 of your build. Only myself to blame.
Once I got started I became a bit obsessive and bored the pants of many friends with my tales of woe, and the quality of Mark's teaching. I got quite a few people interested but was convinced they were waiting for the acid test before they did anything. However, when the guitar was finished, and people could see it, it sort of went mini-viral (is that possible?) around my friends and their friends. It's surprising how many people want to make a guitar. I totally agree with you re the making of clamps as a way to get started and it must be great to work with friends on a project like this.
into synths?
On the subject of fret pressing: There are fret pressing cauls available which you can use with a pillar drill. Does anyone happen to use these and are they any good?
Measure once, cut straight away and maybe you're lucky......
Yes- that is the type of caul that I am installing into the arbor press.
It has an 8mm shank.
I've heard people curse their installing this into their lovely drill press. Seems doable, but do you love your tools?
YES I'm into synths! I started my woodworking to make a case for my modular... got sidetracked!
I was in the band 7VWWVW (Mammal) back when synths weren't re-cool yet. Awesome LP if you can find it 😉
Yes- that is the type of caul that I am installing into the arbor press.
It has an 8mm shank.
I've heard people curse their installing this into their lovely drill press. Seems doable, but do you love your tools?
Well... I don't have a lovely drill press. I've got a cheap-ass one, which does the job however.... Might as well try it.... ?
Measure once, cut straight away and maybe you're lucky......
Done two necks with a suitable hammer.........
Measure once........ Measure again......... Sod it - make tea!