[Chellee Guitars]

I started apprenticing at a repair shop. I highly recommend doing some repairs before you build. It will give you an idea of how the guitar actually works (and doesn't) as well as some of the different approaches that builders and manufacturers have taken. I was fortunate enough to be able to work on a hundred guitars or so before I started building my first. Again, I HIGHLY recommend trying to fix some stuff. Re-fret a guitar. A cheap one.

When I started working toward my own shop the most expensive things I bought were a bandsaw, drillpress, router, clamps, and an fretcrowning file. You'll also want nut files, about 300 pounds of sandpaper (no, really, you do a lot of sanding), allen wrenches, a mallet, a good straight-edge, a soldering iron, a protractor, a couple of good chisels, and humility. Just for starters. Bug us constantly, too. Read everything you can and remember that everyone has their own way of doing things, which may or may not be the best way for you. Just as there are many opinions on what the best guitar is, there are many opinions on techniques and tools for luthierey. Learn as much as you can about "why" and choose which "how" and "what" works for you.

Get lots of cam clamps. They're not cheap, but if you can afford them then get about 40. I started with some cheaper screw clamps that I got from Home Depot. They're not as nice, but they're better than nothing. I started buying cam clamps a few at a time with every LMI or StewMac order.