# Renk - Raze Multiscale Prototype



## Renkenstein (Mar 12, 2015)

Alright, so it's been a busy month for me. I've been cranking away on the Siren7 build and I had some extra timber so I thought I'd try something I've always wanted. 

I'm building a multiscale. This gal is all for me, and will serve as the prototype for this model. It features many aesthetics of a modern superstrat, with my own Renk twists.

She'll be 25.5"-26.5". My band tunes to C standard, and my last build(26.25" scale Siren) improved the string tension dramatically. Thrashin' got tighter...a lot tighter. I wanted to push it just a little bit further and see what another 1/4" would do on that low C. I never had a problem with the skinny strings on a 25.5" scale, so I left that dimension alone.

Ladies and Gentlemen....I give you, the Renk Raze build.





So this is how most of my builds start. Actually, they start in a notebook and are scanned into the computer. I use emachineshop to go over my sketches, plug in the critical dimensions(neck, nut, bridge) from template files, and take it down to FedEx for a print. Man, my drafting teacher Mr Tiller would have failed me hard for turning in a drawing this unfinished. When I'm the draftsman and the fabricator, some things can slide.







Turned a drawing into some MDF templates.





Wood selection. Mahogany back, Peruvian Walnut top, Zebrawood and Peruvian Walnut 3pc laminated neck, and an Indian Rosewood fretboard...





...or curly maple fretboard??? Decisions decisions...






Bookmatched a top and prepped a joint. Lil gap at the bottom got addressed between photo op and glue.






Glued a top





Cut a top. 





Profile 1-1/4"





Neck blank and top. It's cool how well the darks in zebra match the walnut.


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## Renkenstein (Mar 12, 2015)

Headstock fun! I know how much people love the string-over-air look, and I really like it too, so I want to try it out. I call this the Hanzo Headstock. It's a cross between a katana and a cock...which I think is pretty fkn manly.





Getting a straightish string pull happenin. This will be reversed, by the way.





Layed out a straightish string pull on the reverse side.





Moved the location of my template screw hole. I don't know why...this is a fkn boring picture Renk....moving on.





Checking registration. I want to take a moment and address a practice that I've been using. My previous builds I've been applying pressure in the middle of the top using a single screw located somewhere in the bridge pickup position. It's worked well in the past, but I no longer endorse this practice and I'd like to warn against it for several reasons. We'll get to that later. 





Naphtha cleaning before gluing the top to the body. Loaded up in the sammich press.





I haven't built a multiscale, and I wanted to practice the compound angle scarf joint. I cut a couple pieces of scrap and made the neck portion at an arbitrary angle. 





Gluing that up.





I went over to FretFind2d and threw my multiscale dimension in. This is what came out. It's a 25.5-26.5" scale with a perpendicular 9th. It looks comfy to me and should take little time to acclimate. 





Pulled the DXF into AutoCAD(trial version...booo) and found the angle to be an easy 16°. What a nice round number!





Since I had my angle, I marked it and cut the neck blank at the skewed angle. The headstock break angle is my standard 13°, with the nut angle of 16°, which came out to a 13° cut on a bandsaw with a 3° tilt. Got it? Good.


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## immortalx (Mar 13, 2015)

That's fantastic man! You make it look so easy (when it's not!) which in my book means you have well thought processes and can produce consistent results. Hats off to you sir


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## KnightroExpress (Mar 13, 2015)

Awesome work! I'm super excited to see how it goes! 

As a side note, I have actual real AutoCAD. If you ever want anything done up, let me know.


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## Serratus (Mar 13, 2015)

Looks great so far!! 
The only thing I would think about changing is the position of the perpendicular fret - my first multiscale had it at the 9th and I found that the only thing I wasn't happy with was the angle of the low frets. I did have a much larger fan than this build though so I'm sure yours will feel ok, but imho could be improved slightly by making it the 6th or 7th fret. I always think that you want a greater angle in the high frets than the low ones, because the angle at the high frets follows the angle of your hand when you're playing, whereas on the low frets it can get uncomfortable to twist your hand back.
It'll still be fine if you stay with it like it is though because your fan is small, so it's just my thoughts.....


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## JuliusJahn (Mar 13, 2015)

I think the position will be fine, but I wanna know how that compound cut came out. 

Doesn't make sense to me in my mind, wouldn't you need the bandsaw to be on 16*? The scarf cuts the sides, and the bandsaw tilt would cut the nut face.


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## Deegatron (Mar 13, 2015)

Looking good. what are you planning to use for a bridge?
I'm desperately waiting for someone to come up with a really slick, affordable, easy to find DIY mulitscale bridge... but sadly no luck yet...


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## Renkenstein (Mar 13, 2015)

Jahn. I set the bandsaw at a 3 degree tilt to the right and fed the neck through heel end first. That's how I ended up with 16 for the nut. I don't fully understand the geometry, which is the reason for that pine scrap test. I'll post the results tonight.


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## Renkenstein (Mar 13, 2015)

Deegs...I'm going to use Graphtec Wilkinson saddles and fabricate a brass baseplate. That's the least expensive option I've found.


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## Deegatron (Mar 13, 2015)

I've always been scared to try that option as I figured there wouldn't be a lot of height adjustment available. what's your plan for finishing the baseplate? powder coat? I tried heavy duty paint on my last build and unfortunately was not impressed.


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## Knarbens (Mar 13, 2015)

Dude! You're amazing!


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## BlackMastodon (Mar 13, 2015)

Mr Tiller can suck it, he doesn't make bitchin' guitars like you do.


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## Renkenstein (Mar 13, 2015)

Deegatron said:


> I've always been scared to try that option as I figured there wouldn't be a lot of height adjustment available. what's your plan for finishing the baseplate? powder coat? I tried heavy duty paint on my last build and unfortunately was not impressed.



Just like everything I've encountered so far, it'll be settled through trial and error. I've got the neck heel deep in the pocket, barely breaking the surface(1/32-1/16" max), so she's going to be a lowww profile gal. I'm pretty sure the saddles will have enough adjustment, but you're right...I'll have to figure that out when I get them.

I'm wanting the base plate to be polished brass with the black saddles contrasting against it. I'll probably just leave it be. I like the way brass tarnishes(steampunk look) and if it doesn't end up lookin good, I can always run it on the buffer.


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## skeels (Mar 13, 2015)

This is super cool. I'm learning a lot here. Like, I need a big bandsaw. And a nice computer. And time to use such things. Gassing hard for another multiscale build!


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## Renkenstein (Mar 13, 2015)

skeels said:


> This is super cool. I'm learning a lot here. Like, I need a big bandsaw. And a nice computer. And time to use such things. Gassing hard for another multiscale build!



Man, I've always had a computer. I've been building them myself since '95. Such cheaper if you piece them together. Hell, with hardware prices these days, you can get something that'll do everything you need without breaking the bank. 

As for my bandsaw...that's another story....and a funny one at that. My dad paid $50 at a garage sale for my band saw. He's had it since I was in High School. I was bugging him for the better part of a year..."Dad, you using that band saw?"

"No son, you cannot have my band saw" I visit him 3-4x a year(I live in KC, he lives in STL), and I asked him about it every time.

Finally, I worded it differently..."Hey pop...how long has it been since you used that band saw?"

He nods and says "You can have my band saw"

My dad is a bit of a collector, but he believes in me and the idea that a tool is better used in the service of those in need. 

She needs some work...mainly new tires and a decent set of guides, but she's great with a high TPI blade on her. Doesn't track all that well, but with a toothy blade and some relief cuts, she'll do the job.



BlackMastodon said:


> Mr Tiller can suck it, he doesn't make bitchin' guitars like you do.



Hahaha...actually, Mr Tiller was one of the coolest and most influential men I've ever met. He was my VoTech instructor. I'd put in 3 hours a day learning drafting, then they'd bus us back to the High School for the remainder of the day.

Mr Tiller was a bit of an old hippie rocker burnout, having played guitar in bands in the 70's. We instantly got along great. He'd let us bring in our guitars and we'd dick around on those for half the day. I learned a lot from that guy, and while I had the raw talent going into that program, he helped guide me to my strengths and produce award winning results.

My Senior year, he basically gave me a B for drawing a 1:1 draft of a Jackson King V, and an artist rendering of a house we designed and the building trades class built(a VERY light workload for a whole year). Somewhere in St Charles, MO there's a house I had a hand in designing....which is pretty fkn cool.


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## Renkenstein (Mar 13, 2015)

Jahn, here's how it turned out. That's after prepping the surface on the granite block. 









Prepped both scarf surfaces with the granite slab and cleaned them with naphtha before glue.


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## jwade (Mar 14, 2015)

Man, I needed this thread so badly right now. I'm about to start planning out my first multiscale attempt, and you popped up with this at the exact right time!

Ps: zebrawood neck? Goddamn!


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## Renkenstein (Mar 16, 2015)

I've got a lot more updates to post, and I'll try to get around to that tonight. 

Multiscale isn't much more difficult than a regular neck if you plan for it ahead of time. I'm really loving the angled pocket. I think the way the bolts will go deep into that pocket, skewed into a parallelogram shape will offer a lot of stability.


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## Renkenstein (Mar 16, 2015)

Alright, here we arrive at Part2 our public service announcement. See that shiny thing in the hole right in the middle of the guitar body? Yeah, that's a broken screw. I leave those countersunk during glue-up to provide middle pressure. I will be ceasing this practice immediately for 2 reasons. 

1) a broken screw is a pain in the ass to get out. Wasted man-hours. 

2) I've been fortunate, but there is always the risk of splitting your top. I will be continuing with a similar method, but I will be using a piece of dowel to index the top joint instead of a screw. A dowel can just be routed away.

I didn't want to continue to use a process that adds risk to the build, and I did not want to see my viewers using a method learned from me that was foolhardy. 

With that being said, here are the results of the top/body glue joint:






Joint came out perfect. Just like the Siren7. The sammich press works!






Clean joint on both bouts. Horns are aces too. Thrilled.




I also got to go to Planet Comic-Con this weekend and met both Merle and Hershel from The Walking Dead. The lady was pretty excited as you can see in her serial stalker eyes. hahahaha


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## immortalx (Mar 17, 2015)

Lovely family Patrick  Mr. Renk junior is a real showman


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## Renkenstein (Mar 17, 2015)

Famous person...Aleister says "I give no fks...I've got POPCORN"

we offered Hershel(Scott Wilson) some of our popcorn when he excused himself from taking pictures because he had to find something to eat. We were at the front of the line and he gave us all high fives, and patted my eldest son on the back...that meant the world to my boy...getting patted on the back and receiving kind words from Hershel from The Walking Dead.

He tried to give Al a high five, but he wasn't having it. Hahahaha


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## DistinguishedPapyrus (Mar 17, 2015)

Man that sammich press is dank. I followed it on your other thread, still thinking about trying to build one for my upcoming build if I wind up adding a top. 

What method do you use to cut the body shape? Looks like some clean lines.


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## Renkenstein (Mar 17, 2015)

The sammich press has performed admirably. I can see myself refining it further with some 1/4" steel, if I can find a way to make that happen. 

Body shape process:
1) Band saw within ~2mm(I stay on the safe side with my unpredictable band saw)
2) Sand to the pencil line on the Ridgid
3) Flush trim with a Whiteside bit. 

It's a 3 step process that has eliminated risk of tearout.


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## Renkenstein (Mar 17, 2015)

Before we go any further, I want to get something off my chest. Let me climb up on this mountain here...

_*I AM GETTING A PIN ROUTER!!!!*_

A friend and mentor of mine is building me a pin router for my shop. This will mean HUGE things on the horizon. Here's the progress.





This is the base of my pin router. It will have an MDF or melamine deck with swappable steel pin inserts. The steel frame is almost perfectly level and can be dialed in with minimal shimming. The steel dovetailed sliders will operate on a tight tolerance threaded rod. Once I get templates made this is basically a hand operated CNC that will take me from blank to body in an exponentially reduced amount of time...not to mention open a whole new realm of possibilities for roughing in neck shapes.







This is the adjustable dovetailed steel sliding assembly.






Slides nice and easy with zero play. The screws/nuts on the side allow further adjustment once mounted.

No more routing control or pickup cavities by hand. From the moment I get this tool, the router will remain fixed and I'll rout by moving the workpiece. This a much more safe and controlled environment that will increase efficiency...and we all know how much Renk likes efficiency.


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## metaldoggie (Mar 18, 2015)

You're going to have to post videos of this in action!


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## BlackMastodon (Mar 18, 2015)

Very curious to see that in action. The thought of moving the workpiece instead of the router seems iffy to me but I want to see how it works before judging too much.


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## Renkenstein (Mar 18, 2015)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x8oA_oHJOno

Here's an example of a fella using it to route a body. Mine will have an identical height adjustment as shown in that video, but I'm only mounting the router motor to the sliding assembly and not the base. 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IIArvMvcHlY

This guy right here rough carved 3 guitar necks in 5 minutes.


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## Renkenstein (Mar 18, 2015)

Basically, any sketchy router operation becomes stable and safe. Routing that big round-over on a neck with that little bit of surface area for the base to rest on is impossible with a router in hand. With a pin router, many things that would be very dangerous become a simple task.


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## JuliusJahn (Mar 18, 2015)

You might change your mind after the flush trim throws a body blank across the shop!  I've seen it happen.


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## Renkenstein (Mar 18, 2015)

I'll be upgrading to spiral down-cut bits for that purpose. I'm not just spraying and praying...there's a method to my madness.


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## immortalx (Mar 19, 2015)

I enjoy diy tools even more than diy guitars, so i'm dying to see that baby in action!


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## Renkenstein (Mar 19, 2015)

I know buddy! You seem to love building and modding tools as much as I do.


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## BlackMastodon (Mar 19, 2015)

That does seem pretty safe, I was just concerned about the tearout/work pieces being thrown across shops like Julius said. That first guy got crazy clean with that cavity, though!


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## Renkenstein (Mar 19, 2015)

You usually see them in HUGE factory settings where they're these hulking monoliths that suck at the teet of a 3-phase power source. While one of those would be awesome, I don't think I'd ever want to move one...much less down some stairs. 

This will be a pin router that I can either place on a bench or build a stand for it to sit on, and it will only have a screw operated plunge. The neck roughing vid, that dude looks like he has a ShopFox pin router, which operates with a footswitch to control the plunge. 

Sadly ShopFox has discontinued it, leaving the only affordable pin router option to the ShopSmith attachment which weighs in at around $600. That, or I could have my own built for me out of steel by a master machinist. I chose the latter.


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## Renkenstein (Mar 19, 2015)

Alright, let's get this build back on the road!






Glued the scarf joint somewhere in here...didn't take a pic. Cut the excess from the headstock piece on the bandsaw and flattened it to the neck. 






Drew up some lines to figure out how the headstock was going to work. I definitely wanted a little nubbin that guitar hangers can grip. I always hated that about Parkers...you couldn't hang them up unless you had an attachment. 






Lil naphtha to see what's what.






It looks edible.






Ready to eviscerate!





Trimmed the excess. 





Cut the neck taper on the bandsaw and flush trimmed to a template after sanding to the line on the ROSS. 






First mockup!


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## immortalx (Mar 20, 2015)

I'm always amazed at your clean work and dare I say that I like this headstock more than the BM one!
Great great job man


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## metaldoggie (Mar 20, 2015)

It looks edible.


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## Purelojik (Mar 20, 2015)

looking fantastic renk!


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## Renkenstein (Mar 20, 2015)

metaldoggie said:


>



Totally!



immortalx said:


> I'm always amazed at your clean work and dare I say that I like this headstock more than the BM one!
> Great great job man





Purelojik said:


> looking fantastic renk!



Thank you both! That means a lot coming from 2 of my favorite builders. 

I really like this headstock a lot. I think there's enough meat on it that people who don't like the BMs or Parkers might still get behind this one. My son still thinks it looks like a cawk.


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## pdotson (Mar 20, 2015)

Renkenstein said:


> My son still thinks it looks like a cawk.



I'd hate to be on the receiving end!


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## pettymusic (Mar 20, 2015)

+1 on that headstock bro! I hope my builds will one day be original, yet tasteful as yours.


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## Renkenstein (Mar 20, 2015)

pettymusic said:


> +1 on that headstock bro! I hope my builds will one day be original, yet tasteful as yours.



You flatter me, sir. Thank you!


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## Renkenstein (Mar 20, 2015)

I want an angled pocket end(not neck angle...you'll see). I'm going for 27 frets to have the relative major octave. Might come in handy for arpeggio tapping. Been wanting to try 27 since I saw my first Caparison Horus.





Cut the angle on the heel.







Marked the pocket location.





Hogged out some material.





Looks like Halloween/Thanksgiving.






Getting the neck pocket jig ready. I'll need an angled crosspiece to guide the router to form the end of the pocket.






Just got a new router bit in the mail! Whiteside....like RAZOR!






Fitted a neck joint.





Photo op at my favorite angle. These pics work great for Facebook cover photos.






Photo opportunity with my 2 favorite ladies. It was early, I had bed beard and a SOUF POLE hoodie on....zero fks given that day.


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## pettymusic (Mar 20, 2015)

Photo opportunity with my 2 favorite ladies. It was early, I had bed beard and a SOUF POLE hoodie on....zero fks given that day.[/QUOTE]

There's no time to look pretty man!! Too much music to make, too many guitars to build!!!!


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## Renkenstein (Mar 20, 2015)

Haha...every morning, I roll out of bed, slide into my jeans, grab my cup of coffee and head downstairs. I don't even look in a mirror until 2pm. 

I'm behind in all my shows, haven't watched TV in weeks(4 to be exact). Guitars, network, day, night. It's been like this for a while, and I'm just waiting for the crash.

Still learning things and still having fun, so there's no end in sight for this guy.


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## immortalx (Mar 20, 2015)

Oh man that neck with the zebrawood stripes will rock when carved. I'd like to see that NOW but I can't complain, cause you've been giving me my daily guitar building p0rn dose and I love you for that


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## Renkenstein (Mar 20, 2015)

immortalx said:


> Oh man that neck with the zebrawood stripes will rock when carved. I'd like to see that NOW but I can't complain, cause you've been giving me my daily guitar building p0rn dose and I love you for that



I'm really looking forward to neck carving on this one. The wood may determine otherwise!

I've gotta get some progress on these. I'm running out of progress shots to post! I've been holding for Allparts and my fret slotting templates to arrive. Once I have those I'll be blasting on these gals. 

I'm going to try to get my Hipshot and LMII order in so I don't have that second round of holding for parts. Funding 2 builds on my own has proven difficult.


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## immortalx (Mar 21, 2015)

^ I'm on the same boat. Waiting for some parts to arrive + no money for some others! I still have one other build that needs the last couple of coats, but it has been an extremely rainy and cold season and I'm not risking finishing on an unheated workshop


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## SilentCartographer (Mar 22, 2015)

Renkmachine? Me Rikey


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## VigilSerus (Mar 23, 2015)

Absolutely delicious. I'm in love with the headstock design. Anxiously observing this thread!!


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## Gango79 (Mar 23, 2015)

Love Raze shape!!! Congrats!!!!


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## DistinguishedPapyrus (Mar 23, 2015)

Dang man, such clean work... your threads are entertaining lol. 

Also props for the schweet headstock design. It's reminiscent of a Blackmachine but you've certainly made it your own and it goes well with the body shape. 

Question for you though, in this pic how is the MDF template attached to the blank?


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## Renkenstein (Mar 24, 2015)

Heya DP...glad to tell ya! I usually use 3M double sided carpet tape, but I've been playing around with using a piece of masking tape on both the workpiece and the template. A small bead of superglue down the center, the full length of the tape.

This saves a LOT of money on double sided tape, and I noticed it offers a LOT more lateral rigidity, which is EXTREMELY important when flush trimming like this. 

Give it a shot! It works VERY well.


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## Renkenstein (Mar 24, 2015)

ShadowsfeaR said:


> Absolutely delicious. I'm in love with the headstock design. Anxiously observing this thread!!





Gango79 said:


> Love Raze shape!!! Congrats!!!!



Seeing some new-comers to my threads! I love it! Welcome to Renk's realm of madness! 

Thank you for following!


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## VigilSerus (Mar 25, 2015)

Long time lurker, recent time poster haha. Keep up the excellent work!


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## Renkenstein (Mar 26, 2015)

Been spacing out the updates to give my Allparts order time to arrive. Once I've got that in hand, it's back to the races.





Routed a control cavity.





Mother...fkr.... Look at that smug knot. He's just laughing at us...we'll show that lil bastard! Marked a line...






...and gave it hell!






It came time to address this lil bastard. I tried drilling out the screw, but the stainless steel proved too strong for any of my bits. I finally resorted to drilling around the screw with a smaller bit and clearing out the material with a leather punch until I was able to get a grip on it.





Routed the control cavity. I measured the 3-way toggles I use and it will JUST fit in the limited vertical space of the 1" mahogany back.






Made one big cavity cover and sliced off appropriate thicknesses and flushed them up on the drum sander. MASS PRODUCTION!!! 





Both fit nicely in their new homes. Looks like the one on the left needs another couple passes through the drum sander though.





Trying to decide on fretboards for these. The ebony on the left was initially planned for the Siren7, but the dimensions on it are too tight for my liking. The streaks in the ebony have me thinking of using it with the Raze instead and substituting a rosewood board on the Siren7.






Something like this.






Center lines on the neck and body. 






Pocket's good.






Got a bit of a low spot from sanding. Odd angles playing odd tricks on Renk.






Laying out the angled output jack. It will be partially recessed.


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## immortalx (Mar 26, 2015)

Oh man, I wish I could visit your workshop and see how you work! Your processes produce such clean results that it seems you need to do very minimal sanding afterwards! 
If I can recall you are doing the volute on the ROSS, right? Are you clamping a board parallel to the drum and push the headstock through?


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## Bolwede (Mar 26, 2015)

Fkn hell man! These builds look like they came out of a cnc machine! I'm still
new here is there a way to subscribe in any way? And I've never seen a
neck so flush to the body top, that profile is going to be low  Is there a meaning with having it like that?


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## metaldoggie (Mar 26, 2015)

Hey Bolwede,

To answer your questions and ninja Renk 

The subscribe button is under "Thread Tools" at the top of the page.

The neck profile is so low because he doesn't have the fretboard on there yet.


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## Renkenstein (Mar 26, 2015)

immortalx said:


> Oh man, I wish I could visit your workshop and see how you work! Your processes produce such clean results that it seems you need to do very minimal sanding afterwards!
> If I can recall you are doing the volute on the ROSS, right? Are you clamping a board parallel to the drum and push the headstock through?



Thank you, man! I'm just an efficiency buff, and I take calculated and deliberate removal of material. I'm obsessed with keeping the stock square as possible for as long as possible. When you always have a 90° edge for reference, it makes everything so much cleaner. I also learned a while ago not to over-work the piece.

My volutes are done on my drum sander. I thickness sand the back of the headstock and stop at a depth that allows the 4" drum to sand the little ramp that forms the volute. I've never had to rig up a thicknessing jig on the ROSS because I've had my drum sander the whole way. Amazing tool, man.

Too bad we're on different continents. I'd love to spend a weekend where I build you a drum sander and you build me a treadmill belt sander.


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## Renkenstein (Mar 26, 2015)

Bolwede said:


> Fkn hell man! These builds look like they came out of a cnc machine! I'm still
> new here is there a way to subscribe in any way? And I've never seen a
> neck so flush to the body top, that profile is going to be low  Is there a meaning with having it like that?



Thank you, man! I just carefully plan things out and follow logical procedural steps. I spend a lot of time making templates, and if those are right, then anything you make off them is inherently accurate. It's a lot easier to shape an MDF template than it is a hardwood body. 



metaldoggie said:


> Hey Bolwede,
> 
> To answer your questions and ninja Renk
> 
> ...



Yessir! This one is intentionally LOW profile. I like to use thicker fretboards(~1/4" - 6mm) and I leave anywhere from 1mm-3mm of the neck protruding above the body. I'm using a brass bridge plate that I'll be manufacturing and using black Wilkinson saddles. It was the cheapest multiscale bridge option, and with a polished brass base plate and black saddles, I think it'll look piiiimp! 

Allparts should be here any day now. Dying to get some progress rollin'.


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## Bolwede (Mar 26, 2015)

metaldoggie said:


> Hey Bolwede,
> 
> The neck profile is so low because he doesn't have the fretboard on there yet.



Well that was a bit harsh, ofc i know the fretboard isn't there yet, and ive played alot of guitars mostly ibanezes but there is always a gap between the fretboard and the actual body about 1-2mm 
Thank you for the subscribe question tho.




Renkenstein said:


> Yessir! This one is intentionally LOW profile. I like to use thicker fretboards(~1/4" - 6mm) and I leave anywhere from 1mm-3mm of the neck protruding above the body. I'm using a brass bridge plate that I'll be manufacturing and using black Wilkinson saddles. It was the cheapest multiscale bridge option, and with a polished brass base plate and black saddles, I think it'll look piiiimp!
> 
> Allparts should be here any day now. Dying to get some progress rollin'.



This answered my question, thicker fretboard = no need for that gap.


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## Renkenstein (Mar 26, 2015)

I don't think he meant it harsh. Metaldoggie is a friendly guy.


I do like to use the gap on the overhang because if the top ever swelled or the pocket ever adjusts to humidity, a slammed down board could develop an up-curl that could cause the upper frets to buzz or fret-out. Keeping a little distance between the body top and the overhang gives me peace of mind that those last couple frets will stay put.

I may be concerned for no good reason. Ibanez used a slammed down fretboard on all their RGs before the AANJ, and those never have problems in the upper range. 

I could make this even lower profile, but I'm unsure of the adjustment range of the Wilkinson saddles, so I'm leaving a bit of room for those. I can shave off that extra 1mm and slam the board down or leave it if the saddles end up taller than I'm expecting.

This won't have much of an overhang at the fretboard end anyway...so it will probably work quite well with the fretboard against the body.

Good food for thought. Thanks.


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## metaldoggie (Mar 27, 2015)

Renkenstein said:


> I don't think he meant it harsh. Metaldoggie is a friendly guy.






Bolwede said:


> Well that was a bit harsh


Of course not bro! We are all friends here.

It's damn near impossible to infer in text the inflection you would normally portray when speaking to someone. I have often said someone needs to develop a set of fonts for email and online communication to get around that - a sarcasm font would be my first choice lol.

Couple that with this being an international forum and something said in one dialect of English is taken completely differently in another.

Being a Brit living in the US I have experienced this a lot - I have heard people say that something a Brit said came off as rude or at the very least impersonal, when in fact it wasn't meant to be that way, it was just a typical British English phrase.

Anyway psychoanalysis of the human condition aside.....

I get what you mean now....I have always though the overhang on guitars to remind me a of a diving board.
To me it feels like the builder didn't plan very well, and I am not a fan. I like a nice tight fit


----------



## Bolwede (Mar 27, 2015)

metaldoggie said:


> Of course not bro! We are all friends here.
> 
> It's damn near impossible to infer in text the inflection you would normally portray when speaking to someone. I have often said someone needs to develop a set of fonts for email and online communication to get around that - a sarcasm font would be my first choice lol.
> 
> ...



Yeah I feel you, Sarcasm and Irony is smileys someone should make


----------



## Renkenstein (Mar 27, 2015)

Who can't help but like a guy with a Nigel Tufnel quote in their sig?!?


----------



## metaldoggie (Mar 27, 2015)

At risk of becoming further off topic....
The prestigious "Knower of Knowledge" award can go to whomever can name where that quote appeared.


----------



## Renkenstein (Mar 27, 2015)

It was on a Joe Satriani VHS tape I had. BOOM, I win!


----------



## Renkenstein (Mar 27, 2015)

It's gettin' REAL up in hurr!

When you can't even afford a business card from StewMac, having a friend that's a master machinist is a godsend. Dude built me a Luthier's vise.


----------



## metaldoggie (Mar 27, 2015)

Renkenstein said:


> It was on a Joe Satriani VHS tape I had. BOOM, I win!


----------



## Renkenstein (Mar 31, 2015)

Renk's got some progress happenin'!







After drilling a 1/8" pilot hole, I drilled the jack recess with a 5/8" spade bit to depth, then I drilled the rest of the way through with a 1/2" bit. Those are the 2 diameters needed for a barrel jack.






Placement came out perfect in the cavity.





Here's MultiFretBox Ver1.0. I've got a slot for a feeler gauge down the center of the base for straight scales using a pre-slotted board as a template. I've also got the option of using 2 pins to index the location of fret slots using multiscale templates that I have custom cut for me by Adam Bath of Elysian Guitars. He was nice enough to take time out of his busy Kickstarter month to assist a brother builder. I really appreciate you, Adam!





MultiFretBox Ver1.1 I had to make a new base because I cut the feeler gauge slot too deep. DERP! 

I took a little more care when making this one and made everything tight as a gnat's ass. Perfect 90° saw support guides and the pins hold fast into the base with no movement. This is gonna WORK!!! 

I've been thinkin' and thinkin' and thinkin'. I've had the miter box done for a couple days now, and I just couldn't pull the trigger on slotting a dark board for this dark walnut guitar. The dark on dark...it just muddles to me, and then you get into red browns vs purple browns vs black browns...let's just simplify and go the opposite end of the spectrum.






ENTER: CONTRAST!!! 
I bought a PRIMO board of maple at Woodcraft. They must have just got stocked because this beauty is flat sawn and the flame goes the full width of the board. 7' of this stuff, but I'll only be needing a fretboard. The rest will definitely be getting cut into tops.





Look at the shimmer in the figure of the rough cut edge. 






So I cut off what I need for a fretboard, cut that in half, and cut that in half again. I've got those acclimating to their new sizes now. I'll drum sand them to thickness tomorrow. Those 2 ambrosia spots were the only flaws in an otherwise immaculate board of maple. Better they end up in a fretboard that sits around than a top.


----------



## immortalx (Mar 31, 2015)

Very wise decision about the fretboard man. That board will look tons better with walnut  Also, the miter box and templates rock!


----------



## Renkenstein (Mar 31, 2015)

immortalx said:


> Very wise decision about the fretboard man. That board will look tons better with walnut  Also, the miter box and templates rock!



Thank you! I just love a good contrast, ya know? This build is going to either be my main axe or my 2nd, and I already have a dark ebony board, so I need my other favorite fretboard material. Love me some maple boards, and this will look sliiiiiick all scalloped out and shining. Then it'll get dirty and grimy like an old abused Yngwie or Keith Richards Strat, which is a killer look.

I'm diggin' this twist in the plot.


----------



## SanekN (Apr 2, 2015)

Dude... This stuff is GODLY!!  

holy balls, so clean, dem joints, dem woods.

Awesome work!


----------



## pondman (Apr 2, 2015)

Excellent stuff Renk. You look like you have a great life and a great hobby 
How come all the best builders end up on ss.org


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## Renkenstein (Apr 2, 2015)

pondman said:


> Excellent stuff Renk. You look like you have a great life and a great hobby
> How come all the best builders end up on ss.org



SSO's a great audience. I'm still in a band and play the br00talz, so I can really relate to this crowd. I like building pointy guitars, so this site is a great haven of acceptance for the things that are important to me. You know how it is. 

Our other forum has been a bit slow for my liking, and ProjectGuitar makes my browser hurt.

SSO wins.


----------



## Renkenstein (Apr 2, 2015)

You might wanna hit the fan, 'cuz I'm about to take a DUMP!!!





Drum sanded my favorite of the 4 fretboards and stickied it to the template using the center lines as reference. 






The index pins and the guides make this pretty much effortless.







Did I say effortless? What I really meant is it's a bitch. The maple was easy, but the ebony on the Siren7 was a nightmare. Proof of concept though, this miter box works.





Adam's template was dead on. The 6th string's path measures exactly 13-1/4" at the 12th. 












Locating the nut. I needed to remove a weee bit of material on the surface of the headstock treble side to get the nut shelf's angle to match the fretboard. Fixed it with a sanding block. 






Curly maple edge. 






















Did a lot this week so far. Slotted and rough tapered the fretboard. 















Cut the fretboard end to give me the cool Caparison Horus upper fret configuration. It's a great look, especially on multiscale guitars.





Drilled a couple 1/16" holes for my index brads. 















Drilled out the neck and pocket for a 4 bolt configuration. Again...used Pondman's advice and drilled with a 7/64" bit and used #6 screws. During final assembly they'll be drilled out for a #8 wood screw.


----------



## Erick Kroenen (Apr 3, 2015)

awesome build! subscribed


----------



## Renkenstein (Apr 4, 2015)

Been a BUSY weekend. I've been setting up my pin router.


----------



## XxJoshxX (Apr 4, 2015)

I visited a shop that literally used their pin router for literally everything I could possibly think of. They're such cool and versatile multipurpose tools.


----------



## immortalx (Apr 4, 2015)

Oh how I envy you  That machine looks sturdy as hell!


----------



## Renkenstein (Apr 6, 2015)

XxJoshxX said:


> I visited a shop that literally used their pin router for literally everything I could possibly think of. They're such cool and versatile multipurpose tools.



What I love most about this machine is it's only limited by the builder's imagination and jig/template making ability. I've been looking for and pricing one of these since I started building, and I never thought I'd have one so soon. 

I worked my ass off this weekend building a base and getting her all set up.


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## pettymusic (Apr 6, 2015)

Renkenstein said:


> What I love most about this machine is it's only limited by the builder's imagination and jig/template making ability. I've been looking for and pricing one of these since I started building, and I never thought I'd have one so soon.
> 
> I worked my ass off this weekend building a base and getting her all set up.



That......is.......awesom!!! I'm sooo jealous!!


----------



## Renkenstein (Apr 6, 2015)

The pace is quickening!






First job with the pin router...alas, no pin. 





Glued some binding with some thicker CA. I've tried binding goop in the past, and it just didn't work well for me. 






I mitered all corners, once it's scraped I'll come back in with some acetone and melt that seam together.





Scraped the binding flush.





Carved an arm contour. I don't have a chamfer bit, and I wanted to give this style a hand-shaped feel, so I went at it with a shinto and a couple files.


----------



## Renkenstein (Apr 6, 2015)

I had to rout the headstock binding rabbet on the router table. Mitered some corners and glued the binding.





Scraped it flush and made sure everything was flat on the granite slab.











Binding complete! Time to glue a fretboard!





Lapped both surfaces with some 80 grit. Drum sander for the fretboard, and the flat rock for the neck. Cleaned up with naphtha and gave it time to dry.






Spread some glue and glued down the board. I'd really like to figure out a way to use index pins for the fretboard location, but put the board between the neck and the red flat rock. I haven't figured out a way, so this will do for now.


----------



## Pikka Bird (Apr 7, 2015)

Gad damn, such a nice design! And flawless execution too by the looks of it.


----------



## immortalx (Apr 7, 2015)

Wow this is smoother than a baby's bottom


----------



## Renkenstein (Apr 7, 2015)

Pikka Bird said:


> Gad damn, such a nice design! And flawless execution too by the looks of it.





immortalx said:


> Wow this is smoother than a baby's bottom



Thanks fellas! I'm pretty stoked about this one. 

I've noticed a bit of flex in the headstock. Walnut isn't the hardest of hardwoods, so I'm thinking about doing a back lamination for further strengthening. When I drum sanded this headstock, I took a little too much(it's 1/2" right now). 

Since I've got the binding on already, I'll need to build out the thickness from the back. A good 1/16-3/32" back cap should do nicely. I'm thinking curly maple to give the backside a lil bling.


----------



## Knarbens (Apr 8, 2015)

Renk! That's some incredible nice work! *feeling small*


----------



## dankarghh (Apr 8, 2015)

Incredible. But, you know.. hurry up.


----------



## pettymusic (Apr 8, 2015)

Renkenstein said:


> Thanks fellas! I'm pretty stoked about this one.
> 
> I've noticed a bit of flex in the headstock. Walnut isn't the hardest of hardwoods, so I'm thinking about doing a back lamination for further strengthening. When I drum sanded this headstock, I took a little too much(it's 1/2" right now).
> 
> Since I've got the binding on already, I'll need to build out the thickness from the back. A good 1/16-3/32" back cap should do nicely. I'm thinking curly maple to give the backside a lil bling.



Ah!! Watching you do this will help me out, I need to do the same on an old neck


----------



## Renkenstein (Apr 8, 2015)

Knarbens said:


> Renk! That's some incredible nice work! *feeling small*



Thank you!! Small?!?! You sir, are a TITAN!



dankarghh said:


> Incredible. But, you know.. hurry up.



Sir, yes sir!



pettymusic said:


> Ah!! Watching you do this will help me out, I need to do the same on an old neck



I can only promise that I will document and photograph it in my usual excruciatingly detailed fashion.


----------



## Knarbens (Apr 9, 2015)

Renkenstein said:


> Thank you!! Small?!?! You sir, are a TITAN!



Haha  I appreciate that! Anyway, that "titan" has never done a scarf joint, never routed that perfect neck pockets as you, never done binding on body / headstock, never worked with a plane nor have I ever been patient enough to build such cool jigs. That's why:


----------



## Renkenstein (Apr 9, 2015)

Knarbens said:


> Haha  I appreciate that! Anyway, that "titan" has never done a scarf joint, never routed that perfect neck pockets as you, never done binding on body / headstock, never worked with a plane nor have I ever been patient enough to build such cool jigs. That's why:



Awww, man. Give yourself more credit than that. When I started this, you had 3 behind you. All were very good guitars, especially that red SG Jr lookin' one. 

The driving force behind my jigs is to eliminate any mistakes or anomalies of the previous attempt. I see inspiring builders(yourself being one of them) and I'm always asking how can I apply what I see to my process. I troubleshoot for a living, and that's why I'm constantly revising procedure and process flow to get cleaner and cleaner results.

You've got the same thing going on, as well as other strengths. Your competence with 3D modeling and rendering blows my mind. I have a long history with AutoCAD, but I never used it in a 3D environment...only 2D. 

...and don't forget...you're the OG of the bevels, yo!


----------



## Knarbens (Apr 10, 2015)

Just sayin' man  just wanted to applaud you.



Renkenstein said:


> ...and don't forget...you're the OG of the bevels, yo!



Haha, yeah, I found out about that


----------



## Renkenstein (Apr 14, 2015)

After removing from clamps, I flush trim the excess fretboard edge to the neck on the router table. I also lap the fretboard surface flat for the last time on the granite slab before sanding in the radius.





Sand a 16" radius. 















Drilled some side dots and stuffed them with CA and brass.





Time for a pose.





Started on some scallops. Love scallops.


----------



## Prophetable (Apr 14, 2015)

1 - This guitar is badass
2 - That said, I think the horns would look pretty cool if you had snubbed them flat to mirror the tip of the headstock.
3 - I want this guitar


----------



## immortalx (Apr 14, 2015)

Prophetable said:


> 1 - This guitar is badass
> 2 - That said, I think the horns would look pretty cool if you had snubbed them flat to mirror the tip of the headstock.
> 3 - I want this guitar



All of the above plus this is cleaner than CNC work. In fact I believe you command your hands with G-code or something? This is ridiculously perfect


----------



## chickenxnuggetz91 (Apr 14, 2015)

This is cool. I don't usually explore this area of SSO.


----------



## metaldoggie (Apr 15, 2015)




----------



## Renkenstein (Apr 15, 2015)

Prophetable said:


> 1 - This guitar is badass
> 2 - That said, I think the horns would look pretty cool if you had snubbed them flat to mirror the tip of the headstock.
> 3 - I want this guitar



Thank you! Like a tanto blade tip on the end of the horns? That could look cool. I may do a sketch. 

Can't have it! 



immortalx said:


> All of the above plus this is cleaner than CNC work. In fact I believe you command your hands with G-code or something? This is ridiculously perfect



01010010 01100101 01101110 01101011 01100101 01101110 01110011 01110100 01100101 01101001 01101110 00100000 01101001 01110011 00100000 01110000 01100001 01110010 01110100 00100000 01101101 01100001 01101110 00101100 00100000 01110000 01100001 01110010 01110100 00100000 01101101 01100001 01100011 01101000 01101001 01101110 01100101 00101110 



chickenxnuggetz91 said:


> This is cool. I don't usually explore this area of SSO.



Welcome to the small dark corner of SSO where they keep us madmen. 



metaldoggie said:


>


----------



## Prophetable (Apr 15, 2015)

Renkenstein said:


> Like a tanto blade tip on the end of the horns?



Yep. That's exactly what I mean. The price of this genius modification is this current guitar. I'll accept payment upon completion.


----------



## metaldoggie (Apr 15, 2015)

At first I thought you were singing Ayreon, but you actualy took the time to translate a message lol.

01010010 01100101 01101110 01101011 01100101 01101110 01110011 01110100 01100101 01101001 01101110 00100000 01101001 01110011 00100000 01110000 01100001 01110010 01110100 00100000 01101101 01100001 01101110 00101100 00100000 01110000 01100001 01110010 01110100 00100000 01101101 01100001 01100011 01101000 01101001 01101110 01100101 00101110


----------



## Renkenstein (Apr 15, 2015)

Prophetable said:


> Yep. That's exactly what I mean. The price of this genius modification is this current guitar. I'll accept payment upon completion.



LALALALALALA....CAN'T HEAR YOUUUU!!! 



metaldoggie said:


> At first I thought you were singing Ayreon, but you actualy took the time to translate a message lol.
> 
> 01010010 01100101 01101110 01101011 01100101 01101110 01110011 01110100 01100101 01101001 01101110 00100000 01101001 01110011 00100000 01110000 01100001 01110010 01110100 00100000 01101101 01100001 01101110 00101100 00100000 01110000 01100001 01110010 01110100 00100000 01101101 01100001 01100011 01101000 01101001 01101110 01100101 00101110



Never heard Ayreon, but I've got this album pulled up now.

*edit* Oh man...this is like a power/prog star orgy! Loving it so far.


----------



## Prophetable (Apr 15, 2015)

01010000 01110010 01101111 01110000 01101000 01100101 01110100 01100001 01100010 01101100 01100101 00100000 01110111 01100001 01101110 01110100 01110011 00100000 01110100 01101000 01100001 01110100 00100000 01100111 01110101 01101001 01110100 01100001 01110010 00101110


----------



## Renkenstein (Apr 15, 2015)

Hahahaha...you don't want this one. You'd want one that I build with these NEW templates I made today.


----------



## metaldoggie (Apr 15, 2015)

> Never heard Ayreon, but I've got this album pulled up now.
> 
> *edit* Oh man...this is like a power/prog star orgy! Loving it so far.



Jonas Renske does a great job on that.
And if you were ever a Gorefest fan - Ed Warby does all the Aryeon drums.

Wait until you pull up "The Human Equation"
Each singer is a different emotion:
James LaCheese is the Person, Mikael Akerfedlt is Doubt, Devin Townsend is Rage......etc.


----------



## Renkenstein (Apr 15, 2015)

metaldoggie said:


> Jonas Renske does a great job on that.
> And if you were ever a Gorefest fan - Ed Warby does all the Aryeon drums.
> 
> Wait until you pull up "The Human Equation"
> ...



WHAAAT?!?!? Devin was involved and I missed it? I'm on it.

One of my favorite shows, I got to open for Strapping Young Lad. Never got to meet him, but I've been listening to that dude wail since Vai's Sex and Religion.


----------



## ChAoZ (Apr 16, 2015)

chickenxnuggetz91 said:


> This is cool. I don't usually explore this area of SSO.



This is the only part I frequently peruse - it's the best area


----------



## Knarbens (Apr 16, 2015)

Love watching your progress! It's better with every new pic you post.


----------



## Neilzord (Apr 16, 2015)

Guitar is looking awesome and the work, as always, is top notch! Can't wait to see more on this one! 


Also........... Nice Mallet.


----------



## Renkenstein (Apr 16, 2015)

Neilzord said:


> Also........... Nice Mallet.



That's my mini Mjolnir! Wacks chisels with the force of a dying star. I had a little fun making that mallet.


----------



## metaldoggie (Apr 16, 2015)

Renkenstein said:


> That's my mini Mjolnir! Wacks chisels with the force of a dying star. I had a little fun making that mallet.



It should be inscribed with Nordick runes, otherwise it's not metal enough LOL.


----------



## SilentCartographer (Apr 18, 2015)

the paint should be embedded with the blood of Christ aswell if we are going to make it tr00 kvlt, not unlike the JEM DNA!


----------



## Renkenstein (Apr 20, 2015)

I've got a thin headstock, a brass kick-plate from an exterior door, and an idear. My dad's been replacing doors and winders my whole life, and he always saves these. I've got a 5150 head with one of these behind the grill. I thought it would look GREAT on the back of this headstock.





Cut it out and sand it to shape. 





Lil bit of sandpaper and it's as good as new. I'll have to sand up through the grits to remove the scratches, of course. 





I got to thinkin' and flexing the headstock and the brass and came to the conclusion the brass would do nothing to reinforce the headstock, so I cut me a nice piece of curly maple for the back. I'll just have to bend it up over the volute area. 





So I've never bent wood(intentionally) yet, and I thought it was about time I gave it a go. My method was stupid simple, and it works. I wet a wash cloth, wrung it out, and wrapped it around the part of the piece to be bent. I clamped it there for about 30 min while playing around with a dry clamping run.





I drilled a single hole through the back to determine location and I indexed the hole with a drill bit. This will keep the laminate from slipping. On the bottom is an MDF template of the headstock to apply even pressure. I made another template that I cut off before the curve of the volute is introduced. You'll see here. 





There. I was jacking around with a curved end on a template, and I got really close to matching the curve. Close isn't good enough, and I didn't want to risk a botched joint. I saw many people using their spindle from the Ridgid sander to clamp curves. I thought I'd give it a try. So I've got the biggest rubber spindle on the back there and the chopped off MDF template. Even pressure achieved, I think.





Glue joint looks good. A bit of squeeze out as I tweak the pressure. I let this sit for a full 24 hours. With the added moisture from the soak, I didn't want to take any chances with the glue. 





That looks pretty good to me!





I flushed the cap up. 





Now that brass was lookin' me all forlorn-like, so I couldn't just leave it out in the cold. I played a bit of bearing switcheroo and alternated between a 3/8" bearing and the 1/2" bearing, taking 1/16" off the size of the template. I did this twice and came up with a smaller sized template. I then stickied the brass to my new template and flush trimmed.






The bearing trick made the piece the perfect size with no drawing, no calculation. I love routers. Anyway, I'm kinda going a little mad scientist here and freestylin'. I had been thinking of how the bridge will have a brass base plate and black Wilkinson saddles. I thought it would be fkn cool to have a brass plate on the headstock with black tuners. 








Drilled the tuner pilot holes in the plate. 






Drilled out to size and countersink.


----------



## drezdin (Apr 21, 2015)

love the brass!
super clean inspirational work.


----------



## metaldoggie (Apr 21, 2015)

I've said it before and I'll say it again:



Well played sir.


----------



## immortalx (Apr 21, 2015)

I'm just speechless man


----------



## Blue1970Cutlass (Apr 21, 2015)

That brass plate is definitely a cool touch


----------



## Konfyouzd (Apr 21, 2015)

Happiest child EVER... You must have told her this is her guitar.


----------



## Renkenstein (Apr 21, 2015)

drezdin said:


> love the brass!
> super clean inspirational work.





metaldoggie said:


> I've said it before and I'll say it again:
> 
> 
> 
> Well played sir.





immortalx said:


> I'm just speechless man





Blue1970Cutlass said:


> That brass plate is definitely a cool touch




Thanks fellas! I've got a thing for brass...I dunno what it is, but I like to use it as much as possible. I've got a 5150 head I built out of a combo and I used a brass plate behind the black grille. It shines pretty nice, and when it ages, it gets a beautiful patina. I'm lookin' forward to getting this gal DIRTY. 

I'll do a polish on the brass and an oil finish on the body, neck, and fretboard. I'm doing oil on the maple board in hopes that it will degrade more rapidly than waiting for lacquer to chip. I probably won't polish the brass during the lifetime of the guitar just to see how it ages. 



Konfyouzd said:


> Happiest child EVER... You must have told her this is her guitar.



Aleister's a boy. He's just a long-hair like his poppa. Common mistake that will probably continue until his beard comes in.


----------



## Konfyouzd (Apr 21, 2015)

Oooooh... My bad. I should have read more. I'm sure I'd have figured it out. That's what I get for assuming.


----------



## Renkenstein (Apr 21, 2015)

Oh you won't get any static from me for it. Now my lady would be wearing your skin as a sundress if she heard. She gets MAAAD at the grocery store clerks for saying it.


----------



## Renkenstein (Apr 21, 2015)

But welcome to my thread! You're a pretty active fella 'round here.


----------



## BlackMastodon (Apr 21, 2015)

I was iffy about the brass plate on the back but goddamn does it look great on the front like that.


----------



## Renkenstein (Apr 21, 2015)

I'm going to chamfer the edge of the plate as well. Get a lil knife edge look to it. 

The plan is to fasten the plate down with the tuners temporarily, in case I prefer the solid walnut look. If I like the brass in the end, then I may consider a pickguard to match.

...can you tell I've been waiting on parts? This is snow-balling...haha.

My EVO fretwire arrived today. I'm trying the 5509 wire that's a couple hundredths narrower than their jumbo. Thought I'd give that a spin.


----------



## jahosy (Apr 21, 2015)

Come on tell us the truth. .... show us the cnc machine you've been using! !!!!


----------



## Renkenstein (Apr 21, 2015)

I'm using my 666th post...the post of the beast to talk about the most feared and respected tool in my shop. The router. 

In unskilled hands it can maim, but if you take the time and set it up right it can be safe(ish) and can achieve amazing results. 

I've spent hours and hours making templates, and any builder will agree the way to get accurate results is to have a good template. 

With a table mounted router or an overarm router and a template, you effectively have a manually powered CNC. I can tell you if I had a CNC in my shop and the software to run it, it would probably take me the rest of the year just to get a body cut. I've got CAD experience, but zero 3D modeling time logged. I'd love to have a CNC, but I'd use it for aesthetic purposes, doing some crazy inlay and logo engraving...things of that nature. Dylan stuff.

Now that I have my pin router, I expect future builds to go a LOT faster. I've already got a few templates cut and shaped and ready to do a test run. Everything up to this point hasn't involved the pin router, save for the binding on the body. It's kinda killin' me not to be able to really USE it, but I've gotta finish up these couple builds first. 

...but I digress...

No CNC. Just Renk and his humble routers, a drum sander and a flat rock.


----------



## SilentCartographer (Apr 22, 2015)

Renkenstein said:


> I'm using my 666th post...



kvlt.. also needs moar pics!


----------



## Blue1970Cutlass (Apr 22, 2015)

Renkenstein said:


> If I like the brass in the end, then I may consider a pickguard to match.



Yes. 



Renkenstein said:


> Just Renk and his humble routers, a drum sander and a flat rock.



Don't forget about Thor's Hammer


----------



## pettymusic (Apr 24, 2015)

Renkenstein said:


> I'm going to chamfer the edge of the plate as well. Get a lil knife edge look to it.
> 
> The plan is to fasten the plate down with the tuners temporarily, in case I prefer the solid walnut look. If I like the brass in the end, then I may consider a pickguard to match.
> 
> ...



Hey man, I just strung my build up with the 5509's and they feel amazing! I thought the 57110's felt a little too big and noticed my fingers actually "hitting" the frets between position changes. I haven't done the final fret level yet but, I'm already a fan of these frets!! ))


----------



## Renkenstein (Apr 24, 2015)

Cut and shaped truss rod access in the brass plate. 





I received 12' of 5509 EVO Gold fret wire. It's a bit narrower than the jumbo, but has relatively the same height. I thought I'd give it a try on these builds.





I wanted a couple more scallops.






So now I have scallops on frets 9-27, treble side.






I gave little regard to the length of each scallop, since I like an irregular shape. I think the jagged look is pretty cool. Sanded the fretboard and scallops through 400 grit.





Put them together and stared for a while....again.






Cut out a truss rod cover. 






Rubbed in the first coat of oil on the maple fretboard. 






We'll let the dry and hit it again tomorrow, and repeat until I'm happy.





Made a couple fret organizer blocks and cut the fret wire to lengths. I hope I like the 5509, because there's no returning it at this point.


----------



## immortalx (Apr 24, 2015)

You took it to another level buddy. If I wasn't building myself, I'd give you my money right now


----------



## Renkenstein (Apr 24, 2015)

immortalx said:


> You took it to another level buddy. If I wasn't building myself, I'd give you my money right now



I've achieved another level?!?! *DING* LEVEL UP!!!

...just tried to throw a fireball...didn't work. I guess I'll grind some more.


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## Renkenstein (Apr 28, 2015)

Playing around with the finish on a piece of scrap walnut. Indirect light






Direct light






After a few coats of oil/poly, I hit it with some steel wool. It's got that warm soft satin glow. Diggit.






Hit it with some paste wax and a bunch of elbow grease. 





Pressed in the frets. 






Cut and filed them all flush.


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## KnightroExpress (Apr 28, 2015)

You forgot the NSFW tag on this post. Well done, bud!


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## Verseus (Apr 30, 2015)

This...Is... AMAZING! Dude! I've been wanting to build myself a 7 string multiscale for awhile now, and you have just motivated me! Fantastic work! And as other has already pointed out, immaculately clean!


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## Renkenstein (Apr 30, 2015)

KnightroExpress said:


> You forgot the NSFW tag on this post. Well done, bud!





Verseus said:


> This...Is... AMAZING! Dude! I've been wanting to build myself a 7 string multiscale for awhile now, and you have just motivated me! Fantastic work! And as other has already pointed out, immaculately clean!




Thanks dudes!

Build away, Verseus! I started from nothing not so long ago, you can too.


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## Renkenstein (Apr 30, 2015)

Took a break from building to sand the leg of a friend of mine. 






First bit of carving done on the neck. Volute and heel rough shaped.






Still working on the volute. It turned out a bit asymmetric due to the funky angled scarf joint. 





Worked on it a bit more.





...and a bit more.





Heel is right about where it needs to be. 











Volute starts a bit late on the neck, something I'll address in my design as well....which is why this is a prototype. I've been adjusting templates as this build has progressed.












Heel turned out pretty slick. It's pretty much just a 1/4" radius right to the pocket. It was hand shaped, so it took a bit of effort. 











If it hangs on a guitar stand, it's officially a guitar, no? No.






Got a nut shaped out of some deer antler. Once you figure out how to work with it, it doesn't suck nearly as bad.











Tuners came! Tuners came!!!! I drilled out the tuner holes in the headstock and test fit the tuners. With the brass plate, it's a bit thick for washers. It's perfect without the washers, since the plate works as one big washer anyway. I like the industrial look the lack of washers gives too. Kinda cool.


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## DredFul (May 1, 2015)

DUDE!


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## Neilzord (May 1, 2015)

That is a mighty fine leg. 


Guitars not bad either!!, Infact. It fng awesome.


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## immortalx (May 1, 2015)

Man those zebrawood stripes turned out awesome, just like I expected!


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## Blue1970Cutlass (May 1, 2015)

Renkenstein said:


> Heel is right about where it needs to be.



Talkin' about the guitar or the leg? 

I actually kinda dug the asymmetrical volute... and that headstock looks amazeballs!


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## Millul (May 1, 2015)

Incredible work...you only need to care some runes in the brass plate!


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## pettymusic (May 1, 2015)

Awesome work, Renk! Every post just gets better!! 

No need for washers for your tuners since you basically have one big washer on there anyway....love it!


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## ElysianGuitars (May 3, 2015)

pettymusic said:


> Awesome work, Renk! Every post just gets better!!
> 
> No need for washers for your tuners since you basically have one big washer on there anyway....love it!



I'd still use them, as screwing directly into the brass would most likely put circular scratches in at the outer most edges of the nuts.


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## Renkenstein (May 4, 2015)

ElysianGuitars said:


> I'd still use them, as screwing directly into the brass would most likely put circular scratches in at the outer most edges of the nuts.




As you can see from that pic, you're right...they do create circular scratches. I'm thinking a bit of wax on the edge of the holes will get the tuners installed with minimal scratching.

Washers are out of the question. With all the tuners installed, that skinny headstock has a significant amount of weight, so I'm throwing stuff overboard to keep from sinking. I think she'll balance in the end.


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## Renkenstein (May 4, 2015)

Sanded up through the grits on the brass plate and tried to get all the scratches out. Not sure I'm concerned about all of them, or it may bug me to the point of going through the higher grits to get the remaining scratches. We'll see.






Construction on the neck is complete. Sanded through 400 grit.























Beveled the fret ends. 







Applying finish.


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## jwade (May 5, 2015)

100% straight-up convinced me to do a zebrawood neck soon. Looks gorgeous. Also, teh brass, classy as F.


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## Knarbens (May 5, 2015)

The zebrawood indeed looks super nice! Why do you have so many time to work on your builds and my projects seem to barely go ahead? ^^

Do you oil the downside of the heel as well?


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## pettymusic (May 5, 2015)

^^^ Haha! I know what you mean Knarbens. When I get behind and feel strong and brave , I just go without much sleep some nights.  Although, I don't recommend this to anyone that has a job, wife and 2 kids lol!


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## BlackMastodon (May 5, 2015)

Looks great with that clear on top. Question about maple fretboards and finishes: Do you mask the frets when putting the finish on the fretboard? Or just scrape/sand/whatever off the clear from the fretwire after it's all done?


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## Renkenstein (May 5, 2015)

jwade said:


> 100% straight-up convinced me to do a zebrawood neck soon. Looks gorgeous. Also, teh brass, classy as F.



Thanks dude! It's not my favorite wood to work with. It's definitely hard, and definitely stable, but it's stringy and chips like a mofukka. If you do, make sure to use sharp router bits and be sure to pay attention to grain orientation. One swipe in the wrong direction with a plane will take a nice chunk out.



Knarbens said:


> The zebrawood indeed looks super nice! Why do you have so many time to work on your builds and my projects seem to barely go ahead? ^^
> 
> Do you oil the downside of the heel as well?



I flipped my schedule over a year ago. By day, I'm a guitar builder. By night, I'm a Network Ops Tech. It works because my lady's a stay-at-home mom, and I maintain a daily schedule of waking up, heading into my shop, and staying there until it's time to shower and head to work. After work I crash pretty hard, so I don't need any wind-down time. 

I'm essentially working 2 jobs right now, just building guitars for myself.

I'm in the shop an average of 2-4 hours a day(seven days a week), which makes for pretty rapid progress.

Yup...I oiled every nook and cranny on the neck.


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## Renkenstein (May 5, 2015)

pettymusic said:


> ^^^ Haha! I know what you mean Knarbens. When I get behind and feel strong and brave , I just go without much sleep some nights.  Although, I don't recommend this to anyone that has a job, wife and 2 kids lol!



Job, 2 kids, and a wife 



BlackMastodon said:


> Looks great with that clear on top. Question about maple fretboards and finishes: Do you mask the frets when putting the finish on the fretboard? Or just scrape/sand/whatever off the clear from the fretwire after it's all done?



I finish my maple boards before fretting. What I did here was rub it with an oil/poly mix for a few coats. I also applied paste wax. I then proceeded with my frets, pressing them in and filing them flush and beveling. 

The reason for this is if you have fret wire installed on maple and you try to finish it with a wipe on product, scuffing between coats will deposit fret residue in your finish. I learned that a couple years ago on my first cigar box guitar build.

That's when Adam of Elysian mentioned finishing maple fretboards first before installing the frets. It made perfect sense to me, and that's how I do it now.


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## Renkenstein (May 7, 2015)

So I got to play a new guitar today! She's still waiting on her Black Water Pickups, and has a temporary nut installed(I'm going to use a brass nut after all), but she plays! Pretty flippin' loud acoustically. She balances wonderfully and she's SOOOO light! This will be a fun guitar on stage. That 26.5" low C string....FUHHHHH...UNNNNGHHHH...so tight and responsive. Can't wait to wrap this gal up!







So I got my bridge plate on Monday. My buddy Dan went ahead and cut it, drilled it, and tapped it. All I have to do is some final shaping. Mounted my Wilkinson saddles and strung her up.



















I'm going to round over the corners, maybe bring it to a point at the center, and bevel the whole thing. Should be pretty damn comfy.










Straight-ish string pull. I'll have to tweak a template or two to get them perfect. PROTOTYPING!!!


----------



## dankarghh (May 7, 2015)

Maaaaaan. Incredible work. 

But how do you intonate with those saddles?


----------



## Renkenstein (May 7, 2015)

Oh, and I'd like to mention there's string spacing fukkery going on with the saddles and the temporary nut. I'll fix that up during final assembly. 

Dank...see those lil set screws coming out the back? Those screw in, and push against the machine screw holding the saddle to the bridge, moving the whole saddle away from the nut. The saddles here are at their full forward adjustment, they'll move back quite a bit.


----------



## KnightroExpress (May 7, 2015)

Seriously awesome, dude. I can't wait to see a video demo!


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## JuliusJahn (May 7, 2015)

Do you have a line-work drawing of the shape Pat? I can get you a CAD drawing of it with straight string pull some night if you'd like. I'd even mark the tuner locations for ya


----------



## Renkenstein (May 7, 2015)

I do have an Emachineshop drawing that I laid all that out on, but it was for static scale and not multi. It would only take me a few min to get it all adjusted and ready to print. By now I should have made a template, jig, or something so I don't always have to eye-ball my string spacing. I think I'm going to have do something about that.

'Preciate the offer though, Jahn!


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## JuliusJahn (May 7, 2015)

It should be the same for multi and static scale, since the strings are still the same &#916;Y from the center line.


Try this 

https://drive.google.com/file/d/0Bz73Ol-bOM8aelpZR3VfWmUyWG8/view?usp=sharing


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## Renkenstein (May 7, 2015)

JuliusJahn said:


> It should be the same for multi and static scale, since the strings are still the same &#916;Y from the center line.
> 
> 
> Try this
> ...




Heyyy, very cool! Thanks dude!


----------



## HaMMerHeD (May 7, 2015)

Renky, it's fscking gorgeous.

Are you going to the Woodworking in America 2015 show? It's in KCMO in September. I'm thinking about driving up for it.


----------



## Renkenstein (May 7, 2015)

HaMMerHeD said:


> Renky, it's fscking gorgeous.
> 
> Are you going to the Woodworking in America 2015 show? It's in KCMO in September. I'm thinking about driving up for it.



Thanks dude! If you drive up for it, let me know! I've been wanting to check out a show, but my woodworking friends within driving distance are in short supply.


----------



## Gango79 (May 10, 2015)

Really love the body shape...i'm looking for see it finished!!!


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## Millul (May 11, 2015)

Bridge PU only please, bridge PU only please, bridge PU only please, bridge PU only please, bridge PU only please, bridge PU only please, bridge PU only please, bridge PU only please, bridge PU only please, bridge PU only please....ad libitum


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## Renkenstein (May 11, 2015)

Gango79 said:


> Really love the body shape...i'm looking for see it finished!!!



Thanks! Me too! I still haven't taken the strings off, no reason to just yet. She's fun to play. So light, and she balances on a finger under the heel. 



Millul said:


> Bridge PU only please, bridge PU only please, bridge PU only please, bridge PU only please, bridge PU only please, bridge PU only please, bridge PU only please, bridge PU only please, bridge PU only please, bridge PU only please....ad libitum



Sorry, mate...I'm doing a Hum/Single combo. I love a single coil in the neck position for hot leads and sweep arpeggios.


----------



## Renkenstein (May 11, 2015)

Speak of the devil!!!!










I fell in love with the shape of BWGC's art deco pickups. I think they look really fkn sharp on multiscale builds, so I placed an order with Aaron. After hearing Alex's demos with the Dirt Wizard, I wanted something similar, but a bit hotter. I shared my music with Aaron and he mentioned the Elder God would suit my band MOIRE's sound. Elder God, it is! 



I also love a single coil in the neck position for a real spanky lead tone with crystal sweep arpeggios and scalar runs in the upper register. 



This is my Hum/Single set(Top) getting made alongside my good buddy Alex Myla's set. His are the Pathos model, which are a bit hotter than the Dirt Wizards.


----------



## Millul (May 12, 2015)

Renkenstein said:


> Sorry, mate...I'm doing a Hum/Single combo. I love a single coil in the neck position for hot leads and sweep arpeggios.



No prob Renk, Hum + Single is the next best thing! I always think of Chris Oliva when I see that combo...what a great player!


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## Renkenstein (May 12, 2015)

Millul said:


> No prob Renk, Hum + Single is the next best thing! I always think of Chris Oliva when I see that combo...what a great player!



Oh dude, Criss Oliva was one of my favorite guitar players. I've been a Savatage fan for a LONG long time. 2nd favorite band right there, right after Iron Maiden.

Cool you mentioned him. I've always considered Criss one of the best guitarists that no one's ever heard of. Such a tragedy, that guy's story. I wish Criss and Jon would have gotten one last album together after Streets, but it never happened.


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## Millul (May 13, 2015)

I switch "favorite bands" quite often, but Savatage is way high up there, with Queensryche and the Irons...everytime a song from one of these bands is on, I have goosebumps.

Criss was amazing, and YES, one more album with him and Jon would've been sick.


----------



## Renkenstein (May 13, 2015)

Millul said:


> I switch "favorite bands" quite often, but Savatage is way high up there, with Queensryche and the Irons...everytime a song from one of these bands is on, I have goosebumps.
> 
> Criss was amazing, and YES, one more album with him and Jon would've been sick.



Kindred spirits. I love all that stuff. I go a little heavier with modern metal, but I've always loved my concept album metal bands. Mindcrime and Streets are hands-down my favorite concept albums.

Savatage will be at Wacken this year. Mannn....it must be great being a metal-head in Europe.


----------



## Renkenstein (May 19, 2015)

While BWGC was wrappin' up my ballin' pickups, I decided to finish up the few remaining tasks I had left on the body. Made a 1/4"x1/2" brass ferrule block. 






Drilled for some neck screw ferrules.






Made sure they fit. Man, getting clean edges on this stringy-ass mahogany is a pain. Every fiber of the wood wants to peel away from the body. When I drum sand it, it creates dust that resembles dryer lint more than normal sawdust. First I've experienced this in mahogany.






Chiseled away a recess for the ferrule block. I'll be making a template and doing this process on the pin router in the future, but for now I wanted to practice some manual chiseling. Body is now ready for pickup routing, then on to final sanding.


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## Simic (May 20, 2015)

Amazing build man, this is going to be super classy but brutal at the same time once it's finished


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## Renkenstein (May 20, 2015)

Simic said:


> Amazing build man, this is going to be super classy but brutal at the same time once it's finished



Exactly what I'm going for!


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## Renkenstein (May 20, 2015)

Getting a bit better at the fret jobbin' thang. Sadly, I think I'm in need of some glasses, because I can see a few scratches from lower grits now that I'm looking at the pics.






I'm still working with modified files and sandpaper, but I'll be investing in some better fretwork tools before long.








The lady snapped a pic of me crowning the frets.


----------



## Ernesto (May 21, 2015)

That neck looks amazing! Those little ridges on the frets left over from sanding will self clearance in no time too. 

I love the scalloping!

I just did the frets on my wingnut build and since they're round 3/16" stainless, I had no choice but to use a little flat file and a little triangle file. Using the sharpie, sandpaper glued to glass leveling method and continue to use the sharpie throughout dressing, it didn't take near as much time and effort as I thought it would. I won't even be buying fret specific tools. There's something special about doing things the hard way too.  I want to make a pedal powered drill/dremel/dust vac someday.


----------



## Millul (May 21, 2015)

Renkenstein said:


> Kindred spirits. I love all that stuff. I go a little heavier with modern metal, but I've always loved my concept album metal bands. Mindcrime and Streets are hands-down my favorite concept albums.
> 
> Savatage will be at Wacken this year. Mannn....it must be great being a metal-head in Europe.



Yep, nowadays I'm more into Lamb of God/In Flames/Soilwork as well...but the classics are such for very good reasons!

This is already a very busy year, budget won't allow me to go to Waken, but...Testament+Exodus in 10 days, then AC/DC, then Queensryche+Dream Theatre, and Deep Purple this fall...I cannot complain!

The build is progressing nicely, I see!


----------



## Renkenstein (May 21, 2015)

mdd0127 said:


> That neck looks amazing! Those little ridges on the frets left over from sanding will self clearance in no time too.
> 
> I love the scalloping!
> 
> I just did the frets on my wingnut build and since they're round 3/16" stainless, I had no choice but to use a little flat file and a little triangle file. Using the sharpie, sandpaper glued to glass leveling method and continue to use the sharpie throughout dressing, it didn't take near as much time and effort as I thought it would. I won't even be buying fret specific tools. There's something special about doing things the hard way too.  I want to make a pedal powered drill/dremel/dust vac someday.



Welcome to my thread, my friend! I have mad respect for your project, your abilities, and your general outlook on life and the way you choose to live. I'm admirer of subsistence lifestyles, and part of me really wishes to shed this corporate contaminated skin and live off the grid somewhere in the Pacific NW...or Alaska...if I could stand long winters. I'd have to learn to be much more organized, or I'd die off pretty quick. 

Admiring from afar and actually living it are two different things, and I applaud you for it.


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## Renkenstein (May 21, 2015)

Millul said:


> Yep, nowadays I'm more into Lamb of God/In Flames/Soilwork as well...but the classics are such for very good reasons!
> 
> This is already a very busy year, budget won't allow me to go to Waken, but...Testament+Exodus in 10 days, then AC/DC, then Queensryche+Dream Theatre, and Deep Purple this fall...I cannot complain!
> 
> The build is progressing nicely, I see!



I got to play a festival with Testament and another small club show with Exodus on two separate occasions. I didn't take the opportunity to meet Alex Skolnick, and I really regret it. I love that guy's playing, and I was so stoked to see him back in Testament. 

Skolnick also played in Savatage during Handful of Rain...but you knew that already, I'm sure. 

That's one of my least favorite albums of theirs though, because all the rhythm guitars had been written and recorded by Jon and Paul O'Neill, and they are just....lacking. There's a couple really good ballads and epics on that CD though, so it still gets the occasional spin.


----------



## Millul (May 22, 2015)

Yep, Alex is a killer player...!

Savatage for me is Gutter Ballet...it's hard to get over how good that album is.


----------



## Renkenstein (May 27, 2015)

I got my BWGC pickups in the mail, which came with routing templates. Thanks Aaron! Went straight to work using the pin router to rout the cavities. FUN tool. 






BOOM!!!






Finishing






Some assembly






FUUUUUUUUUUCK!!! Note to self: Never become complacent, and do not attempt to talk on speaker phone when performing a task. Luckily this is a prototype or I'd be destroyed. Patching practice coming up!


----------



## Solodini (May 28, 2015)

What did you mess up? The scallops?


----------



## Deegatron (May 28, 2015)

ooooooo.... that's rough dude. I have at least one of those moments every single build... that does however look a bit off center from your scallop... you would expect to break through in the center of the scallop... you sure that's not a void in the wood that you uncovered while scalloping and not a "mistake" on your part?

I bet that was an interesting conversation from the other side of the phone when it happened tho....

"Yeah, Julie's mother came over last Tuesday. brought a tea set for the gremlins. she walks into the house, takes one look at our new area rug in the living room, looks me square in the eye and says MOTHER %$#@$#@ !#@!$@ %@#$ RIGHT IN THE %#@$#@ WHILE I [email protected]#$#@ %##@$#@ GOAT $#@$#@$#@ AND %$$#@$#@ CAN @#$%#@[email protected]# GET SOME TOO...... " *slam*

*awkward silence*

"Dude.... Julie's mother is ....ing nuts"


----------



## Leftydudebro (May 28, 2015)

Deegatron said:


> ooooooo.... that's rough dude. I have at least one of those moments every single build... that does however look a bit off center from your scallop... you would expect to break through in the center of the scallop... you sure that's not a void in the wood that you uncovered while scalloping and not a "mistake" on your part?
> 
> I bet that was an interesting conversation from the other side of the phone when it happened tho....
> 
> ...




That made me laugh waaaaaaay too hard at work. +1 to you good sir


----------



## Zai (May 28, 2015)

What type of brigde saddles are those?


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## Renkenstein (May 28, 2015)

Deegatron said:


> ooooooo.... that's rough dude. I have at least one of those moments every single build... that does however look a bit off center from your scallop... you would expect to break through in the center of the scallop... you sure that's not a void in the wood that you uncovered while scalloping and not a "mistake" on your part?



Nah, no void. I just drilled right through. I was talking to my Pop on speaker...I called him to find out what bit to use for a #8 screw. I use #6 screws with a 7/64" hole during construction and pre-finish assembly. I then drill them out to a 1/8" hole. 



Zai said:


> What type of brigde saddles are those?



Those are the Graph Tech Wilkinson saddles. They're about the only kind of saddle that only requires a flat base-plate and one machine screw to hold it down, making them perfect for multiscale builds.


----------



## Deegatron (May 28, 2015)

Do you find that there is enough height adjustment with those Wilkinson saddles? they look to me like they would have a limited adjustment range....


----------



## Renkenstein (May 28, 2015)

Deegatron said:


> Do you find that there is enough height adjustment with those Wilkinson saddles? they look to me like they would have a limited adjustment range....



I think they have around a 3/16" adjustment range, maybe? My bridge here was a bit too tall, so I sanded the hell out of the top to bring the bridge height within the range I needed. A buddy of mine made the base plate. I'll be either making my own in the future, or trying the Hipshot single saddles.


----------



## JuliusJahn (May 31, 2015)

The single saddles are amazing.


----------



## Renkenstein (Jun 1, 2015)

So I unfkd a bunch of stuff that went wrong, and this girl is back on track. 






She spent a few days in my hands before I decided the neck profile was just wrong. Too flat and boxy. My first patch of the fretboard mistake was entirely too light and stood out too much against the rest of the board.






First I addressed the neck with scrapers and sandpaper. I then sanded the neck again up to 400 to finish it again.






Version 2 of the patch is looking a lot better. Before scraping with a razor.

I've been working up the layers of finish and playing around with a wet sand now and then. 

I also went by my local guitar shop and picked up pots, a 3-way toggle, and a barrel jack. I'm giving the body another day to cure and I'll see if I can't put her back together.


----------



## Renkenstein (Jun 1, 2015)

While I've been waiting out the finish, I've started on a set of pin router templates for the Raze model. While it is a versatile tool, I've found there is a learning curve, and I'm adjusting accordingly with increasingly better results. Here's the templates that will make the neck joints for the Raze. 
















This is actually for a right-handed model, but to rout the neck pocket from the top requires a negative of the pattern to be routed in the underside of the template, which the pin will follow. Pickup routs will also go on this same template.


----------



## Pikka Bird (Jun 2, 2015)

This is turning out spectacularly! 

Two things I might change on the next one if it was my project: 

-The headstock seems more suited for a straight scale instrument, and for a multiscale I'd personally skew it more to make the flow more dynamic.

-Those forearm bevels always look better to me when it is blended into the outline at the waist.

But those are minor personal gripes. Overall this has been vary satisfying to watch.


----------



## Renkenstein (Jun 2, 2015)

Pikka Bird said:


> This is turning out spectacularly!



Thanks bud!



Pikka Bird said:


> -The headstock seems more suited for a straight scale instrument, and for a multiscale I'd personally skew it more to make the flow more dynamic.



Skew in which direction? Away from the nut towards the point?



Pikka Bird said:


> -Those forearm bevels always look better to me when it is blended into the outline at the waist.



You are very correct. I think when I shaped it, I thought the waist looked too far up the body and I'd lose much of my binding or somethin'. I blend the Siren model's bevels into the waist, I don't know why I didn't do it here. On the other end, mine also doesn't stop at the center of the body, but continues on for another inch or so. I'm also leaning towards just using a 45° chamfer bit to do those in the future.

There will be plenty more opportunities to fix these types of things. I've got a list going of stuff that I've griped about.


----------



## AChRush1349 (Jun 2, 2015)

This build is delicious.


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## Pikka Bird (Jun 2, 2015)

Renkenstein said:


> Skew in which direction? Away from the nut towards the point?



I was thinking yank the bass side of the headstock away from the headstock. It's mostly the two "shoulder" corners that kinda suggest to me that this headstock would go well on a straight scale. Like, bring the treble side corner closer to the nut and pull the bass side one further from it. Maybe that'll mess with the balance, but perhaps tweaking all around will help? Or maybe I'm just talking right out of my arse? 

What's on your personal list of gripes if I may ask?


----------



## Renkenstein (Jun 2, 2015)

AChRush1349 said:


> This build is delicious.



Thank you very much!




Pikka Bird said:


> I was thinking yank the bass side of the headstock away from the headstock. It's mostly the two "shoulder" corners that kinda suggest to me that this headstock would go well on a straight scale. Like, bring the treble side corner closer to the nut and pull the bass side one further from it. Maybe that'll mess with the balance, but perhaps tweaking all around will help? Or maybe I'm just talking right out of my arse?
> 
> What's on your personal list of gripes if I may ask?



I gotcha! That's actually something I planned to do for a functional purpose. Right now the guitar does hang on a stand or a wall hangar, but only BARELY. Moving the bass side nubbin towards the point and the treble corner closer to the nut will fix it. 

Great minds...


----------



## Renkenstein (Jun 2, 2015)

Pikka Bird said:


> What's on your personal list of gripes if I may ask?



As far as personal gripes, I'd like to fix that arm cutaway like you mentioned. I'd like zero overhang on the fretboard. I've got a ridiculous amount of overhang on this one. You can see the truss rod adjustment nut protruding from under the nut. The channel needs to be longer so it'll either just barely peek out, or be flush with the nut itself. This mahogany was fkn horrible. So stringy and the end grain played hell with me. Not to mention the patch I had to do on the fretboard due to my dumb ass.

Prototypes are always a learning experience that leads to better results next time. My first Siren was good, but there is next to nothing I'd change in the second Siren build I did. 

I'm hunting down some figured claro walnut that I'll rebuild this girl with using all the amendments I've mentioned. I've always wanted a guitar like this with a claro top, ash back, and maple fretboard.


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## Solodini (Jun 3, 2015)

Claro, ash, maple sounds hawt. Maple neck or just maple fretboard?


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## Renkenstein (Jun 3, 2015)

Solodini said:


> Claro, ash, maple sounds hawt. Maple neck or just maple fretboard?



Both!

I found this fkn KILLER piece of flatsawn curly maple. The growth rings have no run-out on the ends of the piece. Just straight growth rings all the way across the board. I've been dying to do a 1pc neck after laminating every neck up to this point, and I think this is just the stuff to do it with.


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## Steinmetzify (Jun 5, 2015)

Dude this came out sick. I know you have personal gripes with it but I dig it, especially the bridge and the saddles and how they sit. Just simple and brutal. So many bridges out there look overcomplicated, like there's a ton of .... going on and there really isn't. This looks badass and I like the whole thing. Gonna check out some of your other builds.


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## Renkenstein (Jun 8, 2015)

steinmetzify said:


> Dude this came out sick. I know you have personal gripes with it but I dig it, especially the bridge and the saddles and how they sit. Just simple and brutal. So many bridges out there look overcomplicated, like there's a ton of .... going on and there really isn't. This looks badass and I like the whole thing. Gonna check out some of your other builds.



Thank you! I like those saddles a lot, and I'll probably use those more in the future. A brass baseplate is easy enough to make, and the design of those saddles was just genius on Wilkinson's part. I really like what Aaron of Black Water does with his bridges using the same saddles. I'll be playing around with bridge shapes as I build more.

I've got a couple other build threads on here, and a whole imgur acct full of them linked in my sig. Check em out! 

This guitar was popular girl during my birthday party. She was being played all night by several guitarists. Everyone loved her, and she didn't get dinged by a drunk-ass. Win win.


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## Purelojik (Jun 8, 2015)

keep it going buddy, your first builds will always have these types of hiccups but dude it still looks amazing. I heard a clip of that Elder God in your facebook post and damn it sounds good. get this up and running and head to the Scarlett Factory and make some more videos dammit!!


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## Renkenstein (Jun 8, 2015)

Purelojik said:


> keep it going buddy, your first builds will always have these types of hiccups but dude it still looks amazing. I heard a clip of that Elder God in your facebook post and damn it sounds good. get this up and running and head to the Scarlett Factory and make some more videos dammit!!



That's priority one, sir! Now that I've got that Illuminator for a baseline, I want to see what the Elder God does in front of that Scarlett. This'll be fun.


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## pettymusic (Jun 9, 2015)

She looks really good, Renk! You should have no problems cornering the local fanned fret market.


FYI:
On my last 2 fret jobs, I was able to get my personal best results with these sanding sheets

Once I get my shape with the files, I sand out the file marks with one of those detail sanding sticks, then work my way up through the grits with the polishing papers wrapped over a large eraser. I was just wrapping the paper around my fingers but the eraser really helps with fatigue and joint pain. 

Oh an I got the whole set of papers to. Cutting out 2x4" rectangles out the entire stack would get me through an entire fret job. So, that leaves for plenty more fret jobs. By the time you get to the last grit my frets seem like they are glowing!!


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## Renkenstein (Jun 9, 2015)

pettymusic said:


> She looks really good, Renk! You should have no problems cornering the local fanned fret market.
> 
> 
> FYI:
> ...



I like that, I'm def going to use it. That isn't a bad price for the full set, and if I can get a few fret jobs out of a deck, I think it's worth it. Thanks bud!

I'm also going to get the small StewMac 3-corner fret file. It's described as having a finer cut, so if I crown with my 3-corner file, then hit it with that lil StewMac guy, it'll make work with the paper a lot easier.


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## Renkenstein (Jun 11, 2015)

Brass nut! 
















All shaped and polished up! Damn, that looks good. 

...a lot better than that binding miter, but next time I'll follow Sully's advice and bind with acetone for an adhesive. I used super glue on the binding, and it's pretty unforgiving. 

I've also gone and made a right mess out of my headstock. That'll need a cleaning...


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## cult (Jun 11, 2015)

Oh my gosh that nut looks amazing.
How does it sound compared to say regular tusq or bone nuts?


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## Renkenstein (Jun 11, 2015)

cult said:


> Oh my gosh that nut looks amazing.
> How does it sound compared to say regular tusq or bone nuts?



The sound is purely subjective. Some say it has a brighter tone, which I can get behind. I had one of these on an old Yngwie Strat and loved it. One thing that I wholly believe is that for a nut, you want the hardest material that's still workable by hand. Hard substances transfer vibration better, and this is one of those key components of a guitar. 

I don't know that it's any better than tusq or bone, but I sure think they look a lot better!


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