# Roberto-Venn builds: Acoustic, Blackmachine, Strandberg content



## 9voltchicken (Sep 21, 2013)

Greetings once again.

I am currently attending Roberto-Venn School of Luthiery. This thread will cover the progress of the three builds I have underway. I will also answer any questions you may have about the school and give my opinions warts-and-all of my experiences here. Keep in mind you are not allowed to use outside materials for your guitar builds. There are other electives available. I've already registered for pickup winding, french polishing, metallic patina finishing, and advanced electronics.



Two of the three builds will are required to be "industry standard" involving everything from scale length to wood choices. I'll list the specs and choices our class was given. 

Student Electric:
Neck joint: bolt-on, PRS set neck style, or Gibson set neck style. For bolt-on style we're given a choice between scarf jointed or flat fender style. Maple only for bolt-on
Scale Length: Gibson 24 5/8", PRS 25", or Fender 25.5"
Strings: 6
Radius: Compound 12-16"
Fretboard: Ebony or Rosewood
Top Wood: Whatever is in stock
Body Wood: Alder or Mahogony end-grain matched

Student Acoustic:
Acoustic type: Orchestra Model (OM), or your classic Martin dreadnaught.
Scale: Martin 25.4"
Radius: 12"
Fretboard: Ebony or Rosewood
Top wood: Sitka Spruce, Engelmann Spruce, or Western Red Cedar
Back and Side wood: Whatever is in stock

Possible 3rd Instrument: Whatever you want
______________________________________________

My acoustic specs:

Dreadnaught style
25.4" martin long scale
Ebony fretboard
Sitka spruce top
Mango wood back and sides
Flame maple/ebony b/w/b binding
Ebony/Abalone rosette
Fishman Matrix Infinity acoustic pickup
Grover tuners


My electric specs:

Blackmachine inspired
25.5" scale
24 frets
Bolt on maple neck w/ scarf joint.
Ebony fretboard
Curly Bubinga top
Mahogony body
Ivoroid binding
Dimarzio Dominion w/ black covers
Hipshot tuners
Vol/tone/5way

My 3rd instrument specs:

Strandberg. 'Nuff said.
25" - 26 1/8" scale
7 strings
24 frets
20" radius
Neck through 5 piece Madagascar Rosewood/Maple neck
Ziricote Fretboard
Walnut crotch top
Ash body (possibly chambered)
Bridge: Deathbar 3.5" Neck: X-Bar 3.5"
Black EGS hardware
Vol/3way/variable split
__________________________________________________

My acoustic back is a little washed out here. There are more tans/reds/greens that aren't shown. Much softer than rosewood. More closely resembles Ash.








Here's my electric top that I've jointed and glued. Almost has a 3d look to it in person.





Mahogony body blank. This weighs a hair more than 16 lbs. quite a hunk of wood.






Feel free to ask me anything about the school.


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## XxJoshxX (Sep 21, 2013)

I wish I could go to luthiery school, I have to go to regular school.


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## 9voltchicken (Sep 22, 2013)

It's more possible than you might think. I managed to go to this school on a walmart budget.


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## 9voltchicken (Sep 27, 2013)

The pace has been wicked so far. I'll try to post twice a week if I can manage. Here's what's been going on so far...

My Strandberg drawn up 1:1 scale




Electric body all nice and blanked out. The body shape i'm using is sort of a hybrid Music Man JPX and a few elements from the blackmachine B2/b6. I just modified a previous body shape I made with a french curve. Fairly pleased so far.




Here's the headstock design. My original design was based on a blackmachine headstock. But, since it's such an unconventional shape, my original design was rejected so I was forced to modify it. I still like the result. The area on the left side of the headstock will be recessed and inlaid with flame maple (think VIK duality). The rest will have a curly bubinga just like the image further down.




Sample of body/headstock top. Really nice stuff.





More to come!


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## skeels (Sep 27, 2013)

Sweet man! Love the figured bubinga!


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## lawizeg (Sep 28, 2013)

Super nice bubinga, really sweet plans.


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## Webmaestro (Sep 28, 2013)

Hello fellow Phoenix person! Subscribed to this one for sure. I'd love to go to RV (it's not far from me).

Let's keep in touch!


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## narad (Sep 28, 2013)

While you reminded me - do you know why french polish is not often done on electrics? Durability concerns? Not knowing the possible disadvantages, I'd say do that - have something unique going on. I'd personally like to see more spruce top / french polished guitars outside of the high-end acoustic world.


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## XxJoshxX (Sep 28, 2013)

I find it funny how right after Vik blows up about people copying him, everyone starts using his designs. And i love it!


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## scherzo1928 (Sep 28, 2013)

I think they are all going to be nuts!
If I may give a bit of a sugestion, I think that the headstock would look a bit better, if the line that divides the headstock was more parallel to the right side of the headstock. And perheps extend the recessed part a bit more towards the nut?



narad said:


> While you reminded me - do you know why french polish is not often done on electrics? Durability concerns? Not knowing the possible disadvantages, I'd say do that - have something unique going on. I'd personally like to see more spruce top / french polished guitars outside of the high-end acoustic world.



It's a pain in the ass to do. That's why.
I've got 2 axes with french polish finishes and they are both doing fine, no durability issues.


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## 9voltchicken (Sep 28, 2013)

scherzo1928 said:


> I think they are all going to be nuts!
> If I may give a bit of a sugestion, I think that the headstock would look a bit better, if the line that divides the headstock was more parallel to the right side of the headstock. And perheps extend the recessed part a bit more towards the nut?



Thanks Scherzo. The headstock design isn't 100% final. I actually planned on doing exactly that. 




XxJoshxX said:


> I find it funny how right after Vik blows up about people copying him, everyone starts using his designs. And i love it!



Agreed. Overreacting to homebrew projects is halarious. I didn't base this off any of his designs though. I actually copied a blackmachine headstock and added a flame maple inlay where the empty space behind the strings would be.



narad said:


> While you reminded me - do you know why french polish is not often done on electrics? Durability concerns? Not knowing the possible disadvantages, I'd say do that - have something unique going on. I'd personally like to see more spruce top / french polished guitars outside of the high-end acoustic world.



The main reason why electrics aren't french polished is because of the time investment vs the difference it makes. With acoustics the weight of the finish matters a great deal. Slap a thick coat of poly that you would normally find on electrics on an acoustic and that instrument is dead. Apply a french polish to an electric and you (don't quote me on this) probably wont notice a difference.


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## 9voltchicken (Sep 28, 2013)

Sorry for the double post.



Webmaestro said:


> Hello fellow Phoenix person! Subscribed to this one for sure. I'd love to go to RV (it's not far from me).
> 
> Let's keep in touch!



For sure man. If you have any questions I'd be more than willing to answer them.


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## Cloudy (Sep 28, 2013)

Oh man I can't wait to start luthier school in 2016 when I finish up at university.

Gunna be following this bad boy of a thread!


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## XxJoshxX (Sep 28, 2013)

9voltchicken said:


> Agreed. Overreacting to homebrew projects is halarious. I didn't base this off any of his designs though. I actually copied a blackmachine headstock and added a flame maple inlay where the empty space behind the strings would be.



Yeah i was just thinking that the headstock looked decently similar with the veneer.


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## 9voltchicken (Oct 1, 2013)

Just a few more things to share.


Got the sides for my acoustic all bent up






And inside the acoustic mold. The brown staining is from the wood being cooked a bit while bending. They will sand out no problems.





Also got the braces and center seam strip for my acoustic back all nice and glued in.





Inlay design submitted and approved.





Bought a ziricote fretboard for the strandberg. Looking pretty sweet.





I will be starting my 7 string build next week. Semi-boring stuff up until then.


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## 9voltchicken (Oct 7, 2013)

70 hour weeks are pretty brutal but I'm getting stuff done. This is the first inlay I've ever done. So far so good.

Used a fence and a router to cut the center channel. Turned out perfectly straight 




Routed out the other missing bits with my trusty dremel.




This is my rig for cutting inlay. Must have spent around 8 hours just cutting little abalone strips.




Here's the result.




Jointing and inlaying all those little pieces is tedious as all hell. Worth it though. 




After filling/gluing/sanding it turned out absolutely spectacular. Couldn't be happier. Probably spent around 30 hours total on this inlay.








I'll have more updates in the next few days.


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## jarnozz (Oct 8, 2013)

That inlayjob is damn neat! Keep up the good work


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## capoeiraesp (Oct 8, 2013)

Nice work! Inlay are one of my favourite tasks when building.


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## BlackMastodon (Oct 8, 2013)

Very nice inlay, especially for your first time!


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## 9voltchicken (Oct 10, 2013)

Fast forwarding a bit since i'm working on stuff faster than i'm able to update...


Jointed and glued together the headcap for my 6-string




Aligned and glued it onto my (soon to be) headstock




Laid out the neck pocket with a few MDF scraps. I first aligned the neck and glued these pieces around where the heel is.




Nearly air-tight fit. The excess will be trimmed away when i shape the neck joint.




Headstock rough cut




7-string strandberg 1:1 scale plans and materials list submitted! hopefully approved...













FYI if you ever have to do any precision measuring I would HIGHLY recommend these tools. They are absolutely fantastic. The brand is Incra Rules.


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## Pikka Bird (Oct 10, 2013)

Looks very extremely awesome. I love it when people get ambitious early on!


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## sibanez29 (Oct 10, 2013)

Thanks for showing those rules. They look sweet.


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## Thep (Oct 10, 2013)

9voltchicken said:


> Incra Rules.



O'Doyle Rules.


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## 9voltchicken (Oct 11, 2013)

7 string strandberg has been approved. May very well be starting next week sometime.


Holy crap this turned out blurry. Sorry about that. Anyway, final shaping of the headstock and tuner holes drilled. The drill bit wandered a bit on two of them so I doweled and re-drilled them. The tuner washers should in theory cover the edge of the dowels.








Top of my acoustic is all braced up. Ready to begin carving and such. 







Neck carving, pickup and control cavity routing, binding, and heel shaping in the next few days.


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## CD1221 (Oct 11, 2013)

Awesome work, great thread.


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## Webmaestro (Oct 11, 2013)

Curious what your plans are after graduation? Will you stay here in the Phoenix area? Looking to get a repair gig at a shop, or start your own business?

Naturally, I'm asking these questions for purely selfish reasons


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## 9voltchicken (Oct 11, 2013)

I'm mainly looking for a job in a small custom shop somewhere in the US. That or a repair tech apprenticeship.

I may very well start building on the side as a supplementary income. I have an idea for a company that uses only responsibly forested and locally sourced hardwoods for acoustics and electrics. There are quite a few awesome and gorgeous woods right here in north america. Our rainforests are already strained enough. I don't want to add to that.


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## 9voltchicken (Oct 17, 2013)

Now we're getting somewhere!

Drilled holes where the knobs will be, bolted my neck on, and laid out the pickup locations.




Routed. No chipout. Woohoo!




Routed the rear control cavity. The cover will be held in place with magnets. Pretty swish if you ask me.




Laid out the lines to carve up the back.




Let the carving commence!




I was going to try to blend the heel of the body all the way into the neck but I didn't like how it was turning out. So i just cut it off.





More updates probably tomorrow.


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## muffinbutton (Oct 17, 2013)

I know I'm a little late, but that inlay is badass. Are you gonna be doing it on the 7 string too?


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## Webmaestro (Oct 17, 2013)

Looking great. Love the idea for the magnetic control cover.


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## 9voltchicken (Oct 18, 2013)

muffinbutton said:


> I know I'm a little late, but that inlay is badass. Are you gonna be doing it on the 7 string too?



Thanks! and no, It will take too much time. I'm either doing no inlays or dot inlays in some interesting way. Offset or 'wave' pattern or something else. Suggestions welcome.



Webmaestro said:


> Looking great. Love the idea for the magnetic control cover.



Thanks! The magnetic control covers have actually been around a long time. More than 1/3rd of the class is doing magnetic covers. I thought they were pretty damn cool the first time I saw them. Also, this Saturday the school will be open to the public from 11am to 5 or 6 pm. You should swing by.


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## Webmaestro (Oct 18, 2013)

9voltchicken said:


> Thanks! The magnetic control covers have actually been around a long time. More than 1/3rd of the class is doing magnetic covers. I thought they were pretty damn cool the first time I saw them. Also, this Saturday the school will be open to the public from 11am to 5 or 6 pm. You should swing by.



Ah damn! GF's out of town, so I'm alone with the dog this weekend. Unless pets are allowed, I'm kinda stuck at home >.<


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## 9voltchicken (Oct 18, 2013)

There's some festival going on along grand ave on the weekend. the school is included. I'm not certain about pets though.


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## Solodini (Oct 18, 2013)

Can you talk us through the bracing pattern on the acoustic, please?


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## jeremyb (Oct 18, 2013)

Wow dude, amazing work, really looking forward to more progress pics!!!


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## Quitty (Oct 18, 2013)

Subbed!
Damn good work there. 

What will you do with power tools once you're out of the workshop?


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## ara_ (Oct 19, 2013)

I vote for offset dots for the 7 string! maybe offset to the bass string side, and also towards the bridge side (next to the higher of the two frets)


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## 9voltchicken (Oct 19, 2013)

Solodini said:


> Can you talk us through the bracing pattern on the acoustic, please?



We use a standard X bracing pattern. Martin, Guild, Breedlove, Taylor, etc use the same bracing pattern with minor variations. I will also post more pictures of my acoustic top soon. The bottom of the soundboard side braces have a 30' radius and are then glued in at a 50' radius to pre-load tension onto the top. It helps with volume and sustain. It also helps to prevent cracking in drier climates. The back braces have a 15' radius. I haven't gone more in depth since this is a seven string electric forum. 



Quitty said:


> Subbed!
> Damn good work there.
> 
> What will you do with power tools once you're out of the workshop?



Keep them, of course!



ara_ said:


> I vote for offset dots for the 7 string! maybe offset to the bass string side, and also towards the bridge side (next to the higher of the two frets)



Noted. I like offset dots. But they will more than likely be in the middle since the frets are angled. Not quite sure how good the offset dots will look when angled with the frets.


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## 9voltchicken (Oct 21, 2013)

Started hanging my guitar in the gallery to minimize dings and such. Now I'd say it's starting to look like a guitar.




Finished neck profile is a crowd-pleasing .850" at the 1st fret and .90" at the 12th starting with a C profile and flattening to a D around the 7th fret.




Control cavity cover was yes.





Top braces for my acoustic are carved. If you'd like a more detailed explanation on how we're building these acoustics, PM me. I'll answer what I can.




7 string strandberg "Ouro" has commenced..




I used WAY too much gorilla glue here. This stuff is about the consistency of cold honey and I'm only used to using titebond. I told myself it's better to have too much than not enough.


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## Quitty (Oct 22, 2013)

You mean all the power tools are yours? Not the workshop's?
I was wondering how big a part does the workshop play into the build process.

And that acoustic carve came out looking gorgeous


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## Andrew91 (Oct 22, 2013)

I was actually considering heading out there next year but I dunno.
It doesn't seem worth the $20k (tools, tuition, living) to go to the desert to work my ass off to learn stuff I can learn with some guy in a month.

How're the instructors? You can't order wood? THAT'S EVIL How much help do you receive?
etc etc


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## 9voltchicken (Oct 23, 2013)

Quitty said:


> You mean all the power tools are yours? Not the workshop's?
> I was wondering how big a part does the workshop play into the build process.
> 
> And that acoustic carve came out looking gorgeous



Oh, I thought you were talking about the tools I purchased for the course. Having a plethora of shop tools to work with cuts down completion time a great deal. The tools that see the most use from me are the edge sanders, spindle sanders, disc sanders, thickness sanders, band saws, and routers. Each of those I plan on purchasing on my own at some point.

Thanks, I didn't think I would enjoy learning how to build acoustics as much as I am.




Andrew91 said:


> I was actually considering heading out there next year but I dunno.
> It doesn't seem worth the $20k (tools, tuition, living) to go to the desert to work my ass off to learn stuff I can learn with some guy in a month.
> 
> How're the instructors? You can't order wood? THAT'S EVIL How much help do you receive?
> etc etc



If you would seriously consider doing tech work or building guitars for a living I would suggest going through the trouble to go to this school. The main school itself moved into a new building two years ago and has improved immensely from what I've heard. The course covers everything from designing a body/headstock to spraying the finish coat of lacquer. The same goes for acoustics, although you are more limited design wise. Along the way you will learn about how to repair/rewire, re-fret, and re-finish guitars. Not to mention the friends you will make and the stories you will walk away with.

The school atmosphere is pretty relaxed in general. You are encouraged to treat the school as a jobsite with an emphasis on building a couple of kickass guitars. The instructors themselves are a joy to work with. As far as 1 on 1 instruction there is some, but mainly to check your work before proceeding to the next phase or answering questions about particular details or methods. As far as I know this school is the only accredited school for luthiery in the nation. I guarantee you will learn more about guitars in general in this class than in a guy's garage.


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## Andrew91 (Oct 23, 2013)

Repair and fretwork and basically some stuff like figuring out ideal string placement are all I really have that many questions about.. I've learned a loooot on the internet. (75% from this site  )

I'm not sure that I want to build for a living, maybe as a secondary income, but I looove the idea of building.

It is the only accredited school.. I just fear it will be like high school where I'm only learning a little bit I didn't know before.

The guided building and stuff seems really neat.. But I dunno about having to save extreme amounts of cash. 

I'm so on the fence :/


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## Webmaestro (Oct 23, 2013)

Andrew91 said:


> Repair and fretwork and basically some stuff like figuring out ideal string placement are all I really have that many questions about.. I've learned a loooot on the internet. (75% from this site  )
> 
> I'm not sure that I want to build for a living, maybe as a secondary income, but I looove the idea of building.
> 
> ...



The school in Red Wing, MN has an excellent program (but crappy website). My friend graduated from there many years ago, and has been working at Paul Reed Smith ever since.

http://www.redwingmusicrepair.org/guitar/index.html

Unfortunately, it's in Minnesota 

But, if you're only wanting to build guitars primarily for enjoyment, these schools are probably overkill for you. However, if you're looking for a serious career, the certificate/degree you'll earn (not to mention personal and professional connections you'll make) will prove very valuable in getting a job... or starting your own business.


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## 9voltchicken (Oct 25, 2013)

Andrew91 said:


> Repair and fretwork and basically some stuff like figuring out ideal string placement are all I really have that many questions about.. I've learned a loooot on the internet. (75% from this site  )
> 
> I'm not sure that I want to build for a living, maybe as a secondary income, but I looove the idea of building.
> 
> ...



I know what you mean. Before I went to this school I had already built a guitar. A good deal of this is a rehash for me. But I still have learned a great deal as well as refined my process. Probably the biggest boon I have experienced in this class is the connections I've established and the certificate I will receive. This industry is so incredibly tiny in relation to everything else that connections mean everything. Plan ahead. Figure out where your passions lay. Just my .


You can also drop by the school pretty much any time and chat with Bart or another instructor to find out more.


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## pondman (Oct 25, 2013)

Amazing work - looks absolutely stunning


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## Webmaestro (Oct 25, 2013)

9voltchicken said:


> Probably the biggest boon I have experienced in this class is the connections I've established and the certificate I will receive. This industry is so incredibly tiny in relation to everything else that connections mean everything.



+1 that right there. Probably one of the biggest benefits of going to a school vs. self-teaching. Networking is so incredibly important and helpful to one's career.


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## 9voltchicken (Oct 25, 2013)

Haven't had a whole lot of time to work on the strandberg this week. Been focused primarily on finishing up my student electric. It's pretty much ready for lacquer at this point.

Neck blank for Ouro is ready to go! I cut up some nice flamed maple for the stringers. This neck blank rings like a bell. Very nice.







Hooray Ivoroid binding.





Frets are going in.


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## bouVIP (Oct 26, 2013)

Really loving your builds! That inlay is gorgeous too.


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## Webmaestro (Oct 26, 2013)

Just curious, are you tapping the frets in by hand, or are you allowed to use a press?


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## Andrew91 (Oct 26, 2013)

Loving the progress shots. 

I can't just drop in because I live across the country


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## 9voltchicken (Oct 26, 2013)

Webmaestro said:


> Just curious, are you tapping the frets in by hand, or are you allowed to use a press?



I use a fretting hammer from stewmac to pound the frets in. Then clamp them down and shoot some super glue down the slot. worked well.



Andrew91 said:


> Loving the progress shots.
> 
> I can't just drop in because I live across the country



Sorry, I thought I was quoting webmaestro for some reason


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## 9voltchicken (Nov 1, 2013)

Things are coming together in a big way. My guitar may actually be playable in a week.

Doing back and top glue-ups is actually quite terrifying. 





My acoustic label in its final resting place.




Ready for lacquer




First coat of vynyl sealer and wash coat. Spraying lacquer is more difficult than I thought. Especially on the inside of the horns.




Cut up the neck blank into something more manageable and oiled a scrap to test finish options. Doesn't look too shabby to me. 56k beware...


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## Andrew91 (Nov 1, 2013)

Looking great.
That label
what?

Also, I don't get 56k jokes  unless it's about internet speeds?


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## 9voltchicken (Nov 1, 2013)

Andrew91 said:


> Also, I don't get 56k jokes  unless it's about internet speeds?



I uploaded the closeups of the neck blank in full resolution. Sometimes they take a while to load with a slower connection.


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## Webmaestro (Nov 1, 2013)

9voltchicken said:


> I uploaded the closeups of the neck blank in full resolution. Sometimes they take a while to load with a slower connection.



Heh, I don't think anyone really uses 56k anymore. The warning will soon become "... 1Mbps beware"


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## BlackMastodon (Nov 1, 2013)

Looking great, and digging the label. Also "Honor thy stick" made me chuckle.


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## 9voltchicken (Nov 4, 2013)

Now that the hardware has finally arrived, progress on Ouro can begin in earnest. 

Hooray truss rod slot!






This hardware is crazy light. About 4oz including screws.


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## Allealex (Nov 5, 2013)

Loving the way the BM is turning out


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## TheHumanMeat (Nov 6, 2013)

I live in far north scottsdale and have been wanting to become a lutheir for a really long time now and actually stopped by the school a few months ago. I plan on going to that school next august and absolutely cant wait. I was also thinking about making a blackmachine styled guitar. I'm so glad to see you posting your experience of it before I run in there.

P.S. I love that inlay idea.


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## 9voltchicken (Nov 10, 2013)

Spraying the final coat of lacquer for my 6 string on tuesday. These weeks seem to be flying by.


This is a perfect example of hard way to fret a multiscale instrument. I tried to make a full miter box but it ended up being botched due to poor planning on my part. It took about 5 hours total. I'm still sore.




Fret slots are done at this stage and the fingerboard is registered.




Northern ash wings are registered and ready to be glued. The outline for the body is a bit light.


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## jemfloral (Nov 10, 2013)

the fingerboard shown is for the strand? what is the scale length (low and high)?


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## 9voltchicken (Nov 10, 2013)

26 and 1/8th on the low B to 25" on the E. 5th fret perpendicular.


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## hairychris (Nov 11, 2013)

Nice work! Very tidy inlays.

Loving the Vikmachine headstock. Plenty there to annoy the haters!!


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## 9voltchicken (Nov 11, 2013)

Thanks for the compliments!

Today I managed to get the body/neck perfectly flat and thicknessed to 1.5"









Drilled pilot holes for the string locks and routed the shelf.




Shaped up the bridge area and drilled the holes for the bridges themselves





Stringlock/headstock = done.


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## mcd (Nov 14, 2013)

dude your builds are pretty awesome!


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## 9voltchicken (Nov 20, 2013)

It's been a busy week thanks to electives in the evening on top of normal classes as well as problems concerning the spray booth. Lots more progress!


Just before my final coat of lacquer. Hot damn.







Neck carving on Ouro has begun.







Figured I'd try for the no neck heel thing. It will be completely rounded later.


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## jonajon91 (Nov 20, 2013)

Jeeesus I have never seen such a shiny guitar!


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## crowbar1115 (Nov 26, 2013)

More please!! This thread is incredible!!


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## 9voltchicken (Nov 30, 2013)

Holy lack of updates batman!

In all seriousness I've been working like mad to get these guitars playable before Christmas break. That's three weeks. It does sound like a long time but there's a lot of lectures between here and there not to mention guest appearances and a repair course. Here's what's happened in the past couple weeks...

Learned how to wind pickups and what aspects of pickups change the sound. Jason Lollar was our instructor for the day. 







Ouro has been fretted and is mostly good to go. Only needs the bridge holes re-drilled and some fretwork done. SO stoked! 





Another elective I took was patina finishing hosted by Scott Walker. Basically we spray a bronze based paint on guitars and pour a mild acid on it to accelerate the aging process. Anyone recognize this guitar? 




After the acid does its work most look something like this. There are other types of chemicals that produce different effects.


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## Necris (Nov 30, 2013)

That patina finishing is awesome.


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## dougk (Dec 1, 2013)

Scott is amazing.

What acid did you use if you don't mind sharing?


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## skeels (Dec 1, 2013)

Totally make me look like a caveman.

Awesome!


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## hardvalve (Dec 1, 2013)

Wow, love this thread, and sounds like a great school.


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## 9voltchicken (Dec 2, 2013)

dougk said:


> Scott is amazing.
> 
> What acid did you use if you don't mind sharing?



I actually did two guitars. I used a mixture of everything (tiffany green, jade green, mint green, light green, steel wool) on a telecaster body to give it a junky look, and for the other guitar I used something called black magic which turns the finish a gunmetal black. I'm going to buff through the black patina around the edges to give it a worn look.


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## 9voltchicken (Jan 12, 2014)

Massive apologies for not updating this thread more frequently. There have been a lot of developments building-wise along with forgetting to take pictures along the way. Also, job searching seems to be eating most of my time as of late. If you're looking for a full time guitar tech (or know someone who is) let me know.


One instrument done! here are a couple of quick shots of my student electric. One of my classmates has some great photo equipment i'll use to take better pictures.







The Strandberg is pretty much together. Although it plays fantastically, I still want to thin out the neck a bit and take a bit more off of the arm bevel. I can do this later thanks to the oil finish I used. Overall I love this thing. I'm not sure if I like the pickups though. 





Those of you who may be interested how my acoustic is turning out, Here it is almost completed. I just finished wet sanding and buffing this week. Questions and comments are welcome!




















Less than three weeks to graduation. It's been an absolute blast and I wouldn't trade the experiences I've had for anything.

More to come.


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## HaMMerHeD (Jan 12, 2014)

Really nice work, man. I wish I could go to R-V.


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## Webmaestro (Jan 12, 2014)

These are coming out fantastic 

Is it just an optical illusion, or is the string spacing (down at the 1st fret) on the Strandberg a little wonky? Maybe the strings are just slack in the photo.


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## TheHumanMeat (Jan 12, 2014)

I've posted earlier that i'm going to R-V this fall and love following this. What could you tell me about their wood selection? If I'm not mistaken I believe they already have wood available. I also have a pretty unique design in the works for when I'm there. How flexible are they on completely letting you design your guitar?


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## 9voltchicken (Jan 12, 2014)

Webmaestro said:


> These are coming out fantastic
> 
> Is it just an optical illusion, or is the string spacing (down at the 1st fret) on the Strandberg a little wonky? Maybe the strings are just slack in the photo.



Thanks! Damn man you have an eagle eye. The string spacing is a little off on the D and the G. I still have to make a nut for it somehow.



TheHumanMeat said:


> I've posted earlier that i'm going to R-V this fall and love following this. What could you tell me about their wood selection? If I'm not mistaken I believe they already have wood available. I also have a pretty unique design in the works for when I'm there. How flexible are they on completely letting you design your guitar?




Nice! You'll love it. Wood selection is pretty good overall. Always keep in mind for your student acoustic and electric they are 'industry standard'. Mostly maple and mahogony for the structural elements. Acoustics have a selection of 15 or so different woods for back and sides. same thing with electric tops. Electric shapes are very flexible. You can pretty much do anything you want within reason, although you won't be able to do funky headstock shapes I.E. blackmachine or parker fly replicas.

There is a list of specs and woods to choose from in the first post.


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## jahosy (Jan 12, 2014)

Very nice mate! Well done


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## blindsagacity (Jan 13, 2014)

The finish on that acoustic is great! What kinda polishing did you do?


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## Riley (Jan 13, 2014)

Whats up with the string spacing at the bridge of the blackmachineish one?

They look pretty darn good for your first builds(assuming these are your first).


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## jemfloral (Jan 13, 2014)

So, how much are you going to sell me that strandberg copy for?  

...but for serious, let me know


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## 9voltchicken (Jan 14, 2014)

blindsagacity said:


> The finish on that acoustic is great! What kinda polishing did you do?



Thanks, We use good o'l nitrocellulose lacquer. It's fairly nasty stuff but it's relatively easy to work with compared to poly. I think I've spent a total of 3-4 hours wet sanding and 2-3 hours of buffing on that guitar.



Riley said:


> Whats up with the string spacing at the bridge of the blackmachineish one?
> 
> They look pretty darn good for your first builds(assuming these are your first).



I used a bridge with a variable string spacing that enables me to use standard spaced or F spaced pickups. It's made by schaller. Black Non-Tremolo Bridge | Allparts.com
Thanks for your compliments, I've built a grand total of one guitar before this.


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## patata (Jan 14, 2014)

THIS.FVCKING.STRANDBERG


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## 9voltchicken (Feb 14, 2014)

Welp, I graduated with flying colors. I ended up finishing 4 guitars with one needing a final wet sanding and buffing. It's been a wild ride and I wouldn't trade the experiences and stories obtained at Roberto-Venn for anything. If you have any interest in building and/or working on guitars for a living, you could do a lot worse than this school.

I'd like to thank those of you watching this thread for your support and encouragement. It means a great deal to me when people like my work. I do try. 


Incoming massive bombardment of pictures!


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## Esp Griffyn (Feb 16, 2014)

OP, I'm guessing that you are not new to wood-working, and these aren't the first guitars you've built? These are seriously good quality and do not look like beginners work at all, they look like the sort of thing a serious luthier-in-training would make. You've obviously got a lot of talent and I wish you the best of luck in your career.


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## 9voltchicken (Feb 17, 2014)

Esp Griffyn said:


> OP, I'm guessing that you are not new to wood-working, and these aren't the first guitars you've built? These are seriously good quality and do not look like beginners work at all, they look like the sort of thing a serious luthier-in-training would make. You've obviously got a lot of talent and I wish you the best of luck in your career.




I've only actually built one guitar before these which I also documented on this forum. As far as my past woodworking experience, the only woodworking project I can recall (that I built mostly by myself) is a fish tank stand build because I refused to pay nearly $200 for one. I do however have a couple years experience in a machine shop using various milling machines and CNC stuff. 

I do plan creating a shop in the near future and building on the side with the possibility of becoming my primary focus if I can find the means to sustain myself through building alone. The rough plan is to use primarily (not exclusively) reclaimed hardwoods from the massive groves of fruit and nut trees in the central valley in CA.

Thanks for all your support. I hope to be able to say that I build guitars for a living someday.


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## Levi79 (Feb 17, 2014)

Those are all really slick dude! I really like the Oroborous inlay, I was planning to do one on my second build but changed my mind last minute. That tele finish came out a lot cooler than I expected honestly! Flaxwood influence?


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