# First build, Tribute six string - 'Marie' (image heavy)



## 9voltchicken (Sep 25, 2011)

I've been toying around with the idea of building an instrument from scratch for years now. What really jump started the project was my sister. She is an artist who loves to paint. (and will be painting the body) Unfortunately she is dying of terminal cancer. We were talking and this future project came up. She said "Why not?", and thus it begins. Since it's a first project and I do plan on making more guitars on the side in the future, I'm starting off simple.

Plans and specs are as follows:
25.5" scale
24 frets
16" radius
Bolt on construction (borrowing bolt-on design from Decibel Guitars)
Hipshot bridge and locking tuners 
Jescar Evo fretwire FW57110-EVO .110" X .057
Tusq XL nut
One piece alder body
One piece quartersawn Mahogony neck, scarf jointed at 13 degrees
Madagascar Rosewood fretboard
Natural Paua Abolone dot inlays
Crunchlab / Liquifire pickup combo (might change these)
Blend knob (?)


I already have all the design, templates, and measurements done. Also all the necessary wood and adhesives have been purchased. Sourcing the tools required is the only hold up now. If you have spare luthier-specific tools that are in good working order, I may be interested.


Sorry for the crappy pictures. The only camera I have is my phone.


Raw wood. Neck, fretboard, and body blank.





Fretboard grain detail. I like that grain.





Designing the headstock. 





Body template WIP





Mockup of the overall design. 95% complete. Still need to smooth some bumps and fix some of the curves. +1 to whomever can guess what the headstock and body shape are inspired by.


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## Winspear (Sep 25, 2011)

Nice specs, sounds really nice! I look forward to seeing this 

I'm incredibly sorry to hear about your sister. This is a great way to create a memory of her and what she loves  Any ideas what she is going to paint?


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## 9voltchicken (Sep 25, 2011)

It's supposed to be a surprise, which I don't mind


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## Justin Bailey (Sep 25, 2011)

Definitely an awesome way to celebrate your sister.


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## sibanez29 (Sep 25, 2011)

No matter what she puts on the guitar, you will know that you have the greatest guitar finish in the world. Be sure to post pictures when you are done!


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## 9voltchicken (Sep 25, 2011)

There will be regular updates. I can only work on this 1-2 days a week for a few hours. I work graveyard and live in an apartment. Right now all my materials/tools is in my father's garage where it's being built, which is a 20 minute drive. Long project is long.


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## BlackMastodon (Sep 25, 2011)

EtherealEntity said:


> Nice specs, sounds really nice! I look forward to seeing this
> 
> I'm incredibly sorry to hear about your sister. This is a great way to create a memory of her and what she loves  Any ideas what she is going to paint?



Took the words right out of my mouth. My condolences, but I am quite excited to see how this progresses.


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## M3CHK1LLA (Sep 25, 2011)

cool design...

...nice wood choices.


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## WishIwasfinnish (Sep 26, 2011)

Truly, truly sorry to hear about your sister, this is a really great project you're doing, really looking forward to seeing how it turns out


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## Jontain (Sep 26, 2011)

Sounds like an awesome way to celebrate your bond with your sister and it will be great for holding onto those important memories.

All the best.


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## JamesM (Sep 26, 2011)

Love everything about it.


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## ShadowFactoryX (Sep 26, 2011)

The Armada said:


> Love everything about it.



especially the reason behind doing it


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## ghostred7 (Sep 26, 2011)

The Armada said:


> Love everything about it.


This ^

I wish I had skills to build. My thoughts to you & yours. I lost my sister last year due to heart/diabetes complications...it's tough, but you do pull through. This will be one of the best guitars EVER!


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## asher (Sep 26, 2011)

First song you should play with it: Wings for Marie.


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## 9voltchicken (Sep 27, 2011)

Wow you guys are awesome! Great community here. 

Update for today. Did a very rough cutout of the body. I had to use a POS jigsaw since the bandsaw I have is just too small. Note the damage done in the background. I'm going to get it flush routed tomorrow.

I'm open to suggestions and advice about what to use in terms of paints. Should I need a primer first? I believe she is going to be using a brush applied enamel to paint with. I plan on getting a quote from an auto body shop to have it sprayed with clear poly, unless this is a bad idea.


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## scherzo1928 (Sep 27, 2011)

This could probably be my favorite build I've seen in the forum.


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## Guitarman700 (Sep 27, 2011)

scherzo1928 said:


> This could probably be my favorite build I've seen in the forum.



This. So much this. Just...Awesome, man.


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## IB-studjent- (Sep 27, 2011)

the headstock looks like Ola's strictly 7, am I right ?


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## 9voltchicken (Sep 27, 2011)

scherzo1928 said:


> This could probably be my favorite build I've seen in the forum.





Guitarman700 said:


> This. So much this. Just...Awesome, man.



Thanks, I'm truly honored.



IB-studjent- said:


> the headstock looks like Ola's strictly 7, am I right ?



Correct! Once I saw the design I absolutely loved it. Also, Ola/Scarpoint is <3. I hope It's alright to borrow the design for a personal project since I don't plan on making money off it...


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## 9voltchicken (Sep 29, 2011)

Flush routed the body, still have some sanding to do. Next up is routing the pockets and beveling the edges over the weekend.



> I'm open to suggestions and advice about what to use in terms of paints. Should I need a primer first? I believe she is going to be using a brush applied enamel to paint with. I plan on getting a quote from an auto body shop to have it sprayed with clear poly, unless this is a bad idea.



Still looking for advice about ^^^


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## HaMMerHeD (Sep 29, 2011)

9voltchicken said:


> Flush routed the body, still have some sanding to do. Next up is routing the pockets and beveling the edges over the weekend.
> 
> 
> 
> ...



You'll probably want to seal the body, then prime it. You can seal it with shellac or sanding sealer. 

But you should most definitely use a primer. You should be able to find a white primer at most big box home improvement stores.

A clear coat over your sister's paint job would be a good idea. But make sure there are no incompatabilities between whatever paint she uses and whatever poly the shop uses. 

If you want to provide the paint job with UV protection, you may want to send the body away to somebody like Marty Bell for a polyester clear coat. Most polyurethane doesn't have UV protection in it, but most polyester does.

I did some asking around, and it seems most polyester and polyurethane finishes have UV protectors in it.


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## 9voltchicken (Sep 29, 2011)

Awesome. Thanks for the info, I've never painted anything like this so I wasn't completely sure. I did plan on getting a clear poly coat done by an auto body shop.


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## 9voltchicken (Oct 2, 2011)

A coworker of mine (who happens to be handy with fonts) offered to sketch out something for the headstock. I think it turned out alright. I'm still undecided whether or not I'll use it. I plan on transferring it to heavy gauge vinyl or something similar and tacking it in place. Clear coat goes over it.

If you are good with fonts and want to get involved send me a PM. I can offer a small commission if necessary, although I'm not rich.



Note: this is not the final location, just a trace to get the size right.


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## MAGGOTBRAIN (Oct 2, 2011)

That font looks ok,.,.but since its a tribute,.,Maybe use your sisters sig?
Good luck with your build,,,looking forward to more updates.

Peace
Jack


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## peagull (Oct 2, 2011)

MAGGOTBRAIN said:


> Maybe use your sisters sig?



I'd definately go with this.


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## BlackMastodon (Oct 2, 2011)

^What they said.


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## 9voltchicken (Oct 3, 2011)

Hmm.. That's actually an AWESOME idea. Question is, how would I transfer something like that to the headstock? The main reason why I chose bolder font is because it can be transferred relatively easily. I'm not using a sharpie directly on wood.

Could I have her sign a piece of thin/flexible plastic and cut it out with a craft knife? Ideas welcome.


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## infernalservice (Oct 3, 2011)

Sorry to hear about your sister. This looks really good, and its a great way to honor her. Hopefully its a cathartic sort of happy feeling when you finish it.


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## ElRay (Oct 3, 2011)

Nice work so far. 

When it's done, don't forget to post over here: http://www.sevenstring.org/forum/lu...1-guitars-built-members-ss-org-pic-heavy.html

Ray


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## HaMMerHeD (Oct 3, 2011)

9voltchicken said:


> Hmm.. That's actually an AWESOME idea. Question is, how would I transfer something like that to the headstock? The main reason why I chose bolder font is because it can be transferred relatively easily. I'm not using a sharpie directly on wood.
> 
> Could I have her sign a piece of thin/flexible plastic and cut it out with a craft knife? Ideas welcome.



Have her sign a white piece of paper. Scan it and send the image to a decal manufacturer.

Best-Decals.com, Your One-Stop Decal-Shop has been good to me.

They will make you a vinyl decal (or other vendors will make waterslide decals a la Fender) and you stick it on, spray the finish over it.

Prices should be reasonable too. I just ordered a custom headstock sn decal for my current build from Best-Decal, and it cost me about $11 shipped.

I used them for my fretless build too. I sent them this:







And asked for it in 1" tall black vinyl, and I got back this:


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## youshy (Oct 3, 2011)

Truly sorry to hear about your sister. I just literally cried, because I can't imagine who I'd become or who I'd be without my sister. 

Looking forward to it! I like your wood choice, gonna be awesome guitar


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## Phil-Centralia (Oct 3, 2011)

I dont know what to say to you, but i really hope you get through all this the best way possible.

I wish i had the courage to make something as great as this in tribute for someone i love.

My sincere sorry to hear your story.

Not wanting to sound gay, but you can count on my feelings on this project of your, and i wish you the best.


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## 9voltchicken (Oct 3, 2011)

HaMMerHeD said:


> Have her sign a white piece of paper. Scan it and send the image to a decal manufacturer.
> 
> Best-Decals.com, Your One-Stop Decal-Shop has been good to me.
> 
> ...



Wow. I never knew something like that existed. That's actually exactly what I needed. Thank you sir! +1 and bookmarked!



youshy said:


> Truly sorry to hear about your sister. I just literally cried, because I can't imagine who I'd become or who I'd be without my sister.
> 
> Looking forward to it! I like your wood choice, gonna be awesome guitar





Phil-Centralia said:


> I dont know what to say to you, but i really hope you get through all this the best way possible.
> 
> I wish i had the courage to make something as great as this in tribute for someone i love.
> 
> ...



Thanks. Your support truly does mean a lot to me. 

Getting the body ready for painting isn't going nearly as quickly as I'd like due to tool sourcing problems and lack of funds. You won't believe how hard it is to find a 1/2" pattern cutting router bit around here. I've had to resort to ordering it off the internet.

In other news, scarf jointing the neck and rough cutting the holes for the body today. (hopefully)


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## Solodini (Oct 5, 2011)

Possibly set up a paypal account in case anyone wants to make donations? Any spare money could go to charity.


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## 9voltchicken (Oct 6, 2011)

Solodini said:


> Possibly set up a paypal account in case anyone wants to make donations? Any spare money could go to charity.



Thats actually a good idea. It's not against the forum rules is it?



EDIT: oh, cool. I can't edit my original post.


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## Solodini (Oct 6, 2011)

No idea **shines the modlight into the sky**


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## Ironbird (Oct 6, 2011)

I'm so sorry to hear about your sister. For what it's worth, I'm sure that this will be a fitting tribute to her life, and to the impact she made in you and your family's lives.


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## 9voltchicken (Oct 10, 2011)

Sorry for the lack of substantial updates lately. My sister, Shawna Marie, has passed. I'm not looking for pity, only to inform those who are watching this thread. She was a rare kindred spirit. The picture below exemplifies such a notion. She will be missed.

The torch now passes to my brother who paints houses by day and canvas by night. I can think of no one better to create such a fitting memory.

(yes, this is her)




Back to our regularly scheduled updates.

Created the scarf joint. It turned out REALLY gnarly. All I had was a hacksaw and a bent backsaw. 





... But with a straight edge and a palm sander it ended up perfect.





Created the full template for all the holes. Turned out rather nicely.





Hogged out the holes for the neck pocket and pickups with a forstner bit.





And the control cavity.





That's all I can do this week. Waiting until payday so I can order a couple router bits.


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## JamesM (Oct 10, 2011)

I'm in love with that picture. 

Condolences. Great work friend.


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## HaMMerHeD (Oct 10, 2011)

so sorry for your loss. I'd like to contribute if I can, so if you PM me a few of the things you need, I'll see what I can send you.


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## ElRay (Oct 10, 2011)

Condolences man. My wife lost her dad a year ago in July. It does get easier, but there will be moments.

Ray


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## BlackMastodon (Oct 10, 2011)

Very sorry for your loss, it really sucks that she couldn't paint the guitar for you, but at least your brother will be able to help you out.


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## TimmaethBoy (Oct 10, 2011)

Wow that's terrible.. such a young age too. Sorry to hear that man, but looking forward to seeing how this project comes out.


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## DanielVE (Oct 10, 2011)

I'm really sorry for your loss 
Project is looking amazing, will be following the thread!


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## Phil-Centralia (Oct 10, 2011)

Really sorry for you loss.

Hope you get all together, for what your doing, your sister will be thankful to you.

I feel happy to be able to see your memento for your sister, and no one will forget her!


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## scherzo1928 (Oct 10, 2011)

Reading this has made me sad.

It's great that you are building something in her memory.


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## endo (Oct 11, 2011)

scherzo1928 said:


> Reading this has made me sad.
> 
> It's great that you are building something in her memory.



+1 Total bummer man. I couldn't imagine. There's nothing anyone can say, so I send my condolences and hope that time eases your situation faster than slower.

At least you have this guitar to put forth your feelings into! This guitar is going to be worth more than the solid gold telecaster.


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## youshy (Oct 11, 2011)

Condolences, my man.

This guitar DEFINITELY gonna be great, It'll be one and only, not because it's hand made by you, but because you put all of your love into it. Looking forward to it.


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## Jontain (Oct 11, 2011)

Sorry to hear that man, she looks like a really fun and awesome person in that picture, hopefully you can celebrate that side of her through your guitar build. Out of all of the builds that leave me gobsmacked on this fourm none have had this kind of drive behind them man and I have to say its a real beautiful thing.

Our thoughts are with you man.


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## MAGGOTBRAIN (Oct 11, 2011)

So sorry for your loss...
My condolences to you and your family.


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## joaocunha (Oct 11, 2011)

I'm sorry for your loss, mate. My mom has been diagnosed with cancer recently so I kind of know how you've felt.

Your sis would feel honoured. Keep strong as you seem to be.


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## Mordacain (Oct 11, 2011)

I'm sorry for your loss. Wish there was something more I can say. Good luck with the guitar, its coming along nicely.


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## Pikka Bird (Oct 12, 2011)

Man, that's heavy... My condolences. Now I know you're gonna put your best into this guitar, at least.


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## peagull (Oct 12, 2011)

Oh man, My thoughts are with you and your family.


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## SilenceIsACrime (Oct 13, 2011)

Man, I am really sorry to hear she passed. My sincere condolences and I wish you and your family the best. It's still going to be an amazing tribute nonetheless so I am happy to see you are still going through with it.


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## Phil-Centralia (Oct 15, 2011)

I (we) wont let this threat be quiet down here, will bump it up that future generations can share this moment!


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## leandroab (Oct 15, 2011)

Sorry about your loss dude. I know now that this guitar will mean a lot to you.


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## 9voltchicken (Oct 15, 2011)

Phil-Centralia said:


> I (we) wont let this threat be quiet down here, will bump it up that future generations can share this moment!



Lol, you're too much. 

Waiting for the router bit I need to arrive on Monday. Then i'm going to mail it off to my brother for paint and start working on the neck.


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## 9voltchicken (Oct 19, 2011)

A few updates today. 

HaMMerHeD sent me some goodies that have already saved me a great deal of frustration. An all around awesome guy who gives great advice. Mad props to this man!





Routed the control cavity... 





And the rest of the body.





Only one mistake. Not to shabby I guess. I've never used a router prior to this, fyi.


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## BlackMastodon (Oct 19, 2011)

Looking really clean. But you gotta resize your pics man


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## scherzo1928 (Oct 20, 2011)

Only piece of advice I have for using a router is this: wear earplugs. If you use earplugs you will instantly notce a boost in confidence and get better results. Sounds dumb but it works.

Unless you are doing what I did in my last build, and freehand route a bevel on your very unsecured headstock... all you need in that case is a bag full of stupidity and courage.


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## 9voltchicken (Oct 20, 2011)

BlackMastodon said:


> Looking really clean. But you gotta resize your pics man



I would, but, I want to keep high res versions of these pictures. Since they're all backed up on imageshack and I have a 100 picture limit I can't make two copies of each picture. Also I can't go back and edit my previous posts... 
Is there a way to resize it and not have a 200x300 thumbnail? That also affects previous posts?



scherzo1928 said:


> Only piece of advice I have for using a router is this: wear earplugs. If you use earplugs you will instantly notce a boost in confidence and get better results. Sounds dumb but it works.
> 
> Unless you are doing what I did in my last build, and freehand route a bevel on your very unsecured headstock... all you need in that case is a bag full of stupidity and courage.


 
I always use hearing protection. I used to be a machinist so donning hearing protection is almost second nature. I enjoy being able to hear things afterwards. Wearing hearing protection in noisy environments is _always_ sound advice. 

The mistake happened when I didn't set the height correctly and the bearing slipped over the template. The router is semi old and the plastic windows are hard to see through so I thought I was actually doing it correctly. Good thing I stopped.


Ok. Question. How does one affix pickups without using rings? Wood screws and a bit of foam underneath to keep the height? The only guitar I have to reference this is my Hellraiser C7 with emg 707s. I haven't had the opportunity to examine a guitar without rings.


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## Winspear (Oct 20, 2011)

Looking lovely  Yep, foam.


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## BlackMastodon (Oct 20, 2011)

For uploading pictures I use photobucket. I just resize the pictures in paint by about 50% before I upload them.
As for the pickups, I believe that is the correct way to do it. You can also get some metal threads and stick them in the body so the screws hold better, you'd just need to find the correct sizes and such, and be careful to not drill through the body.


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## peagull (Oct 21, 2011)

Looking good man, And you must have more balls that I did when it came to first using a router, I honestly think some poo came out the first time!


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## 9voltchicken (Oct 31, 2011)

Not a whole lot of progress, this was from last week. Cleaning out my old apartment and packing some stuff this weekend.


First I laid out the lines for the bevel...





... And after a few hours of filing, rasping, and sanding, she's mostly done.





Prepping the scarf joint.





And gluing it up.





More to come next week.


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## scherzo1928 (Oct 31, 2011)

this is looking very very clean!


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## Aevolve (Oct 31, 2011)

Great work so far- can't wait to see how the rest of it will turn out.


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## MED (Oct 31, 2011)

Love how this build is turning out. That mahogany neck is going to be killer!


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## TimmaethBoy (Oct 31, 2011)

Looking good.  Body shape reminds me of a Music Man Petrucci model.


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## Mordacain (Oct 31, 2011)

Looks real nice man, lovin the bevels!


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## 9voltchicken (Nov 1, 2011)

TimmaethBoy said:


> Looking good.  Body shape reminds me of a Music Man Petrucci model.



It is indeed inspired by the jpx. My favorite body style hands down.


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## Pikka Bird (Nov 1, 2011)

Looks smashing, definitely.

Will you put a forearm relief cut on the front too like on the JP?


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## 9voltchicken (Nov 1, 2011)

Pikka Bird said:


> Looks smashing, definitely.
> 
> Will you put a forearm relief cut on the front too like on the JP?



It has one, although it's hard to tell with that angle.


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## Pikka Bird (Nov 1, 2011)

^I can _kinda_ make it out if I look really intensely, but boy is that hard to spot...


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## Toe_Cutter (Nov 4, 2011)

This is relevant to my interests. Fantastic work so far.


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## 9voltchicken (Nov 27, 2011)

Not really a progress update, just letting those watching this thread know that I haven't abandoned this project. It's been on the back burner for the last month while I saved up enough cash to buy the necessary materials for finishing the neck. Ordered a radius block, fret saw, miter guide, truss rod, and a router bit. I'll post more news next week. I'm pretty excited to start working again.


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## crazygtr (Nov 27, 2011)

I'll be here waiting.


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## 9voltchicken (Dec 10, 2011)

Wicked progress on the neck. She's coming along nicely 

Goodies! Hooray!





Prepping for the truss rod rout





Truss rod channel? Check.





This miter box is a godsend. Highly recommended!





Clean!





Clean!




Up next, tapering the fretboard, adding inlays, shaping the neck, and glue. Lots of glue.


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## BlackMastodon (Dec 10, 2011)

Well that about settles it, I'm getting that miter box for sure now when I need to do some fretting.


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## Darkstar124 (Dec 10, 2011)

Many props to you sir, many props to you.


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## 9voltchicken (Jan 5, 2012)

Another update, from the last two weeks. Some progress, mostly waiting for the last of the parts to arrive...

Rough cut the neck to something remotely resembling the final product.







Ordered the last of the goodies. 

6' Jescar EVO Gold fretwire (same size as dunlop 6100)
2x CTS 500k pot
1x HCP control pot (variable coil tap/filter)
1x 3 way switch
1x Neutrik locking jack
1x Black Tusq nut
6x Hipshot Griplock tuners
1x Hipshot bridge
String ferrules 
small and large shielded wire
water thin super glue




Four bolts or three bolts?


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## Pikka Bird (Jan 5, 2012)

Awesome progress. Very nice, clean work. I am really loving the headstock.

My vote is with four bolts, but with the top left one (in the picture) moved a little to the right.


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## theo (Jan 5, 2012)

My suggestion would be 4 bolts, spaced similarly to the ibanez AANJ placement.


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## Tranquilliser (Jan 5, 2012)

Wow, this thread really pulled on the heartstrings.
So inspiring, and I'm sure that this will be a guitar you never get rid of.
Very sorry to hear about your sister, and what a great way to let her memory carry on.


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## Solodini (Jan 6, 2012)

Pikka Bird said:


> Awesome progress. Very nice, clean work. I am really loving the headstock.
> 
> My vote is with four bolts, but with the top left one (in the picture) moved a little to the right.



Agreed, or 3 but with 2 at the body side and 1 at the neck side, if that makes sense.


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## MisterMcCruff (Jan 6, 2012)

Just spotted this thread and wanted to add my condolences for your loss and support for this project.

It's looking great. Love the body bevels, dude.


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## Fiction (Jan 6, 2012)

That headstock is awesome man, loving how this is turning out


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## 9voltchicken (Jan 9, 2012)

I'm about ready to mount the bridge to the body, but I have a couple questions about placement/intonation first. On a bridge, the saddles (obviously) move. Where in the in the saddle adjustment range do I call it 25.5"? Also, In what way does string gauges/tuning move the intonation point? I've done a few google searches and haven't turned up a whole lot concerning this. Maybe my google powers are weak?


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## 9voltchicken (Jan 13, 2012)

9voltchicken said:


> I'm about ready to mount the bridge to the body, but I have a couple questions about placement/intonation first. On a bridge, the saddles (obviously) move. Where in the in the saddle adjustment range do I call it 25.5"? Also, In what way does string gauges/tuning move the intonation point? I've done a few google searches and haven't turned up a whole lot concerning this. Maybe my google powers are weak?



Bump.

Anyone?


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## MAGGOTBRAIN (Jan 13, 2012)

This is coming along nicely...
I usually set the high e saddle a bit past 3/4s of its range. 
The heavier the string gauge , a longer distance between the nut and saddle is needed to compensate for string thickness. Please dont drill ANY holes based on my advise! Ima termite where it comes to guitar building. RestorationAD (a SS member)
has (had)a great tutorial on Project guitar forum,,,,But sadly it is gone due to a data base error. Maybe ping him to get some accurate directions.
Peace
Jack


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## AndrewG716 (Jan 13, 2012)

My recommendation would be to mount the saddles in the forward most position you are comfortable with at 25 7/16 in from the nut. This gives you around 3/16 to 1/4 to travel beyond the scale length, which should be plenty. I would expect your low string saddle to need to be 1/8 to maybe 3/16 longer than the scale length.

I checked these measurements by measuring a guitar I just intonated. I would recommend you fiddle around with a guitar that is similar to the one you are making to verify what you want.

EDIT: Measured another guitar and it was set about 1/8 in longer on all strings. This variation means that you definitely need to find a guitar similar to yours and measure it.


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## 9voltchicken (Jan 14, 2012)

Awesome, thanks guys. I have two schecters with angled tune o matic bridges. Both show the variance you described. Perhaps I'll seek council with my local tech and possibly restorationAD. More updates soon.


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## 9voltchicken (Jan 15, 2012)

(finally) Mounted the neck to the body. Isn't as clean as I'd like, but it's there. 







Now to install the truss rod, glue the fretboard on, and profile the back of the neck. 

What's the minimum amount of wood you would want to leave on the back of the neck (underneath the truss rod channel)? I was thinking about 1/8ths to 3/16ths of an inch, or about 3.1mm to 4.7mm.


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## Solodini (Jan 15, 2012)

Looks really good, dude. Nice work!


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## scherzo1928 (Jan 15, 2012)

About bridge placement. The stewmac scale thing calculator tells you exactly where to place your bridge. But you can set your saddles to (around) 90% of their forward-most position, and call the 25.5" scale right at the front face of the saddles. 

You are never going to have to "shorten" the scale to intonate a string (they will always meassure 25.5 or more... never less), but this gives you a tiny bit of margin of error when locating the bridge.



9voltchicken said:


> What's the minimum amount of wood you would want to leave on the back of the neck (underneath the truss rod channel)? I was thinking about 1/8ths to 3/16ths of an inch, or about 3.1mm to 4.7mm.


 
That sounds about right.


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## 9voltchicken (Jan 15, 2012)

Thanks scherzo, I recently contacted RestorationAD and he pointed that out too. Never noticed it before. He also gave me a link to his blog concerning bridge placement. If I keep learning at this rate I should be an expert in about... 19 years? 

Guitar Logistics: S906_4 setting the bridge


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## scherzo1928 (Jan 15, 2012)

9voltchicken said:


> Thanks scherzo, I recently contacted RestorationAD and he pointed that out too. Never noticed it before. He also gave me a link to his blog concerning bridge placement. If I keep learning at this rate I should be an expert in about... 19 years?
> 
> Guitar Logistics: S906_4 setting the bridge


 
Got to love that guy. Makes beautiful guitars, and always has a ton of knowledge to share.


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## musikizlife (Jan 16, 2012)

9voltchicken said:


> Thanks scherzo, I recently contacted RestorationAD and he pointed that out too. Never noticed it before. He also gave me a link to his blog concerning bridge placement. If I keep learning at this rate I should be an expert in about... 19 years?
> 
> Guitar Logistics: S906_4 setting the bridge



I love when my guitar comes up in conversation 

But forreal Brett is an incredible guy when it come to this stuff. I've learned soo much just from having one made and following the blog.

BTW Build is looking great man!


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## 9voltchicken (Jan 26, 2012)

A rather large update. Last couple weeks have been hectic to say the least. 

Glued the Fretboard on. Looking good so far.




Shaping the back of the neck. Not having a spoke shaver makes this a friggin mission in itself. 




Shaped the heel. Not quite as slim as I would have hoped. Total heel depth is about 1.2"




Volute was yes. 




Fretboard now has a 16" radius and inlays.




It now has frets. A little sloppy but it will be fixed. The EVO Gold fretwire contrasts very nicely with the Abalone and rosewood. Now I just have to figure out a body color.
ALSO, a note to those who may consider getting these frets. They came to me pre-bent at about a 10" radius. I had to straighten them by hand. This fretwire is VERY 'springy' and is quite a task to straighen. I still have blisters.




Profile shot. I can almost smell the finish line.






I'm still debating the controls. I never use the tone pot on either of my guitars but my tech strongly recommended having one. What do you guys think? Either:

3 way switch
1 volume
1 tone
1 coil filter pot

Or

3 way switch
2 volume
1 coil filter pot


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## theo (Jan 26, 2012)

What does a coil filter pot do? is that a blend between coil tapped and full humbucking?


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## 9voltchicken (Jan 27, 2012)

Variable coil tap basically. I believe it has the option of selecting between in/out out phase too. Never tried it before.


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## scherzo1928 (Jan 27, 2012)

It's looking really good dude!


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## Solodini (Jan 27, 2012)

2 volumes and write Arm The Homeless on it!  Well, maybe not the last bit. Is your brother still going to paint the guitar?


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## 9voltchicken (Jan 27, 2012)

Solodini said:


> 2 volumes and write Arm The Homeless on it!  Well, maybe not the last bit. Is your brother still going to paint the guitar?



Sadly, no. He lives back east and hasn't responded to any of my calls or messages. Sometimes things don't shape up the way we intend. Her favorite color was purple though.


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## Solodini (Jan 27, 2012)

I think that would look good.


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## TimmaethBoy (Jan 28, 2012)

It's really coming together now. Looking great.


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## Levi79 (Jan 28, 2012)

Wow dude, beautiful. I'd personally give it a vol and a tone. I've never found dual volumes useful, and I've recently been using my tone knob quite a bit actually.


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## 9voltchicken (Mar 1, 2012)

FINALLY got it back from the tech for a fret/nut job . So far I am absolutely astounded. It is very loud acoustically and sounds much brighter and well rounded than my Schecter. I'll wire 'er up and take it for a spin later tonight. Pics tomorrow.

On a side note, I may do a test concerning how finish impacts tone. Recording short clips before and after the guitar is painted. I've been curious about this ever since I first heard of people stripping the finish off their guitars and reporting a better tone. 

Also, Musician$Friend sent me an F spaced liquifire.  Waiting for them to send me a standard spaced one.


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## 9voltchicken (Mar 4, 2012)

As promised, Here she is. I am absolutely blown away by the monster tones I can get. The tech did an absolutely stellar job and set the action at about 1.5mm at 12th fret. Bends are effortless and smooth. The neck profile is a somewhat beefy D profile which I prefer. Neck thickness is .88" at the first fret, .95" at the 12th.

Previously all I've played were active-equipped Schecters and a couple of cheap ibanez and jacksons played through a practice amp. This was so worth it.

I'm still waiting for the replacement neck pup and she still needs a coat of paint. Also, I still have to order knobs since the pots have different size shafts...


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## Solodini (Mar 4, 2012)

Love it! Good work! The transparent cavity cover is really cool.


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## scherzo1928 (Mar 4, 2012)

Nothing like stringing up a piece of wood for the first time and turning it into an instrument... It's almoast magical.


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## iRaiseTheDead (Mar 5, 2012)

So sorry about your sister :c I hope you and her both enjoy what you are doing! I know its going to turn out awesome!


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## infernalservice (Mar 6, 2012)

Aren't all neck pickups f spaced? I think the 50-53 mm sizing only applies to bridge pickups.


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## Levi79 (Mar 6, 2012)

Really cool axe man! Good job!


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## 9voltchicken (Mar 7, 2012)

infernalservice said:


> Aren't all neck pickups f spaced? I think the 50-53 mm sizing only applies to bridge pickups.



No, some guitars with a wider spacing (Floyd rose equipped I believe) can take a f spaced neck pickup. The poles miss both the e strings on mine, so rather than risking it I just asked for an exchange.


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## Pushingink (Mar 7, 2012)

I am very sorry to hear of your loss. The guitar is coming out beautifully. I hope to build one in the near future myself and you are a huge inspiration.
I can't wait to see it finished.


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## thelarrinator (Mar 7, 2012)

9voltchicken said:


> As promised, Here she is. I am absolutely blown away by the monster tones I can get. The tech did an absolutely stellar job and set the action at about 1.5mm at 12th fret. Bends are effortless and smooth. The neck profile is a somewhat beefy D profile which I prefer. Neck thickness is .88" at the first fret, .95" at the 12th.
> 
> Previously all I've played were active-equipped Schecters and a couple of cheap ibanez and jacksons played through a practice amp. This was so worth it.
> 
> I'm still waiting for the replacement neck pup and she still needs a coat of paint. Also, I still have to order knobs since the pots have different size shafts...





THAT is absolutely stunning!
Congratulations 

I'm sorry for your loss, I know how it feels.
My thoughts are with you and your family.


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## theo (Apr 30, 2012)

BUMP, any updates on the paint job?


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## HaMMerHeD (Apr 30, 2012)

Looks good dude. Glad you were able to score better pickups than what I had laying around.


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## 9voltchicken (May 6, 2012)

theo said:


> BUMP, any updates on the paint job?



Not yet, I'll be renting a house soon with a garage to myself. This means space to do painting, woodworking and all the like. I already have my next two builds lined up. Blackmachine inspired neck-through 8 string and an ibanez-ish baritone 6. Stay tuned!


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## 9voltchicken (Jun 4, 2013)

Apologies in advance for resurrecting an ancient thread but I have news for those of you wondering if I fell off the face of the planet. The short answer is no. I've been planning and saving every nickel I own to attend a luthiery school in Arizona in august. I enjoyed building and working on guitars so much that I thought I'd risk turning this into something more. I will be keeping a blog following the builds I'm currently doing as well as providing some more in-depth information about the school for those of you who may be curious. The information I found about the school was a bit scarce to say the least.

More to come!


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## HaMMerHeD (Jun 4, 2013)

Roberto-Venn, I assume. Good school.


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## 9voltchicken (Jun 4, 2013)

HaMMerHeD said:


> Roberto-Venn, I assume. Good school.



Yep!


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## patata (Jun 4, 2013)

Uhm dude,I don't want to be an ass,but you have an extra pickup cavity on the guitar.


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## 9voltchicken (Jun 4, 2013)

patata said:


> Uhm dude,I don't want to be an ass,but you have an extra pickup cavity on the guitar.



That picture was taken before I actually put the second pickup in. When I ordered the pickup set they sent me an F spaced one instead of a regular one. I was just impatient/excited to upload pictures of my 'finished' work.

Here's what she looks like today. Still not quite finished, but functional.


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## Solodini (Jun 5, 2013)

How comfortable is that control layout, in your opinion. I know it's pretty much a strat layout but for some reason it looks kinda uncomfortable, whereas the rest looks really comfy!


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## 9voltchicken (Jun 5, 2013)

I designed the control layout rather poorly in hindsight. This build was a first for me and I learned a lot from it. The knobs are too close together and it IS possible to hit the switch accidentally. But, I don't gig so it's not an issue for me. I now know how -not- to do the control layout since I can see this being an issue for others if I were to build more guitars and sell them.

And the layout was copied from a Schecter. A few things were since I had to start somewhere.


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## Solodini (Jun 6, 2013)

You learn what to do by learning what to avoid. Take it as a positive.


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