Let The Creative Juices Flow!

[GPW]

   Unless you’re doing a lot of pup switching mid song , the switch can me more outta’ the way ....  The only thing about a switch in the horns is those long wire runs ... making wiring more difficult ... and if not done right , more a chance to pick up noise ...  and another back cavity to route and backplate to make ... 

[Baz]

   Unless you’re doing a lot of pup switching mid song , the switch can me more outta’ the way ....  The only thing about a switch in the horns is those long wire runs ... making wiring more difficult ... and if not done right , more a chance to pick up noise ...  and another back cavity to route and backplate to make ... 

i know, i really didn't want to have the switch on the horns, i would very much prefer to keep everything in the one cavity, i just gotta find a way that would be comfortable to play and use the controls, but not be too "crowded" at the same time

[thebird55]

Just my opinion, but the switch on the PRS throws it "off balance", aesthetically. Maybe it's just the white cap, though.

I'm a little concerned about the structural integrity of that horn after being routed out. It's kind of thin to begin with.

[Baz]

yeah, i kinda had the same though, but it's something i can experiment with, it's not like i'll copy it 100%, i like to make my own adjustments to anything i get an idea from i agree with you on the bottom horn being a bit thin, but the other horn (the longer one) really isn't as bad as it looks, i think it's just the angle of the photo making it look a bit thin, the thinnest point on that horn is about an inch, whereas the other one is just under half an inch, i might need to adjust the horns later on anyway as even still the wider horn might be too thin to fit a cavity for a switch if i put it there, and looking at the first picture with the switch there, i think the switch would be positioned further into the body if i put it up there instead of so far out on the horn... structural integrity of the guitar, especially in that area where it'll have virtually no pressure put on it ever, wouldn't be too bad, the wood is alot stronger than people realise, on the last guitar i made, the controls cavity for it is at it's thinnest to the edge of the guitar maybe less than half a centimetre (1/5 of an inch) so i don't see it being too much of a problem, but i'll probably make some adjustments later anyway... i just don't wanna have to drastically change it cause i'm really liking it the way it is, haha

[Baz]

so... been a while, huh? i'd planned to have done heaps more before posting in here again, but i dunno what's happened, i've just been really busy it seems, finsing time is harder than i thought, not to mention australian summer + tin shed = too hot to be bothered to do much at a time...

anywho, i wanted to get the basic shape of my neck cut out and maybe have made a start on my fretboard by the end of this week, but tuesday night on my way home from work i stopped to help a lost dog, it didn't run away when i got out of my car, it actually came up to me and let me pet it, then when i started looking for a collar to see if i could find where it lived it decided to bite my hand and one of it's teeth went straight into my right hand thumb, with a few other teeth leaving a few marks, so with my thumb out of action i can't do anything, i can't even hold a pick cause it hurts too much, so no playing for me either... but, here's something i did a couple of weeks ago, people on facebook have probably already seen it though... i will make more progress soon, i'm finding it hard to manage work with guitar building and my girlfriend, i'm working towards getting a new job though, i'm sick of supermarkets, haha, but yeah, sorry for the agonizingly slow progress, but things will speed up soon enough, i'm sure

anyways, i know it's not much, but at least it's something... the wood smells really nice when you work with it too

[BobRoss]

Mhm I agree with Bird, the switch on that PRS just looks a bit wierd.
Personally I would put the switch either below the tone knobs or somewhere like you would put it on a les paul, in your case on the upper horn.

Anyway it looks great so far!

btw, did the dog go through some flesh? did you get a Tetanus shot?

[GPW]

    "No good deed goes unpunished “ ...    

    Before you start enjoying the smell of the wood , you may want to check on whether it’s Toxic or not .... some woods are just not that “people friendly” ...  watch your dust!!!  ...   I developed an allergy to spalted ash  (Ash + Fungus) , and can’t work with it any longer , without gloves and respirator...

[thebird55]

Animal bites will get infected. If you can't get systemic antibiotics, treat it aggressively with topical antibiotics. Start by cleaning it thoroughly, no matter how it hurts. (Preferably right after it happened). Do not just hope for the best.

[Baz]

Animal bites will get infected. If you can't get systemic antibiotics, treat it aggressively with topical antibiotics. Start by cleaning it thoroughly, no matter how it hurts. (Preferably right after it happened). Do not just hope for the best.

it's all good, don't worry, it happened at midnight so no chance of a tetanus shot at that hour, i went to the doctor earlier and cleaned it when i got home about 5 minutes after the bite happened, i didn't need a tetanus shot, but i have antibiotics that i'm taking over the next 5 days, it did puncture skin, the thumb was the worst hit, the rest are just scratches really, i've followed all doctors orders, i'll live, i'm just glad we don't have rabies in australia, haha

as for wood toxins, i've learned to research the wood before working with it, i'm more concerned with the snakewood than any of the other wood, i think i might be allergic to regular ebony, last time i worked with it i got a lung infection from it, it smelled like chocolate cake though that taught me to use dust masks though, so i'm extra careful now, i did the truss rod about 2 weeks ago, i wanted to do a bit more before posting my progress, but time is something i don't seem to have much of lately :/

as for the switch, i've been playing around a little with it, i'm thinking i can make it work pretty well with the knobs and save routing an extra cavity, but it won't be a huge deal if it goes on that upper horn

in other news, i might be getting a good deal on something for a pretty nice side project i'll get going if it falls through, no guarantees at this stage though

[Baz]

well... this has been a bit of a flop... progress is nowhere near as quick as i hoped but no matter, i promise to make more progress this week! tomorrow or thursday i will have some more progress to show! even if it's not much, haha, all these threads of people building guitars is making me desperate to get building again, haha... i really wanna get the fretboard started, so, with any luck, i can get that slotted out and maybe use some of the spare snakewood to make the pickup surrounds like i've been making plans to to do sorry i've been taking so long to do anything... work's been keeping me busy and any time i have away from work i'm usually spending with my girlfriend, lol, but this week i should have a bit of time to get something done

[Baz]

ok... so when i said "this week" i might have meant next week... or the week after... but i've finally had some spare time today, all these building threads have gotten me itching to build again... i don't know why it's taken so long... just been really busy with work i guess :/ i haven't done much, but it's progress that's picture worthy! i have a paddle cut out and ready for sanding down (i forgot how much saw dust gets over you when building guitars so it's not sanded yet) i almost somehow made a mistake of making the nut end wider than the heel... no idea how i managed to measuure it wrong, but it's a good thing i realised when i did... i was about to cut it out! i solved my wax problem too, i just used a router, locked it at surface level and went at it, i had to remeasure everything, but that was way easier than trying to cut it out to a line in the wax and then working out how to get it off later, i tried a chisel and scraping it off, but that didn't work out too well, router was the best bet, you'll notice i haven't done the headstock yet, that's because i'm not entirely sure what i'm gonna do with it yet, i wanna do an angle on it, but i have no way of being able to cut it and flipping it around like the traditional way... i've seen guitars that have the angle cut into them and leave it as one solid piece, but i'm not sure how to go about doing it... ideas anyone?

anywho, pics of the unsanded paddle as it stands at the moment

[sonofaglitch]

Looks promising!

[Baz]

thanks man, i can't wait to get it sanded when i have more time on my hands, in the mean time i'm racking my head about going about this angled headstock part... i'm not entirely sure how to go about it, i know it's not exactly recommended either, but i'd rather keep the grain of the wood consistent than cut a piece off and flip it over to be glued back on... i suppose i *could* spend alot of time with a sander and see how that goes, but i've read for the back you should leave a bump, much like the ones in these pictures and am wondering how he manages to carve it into a lump without ruining the surrounding wood... is it files? extremely careful sanding? it's got me stumped on how to go about the one piece angled neck... any help is very much appreciated!

here it is rough cut out

then after filing? sanding? i dunno :/

then this is it finished


getting pretty stumped with this one :/ (the pictures have no resemblance to any design i'm making, it's the technique i'm looking for to learn so i can use it in this current build)

[GPW]

   Nice headstock with a volute     .... nothing wrong with that !!! 

[Baz]

that's not my work though... i wanna know how to do it i just don't know how to go about doing it and can't figure it out...

anywho, i got bored today, so i decided to finally get around to slotting my fretboard... for some reason i'd been putting it off so much cause i thought it'd take too long... about an hour later and it's slotted!