Australian/New Zealand Luthiers Forum

Thanks for the encouragement John. I'm sure most of you guys re-live your early mistakes vicariously thru us new guys... This is truely an exciting time for this project... 1. I have what looks like a guitar, and not a collection of pieces :D 2. Today I routed for the truss rod, but have a bit more ...

I'm thinking about mortise and tennon next time...Seems, from the video that was posted here earlier that it's a much quicker way to do it. I did want to try the dovetail first. In fact I was just following the book. As to the shape of the bridge, I had an idea, but I don't think I like the way it l...

Exactly what I did. Clean out the center to proper depth, then hit the dove tail on the sides, leaving only a corner to clean out...

Same on the neck side...

problem I had was with the fitting after the cutting was done, but I figured it out next time round...

Don't know why I couldn't edit my previous post to add a comment, but.. I'm not too sure about the bridge yet, but it's a work in progress... Also, failing to find a router bit deep enough, I did a multi-cut using dovetail and straight bits, and finished off by hand...Was going great, until I stuffe...

Hi all, I haven't given up, nor used the beastie for a marshmallow roast---yet. Finally ran out of excuses for not fitting the neck. A bit of a challenge for me on the first go, but it's rock-solid, even if it's not beautiful. The nasty bits will be covered by the fretboard, but. Here's where I am t...

In all honesty, I'm practically tonedeaf. I've ruined my hearing with too many years of power tools and no ear protection. I can get a guitar close, but I need a tuner to dial it in

On the plus side, the frequency of complaining women seems to have been totally obliterated

Hah> Yeah, according to the book, the 20th fret falls somewhere in between the 17th and 18th.....

I did notice the surname error, too....Woulda P'd me off for sure. Nothing like a good proofread!

Also think the last fret should be 441.97mm, not 411.97

Yeah, the creeping gain one gets by not working from the zero is actually amazing....I've been on building jobs where the difference between the idea of adding on and working from zero can end up with a foot or more discrepancy at the other end. Fortunately, the book gives me the numbers without hav...

Fair Call, Martin. I stopped and got a good rule with 1/2 mm marks, so that should be as close as I need to get....

Cheers,
Nick

I'm working on some other bits for the guitar I'm building, and the fretboard is one..... I have an idea for making a jig to cut the fret slots, but I don't think I'm likely to find a ruler that mmeeasures down to 14.213456inches, so I plan to make my own, and from what I can tell my Ovation Ballade...

Thank you, Bill... I'm at a bit of a stopping point until I get a chance to get to Bunnings and find a router bit for the dovetail. I'm not too confident to try and make one by hand, although I do have long familiarity with my tools as a carpenter, but I think discretion is called for here..... I am...

Thanks, Martin. Did that.....

On another tangent, where do you guys get the threaded inserts and bolts for that style of neck? I've looked at a few Aussie sites, but don't find them. StewMac?

Yeah, thanks for the post. I watched them this morning.

That's not the really harrowing part, but the routing.....


Off to Bunnings tomorrow morning to look for a deeper cutting bit, and then new jigs....

Thanks Martin,

That means a new jig for the neck block, and some chiseling......I can do that....

Cheers,
Nick

OOPS...seem to have posted at the same time....So, I assume that the 3/4 depth is really needed...Dang, that means new jigs

OK, here's a question. What depth of cut is needed for the dovetail? I'm set up and ready to go--lots of carpentry experience--with jigs made, and router at the ready.....

Is a 9/16" deep cut OK?

Nick

Well, the body is assembled, and the neck is only roughed out. Is it easy to create the bolt part of the assembly? I can make a new jig for the mortise and tenon part easily enough. I also saw in the book I'm using, Kinkade, that it's possible to epoxy a mortise and tenon joint, which I've been thin...

I've gotten to the point that I'm ready to make the dovetail joint for the guitar, but I can only find a 9/16" deep cutting bit. Is this OK, or should I keep looking for something else? The plans seem to show a depth of 3/4" more than 9/16".... As I see it, I've only got one shot at this, as any fur...

Trying not to be a pest here, but I've reached a point--humidity issues aside--that scares the bejeezus out of me. I've made jigs for the dovetails joint on this guitar, as that's what the book calls for, and what it's set up for now. My test pieces have a nice tight fit, after fine tuning...and I'v...

Point well taken on the humidity. I did take note of the mention in the book, and was careful to do that work in a dry period. Trouble is we have no AC, as we don't really use it. Our house is designed to stay cool in the heat.....I will most definitely invest in a case humidifier, and keep her in t...

Thanks again everyone. Today was a MFer. I rough cut the purflings out of the MOP blanks and then final shaped then with my dremel and a sanding drum on it. Took about 6 hours, thiogh the end got better...As with everything each time you do it it gets a bit easier. I wanted the MOP because I think i...

Thanks for the welcome, and Brunswick Heads is most definitely NOT Byron Bay, but is also not too well known---and we like it like that. In my 8 years here, I've been to Byron Bay 20 times, and once in the past 5. It's a dump, but the council here thinks its paradise...beh... Bruns is really a nice ...

Hi Martin, and thanks for the welcome...and the complement. I've just been reading thru a few of the threads here, and I'm a little embarassed to bring my project to your attention, given the quality of the work you all do.... No, I meant that the MOP is to be the purfling for the soundboard. You ca...

Hi to all the members here. I hope I'm not posting in the wrong place, and I very much think that I am not in the same league as the rest of you...But, I am in the process of making an acoustic guitar, as my beloved wife gave me a book, which included plans for an OM guitar, and either a pile of kin...