Guitar disasters forum? Build tragedies maybe?

[Wayde Christie]

Hi all,

I don't know about you, but I occasionally eff things up.

I would like a place to share such guitar building tragedies with a group of supportive people who truly understand.

I have an almost completed neck that I ruined with a router last night, and I'd like to post a picture, but there doesn't seem to be a place here to do so...

Can I rely on you all in my time of need?

Sincerely,

Wayde.

[Kamusur]

I'd need permission from the moderators for such a lengthy post if i were to advertise all my stuff ups Wayde. Maybe we need something like "Beyond Guitars" -BG. Seriously though post the pics you'll get plenty of help here for sure.
Rout through blues- turn it into a laminated neck, inlays cover things as well. Remember every problem has a solution.

Steve

[kiwigeo]

I make a few stuff ups but in the end the root cause comes down to inadequate planning. A good example....a few days ago I did a glue up job without first doing a trial clamp up. Predictably the glue went on and then when it came to clamp up guess who was running around the shop trying to find enough clamps to adequately do the job????

[Kim]

in the end the root cause comes down to inadequate planning.

Bullshit Marty...at the end of the day it's 'always' the bloody dogs fault!

That's the only reason you feed'em and tak'em to the vet when their crook, so they'll stick around for a kick in the arse when they stupidly allow you to make a blunder... yet still wag their tail in celebration with you when you get something right...Yep, no two ways about it, everyone needs a bench dog and my kelpie, she's one of the most important resources in the shed.....and she knows it to...don't ya Peppa....wag,wag,wag

Cheers

Kim

[demonx]

Everyone has their moments. Here's my first one for this year

Sometimes once you carve you find things you don't expect, for example in this Sassafras top there was a small hollow cavity under the surface.

I carved through the hollow as it wasn't very deep, but then I wasn't happy with the resulting shape of the carve. QC steps in, cuts it up and I've got some new timber on the way that is even better than what I cut off.

[Wayde Christie]

Here's my effort

[Wayde Christie]

Ask me why the dowel is in there too

[kiwigeo]

Ask me why the dowel is in there too

Been there done that.

My gaff was not actually putting the tuners against the side of headstock to check fit. With the holes drilled I "discovered" that the tuner plate would end up sticking 10mm past the end of the headstock.

The router cutter "nick" is easily fixed. Plane off the IRW rear veneer and re-do it. If you're anal like me...re-do the upper veneers as well. The nick in the side of headstock....it's going to end up covered by tuner plate so I wouldn't worry about it.

Not as big a disaster as it first appears.

Were you routing holding the router or was it done on a router table? It looks like you tilted the router a bit and ended up with the nick.

[nnickusa]

Not enough room to list mine. I'm sure one will turn up before this thread disappears down the list, but....

[56nortondomy]

This is a what happened last year because i was a bit lazy. Wayne

[christian]

I definitely make my share of mistakes thankfully I seemed to have eliminated the big ones with jigs designed to avoid them. But when I do make a mistake it's usually router related.
I don't know about anyone else, but try to forget the past by making the mistake into a pile of kindling, I believe these small sacrifices keep the Guitar Building God happy

Christian.

[charangohabsburg]

I don't know about anyone else, but try to forget the past by making the mistake into a pile of kindling, I believe these small sacrifices keep the Guitar Building God happy

Oh no, not me! I try to remember all my mistakes in order to make next time different ones!

[needsmorecowbel]

haha markus!

[christian]

haha so many mistakes so few guitars in which to make them.....

[woodrat]

Wayde, I don't usually let anyone know how it happened....I just accept that it did!.....still not very nice when it happens....here is one of mine and the story of the "save"...

viewtopic.php?f=1&t=4181&hilit=accidents+happen&start=0

Cheers

John

[Bob Connor]

This happened last week.

A screw was protruding through the saddle slotting jig and punctured the top.

Routed the top off and built a new one which was sprayed yesterday.

Bugger.

[charangohabsburg]

Now that's a bummer. But you still can sell that top on eBay: "Very rare, by master luthier discarded guitar top, only one minor flaw. Build your own master quality guitar for the price of next to nothing." Starting bid only $876 or so. With a bit of luck you'll end up selling it for 4k.

[Mark McLean]

15 minutes ago. Dead sober. No hurry.
I was drilling some holes in the edge of the fingerboard for side dot position markers. I have already made most of the mistakes that you can with this task (or so I thought). 1. Don't use a power drill, a small hand drill is safer for this. 2. Be careful of alignment - I have made a small jig to align each of the holes the same distance from the edge of fingerboard. 3. Be careful of the drill bit wandering off the spot - so I thought I would make a small indentation with a nail punch first. This has worked out OK for me before but with this ebony bound fingerboard it turned out to be a bad idea. A light blow on the punch sent a chip flying off the corner of the binding. So - lesson learned. Don't ever deliver brute force to the edge of a piece of brittle wood like ebony. I found the chip and glued it back on with CA and it will probably come out invisibly. But it kind of ruined the fun of a nice sunday afternoon.

[scuffle]

i think this thread is healthy for us show our vulnerable sides!

i have been putting together my own design of a single cut guitar (yup its electric) and i am VERY excited to get it done. I was carving the neck and I got a bit greedy with the thickness. I love thin necks (the thinner the better) and I should of stopped at 19mm but...i wanted 18mm...so file, file, file away until...bam!

super happy with the shape

back carve is awesome

beutiful flame maple neck...and a truss rod :(

yup...thats the truss rod channel...from the BACK of the neck!
what a dolt
totally thought i had the measurments exact. 6mm fretboard + 10mm truss rod channel = 16mm right? thought i had room for an 18mm neck

anyway...ripping it off an making a new one. thank buggery its for me and not a customer!

[Wayde Christie]

OK. So just now I've ruined my gorgeous laminated Indian rosewood sides by cutting one of the contours into the bottom, instead of the top.

So far, I have ruined *every* component of this guitar.

It doesn't want to be made

[Wayde Christie]

When a bearing on a router bit dislodges.

[Wayde Christie]

I think this thread has become a self-fulfilling prophecy

[kiwigeo]

When a bearing on a router bit dislodges.

Oh shit!!

[56nortondomy]

I don't think you should have started this thread Wayde, i think you've jinxed yourself. Wayne

[Nick]

Geez, I feel for you Wayde. Hows the forehead where you been banging it on the workbench? Some guitars just don't want an easy birth.