Long time no post for me lately. I have been very busy working on my guitar building project. I have been chronicling my progress in the Blog section here at TG. I am moving into the home stretch so I figured I would make a post to inform anyone interested. If you are bored sometime swing by the Blogs in the community section and let me know what you think.
thanks,
Bill
Guitar building project
Bill,
I had no idea that you were doing this. I have a ton of questions, like did you start from scratch? is this your first attempt at a guitar? Were did you get the wood?
It all looks great and it also looks like your really smokin along with progress. I'll keep checking your blog now that I know what your doing.
Scott
I had no idea that you were doing this. I have a ton of questions, like did you start from scratch? is this your first attempt at a guitar? Were did you get the wood?
It all looks great and it also looks like your really smokin along with progress. I'll keep checking your blog now that I know what your doing.
Scott
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neverfoundthetime
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Bill, this is absolutely astonishing. What a brilliant project and blog. Wondered where you'd been.
The blogs are so hidden away these days, I missed it and I reckon most else did too. So here's the link folks, go check this amazing project out.
She's looking a bute already Bill, You must be getting real excited about finishing it.
http://www.totallyguitars.com/member-bl ... er/dieguy/
The blogs are so hidden away these days, I missed it and I reckon most else did too. So here's the link folks, go check this amazing project out.
She's looking a bute already Bill, You must be getting real excited about finishing it.
http://www.totallyguitars.com/member-bl ... er/dieguy/
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neverfoundthetime
- Posts: 48
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I have to post again Bill. I can't tell you how impressed I am with your guitar building project and how you have shared it in your blog. And the way you have involved your son Blake on this is really special. It's much more than a beautiful guitar you are creating here, its a story and experience you and your boy will never forget.It's great parenting. I just love the whole thing and how you have gone about it. Congratulations!
Bill, I was beginning to wonder if you had fell off the planet. 
It is good to see that you have been putting your spare time to good use. This is just fantastic!!! I can't wait to see and hear the finished project. I have to second what Chris said, involving your son in this project is just wonderful. The chance to work with his 'old man' and build such a beautiful guitar is an experience that he will never forget and I am sure he will share the stories with his own children.
Good on ya'
other Bill
It is good to see that you have been putting your spare time to good use. This is just fantastic!!! I can't wait to see and hear the finished project. I have to second what Chris said, involving your son in this project is just wonderful. The chance to work with his 'old man' and build such a beautiful guitar is an experience that he will never forget and I am sure he will share the stories with his own children. Good on ya'
other Bill
Bill,
I have been thinking of this as well. I will follow this closely. I see kits on the web, did you begin there? Is that what comes in the supplies? I must say your work is impressive. What is the cost of building your own, not including your time, which isn't measurable since it's time with your son!.
Man I have to try this!
Pete
I have been thinking of this as well. I will follow this closely. I see kits on the web, did you begin there? Is that what comes in the supplies? I must say your work is impressive. What is the cost of building your own, not including your time, which isn't measurable since it's time with your son!.
Man I have to try this!
Pete
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Music Junkie
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- Joined: Fri Mar 13, 2009 7:17 am
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Bill:
I am in awe........
Being an avid woodworker, I have been investigating luthier classes quite a bit on and off. Unfortunately, there is nothing local to me. My wife bought me three or four books for Christmas last year, and I thumb through them quite often. I am hesitant to give it a go without investing in a few more of the basic tools. I love how your bending iron came out. Did you find that it worked quite well? I priced a few of them out. Vary quite a bit depending on what you want (I like the light bulb source too, as I am a big fan of keeping things constant rather than fluctuating so much). Where did you purchase your woods? Did you buy on-line, or do you have a local hardwood supplier? I have a nice little place here that supplies much of what I would need wood-wise. I also have a planer to size it down to the proper thickness. I would need to invest in many more clamps, and a few of the specialty tools like the fret presser and saw, things like that. Seems like it could be a very daunting task, but one that would be quite enjoyable if you take your time and exercise patience. The inlay work looks pretty sweet too!
Thanks so much for chronicling your work, as it is turning out to be quite beautiful. How do you plan on finishing it? Are you going to use a spray lacquer, or try to go for the newer UV type finishes? Are you going to do this at home as well, or take it in somewhere to have it applied? I have found finishes to be quite tricky at times in less than perfect conditions, although by the looks of your work to date, you probably know more than I do on the subject....
I cannot wait to see AND HEAR the finished product. You should be damn proud of your work to date, as it looks amazing.
Cheers!
Jason
I am in awe........
Being an avid woodworker, I have been investigating luthier classes quite a bit on and off. Unfortunately, there is nothing local to me. My wife bought me three or four books for Christmas last year, and I thumb through them quite often. I am hesitant to give it a go without investing in a few more of the basic tools. I love how your bending iron came out. Did you find that it worked quite well? I priced a few of them out. Vary quite a bit depending on what you want (I like the light bulb source too, as I am a big fan of keeping things constant rather than fluctuating so much). Where did you purchase your woods? Did you buy on-line, or do you have a local hardwood supplier? I have a nice little place here that supplies much of what I would need wood-wise. I also have a planer to size it down to the proper thickness. I would need to invest in many more clamps, and a few of the specialty tools like the fret presser and saw, things like that. Seems like it could be a very daunting task, but one that would be quite enjoyable if you take your time and exercise patience. The inlay work looks pretty sweet too!
Thanks so much for chronicling your work, as it is turning out to be quite beautiful. How do you plan on finishing it? Are you going to use a spray lacquer, or try to go for the newer UV type finishes? Are you going to do this at home as well, or take it in somewhere to have it applied? I have found finishes to be quite tricky at times in less than perfect conditions, although by the looks of your work to date, you probably know more than I do on the subject....
I cannot wait to see AND HEAR the finished product. You should be damn proud of your work to date, as it looks amazing.
Cheers!
Jason
Wow I am glad I posted this, i assumed everyone had seen it and I was getting a little self conscience. Thank you all for the very kind words. If anyone has any questions please feel free to ask. Anybody out there thinking of trying it I highly recommend it. It is so relaxing and enjoyable, at least for me, that I wish I had started years ago. To answer a few questions:
I purchased all of my wood from Luthiers Mercantile Inc. http://www.lmii.com/
I did not purchase a kit as I wanted more flexibility with the materials.
I started completely from scratch. the only thing I purchased that was not just dimensioned lumber was the fingerboard. I bought the fingerboard with the slots already cut. I did this to save a little money by avoiding buying a fret saw blade.
I did not spend a fortune on specialty tooling. I have used the following on this project:
Table saw - 10" Jet contractors series.
Band saw - 14" Jet contractors series
Palm Sander
Palm Router - Bosch Colt with bearing attachment
Belt/disc sander
Set of Chisels
Dremel with various cutting and grinding bits
2 different hand planes
A ton of various styles of clamps
Thats about it. i did cheat a little by cutting some of my templates on the Laser system at work. This could have easily been done on the bandsaw.
I would estimate I have about $350 invested so far. I still need to purchase tuners and finishing supplies.
Speaking of finishing I have not decided what I am going to use for a finish yet. This is the area I am most unsure about as I do not have a ton of experience with anything other than Polyurathane, which I am obviously not going to use. i am thinking of a brushed satin lacquer, We will see.
I think that answers most if not all of the questions asked. Again feel free to throw out questions if you have any.
Thanks once more for the very kind and generous words of encouragement. It is nice to have folks like you all sharing in this experience that my son and I have undertaken.
Bill
I purchased all of my wood from Luthiers Mercantile Inc. http://www.lmii.com/
I did not purchase a kit as I wanted more flexibility with the materials.
I started completely from scratch. the only thing I purchased that was not just dimensioned lumber was the fingerboard. I bought the fingerboard with the slots already cut. I did this to save a little money by avoiding buying a fret saw blade.
I did not spend a fortune on specialty tooling. I have used the following on this project:
Table saw - 10" Jet contractors series.
Band saw - 14" Jet contractors series
Palm Sander
Palm Router - Bosch Colt with bearing attachment
Belt/disc sander
Set of Chisels
Dremel with various cutting and grinding bits
2 different hand planes
A ton of various styles of clamps
Thats about it. i did cheat a little by cutting some of my templates on the Laser system at work. This could have easily been done on the bandsaw.
I would estimate I have about $350 invested so far. I still need to purchase tuners and finishing supplies.
Speaking of finishing I have not decided what I am going to use for a finish yet. This is the area I am most unsure about as I do not have a ton of experience with anything other than Polyurathane, which I am obviously not going to use. i am thinking of a brushed satin lacquer, We will see.
I think that answers most if not all of the questions asked. Again feel free to throw out questions if you have any.
Thanks once more for the very kind and generous words of encouragement. It is nice to have folks like you all sharing in this experience that my son and I have undertaken.
Bill
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Hydroman52
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Bill,
I'm glad you posted this here. When I checked out your blog, it looked so interesting that I popped a bowl of popcorn and settled in to read it. Just finished and I'm very impressed. What a great project you have there. And your son gets to participate, too. What a bonus. That's something that he will never forget. That's too cool for words. Your headstock logo is perfect and everything looks great.
You are probably aware that you are within a stones throw of two premier guitar builders in Charles Hoffman and Jim Olson. In fact, I own an early Charles Hoffman guitar (S/N 163) and have been wanting to stop in at his store and see if he would chat with me about it. It's probably the best guitar that I've ever played, and my favorite of the ones that I own. Maybe a cool field trip for you and your son would be to check out his store. Here is his WEB site, you will probably find it interesting if you haven't already checked it out:
http://www.hoffmanguitars.com
You might find this part of his site most interesting:
http://www.hoffmanguitars.com/building_a_guitar.htm
Here is Jim Olson's site:
http://www.olsonguitars.com/index.html
I understand that Jim and Charles help each other out now and then.
On another note, many years ago, I lived in Apple Valley. That's when I was still in grade school in the early 60s. I remember riding along when my Mom would take my Dad to the St. Paul Airport to catch a flight to some part of the world for his work. It's was a great place for a kid to grow up.
Anyway, I'll be following your blog with great interest now.
Thanks for posting this,
Hydroman52
I'm glad you posted this here. When I checked out your blog, it looked so interesting that I popped a bowl of popcorn and settled in to read it. Just finished and I'm very impressed. What a great project you have there. And your son gets to participate, too. What a bonus. That's something that he will never forget. That's too cool for words. Your headstock logo is perfect and everything looks great.
You are probably aware that you are within a stones throw of two premier guitar builders in Charles Hoffman and Jim Olson. In fact, I own an early Charles Hoffman guitar (S/N 163) and have been wanting to stop in at his store and see if he would chat with me about it. It's probably the best guitar that I've ever played, and my favorite of the ones that I own. Maybe a cool field trip for you and your son would be to check out his store. Here is his WEB site, you will probably find it interesting if you haven't already checked it out:
http://www.hoffmanguitars.com
You might find this part of his site most interesting:
http://www.hoffmanguitars.com/building_a_guitar.htm
Here is Jim Olson's site:
http://www.olsonguitars.com/index.html
I understand that Jim and Charles help each other out now and then.
On another note, many years ago, I lived in Apple Valley. That's when I was still in grade school in the early 60s. I remember riding along when my Mom would take my Dad to the St. Paul Airport to catch a flight to some part of the world for his work. It's was a great place for a kid to grow up.
Anyway, I'll be following your blog with great interest now.
Thanks for posting this,
Hydroman52