Anyone interested in making their own guitars

AndyT
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Sun May 09, 2010 8:24 pm

I've looked at some kits and they usually cost more than if I just purchased the guitar already built. Other than the fun of it and having done it yourself, whats the benefit to a build your own?


smips65
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Sun May 09, 2010 9:29 pm

AndyT wrote:
I've looked at some kits and they usually cost more than if I just purchased the guitar already built. Other than the fun of it and having done it yourself, whats the benefit to a build your own?

Bonding.


Review my post about a repair guitar. Building one from scratch, or restoring an old one from the ashes, is just so much more satisfying than purchasing one outright.

just my 2 cents worth....


tom18
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Sun May 09, 2010 10:04 pm

Bob,
It seems there really is a fair amount of interest in guitar construction here. Thanks for kicking off an interesting thread.
Matt,
I'm all ears. If TG wants has anything to share on the subject it would be most welcome.
Tom


KennyF
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Mon May 10, 2010 4:51 am

I'm not seeing any photos in Bob's post... Is it just me?


ffsooo3
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Mon May 10, 2010 5:47 am

KennyF wrote:
I'm not seeing any photos in Bob's post... Is it just me?
Check photos under his profile. I can only see small photos. Is there a way to see them in their full size?


professor bob
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Mon May 10, 2010 9:06 am

Hi, no it is not you. I am working on seeing photos and hearing sound from my posts but I am just learning the TG way.
Bob


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Music Junkie
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Mon May 10, 2010 10:11 am

AndyT wrote:
I've looked at some kits and they usually cost more than if I just purchased the guitar already built. Other than the fun of it and having done it yourself, whats the benefit to a build your own?
Andy:

Most of the kits that I have seen are less expensive than buying one already completed. If you get a chance you can check out this site: http://www.stewmac.com/ you can see some pricing. I am also thinking of buying one of the ukulele kits to give it a go. I figure if I am going to have to restring one to left handed anyway, I might as well start from scratch....

For me it would be a sense of accomplishment, along with a better understanding of how the guitar works. Plus, I find wood working to be very relaxing like guitar playing.

J


professor bob
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Mon May 10, 2010 4:32 pm

near my picture you can see my profile, click there and then click the 5 photo button, then click guitar building, then click each photo to make it big.


sbutler
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Mon May 10, 2010 6:07 pm

Bob,

How did you set the frets in the fretboard? It would seems to me that there is a lot of exact measuring and cutting that would take some precision going on there.


Scott


scott s
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Mon May 10, 2010 7:25 pm

Andy, the kits aren't cheap to be sure. I have about $650 into the first one but it's soild wood...no laminates. It's taken a year to get the action to where I want it but it plays and sounds beter (IMO) than the ones costing a lot more in the store....and I learned to tweak it myself. With good parts, good support, some woodworking skills oh... and a bunch of patients it is likley you'll have a better sounding guitar than you can buy in the store for the money. Unless you have some advance wood fininishing skills it likley won't look better however. The finish process is possiblly the hardest part to duplicate. Someone mentioned Stewart McDonald in one of the posts, LMI is another parts/kits dealer. That said some independant luthiers are also a good option for a first try as the support might be better. SS


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