Yea, its a bit ironic, the backside grain is more spectacular and nice than the top!
No, i didn't route any of the cavities or cuts myself. Put it this way: I generally concider myself confident and "good" with tools and design, but many moments in this project were new to me; i have never really done any qualified woodwork on exclusive wood before. Also, i dont have any really good workspace for too dustcreating works (read: sawdust). So to keep the risks of first-time-failure at minimum i orderred the stuff all pre-drilled and pre-routed, just leaving the finnish, assembly and adjustment work to myself. The only drill-job i had to do was for the pickguard, the woodmounted pickup, strap holders and jack screws. Confident and convenient... maybe a bit cowardly but... for this time it felt right. This is also the reason why i chose guitar(s) with bolt-on necks, not glue-in. Less risk of f"""kin things up. But i love to do my homework and get the feeling for new stuff. I have never polished anything with steel wool before, now i have. For next project - if there will be one - i guess i will take things a step further and start with a more raw platform.
Cheers!