Cobs TLA-1 First build

After the possibly the slowest start on record I'm underway with my first attempt. It is an ash TL with maple FB. I received the kit back in November but have just started in the last few weeks.

I took the earlier advice and put the whole show together to make sure it all fits and works, so far completed, head stock cutout, arm and belly body contours, all hardware fitted, strung up and tested.

Have gone for the Black grover machine heads, Tone Rider HC Pups, 6 saddle string through bridge, black pickguard with white middle ply.

Have just pulled it all down to start working on the finish. There appears to be a thin laminate covering the entire back of the body, have just notices the edge splintering slightly whilst sanding the edge and visible glue line, do all the tl have this laminate cover on the back?

Cobba, what a great start (better late than never). No kits have laminate on them. probably just glue. A fair amount of sanding is required if you want a great finish, especially to get rid of the glue. as its an ash body you wont have any trouble there.

Great effort on the string through. especially on a first build.

:cool:

Great start, if there is anything you are concerned about take a closer pic and the team will chime in

Thanks Andy for the feedback, photo shows (hopefully) what I mean, originally I thought it had had a coat of some sort of sealant or wood treatment etc. on the back but as I got into the sanding and trying to put a bit of a radius on the edge it looks almost like a quilt top or something? Shall I just sand it all the way back?

Was it already like this when you received the kit? If so, then this shouldn't have passed a quality check to my opinion...

There's been a few cases where the factory has put a veneer on the back of a body, but it's not common. I'm only guessing but it may either be an error where they've routed the wrong side and shipped it as a standard body or had a good multi-piece blank with some unsightly grain that couldn't be used without a veneer.

Do you still have the missing chip from the veneer?

out of the box the edge was reasonably clean but quite sharp, the texture was rough and had a milky white finish over it which now appears to be the glue of the veneer. As I was sanding the edge it started to splinter all the way around. I wasn't expecting a veneer so didn't give it any thought. I don't see any other choice but to sand it all the way back and see whats underneath?

Surprised the veneer on back did not show up when doing the rear belly cut profiling? Is there a veneer on the front too?

Looks like a full sand on the back is the way to go. Hopefully it is not hiding something sinister as Weirdy suggested.

Or try to repair the spots? I mean, look at that veneer, it's really looking nice so it would be a waist to sand it all down. In addition, what to do if you end up with something horrible?

Certainly a veneer on the back. If you kept it, it would probably look better as a burst, so that the dark edges cover up the veneer join. On the other hand, that means that the back of the guitar (which isn't going to be seen much) is driving your choice of finish, which was going to be a transparent dark red.

Could you take a closer picture of just the front of the body, as the figuring looks rather plain to me and more like basswood, not ash? I'm probably wrong, but something's not quite right here, as the rear veneer shows.