Esquire-esque

Took a plunge and sandpapered the back of the nut down - I had done this previously with the plastic nut (on the first build) so I took that as a guide.

Possibly still a tad high - but only in comparison to my Telecaster.

Immediate change in tone....

Capo'd at the first fret, the string bottom is about 2mm above the 12th fret. Tiny bit of fretbuzz if i really try to get it - or hit the strings very aggressively.

So I'kll see hwo that goes with time.

For now - I'll just see about moving the bridge 1/2 to 1 mm "to the left" so that it lines up perfectly with the neck..

Once that's done I'll need to decide on teh pickup, volume control and a switch for tone caps......

Meanwhile I'm experimenting with Whittles hard wax oils and stains - I think a translucentish White (the Douglas Fir is rather "stripy, so I'll have to see


I suspect the Pittbill neck "rosewood fretboards" are dyed - does anyone know if it's possible to remove this - I had a though of staining the neck including the fretboard "Jarrah" to make a contrax=st with the whitish body.

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Originally Posted by EsquireEsque

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I suspect the Pittbill neck "rosewood fretboards" are dyed - does anyone know if it's possible to remove this - I had a though of staining the neck including the fretboard "Jarrah" to make a contrax=st with the whitish body.

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The rosewood is not dyed. I cut through a PB neck (to get the truss rod) and the fretboard was a solid dark colour all the way through. Not sure if it is true rosewood though! You could definitely stain the maple wood of the neck a jarrah colour to get contrast.

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Originally Posted by Trevor Davies

The rosewood is not dyed. I cut through a PB neck (to get the truss rod) and the fretboard was a solid dark colour all the way through. Not sure if it is true rosewood though! You could definitely stain the maple wood of the neck a jarrah colour to get contrast.

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I see.

I thought it was dyed as when I oil the fretboards I noticed a dark colour coming off them... must just be a wood with a lot of tannins.

I think Jarrah probably doesn't look good against the fretboard...unless the fretboard was also dyed darker....

Well - a setback.

The bridge needed to be centred properly (a lesson learned - in a wood as "stripy" as Douglas fir - the "seam where the wood was joined is rather deceiving) but the angle of the neck socket was also ever so slightly un-aligned.

Sorted out now using a scraper, chisel and sandpaper, for a snug fit, the socket will need a shim (if ine thin enough can be found) or putty.

I think the problem is in determining the centreline of the neck heel - which is:
a) difficult - in the absence of a 90 degree angle....
b) done over such a short distance - so any "mistake" is exacerbated along the length of the neck.....

I think the idea is to determine the centreline of the neck differently - and use a much longer application (of the centreline).

I'm thinking of:
1) make sure the "dots' are in the middle of the neck.
2) use the dots to establish a centreline - and mark this on the end of the heel and the end of the headstock using a technologically advanced centring tool (a length of wool or fishing line)
3) flip the neck over and use a metre rule to create a centreline of the heel - and line that up with a centreline on a piece of board about twice the length of the body.
4) Clamp and then check the centreline from the end of the board to the end of the headstock - using the dots as a reference.
5) clamp some wood as guides to the neck - and trace the end of the neck (or use another piece of wood if it's a flat "tele" end), then cut the end of the jig so that it is just a tiny bit shorter than the body so the centrelines can be matched up.
6) use a router to make the jig using the wood guides (or allow for the end to be finished using a spindle sander).


That's the next "experiment".....

I have had a misaligned neck pocket on a couple of builds. Both times on ES style bodies. Not off by much but enough so that the hole for the bridge was not 100% on the center-block. Most ES's with book-matched veneer have a built in deceptive centerline... You are so right that it does not have to be off by much to cause a problem.

I use something like your fishing line approach (I use nylon string most of the time). I usually do it with the two outer strings, and then check it with the two inner strings. I try to get the two outer strings to be equally close to the edge of the fingerboard all the way down the neck. In dry-fit, I try to get them to line up over the outer pickup poles as well. When I think I have it pretty close, I sometimes try it again with the two center strings. In this case I do exactly as you suggested. I look to see that the strings are equally close to the dots on the fingerboard. I think it works because you can see when things are off even by a little when you are looking at it over a 25" (or 34" on a bass) range. Not sure how others do it. My method is not particularly scientific and it's certainly possible that there's a better way.

It's also very easy to get the bridge slightly off perpendicular to the strings. In this case, I try to err on the side of making sure the treble side is EXACTLY in the right place, and if the bass side is slightly further oblique to perpendicular, that can only help with intonation, right? ;-)

If you need something thin to shim with, I tend to use veneer. For a few bucks, I got what has amounted to a lifetime supply on ebay. I have even used strips of it in varying lengths to make very thin wedges.

Neck alignment on a scratch body build is a tricky thing to get right! It is definitely a situation where you need to measure more than twice (in as many different ways as you can think of), and route once.

I used the 2 strings approach (both outer and inner ways mentioned by fender3x) with the bridge in position, draw the neck foot on the body, then line up my routing template. This was most nerve racking on the jarrah striped bass as I needed the strings and bridge aligned with the strips! https://www.buildyourownguitar.com.a...l=1#post226952.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Trevor Davies

Neck alignment on a scratch body build is a tricky thing to get right! It is definitely a situation where you need to measure more than twice (in as many different ways as you can think of), and route once.

I used the 2 strings approach (both outer and inner ways mentioned by fender3x) with the bridge in position, draw the neck foot on the body, then line up my routing template. This was most nerve racking on the jarrah striped bass as I needed the strings and bridge aligned with the strips! https://www.buildyourownguitar.com.a...l=1#post226952.

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Laughs.... I'd further add that after you've measured innumerable times... go away for a while and come back and do it agin from the beginning!

On no less than three occasions - I thought I'd got it "perfect".... On no less than three occasions I came to the conclusion it was perhaps a premature thought!

Very nice bass.... and a striking "telection".

In particular - outstanding finishes.

Mixing a water based dye with cabot's water based poly.... I hadn't thought of that.

It's a pity the U-beaut dye is only available as a pack" - a transparent green colour with some of the "stripyness" of the Douglas Fir showing through would look good (although the wood ia an "orang-ish colour" to start with - might lead to a rather awful "green"......

Quote:

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Originally Posted by EsquireEsque

Laughs.... I'd further add that after you've measured innumerable times... go away for a while and come back and do it agin from the beginning!

On no less than three occasions - I thought I'd got it "perfect".... On no less than three occasions I came to the conclusion it was perhaps a premature thought!

Very nice bass.... and a striking "telection".

In particular - outstanding finishes.

Mixing a water based dye with cabot's water based poly.... I hadn't thought of that.

It's a pity the U-beaut dye is only available as a pack" - a transparent green colour with some of the "stripyness" of the Douglas Fir showing through would look good (although the wood ia an "orang-ish colour" to start with - might lead to a rather awful "green"......

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Thanks EsquireEsque.

I have only been spraying with water-based finishes for a little while. Most of my sprayed bursts have been from mixing a water-based dye with water-based poly. This also is good at covering small stain/glue issues around the body edges.

I have also wondered why U-beaut dyes only come in a pack. But it has made me adventure into colours I probably would not normally use! And it always pays to test a colour on a part of the body. I have found that the blue can look very "aqua/green" with ash and mahogany wood! I have not had an issue with the green, but my only green was very dark on ash!

Yes - that's the problem (as I understand it), the colour used will "mix" with the colour of the wood - meaning that you have to try everything ... which adds up when you never get what you are hoping for.... unless it's a very blonde (white) wood. Tassie Oak would probably "dye true" - but it makes for a rather heavy instrument...

What i think would be a fantastic colour for a guitar - if it could work - is the "silver-grey" dyes for hair (for younger women who want the "grey look"....)

But my understanding is they might have bleach in them - and that is apparently not good for wood, I've read it will turn a lot of it an unattractive "green"....

Well it's been a while - I've had a few things to get done - and some waiting to do (still waiting on the pickup - a cheap Filtertron - type).
Once I have everything - I can finish routing and throw a white stain and finish on it

I have now completed the neck - putting a "logo of sorts and a finish on it.

The finish has a slight amount of a white tint in it - I wanted to keep the "new" maple colour rather than the yellow" that it turns into.

In hindsight I might have put a black stain on it and sanded it back - but that's an experiment for later?
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