Galah's first build - TLA-1F

Greetings from Central Vic Goldfields!

New build, hopefully a sexy Galahburst!
Pink is not normally a colour I'd even contemplate, but my little buddy pulls it off so well, let's hope it's not a disaster.
Grey for the outside, again not sure if I'm going to love or hate it; but I guess that's what solid colours are for, heh.

Let's see if I can post a pic or two...
https://i.imgur.com/yP089Rs.jpg?1

Beautiful! There's the package, and my little buddy Pippio, who'll be accompanying us on the journey of course.

https://i.imgur.com/hxrjGeb.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/vC2nrb1.jpg
The Tele I already own has a belly cut, so I will happily ignore tradition, and add the very comfy mod. I suspect the finished guitar will have some heft to it, so shaving a few grams off won't hurt either.

Cheers.

I'd already done a bit before first posting, so I'll show you my first two coats (stains).

https://i.imgur.com/If181f1.jpg
Here's the back after the first coat.
And the front...
https://i.imgur.com/FAi4qcL.jpg
Not as even as I'd hoped, but more even than I expected, given my experience.
The stain I got was "Liming Pink", so I knew it would lighten the wood up, which is AND isn't a problem. The top of Pippio's head is very light, so I do need it, but I don't want the grain hidden by too much. The second stain has some red dye added.

Second stain; back -
https://i.imgur.com/aCH4UBN.jpg

And front -
https://i.imgur.com/PEkDZDW.jpg

Second coat drying now. Seems I brought a can of (liming) grey which includes varnish. Not sure if I want to apply it until after the pinks are done; but that will reduce my blending options.

Cheers.

Looks like some glue spots on the flame maple veneer mate. you might need goof off to get rid of it

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Looks like some glue spots on the flame maple veneer mate. you might need goof off to get rid of it

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Maybe it's Galah poop...

Hi and welcome.

You'd do better moving/continuing this over in the Build Diary section as you'll get more viewers.

Took me a bit to find the build diary section.

I introduced Pippio in the welcome section:
https://i.imgur.com/yP089Rs.jpg?2

Here is the Tele at present:
https://i.imgur.com/PEkDZDW.jpg?1

Looking into goof-off now, as suggested in welcome thread, (here) I have a bottle of "selleys stain remover #1", which looks to be a similar product, I'll try it in the morning.

Ok. https://www.buildyourownguitar.com.a...ad.php?t=10134

Is the new location!

Great! All the best with the build.

Stains are different to glue, but you never know, so worth a try.

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Originally Posted by Galah

Ok. https://www.buildyourownguitar.com.a...ad.php?t=10134

Is the new location!

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I've actually collapsed them all into one thread under the Build Diary for simplicity and completeness sake.

Welcome along Galah - one of the previous mods and resident luthiers is now heavily involved in bird rescues here in Perth - so you're in good company as a builder.

Thanks Brendan.

Funnily enough, Pippio was a W.A. bird rescue. Over a decade ago now, I was living with a geologist who collected a juvenile galah on the front of his landy a few hours north of Kal. Fauna rescue told us to look after him for a week, then come back. It was an ordeal (many bloody fingers), but I earned his trust, nursed him back to health and at the end of the week we took him back. They told us he was too tame to release!
Victorian Galahs have a very slightly deeper pink plumage and colouration around the eyes.

As to the glue issues, and Simon's point, I've looked into it, and I will try and apply a small amount of orange-peel based solvent.
If it doesn't work, I'm considering an inlay over the most obvious spot.
McCreed's joke is actually a really interesting idea - and bird poop would be greatly humorous to me, even if others won't get/like it.

Cheers.

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As to the glue issues, and Simon's point, I've looked into it, and I will try and apply a small amount of orange-peel based solvent.

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DON'T DO IT!
That orange based stuff is citrus OIL based. If you get that into the timber, you will have great difficulty getting it to take stain again.

I have more to add, but wanted to get the above message out before you followed through.

I can't find any product called "selleys stain remover #1" even on their website, so I don't know what that is, but if it's a chemical stripper, I wouldn't use it on this project.

Two reasons:
It's caustic as hell and could potentially (and probably) melt the plastic binding.
It's water clean-up, and water & unsealed veneer is just asking for trouble. (the stripper could possibly affect the veneer adhesive as well)

"Goof Off" has a high concentration of acetone (higher than standard nail polish remover). It's made for dissolving adhesives and has a very high flash point so it doesn't soak into the timber and you use it as a "spot" cleaner not applied as a whole surface cleaner, IYKWIM.

If you're going take on removal of that spot, you will likely need to remove as much of the pink stain as possible from the whole top to avoid having an obvious blotch where the glue spot is/was.

My advice is don't use sandpaper. It's too easy to sand through that .6 mm veneer.
Use synthetic sanding pads to rub back the pink stain they're less aggressive than sandpaper. Even if you only get to about 80% removal, you should be ok with re-applying the stain without much unevenness in the finished colour.


Also - great story about Pippio! You get extra Karma points for that!

Hmm.
Taking a step back and giving myself time.

I did put a drop of Selleys on. Doesn't seem to have done anything, but after reading your post, I've diligently removed any trace I can.

I guess my options are now:
i) Order some "Goof Off" and hope it will do the trick, (with caveats as noted above as to 'blotch')
ii) Some sort of inlay (it kinda looks like poop already... and I love the idea, but I have other options)
iii) The gentlest of sanding.

Remember I still have a grey 'burst' to apply. The grey stain is combined with varnish though. I would be willing to try and sand the glue out, and hope the grey takes, but that sounds like a hasty solution; and many of my projects have been marred by hastiness in the past.

Looking among the 'junk in the back shed' (not actually a euphemism this time) for some mother of pearl and acetone I thought I saw.

Plenty of time to offer advice!

Cheers.

Don't know where you're located, but The Big Green Shed hardware chain sells Goof Off.

I'm sure Pippio could assist with the, ahhh, inlay...

Maybe you could clear coat one of his "deposits" and stick it on the body like an ornament.

O.k.,
I'm in Maryborough, they don't have a big green shed but they do have a blue one. "Goof off" was only available as a spray can. I got acetone instead. Hasn't really done much. Pretty much set on the inlay idea now anyway.

Sadly, Pippio's "deposits" aren't good for posterity, even protected by resin or poly.

I've spent quite a bit of time doing what I probably should have earlier, and read other's build diaries. Great information there I could've used.

I filled the body with timbermate, and gave it a good sanding. Had a nice relic looking thing going for a bit, but I'm not really a relic guy. Then again, I'm not a pink guitar guy either, so who knows?
https://i.imgur.com/GAiOllW.png
Gave it a quick stain to even things out.
https://i.imgur.com/uwRj5f1.jpg
For the neck;
I cleaned up the fret ends and rolled the edges a bit. I gave it a stain, although I figure it will be mostly greys.
(The headstock is another big job, and I hope to get to that soonish.) More sanding.

Took the plunge, and opened the grey can. No pictures here, as the process went very fast. They grey has a varnish in it, so I knew I needed a decent first coat. However, it was just a burst not the whole back, so only part would have varnish applied to it. I had cloths, a foam applicator brush and paint brushes. I was going to try using the paint brushes for a more "feathery" look.







It went badly is all I can say. The can was well mixed, but still quite viscous, and the stain was weak. My 'feathered look' ruined the application, I was left with a lumpy, unsightly mess. After drying and sanding, it wasn't looking any better.
(Should have taken a pic at this time.)



So, undaunted, I've sanded it all back to pretty much bare wood. I've chalked one up on the invisible board only I know about, and started again. I've painted the back pink again, and now I'm slowly going to add white around the outside until I'm happy, and put some greys on top of the white.
https://i.imgur.com/2PXo9Dh.jpg
Pippio Overseeing, and performing a colour check.

As for the rest of the hardware, while I was waiting for the Pitbull package to arrive, I went to the guitar store (chalk up another). I was looking for a halfway decent pickguard that might work on the guitar.
https://i.imgur.com/dJShWfS.jpg
I walked out with new pots, CS Texas Special pups and a nice bridge. Noodles for a few weeks, but it'll be worth it.
They did have a great piece of pickguard material, a kind of grey pearloid. The dimensions, though, are VERY tight.
https://i.imgur.com/1FOlnvH.jpg
There's less than a millimetre excess, so no mistakes there.

Cheers.

Sorry to hear about the trials and tribulations, but it's happened to us all.

The new bridge. Has it got a rear stringing capability? if not, it will be a string-through-body bridge, so you'll have to drill some holes and fit rear ferrules. Do that before any more finishing!

No rear-stringing. I was planning on going through the body. Another reason I was wary of the grey stain/varnish. Happy with the decision to continue just staining, and clear varnish later.

Yeah, I've still got a lot of cutting left to do, and most of it has to be done next. Pickguard, bridge mounting, ferrules and headstock.

The headstock design is tricky. I'll be trying for a vague wing shape, but I'm not sure if feathers will come out of your typical TL style, or from minimal tuner space. Ideas?

Cheers.

Maybe try some engraving in the wood? Use a Dremel with an engraving bit and follow some pencil lines? Obviously practice on scrap wood first.

Fortunately, I have a hobby CNC machine, as well as a Dremel. Still all too easy to mess up, and a lot of work to do it right.

If it was me, I'd put all the hardware on and go as far as stringing it up before considering finish.
Especially if you are replacing the standard issue bridge.

On my TL the correct scale length meant the 'Fender' pickguard exposed excessive real estate.

https://www.buildyourownguitar.com.a...601#post190601

cheers, Mark.

I see your headstock is still in "paddle" form. It's generally SOP to cut/shape etc before applying any finish.

Also, I can't imagine doing a burst with tinted varnish with any kind of brush or hand applicator. Possibly a spraygun, but not by hand. I'm a base coat/top coat kind of guy. I've never tried a all-in-one approach.

And I have to say I'm jealous that you have a CNC, even if it is just a "hobby" one!!!

Yeah, the bridge thing is quite interesting.

Just looking at length, the Fender specs I found were:
Vintage bridge: 85.7 mm.
American standard: 96.8 mm.

Here's the standard issue bridge next to the one I picked up.
https://i.imgur.com/BvTn3wW.jpg

As you can see, there is a few mm difference.
So, I checked it against the best reference possible:

https://i.imgur.com/lr110nx.jpg

With measurement, sure enough, the Am Dlx was 96.8 mm. The 'standard issue' is 95.4 mm. The bridge I picked up, and I'm now calling 'mongrel' is 98.5 mm.

I'm calling it 'mongrel', because the mounting holes are wrong. The rear three holes are spaced more widely, and placed further back than the other bridges. Front two are O.k. The string spacing is slightly narrower on the 'standard issue'.

I'll be fitting the 'mongrel'. I prefer the solid block saddles and more precise intonation, and the through-body holes will be more "standard". If I do swap the bridge later (the look/feel/tone of old brass barrels might suit this particular guitar better) I will only have to move the screw holes.

As to the spacing between the bridge and the pickguard, well...
It really looks like an afterthought to half the bridge manufacturers. Lengths of tele bridges vary from 82 to 102 mm.

Cheers.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by McCreed

I see your headstock is still in "paddle" form. It's generally SOP to cut/shape etc before applying any finish.

Also, I can't imagine doing a burst with tinted varnish with any kind of brush or hand applicator. Possibly a spraygun, but not by hand. I'm a base coat/top coat kind of guy. I've never tried a all-in-one approach.

And I have to say I'm jealous that you have a CNC, even if it is just a "hobby" one!!!

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The headstock will be mostly grey, so that finish won't matter really.
It's good you can't imagine doing a burst with tinted varnish, because the results were unimaginable.

Yeah, I'm a really lucky guy with some nice toys/tools. But I've been suffering from depression badly the last few years. The CNC was/is an effort to motivate me, but it's not working as hoped. This build is just one of many half-started projects. Thank you all for allowing me to share my efforts, as it really does help with motivation. Maybe I'll finish this!

Bless and Cheers.

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Originally Posted by Galah

Yeah, I'm a really lucky guy with some nice toys/tools. But I've been suffering from depression badly the last few years. The CNC was/is an effort to motivate me, but it's not working as hoped. This build is just one of many half-started projects. Thank you all for allowing me to share my efforts, as it really does help with motivation.

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Join the club. I wish you all the best. Being creative can lift your spirits. But setbacks can also bring them down, so I find it's important to plan ahead and don't skimp on all the precautions and I'd always measure three times, cut/drill once (rather than measuring twice). You are unlikely to get anywhere near perfection on your first attempts, so just aim for 'reasonable' and use each new build as a learning process.

Hey Galah - always great to see someone else's build moving forward - plenty of guys here to help.

There really is no particular standard for Tele bridges. The original 'ashtray' style ones have four screw holes at the rear (not three). And no fixing screws at the 'front' of the bridge plate. The only real standard seems to be the pickup mounting angle and the distance of the pickup hole from the front edge of the plate. Everything else seems to be a variable.