Les sPa(u)lted LP-1SS

Well, my Teleburster has a build diary… so my Les sPa(u)lted LP-1SS gets one too!

I *love* this kit, the Maple cap is amazing!

As with the Tele, I'm swapping out some parts, so again I've done an initial mock-up to see what fits and what doesn't. Discoveries so far:

1. Amazing, breathtaking, gorgeous grain.
2. The bushing holes in the body for the bridge and tailpiece fit the supplied hardware but are minutely too large for the Gotoh hardware I'll be using. Fortunately the Gotoh studs do fit the stock bushings, so I won't have to fill and re-drill… whew.
3. There are a couple of glue spots on the side of the body that I'll have to deal with.
4. The neck fits the body perfectly, really nice quality fit.
5. A few of the neck inlays feel like they may need a little taken off them… but only an infinitesimal amount.
6. Not sure if I'll add the pickguard or not.

Overall, extremely happy with this kit… did I mention it looks amazing?

Anyway, here are some quick pics of the mock-up:


http://pitbullguitars.com/wp-content...160255_2sm.jpg
http://pitbullguitars.com/wp-content...160338_2sm.jpg
http://pitbullguitars.com/wp-content...161046_2sm.jpg

More pics and a basic attempt at my planned paint scheme. The virtual paint doesn't do the kit or Wudtone justice, but it's a start. The plan is Goldenrod top with Black Magic Woman back, sides, edges and neck. Maybe even a little burst on the headstock, not sure.

Of course, the more that I look at the grain the more I'm tempted to just put a coat of clear on it and be happy.

http://pitbullguitars.com/wp-content...161025_2sm.jpg
http://pitbullguitars.com/wp-content...161247_2sm.jpg
http://pitbullguitars.com/wp-content...p_1_lg_2sm.jpg

And, finally, a couple of pics of the glue I'll have to deal with.


http://pitbullguitars.com/wp-content...160537_2sm.jpg
http://pitbullguitars.com/wp-content...160842_2sm.jpg
http://pitbullguitars.com/wp-content...160824_2sm.jpg

Wow, I luuurrrrrve the grain you got on that kit! I'd be tempted to clear coat the top, or at least use a wudtone kit that I knew would make the grain really pop.

Keeping the top eau naturale would be amazing I reckon...

That glue looks just like mine!

That is a gorgeous Spalted cap! The Goldenrod will definitely bring it out beautifully. This is going to be a gorgeous looking guitar!

Haha, I'm doing a LP with a burst like yours, but in reverse!! And I'm doing Dark Onyx instead if Black Magic Woman!!! And the last difference between our kits is that mine has a flame maple cap, which I think is just beautiful!!
And that glue pattern is just like mine as well!!! Seems that the glue likes to mess up LP's...

Cheers,
Callum

Quote:

---

Quote from Gavin1393 on March 1, 2013, 13:48
That glue looks just like mine!

That is a gorgeous Spalted cap! The Goldenrod will definitely bring it out beautifully. This is going to be a gorgeous looking guitar!

---

Yes Scott these kits have changed a bit from the 1st ordered ones but yes the veneer looks great. I was lucky and didn't have that glue problem, need to tell the factory to thoroughly clean off the glue as soon as possible.

I agree Golden Rod on the top would look sensational, I chose a fairly light yellow colour for my top burning sun for that reason so it brought out the grain.

building the Tele will be a good learning curve for building the LP

good luck !


Cheers Wokka

Quote:

---

Quote from wokkaboy on March 1, 2013, 14:01

Quote:

---

Quote from Gavin1393 on March 1, 2013, 13:48
That glue looks just like mine!

That is a gorgeous Spalted cap! The Goldenrod will definitely bring it out beautifully. This is going to be a gorgeous looking guitar!

---

Yes Scott these kits have changed a bit from the 1st ordered ones but yes the veneer looks great. I was lucky and didn't have that glue problem, need to tell the factory to thoroughly clean off the glue as soon as possible.

I agree Golden Rod on the top would look sensational, I chose a fairly light yellow colour for my top burning sun for that reason so it brought out the grain.

building the Tele will be a good learning curve for building the LP

good luck !


Cheers Wokka

---

Yes, I have to agree that yellow or gold goes well with an LP

I agree with Stui and, with that exceptional grain, I'd be tempted to go with a clear (colourless) finish.

In regard to the glue problem, as with the dings, it's something that we're probably going to have to live with. I will ask the factory to watch this, but I know that we won't see much improvement unless we agree to pay a "premium".

However, as our master luthier DB will attest, the glue can be removed with persistent and careful sanding.

Hey Weirdbits,

That is a beautiful spalted cap.

I would be really tempted to go for the Honey Wudtone.

The glue will disappear with some diligent sanding, and then some more sanding!

Quote:

---

Quote from dingobass on March 1, 2013, 17:54
Hey Weirdbits,

That is a beautiful spalted cap.

I would be really tempted to go for the Honey Wudtone.

The glue will disappear with some diligent sanding, and then some more sanding!

---

Ya don't say!!! Haha!!!

Quote:

---

Quote from dingobass on March 1, 2013, 17:54
That is a beautiful spalted cap.

I would be really tempted to go for the Honey Wudtone.

The glue will disappear with some diligent sanding, and then some more sanding!

---

Hey DB,

Yeah, decisions, decisions... I was all set for the two-tone burst finish until I spent some time staring at that beautiful cap, now I'm not so sure. I may stick with the burst or do a single colour Goldenrod top, or Honey or even colourless *sigh*

Then again, that's what my Teleburster project is for... to give me some experience with Wudtone and let me experiment with the finish. I may even spend some more time in GIMP and see if I can produce some semi-realistic Wudtone-esque alternative virtual finishes that do a better job of showing off that beautiful spalted cap.

Oh well, lots of sanding to do before I start to make a mess with the Wudtone anyway.

Wow! That is definitely the best top I've seen on these spalted kits. It looks like it's got fangs. :D Great mock ups!

Seeing Glenn's Goldenrod Tele inspired me to fire up GIMP again and try to produce some more realistic Wudtone-y virtual finishes for my LP. At least, what I imagine it would look like with said Wudtone finishes.

The results may be a little too vivid, but are much closer to what I originally envisioned. This time I've done both a burst and, given the reaction to the maple cap, a Goldenrod only version.

http://pitbullguitars.com/wp-content...2_burst_lg.jpg
http://pitbullguitars.com/wp-content...ldenrod_lg.jpg

They both look great - if it weren't for the grain I'd go the burst, but don't forget that, with Wudtone, the grain won't disappear under a dark colour. At the very least you'll still be able to see it in relief, particularly if you use the high gloss top coat. Also, I'm flattered my pics have inspired a run on Goldenrod!

Quote:

---

Quote from WeirdBits on March 2, 2013, 21:47
Seeing Glenn's Goldenrod Tele inspired me to fire up GIMP again and try to produce some more realistic Wudtone-y virtual finishes for my LP. At least, what I imagine it would look like with said Wudtone finishes.

The results may be a little too vivid, but are much closer to what I originally envisioned. This time I've done both a burst and, given the reaction to the maple cap, a Goldenrod only version.

http://pitbullguitars.com/wp-content...2_burst_lg.jpg
http://pitbullguitars.com/wp-content...ldenrod_lg.jpg

---

Hi There, if you stick to the dye only kits you can have colour but you won't lose any of the grain or character. These kits will also blend nicely so you can quite easily have say a Goldenrod centre ( or Saffron if you want it to look a little more old burst like, see pic) around the front you could for example lightly blend with some burning sun ( or mahogany if you want a bit more contrast) ( we have a new in between these two, shade coming too). Also suggestion for back sides neck etc on LP type project, if you want a classic look is the new Cherry Flamenco here http://www.wudtone.com/shop/?wpsc-pr...herry-flamenco is works by getting a good Carmine Gypsy colour fixed and then a 3rd base coat with Mahognay added to give a deeper cherry look.
http://pitbullguitars.com/wp-content...-old-burst.jpg

Quote:

---

Quote from andypwudtone on March 3, 2013, 08:36

Quote:

---

Quote from WeirdBits on March 2, 2013, 21:47
Seeing Glenn's Goldenrod Tele inspired me to fire up GIMP again and try to produce some more realistic Wudtone-y virtual finishes for my LP. At least, what I imagine it would look like with said Wudtone finishes.

The results may be a little too vivid, but are much closer to what I originally envisioned. This time I've done both a burst and, given the reaction to the maple cap, a Goldenrod only version.

http://pitbullguitars.com/wp-content...2_burst_lg.jpg
http://pitbullguitars.com/wp-content...ldenrod_lg.jpg

---

Hi There, if you stick to the dye only kits you can have colour but you won't lose any of the grain or character. These kits will also blend nicely so you can quite easily have say a Goldenrod centre ( or Saffron if you want it to look a little more old burst like, see pic) around the front you could for example lightly blend with some burning sun ( or mahogany if you want a bit more contrast) ( we have a new in between these two, shade coming too). Also suggestion for back sides neck etc on LP type project, if you want a classic look is the new Cherry Flamenco here http://www.wudtone.com/shop/?wpsc-pr...herry-flamenco is works by getting a good Carmine Gypsy colour fixed and then a 3rd base coat with Mahognay added to give a deeper cherry look.
http://pitbullguitars.com/wp-content...-old-burst.jpg

---

I love it how half of the Wudtone colours are actually mixes of other Wudtone finishes...

I've been focused on the Teleburster for so long, I think my beautiful LP was feeling a little abandoned... so, while the Tele is 'busy' drying after the last deep colour coat, I thought I'd give spalty some love. Thus, I am sitting here happily sanding away while listening to the Beano album (motivation, inspiration and relaxation)... not a bad way to spend an 'arvo.

Hi Weirdy,

Either finish will look super sexy on that top....

So… while the G-special is curing, my good ol' spalty LP has finally made it back onto the workbench. It's been a while.

Still planning on doing the Black Magic Woman and Goldenrod burst… but I'm stubborn like that ;)

Doing a test fit of some of the parts I discovered a couple of things:
1) The post holes for the bridge and tailpiece are too big for my aftermarket hardware (very loose fit), even the stock bushings are loose in the holes.
2) The tailpiece holes are slightly misaligned, with the bass side hole a couple of mm's further back than the treble side.

The tailpiece skew is pretty obvious to the naked eye with the hardware sitting in place, but not so much in photos. So, I've added some lines on the last image to hopefully highlight the angle.


http://www.pitbullguitars.com/wp-con...t_holes_03.jpg
http://www.pitbullguitars.com/wp-con...t_holes_01.jpg
http://www.pitbullguitars.com/wp-con...t_holes_02.jpg


As the holes were going to be too loose for the hardware I wanted to use anyway, the best option was going to be to plug and re-drill them.

The holes were an odd size (and the size actually varied between holes), so I turned down some dowel to slightly oversize and then fine-tuned it for each hole. Cut to length, which again varied, and ready to plug.


http://www.pitbullguitars.com/wp-con...t_holes_04.jpg


Taped off the holes to protect the area and then opened them with a sharp craft knife.


http://www.pitbullguitars.com/wp-con...t_holes_05.jpg


Plugged, glued and tape removed… and set aside for a couple of days.


http://www.pitbullguitars.com/wp-con...t_holes_06.jpg

On to the headstock.

I'll be doing the headstock black, but may end up trying a mini-burst on the face to match the body. Not sure yet.

Based on the centreline of the neck, the headstock was a little too asymmetrical for my tastes, and the tuner holes could be described as 'creatively positioned'. I wanted a traditional styled shaped, so once I had the centreline and shape outlined, it showed that I'd need to do side trimming too. The tuner holes themselves were pretty ragged on the back, a bit wobbly in their alignment and a slightly looser fit for my tuners than I'd like. So, I decided to plug and re-drill them too… not making much of a change, just making them a tighter fit and more symmetrical.

Centreline, alignment grid and outline marked, with plugs sitting in place.

http://www.pitbullguitars.com/wp-con...adstock_01.jpg

Roughly shaped, plugs glued and new hole positions marked. Mainly the low E, G and B holes needed to move slightly.

http://www.pitbullguitars.com/wp-con...dstock_02a.jpg


Holes re-drilled and headstock shaped refined, ready to start the finer sanding.

http://www.pitbullguitars.com/wp-con...adstock_03.jpg

Sanded down to 180 on the face and sides ready for more work later on.


http://www.pitbullguitars.com/wp-con...adstock_04.jpg
http://www.pitbullguitars.com/wp-con...adstock_05.jpg

The back of the headstock has a couple of nasty gouges in the mahogany (shown by the green arrows), and the tear-outs on the original tuner holes are still present, so I mixed up a batch of glue + mahogany sawdust as filler and applied it to the gouges (and a little on the tuner tear-outs). I'll leave that to harden for a day or so and then sand that down to 180 to match the front.


http://www.pitbullguitars.com/wp-con...adstock_06.jpg
http://www.pitbullguitars.com/wp-con...adstock_07.jpg

great attention to detail weirdy!

My plan was to re-drill the post holes in the body today, but first I wanted to double-check the position and alignment for the new holes using an accurate centreline. Setting up a centreline on a carved top with a set neck isn't the easiest thing to do, as you don't have the flat square surfaces to work with. First I ran a length of masking tape along the centre of the fretboard and then carefully measured and marked the centre of the neck every couple of frets. This gave me reference points for a fishing line centreline. I clamped the neck into the body and then set up the fishing line running over the nut and just touching the last fret.

http://www.pitbullguitars.com/wp-con...ignment_01.jpg
http://www.pitbullguitars.com/wp-con...ignment_02.jpg


While the neck was in-place I also took the opportunity to check the neck angle in relation to the hardware by running a steel rule from the nut to just above the last fret and over the bridge (lifted to roughly match its lowest position). It's only a rough check but it looks ok. I later measured the angle of the neck pocket in relation to the flat back of the body, and it came in at exactly 5 degrees.

http://www.pitbullguitars.com/wp-con...ignment_04.jpg


But...

Even though the neck looks to sit nicely in the neck pocket, with no lateral movement, and apparently flush with the top… it's actually not seating all the way into the pocket. The treble side binding and underside of the fretboard in the neck cutaway is sitting on the top of the body and preventing it from seating fully into the pocket. And, as the pocket is a good fit on the side walls, the seating issue translates across to the bass side too.

Treble side binding sitting flush on top of the body, yet I can slip a strip of card in under the neck heel in the pocket.
http://www.pitbullguitars.com/wp-con...ignment_06.jpg


The gap under the heel extends pretty evenly through to the pickup rout, as you can see with the light showing through.
http://www.pitbullguitars.com/wp-con...ignment_08.jpg
http://www.pitbullguitars.com/wp-con...ignment_03.jpg


Checking with a feeler gauge shows that the gap is around 0.76-0.8mm at the front of the pocket on the treble side, with perhaps a fraction less on the bass side. I suppose the easiest solution would be to just glue a 1mm maple veneer into the base of the neck pocket and leave it at that… but, that's not really my style. So, it looks like I'll be carefully sanding just under a mm off the underside of the fretboard overhang and binding tomorrow. Not something that I want to stuff up, but my main concern is ensuring the neck heel sits squarely and flat in the pocket ready for when it get glued in at the end of the build.

Thoughts, comments, advice?

I'd prepare a thick mixture of hide glue and simply glue the neck in place. The hide glue will be thick enough to bind the wood together without affecting the sustain and tone of the guitar.

Thanks for the advice, Gav. Hide glue can safely fill that sort of gap, very interesting… but I'm not sure that I want to start experimenting with hide glue on this build. Seems like a certain amount of skill is required to use it successfully, so maybe I should stick with Titebond for now. Other suggestions?

I spent some time cleaning up the underside of the fretboard overhang today, and then had another look that the neck fit… and I'm now leaning towards gluing a 1mm shim into the pocket. I'd like to use a Mahogany shim to match the body and neck, but I'm not sure I could make one as accurate as I want. So, instead I cut a piece from some 1mm Maple sheet and did some tests with that sitting in place (the shim is intentionally too long for now).


http://www.pitbullguitars.com/wp-con...ignment_09.jpg
http://www.pitbullguitars.com/wp-con...ignment_10.jpg
http://www.pitbullguitars.com/wp-con...ignment_13.jpg

The 1mm maple shim seems to be pretty much the thickness required. The neck will probably sit a little higher with the glue beneath the shim in the pocket and glue on top of the shim to attach the neck, but that should be balanced when everything is final sanded (taking a bit of the top of the body) and then the finish is applied (which will add to the body's thickness slightly). But, I could be wrong.

http://www.pitbullguitars.com/wp-con...ignment_11.jpg
http://www.pitbullguitars.com/wp-con...ignment_12.jpg
http://www.pitbullguitars.com/wp-con...ignment_14.jpg

I guess my concern is if this is a viable solution. Does it look like the 1mm shim is thick enough, will the maple shim compromise the neck joint strength in any way, will the maple and having essentially two layers of Titebond (above and below the shim) adversely affect the tone and/or sustain compared to a Mahogany/Mahogany join? Should I just bite the bullet and try Gav's the Hide glue option?

Opinions welcome.

After thinking about it some more, I realised I wasn't going to be satisfied using a maple shim. So, I dug out my other spalted LP kit for some comparative measurements to work out what was different with this neck pocket... very enlightening. It turns out that the thickness of the mahogany is identical on both, as is the depth of the neck pocket cut into the mahogany. The difference is that the maple cap on this kit is around 1.5mm thicker at the top of the neck pocket, and it's this difference that is stopping the neck from seating fully.

So, I didn't want to shim it, and sanding that much from the underside of the fretboard overhang would be unwise… that left taking a bit of the maple cap itself. I wouldn't do this if I was just using a finish like Goldenrod, but in this case the black edge of the burst should help to conceal the sanded area. Tough love now for a better result in the long run, I hope.

After lots of carefully sanding and testing, sanding and testing… the neck now seats fully into the pocket. I have only sanded to 120 grit so far, and had to take off more than I'd like, but I think it will work with the finish.


http://www.pitbullguitars.com/wp-con...ignment_15.jpg
http://www.pitbullguitars.com/wp-con...ignment_16.jpg
http://www.pitbullguitars.com/wp-con...ignment_17.jpg

The thin black band of the outer burst, plus the fretboard overhang and the pickup ring should cover all but a small part of the sanded area, and that should blend with the burst transition. But, I guess we'll see how it goes. The neck now sits nicely in the pocket and the angle looks good for the bridge, so I'm pleased with the result.


http://www.pitbullguitars.com/wp-con...ignment_18.jpg
http://www.pitbullguitars.com/wp-con...ignment_19.jpg
http://www.pitbullguitars.com/wp-con...ignment_20.jpg

Great attention to detail WB. Looks like it'll be a cracker of a guitar when it's done.

Time to mark out and re-drill my plugged bridge and tailpiece holes, both to get a better fit and to correct the position of the bass side tailpiece post. It's actually pretty awkward to line up and mark things out on a carved top, so I ended up using an old square protractor so I could reference the centreline. I really had to convince myself that the new position was correct, as it was a big change from the old post hole. The original treble side hole was pretty much correct but the bass side was a couple of mm's further out and back than it should have been.

Check, double check, triple check, mark new position, check again, and again…
http://www.pitbullguitars.com/wp-con...t_holes_08.jpg


Put hardware in position to re-check new position (again) and confirm that everything lines up and looks correct.
http://www.pitbullguitars.com/wp-con...t_holes_09.jpg

Ready to drill! Using a 7/16" brad point with a depth stop to ensure I got the depth right for the bushings.

The results. I still need to clean up the plug remnants, particularly on the bass side tailpiece hole, but the new holes are looking good. The bass side 'hook' of the tailpiece should hide the edge of the plug regardless of how well it blends with the finish on.
http://www.pitbullguitars.com/wp-con...t_holes_10.jpg


I remembered to re-drill/clear the hole for the ground wire.
http://www.pitbullguitars.com/wp-con...t_holes_11.jpg


Final check with the hardware sitting in place… just to convince myself that I didn't stuff it up. Looks ok.
http://www.pitbullguitars.com/wp-con...t_holes_12.jpg


Some of the screw holes for the pickup mounting rings are going to be very close to the edge of the pup routs, so you may notice in the above pic that I've glued pieces of split dowel into the routs to reinforce those points and then shaped/sanded them as needed for fit. The holes for the pots have also been opened up from 8mm to 9.5mm to accommodate the larger pots that I'll be using.

Love the maple top - along with black hardware.

Awesome :D

My pickup ring holes were close as well, I had to fill and re drill one as it went into the cavity.

I said it when you first started this thread months ago Wierdy. I am in love with that cap. I do a little sigh every time I see the grain on it...