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Hi guys.
I'm so glad I found PitBull Guitars and this community. I had been looking at different D.I.Y kits but wasn't sure what the quality would be like with them or what after sale service would be if any problems occurred. After seeing how great this community is and how active Adam is with support I can feel more assured that the kit won't be absolute rubbish and the supplier won't just take my money an run.
I will be placing my order sometime today, once I finally make a decision. There's so many great kits to choose from. At the moment it's a toss up between a thinline T, spalted LP or a plain ol ST.
I have never built my own guitar but I have been tinkering with basic repairs and setup for almost 20 years and I am a cabinetmaker by trade. So I'm confident that I can do a decent job of it. And I will be making great use of the tutorial's available here.
I actually and looking to make a career change and try to get into the mysterious world of luthiery. I figured a kit guitar would be a good start while I am doing some studying on the subject and trying to find someone in Brisbane that will take me on for some volunteer work so I can get some experience.
To the luthier's on this forum, do you have any suggestions on the best way to get into the industry.
Ok, now to choose my first project. Looking forward to sharing the build process with you all
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Welcome Dan to the PBG community, and you are right, it's a great place to hang out. Good to see another Brisbanian (Brisbaneite, Bris Vagen???) here, we're sorely out numbered.
I think the kits are geared for the amateur like me, so with your skill set you should have no problems.
You'll find our resident Luthiers, Dingo, Gav, and the guys from 4D are really helpful and generous with their advice. (Thanks guys :D )
Good luck with your career change.
rob
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Hi Dan,
Yep, the guys in the forum are great and Adam and the Pitpull team are irreplaceable.
I currently have 2 kits under construction and have a few friends making them also. I can personally testify to the quality of the kits, they are excellent value and require just enough effort on your part so that when you've finished it you can happily say "I made that".
Having been in exactly your situation I would definitely recommend the ST-1 as a good starting position... That way any mistakes you might make, I made lots, won't have been on an expensive kit... Plus they're addictive anyway so you can guarantee it won't be your only kit.
Also check out Wudtone, it's much easier than spray painting and gives excellent results.
Good luck with your build and don't forget to put it in the build diary.
I'm also in Brisbane and know of three other PBG kit builders in Brisbane who just lurk the forums.
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Thanks guys. I think I'm going to start with the thinline TL. I don't have a Tele style guitar yet and have always loved the lines of a Tele. Plus I already have a MIM Strat that I have just reconditioned and have it playing and sounding better than it ever has.
The part I am most looking forward to is actually levelling and crowning of the frets. This is something I've never done before and will use the learning experience to then carry over to some of my other worn out axe's.
Also, do you guys usually fine tune the neck shape, or are they pretty good out off the box?
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Here is a thread that will help you with Fret Levelling.
http://pitbullguitars.com/?page_id=4...iewtopic&t=179
The necks are pretty good straight out the box and only need to be sanded. No shaping needs to be done except on some of the headstocks.
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Welcome to the family!
Regarding your question on how to get a start in the world of Lutherie, the answer is a lot of practice!
Build as many kits as you can, start collecting toys, errm, tools and when you have the confidence start building a few scratch builds.
Good luck, it is a rewarding career option and with time and patience you can make some money! :)
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Thanks for the advice DB. Pretty much what I had planned, I know it won't be easy and will take a lot of practice and learning from mistakes along the way. But guitars are my passion so it will all be enjoyable.
As for my first kit, the thinline appears to be on back order so I'm going to go with the ST. I can't wait to get started.
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Dan,
Welcome along - a couple have already put out the welcome mat including some of the formal PB guys... I think Adam has done a great job of working with the suppliers to get a good product - looking at my Riccy from the box I don't think there's a spot of glue / filler on the body or neck, so they're pretty spot on. My P Bass had one small spot of filler, but no glue (though it was a solid body, so sort of expected). My two necks have been spot on - bit of fretwork required, but that's all part of the fun. Gav has a recommended reading list, which if you are looking into the dark arts of professional Lutherie would probably be another good place to start. I think Gav did an acoustic course in Brizzie somewhere - may be able to shine some light on it as well.
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Hancock brothers on the Gold Coast got me started. Check them out at:
www.luthierssupplies.com.au
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Thanks for the link Gavin. I see they run guitar a building course. I have been looking for some sort of course or workshop in Brisbane, but I wasn't able to find any. I don't know how I missed this one.
If anyone else in Brisbane is looking for this sort of thing here is the link
http://www.guitarmaking.com.au/
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It's a fantastic course! I can highly recommend it!
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Yeah looks like it will be a great experience. The next course isn't until January, that will give me some time to get my finance's in order so I can afford it. It's not cheap at $3,500 but looks to deffinatly be worth it considering the expertise, use of workshop and the quality instrument you take home.
At the moment I'm getting a tool list Organised and starting to acquire them piece by piece. I found the tool list that DB and Gav put up in one of the threads here, so that was a good starting point.
Where do you guys recommend to get specialised tools. Obviously there is StewMac. And LuthierSupplies.com.au. I also came across Guitaraust.com, has anyone used them before and how we're they to deal with.
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DB and I get the bulk of our tools from StewMac.
