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Hi guys,
I received my kit today and looking at it.
There are some things I will need to fix but as I am a beginner maker, suggestions will be great! :)
-dent on the body
-neck fits tight but there are bit of gap between the body and the fret board
-rough binding cut
Attachment 27228Attachment 27229
Neck fit looks similar to mine and several others being built. I used natural timber mate to fill the gaps where neck joined the body and it took the dark red stain quite well. If going natural you may need to find a better coloured filler to match the timber.
As for the dent, some folk have success using a damp rag placed over the dent and then applying heat via soldering iron held to the damp rag.
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Thanks for that. So glue the neck first and get fillers to fill up right?
I will be using black so rest should be fine.
But the ironing thing I did try but didn't work. So I guess I will just use fillers.
Seems like I only have normal fillers, is there any difference between wood fillers and none one?
What do you mean by normal fillers? Might be worth going to a hardware store and getting some wood filler then you will know it works. Timbermate perhaps or they will recommend something at the shop.Quote:
Originally Posted by danielcstudio
Woodfillers like Timbermate tend to shrink less than something like auto body filler if that's is what you mean. Timber is constantly expanding and contracting with the weather, so timber specific fillers will save you from cracks in your finish over time.
Thanks for that guys. I will get timbermate woodfiller for the dent.
For the finish I am planning to do it black using wood stain.
Will this 50ml be enough for whole guitar?
And there are two different black, 'japan black' and just black. Anyone knows the difference?
https://www.bunnings.com.au/feast-wa...ftint_p1520344
Is the binding sticking out in the f hole your concern? A trim with a fine saw and sand... or just sand if you don’t have the saw, should deal with that.
Hi daniel, I've used feast watson black on my latest build and after polishing every single finger print and mark is showing. It looks great but if i was too do a black guitar again id do a matt finish
Good luck
Japan black is more of a tranparent black I think. They should have a sample board at the big green shed anyway.
Adam, are you saying you don't want to drop over and polish my collection ( 6 black and a couple more black-ish ) :p
I dont mind a good polish dedman, but you you should polish your ownQuote:
Originally Posted by Dedman
Feast Watson's description of Black Japan statins:
http://www.feastwatson.com.au/consum...e/black-japan/
I got some clear dingotone to apply after black stain. Looking forward to it..!
Attachment 27257
What should I do with that gap in the neck? should I feel it? It's tight enough already.
Any suggestions before gluing the neck?
Above shot looks normal and no need to fill any of that vertical channel below 3rd last fret.
On your 1st post it showed a gap underneath the fret board overhang and that can be easily filled with timber mate and would suggest using natural as it takes on stain colours really well. As you are doing Japan Black ebony timber mate would work and not show up too dark.
Joining the neck before finishing does make things a bit harder to work on, particularly if you want to do an all over coat on each application, as is my preference, and helps to build layers at the same level of thickness and hopefully reduce the chance of runs building up in all the usual places.
Also make sure you mask the binding with blue painters tape those stains leach into cracks in the bindings
Attachment 27263
I am about to glue the neck...! I guess it is the most important part of the building so I am a bit nervous..
And looks like there will be slight gap under fretboard. Should I glue then use woodfiller?
If you have done all your sanding and prepping, which above shot suggests you have, then proceed with titebond, leave to set for 24 - 48 hours, or longer, and then carefully add in the filler.
Not sure which part of the globe you are at but if you can get your hands on Timber Mate it works really well. For filling these sorts of cracks & gaps you don't really need to moisten the filler, in fact the stiffer the mix the better you can work it deeper into the crevices. An old credit card usually does the trick and by keeping the mix stiff there won't be as much excess to sand off the neck & body.
Thanks guys. I feel like I am getting personal instruction to build this thing and I feel less nervous about this kit..!
Hopefully it will turn out nice and let me make some nice music. I am in Sydney now and was able to get things from Bunnings.
Attachment 27279
I glued the neck today so after few days I will be back in NewZealand and finish the rest.
Attachment 27280
I am wanting to make the binding black but seems like wood stain won't work on those. Are there any ways to achieve that on f-holes?
Some guys have successfully painted the bindings (after cracks caused stain to leak into them), I can't remember which builds though.
Attachment 27289
My fretboard seems very dry and it feels very rough. What do I do to make professional feel to it? I assume it is not the best quality rosewood. Do I use clear stain? sanding and Oil? or Clear coat as the neck finish?
the dingo wax is good on open grain boards. being very thick it fills a bit..It takes some rubbing in but it does give a nice finish. For the binding, any paint that is compatible with the clear you are going to use will work. I've used water based modelling paints under both Tru oil and auto acrylics.
Due to the global restrictions that came in last year true rosewood can no longer be exported. The fingerboard is a man made alternative. I’d consider a light sanding to smooth the fingerboard out before using Dingowax or al alternative.
Haven't seen the composite stuff in person but from the photos posted in build diaries it doesn't look too good and not too durable as some folk have had weird stuff happen just by removing masking tape.
Fret board wax is probably best bet if you want to keep it looking more like traditional rosewood and it does cake on to a harder finish compared to lemon oil which is just like giving the timber a drink.....looks good for a while but will need another drink sooner or later.
Alternatively you could go down the Ric path and seal it with same finish being used on the back of the neck, which is probably what I would do.
I put dingo wax on before masking tape and it stoped any of it pulling up then did it again after the frets were leveled and the fret board sanded with some 1200 wraped around a very small chisel
Makes sense
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In retrospect, i would recommend that approach.
Attachment 27330
Some progress has been made for the last few days...
-Tried avocado oil on fretboard. (couldn't resist working on my kit..) seems okay. Used steelwool and it worked like magic, fretboard is not much better.
-woodfiller for neck joints/ sanded the next day to smooth out.
-First rough coat sanded roughly.
My next step is to sand the body lightly again then apply black wood stain.
*Not sure about the best way to protect binding. There are cracks on binding it self which I cannot remove once stain gets in..
Seems like masking tape, then scraping is the most common way.
I have other issue now which seems quite crucial.
I got gold hardware and it fit very tight on those pre-drilled holes.
I just got a chrome replacement(from pitbull guitar) and it does fit but slight loose so it won't stay.. What should I do..? Should I try buying a new chrome hardware?
Hi Daniel, are you talking about a replacement bridge and tailpiece?
Yes. So I got a chrome hardware(also from pitbull guitar)and it is loose but the gold hardware which I got with the kit was tight fit.
Attachment 27497
Progress so far.
Decided to block that loose stopbar holes and will be putting trapeze.
I can still see where I used woodfillers to fill that up. But I guess it should be okay from distance.
Applied Dingo clear final coat. This is my 2nd day of final coat. How many times or how often do I need to apply coats to achieve semi glossy look?
This looks great, can't answer the question as I've never used dingo tone - but love where you are going here.
whats dingo tone clear?
Top coat or neck finish also comes in clear too.Quote:
Originally Posted by phrozin
If I was to use it again the top coat would be the neck stuff as it is supposed to be a stronger and harder finish. With all the stain and intensifier layers it stays very green and soft for ages.