My first build (IB-1F)

[Mathijsrie]

Hey guys,



I've wanted to build my own guitar for quite some time now and decided that my birthday would be the perfect moment to get it all started. I've bought the IB-1F kit and have to say that i'm surprised at some parts of the kit, but also a bit disappointed in other parts.



One of the main "Problems" i have is the inconsistency of the binding thickness. for around 75% of the guitar, the binding is perfect in thickness, but at the bottom part (the part you rest the guitar on your leg) the binding is only 0,1 - 0,2 mm thick. This makes it impossible to scrape the binding after staining.

What would you guys think would be a possible solution for this problem? i was thinking about routing out the binding and replacing it with a new one, only problem is that the body is carved both front and back, which makes it very hard to get a continuous depth with a routing tool. You guys have any idea to overcome this hurdle?



Secondly, the fret ends are not flush with the rest of the neck. I've tried softly hammering them down, but they don't stay down.



Hope to get some help from you guys!

[FrankenWashie]

Hi Mathijsrie,

I would probably raise these issues, with some clear photos, with Adam at Pitbull.
The fret issue is possibly a case of fret slots not quite deep enough, or fretwire not bent to the right radius. If you've tapped them down already and they won't stay down then I'm inclined to think its the latter.
- It is possible to remove the frets and bend them a bit further but you need a set of fret pullers and some fretboard guards to do this properly without damaging the board or the fret.
- You can try wicking some superglue under the suspect fret ends and then clamping until the glue sets up but this is fiddly work and stinky and you will have some clean up to do around the fret as superglue goes where it wants.
- You can buy some fretwire, and a couple of fret dressing files and dive into the wonderful world of refretting a neck. (not recommended on your first couple of builds, but it has been done, just don't ask how I know this! )

As far as the bindings go, strip and reapply is the best fix, though with the profiling on that body as you've stated, re-routing that channel would be very difficult. I've yet to play with binding so i can't offer much advice here, one of the other forum regulars might be able to lend some assistance with that.

Above all, i stress my first point, before you go attempting anything more involved than what you've done, speak to Adam, he may be able to sort something out for you.

[Mathijsrie]

Hi FrakenWashie,

I've contacted Adam, a reply will come when i'm asleep i thing since i live in the Netherlands. Hoping he can come with a solution or else i guess i need to buy some new binding, and start sanding deeper grooves in some way.

As for the frets, lets hope it will be fixed aswell, but if it wont be possible, i guess i'll have to go with the method of wicking it under and sanding down the neck afterwards. Lets hope it does not have to get to that point.

Thanks for the reply!

[wazkelly]

As for the binding i would suggest leave as is and either find some latex or silicon that you could apply over binding and trim any excess off before staining. High grade masking tape may work but with all the curves involved it is a very fiddly and time consuming preparation job. I chose to use masking tape on my ES1 build and that worked just fine.
Either option would require only minimal binding clean up with 2000 grit wet & dry sandpaper.

Sent from my SM-A520F using Tapatalk

[FrankenWashie]

Hi FrakenWashie,

I've contacted Adam, a reply will come when i'm asleep i thing since i live in the Netherlands. Hoping he can come with a solution or else i guess i need to buy some new binding, and start sanding deeper grooves in some way.

As for the frets, lets hope it will be fixed aswell, but if it wont be possible, i guess i'll have to go with the method of wicking it under and sanding down the neck afterwards. Lets hope it does not have to get to that point.

Thanks for the reply!

The other thing you could do, rather than use a router to strip the binding is to try and use a razor blade or similar to remove the binding. Once the biding itself is off, you can use a file, a fine rasp or P80 sand paper stuck to one side of a flat block to sand your rebate back and provide an even depth for new binding. It would be very painstaking work, but it may prove easier than the router method given the contours of the IB body.

[DarkMark]

A picture can be worth 1000 words. Can you show us the problem?

[Mathijsrie]

I've attached 2 pictures, it's very hard to see but at the picture of the horn you can see the normal binding thickness and the other one the thin binding is visible. In the pictures, the binding looks wider than it really is unfortunately but it is regarding the area directly underneath the switch up untill the tone knob hole.

Also, i've received a mail from Mr. Boyle, saying:

"The binding sounds like it is pretty standard for all kits in the price range. The factory will install the binding then trim to ensure it matches the contours of the body."

So i guess it will not be fixed via PitBull unfortunately.

WazKelly:

As for the binding i would suggest leave as is and either find some latex or silicon that you could apply over binding and trim any excess off before staining. High grade masking tape may work but with all the curves involved it is a very fiddly and time consuming preparation job. I chose to use masking tape on my ES1 build and that worked just fine.

Could u please explain this to me? Like taping off the body so the desired binding thickness will be uncovered and than apply the silicone/latex to that portion of the wood?

Luckely my father owns a business in tapes, so every desired tape is available in very short notice

[FrankenWashie]

Luckely my father owns a business in tapes, so every desired tape is available in very short notice

Handy to have connected relatives!

I can see what you are saying with the binding at the lower bout, it really does look off, and that would annoy the hell out of me.
The great part is that the veneer (from what we can see) looks absolutely wonderful!
I would think that a strip off of existing binding, carefully (VERY carefully) deepening that binding rebate manually, and re applying to get an even binding band is the best way to proceed.
The other non fiddly option is to live with it, though I'm not sure I could do that and my natural inclination is to fix these small defects (hence why there is One kit being actually built in my workshop and three being "Contemplated" for solutions to similar issues).

Best of luck with it! If you get stuck, sing out and there are plenty here who can and do offer advice.

[JohnH]

Oh, yeah, that would annoy me too. I've replaced the binding on two acoustic instruments, and I have to say it's pretty annoying but totally worth it. I don't how much you want to spend on tools, but I can 100% recommend something like this:

https://www.stewmac.com/Luthier_Tool...ng_Cutter.html

It's a tricky tool to use if you're doing a whole guitar, but for small areas it is great. I'm sure you could also find a cheaper alternative, or make one yourself.

I'm not sure about the best way to get the current binding off (the two I fixed had old binding that was already separating, so I just pulled it off by hand), but there are lots of good videos which show you how to put new binding on, and lots of forum members will be able to help with that too!

[wazkelly]

I went down the path of using high grade tape to cover binding and didn't have any of the usual dramas of stain bleed or soaking up into miniscule cracks in such.
As for coating with latex, read about that on this forum about 1-2 years ago and it seemed to make sense at the time.
Both methods are time consuming and just comes down to which one you feel most confident attempting.
Acknowledge with a veneer top that binding is required but it is also a reason why i have have built 5 out of 7 that didn't have binding as there are so many threads littered with dramas.

Sent from my SM-A520F using Tapatalk