Rooks RCA-4!!!

[rook]

However, option B will make the better joint. With option A, the neck is only making contact with wood at two points, the rest is varying levels of glue, and the glue is strongest when there's not much of it and it's bridging a small gap.

Simon, thank you for the help! You have been a real life saver for me on this.

Looks like I am back to rebuilding shims! Can't say I'm excited to make more shims, but I'm glad I got an answer on this before gluing anything together. Hopefully this next round will go smoothly and I'll get a perfect fit.

Once again, thank you Simon!

[rook]

SHIM - THE FINAL CHAPTER

Finally made a shim that worked! It was a hellish ordeal. It took me about 10 different attempts to get the right height, angle, etc. Each attempt took me the better part of an hour. By the end I was ready to snap - just like several of the shims did.

But eventually, I got it made!

THICK END:


THIN END:


And finally I glued it into the neck pocket.

GLUING:



HOW TO:
I'm sure there is an easier way to do this, but if anyone stumbles into this thread looking for info, here's what I did.

First I cut pieces of Maple veneer to the shape of my neck pocket, giving myself an extra inch on the end that sticks out of the pocket.

SHIM BLANKS:


Next I cut, stacked, and glued pieces of the veneer until I had a staircase of sorts.

STAIRCASE OF VENEER:


Then I sanded it down until I had the right shape - A wedge.

This part needs to be done slowly with a level sanding block.
Go too fast and you will break the shim.

I started with 80 grit to remove the steps, sanding across the ridges.
I then moved to 220, and 320 to get the shim on the proper angle, sanding down the length of the shim.
The goal was to have a shim that would make contact with the pocket and the neck the entire length of the pocket.
This took a lot of patient sanding and checking constantly as I worked.

One thing I screwed up several times was that after sanding my shim it was too thin.
In the end I ended up building my staircase a lot higher to give me room to sand it down and finesse the angle.

I wanted my shim to taper to a paper thinness. To accomplished this I clamped it to a board and used a sanding block. Gently sanding in one direction, carefully applying very little pressure until it was razor-like. I took a lot of patience to make sure the sides were the same thickness as the middle. A digital calliper was really helpful through out this process.

CLAMPED IN TO SAND:




Anyway, that's what I did and although it was a pain, I eventually ended up with the perfect shim for this project.

Hopefully this can help someone else in the future.

[rook]

STAINING:

After watching many-a-youtube video and reading forums on mandolin building sites I decided to attempt a color burst stain.

I really wanted to do a spray burst but I live in an apartment so rattle cans were a no go. It's also winter and there's a foot of snow outside so that wasn't an option either.
Basically I was left with wood dyes. And seeing as I already had some it was a no brainer.

And then I had an amazing idea!

I picked up a professional spray bottle. Essentially a fancy plant sprayer.



I tested it with water and was amazed. It created a very fine mist. I instantly knew it would be perfect and would allow me to mist my dyes and create an awesome sprayed burst effect.

And wow, was I ever wrong.

Total nightmare.

If anyone is considering trying this, I urge you to rethink. The results were terrible. And it created a huge mess.
I am very glad I tested it out on a piece of pine instead of the actual guitar. Seriously. Don't do this. I am an idiot.


HAND RUBBED BURST
At this point I knew my only option was a hand rubbed burst.

I had Black, Mahogany Brown and Amber to work with.

THREE COLORS:


I practiced several times on plywood. And eventually I managed this burst-ish effect:

(Ignore the weird mess on the right side - it was glue in the wood)

It wasn't great, but it gave me enough confidence to give it a go.

I taped off the binding first:


And then I watched many more youtube videos of other people doing it because I was scared I was gonna screw it up.

My final results are not perfect, but I am happy with what I got. And I learned a lot.
One thing I noticed that is worth mentioning -- The colors on the Ash wood reacted A LOT different than they do on maple or pine.

That said, I'm still pleased.

These pics are of the stain after it dried. It looks a lot nicer wet and the browns pop a bit more.

FRONT:


BACK:


Still need to do the neck. Did a little test area and it seems color matching is gonna be a bit of an issue. I guess I'll find out soon.

[Gary B]

Rook, you are doing some amazing work man.
Making the shims sounds like a right ordeal but well done for sticking with it to get it just right. You should reap the benefits in having a bass that is great to play.
And that finish looks brilliant!

[Simon Barden]

Seconded. Great work on the shim and an outstanding rubbed stain burst.

[rook]

@Simon Barden and @Gary B thanks for the encouraging words! Much appreciated!!

Took a go at staining the neck this eve. Not too pleased with the results. I only sanded to 220, but it seems like the stain doesn't want to soak in.

I'm gonna sand it back and take another stab at it tomorrow.

In the meantime, it's got me thinking about the fret board.

Two thots--

1.) how should I treat this blackwood material? I think I read the usual lemon oil is not a good idea on this material. Is there something else I should use?

2.) A bigger question -- Been toying with the idea of adding a coat of poly to the fretboard to make it glossy like many of the 4001/3's I've seen. Is there anything about blackwood/engineered rosewood that would make this a bad idea?

Thanks!

[JohnH]

Great work Rook - the shim is great (even if it was a pain), and the burst is really excellent.

[Simon Barden]

As it's a Ric-alike, I'd go for a gloss on the fingerboard. I can't see any reason not to, as most of the fingerboards on unbound necks will have clear-coated sides.

The Blackwood Tek necks on my two current builds are a bit rough feeling as they come, so I've been sanding them smooth for a much better feel.

The Blackwood Tek material is supposed to have a stable moisture content and minimal shrinkage, so probably won't benefit from anything on it like lemon oil as it shouldn't dry out (as most of the wood fibres are encased in a resin).

[rook]

Thanks, JohnH! Much appreciated. It's a bit darker on the edges than I was hoping for, but it's growing on me. In some ways it's the guitar/wood itself that makes the final decision on how it'll look. And I'm cool with that.

[Bass Guy]

Holy moly this is marvellous!