Absotively!Originally Posted by JimC
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Absotively!
Sent from my ONEPLUS A3000 using Tapatalk
Yes please.
Cliff
Well,you asked...
The challenge of the 335 type of course is that there are no flat surfaces.
In this series we are looking at the jig up side down: face of the guitar is downwards.
The jig really revolves around the solid unpadded block on the right. This is shaped to fit snugly in the neck pocket, which also means its tapered like the neck so the body must be dropped vertically down on it.
Here's the guitar body in place. THe 4 padded blocks probably don't need to touch the body, but I figured a bit of lateral support wil do no harm.
This is what actually locks it in place the screw is threaded through the wood block, but it just rests in the pilot hole for the strap button, because its a pretty big screw it doesn't really go into the body. Thus the instrument is held solid. Without the padded blocks this jig is pretty good for applying tru oil to the back and sides of the body - there's enough space to be able to get the oily rag right round the boy.
Here's my actual routing jig. I don't have one of those nice router bits that follows a template directly with a ball bearing, so I need to restrain the router itself. So a bit of 3mm ply as a base - just one of these for both pickups - and more 3mm ply carefully measured from the router plate.
First I routed through the 3mm ply backing. Then relocated some of the ply strips to resolve the errors I made locating them in spite of my careful measurements.
Next its time to turn the jig over. Need to draw on the back the centre line of the instrument, and and 90 degrees the centreline of each pickup. Drill a small hole through the top exactly in the centre of the pickup route. I put the guitar body in the jig and checked the pickup centres on the body exactly matched those above. Now I took the body out again, located the pickup jig in position for the first pickup, stapled it down and routed through the top of the jig. I didn't take a photo showing it clearly, but here you can see that there's a bottom plate for the jig, which screws onto the 4 padded verticals. The body just rested on thick padding on this bottom piece lightly pushed down by the plate screws, I din't see a need to lock it in place vertically more firmly than that.
Having done that the body goes back in the jig and check again that the route through the top is exactly placed. Then I could start routing the actual body.
And here we are...
(The reason for the pale bikini/tan line between the three post positions is that the maple veneer has been scraped flat in that area so the hipshot bridge will sit flat, and in the centre is scraped right through the veneer.)
The centreblock wood is amazingly soft: I had to deepen the pocket for the pickup ears of one, and I could do it easily and quickly just scraping it with a chisel...Not as soft as typical modelling balsa, but much softer than say cedar.
Does that all make sense,or does anything need clarifying?
Last edited by JimC; 01-11-2019 at 06:10 AM.
Centre block is probably basswood. It does seem soft, but I have a couple of guitars with that as the body and they are fine. It like balsa are technically hardwood - the distinction being (and I'm sure I'll be corrected here if wrong) Hardwood comes from deciduous trees.
It's all looking good man, keep at it.
Build 1 - Shoegazer MK1 JMA-1
Build 2 - The Relliecaster TL-1
Build 3 - The Black Cherry SG AG-1
Build 4 - The Sonicaster TL-1ish
Build 5 - The Steampunker Bass YB-4
Build 6 - The Howling Gowing ST-1
"What I lack in talent I make up for with enthusiasm"
It seemed a lot softer than basswood. Almost like balsa, but slightly firmer. Probably some local Chinese wood.
It had a fairly strong smell when routed, which didn't seem much like anything else I have come across, but I don't pretend to have very wide experience of different timbers. Nearly as strong a smell as cedar but utterly unlike it is probably the best I can manage. Yes, I'd say it was a hardwood, but in no way a hard wood[grin].
Last edited by JimC; 01-11-2019 at 08:00 PM.
Likely Empress wood, or Pawlonia.
FrankenLab
Hand crafting guitars, because Death Rays are expensive.
That does seem feasible/likely, looking at some wood reference sites. I did notice a strongish smell though.
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