Esquire-esque

[EsquireEsque]

IIRC hacksaw, files, bench grinder, Dremel with a cutting wheel, and a sanding drum.

Of course, I had to make it twice as hard for myself… I bolted two layers of the aluminium together onto an old control plate as a template so I could cut both plates at once. If there’s a next time it’ll be only one plate at a time.

Your post above got me looking for "ways" - if it can be done it's an "interesting" problem to work out.

I have found that a laminating knife can be used to cut aluminium (it'll take a few passes against a straight edge, but it might be a bit easier).
Not sure if it'll work to "cut" the rounded edges - but it might make it a bit easier for a bench grinder.

[EsquireEsque]

I've overlooked something ... (won't be the first time?).
The headstock already has a layer of Danish oil on it.... and looks a bit "naked" and needs to have a "decal" of some sort.

Will a "waterslide" stick to it?
If so will more layers of Danish Oil go over the top without smearing or otherwise hurting the decal?

[Trevor Davies]

I've overlooked something ... (won't be the first time?).
The headstock already has a layer of Danish oil on it.... and looks a bit "naked" and needs to have a "decal" of some sort.

Will a "waterslide" stick to it?
If so will more layers of Danish Oil go over the top without smearing or otherwise hurting the decal?

I have not used Danish oil! I read that it contains resins and varnish. I would expect that a decal would be OK with the varnish coats protecting it. You would need to add the Danish oil carefully to not move the decal. I would trial your decal first on some scrap wood to make sure it does not smear the ink.

I have used Tru-oil with ink-jet printed decals. I remember adding a layer or two of the tru-oil to decal to stiffen and protect the decal before it was added. (See https://www.buildyourownguitar.com.a...l=1#post216341)

[EsquireEsque]

Thanks Trevor

I was thinking that for the body i'd use Danish oil and then top that off with tru-oil. If need be I can use it on teh headstock too.

I'm using Danish oil because it's rather "forgiving" of mistakes when putting it on.

[fender3x]

Thanks Trevor

I was thinking that for the body i'd use Danish oil and then top that off with tru-oil. If need be I can use it on teh headstock too.

I'm using Danish oil because it's rather "forgiving" of mistakes when putting it on.

That may be fine, but I would approach it with some caution unless you have seen someone do it. I have never used Tru Oil on a build, but I did some experimenting with it early on, and sent a few queries to the Birchwood Casey (the mfg). This is an excerpt from their response:

"Tru-Oil is not compatible with other oily products, you run the risk of it not drying if used on top of oily products. If you apply it, and it doesn’t dry, you will end up with a mess. You will have no choice but to strip the wood and start from scratch."

So if you do want to use them together, I would at least try it first, and give it a lot of time to cure. A part of the problem with "Danish Oil" is that there is no standard formulation of it. Every mfg seems to have their own recipe.

[EsquireEsque]

That may be fine, but I would approach it with some caution unless you have seen someone do it. I have never used Tru Oil on a build, but I did some experimenting with it early on, and sent a few queries to the Birchwood Casey (the mfg). This is an excerpt from their response:

"Tru-Oil is not compatible with other oily products, you run the risk of it not drying if used on top of oily products. If you apply it, and it doesn’t dry, you will end up with a mess. You will have no choice but to strip the wood and start from scratch."

So if you do want to use them together, I would at least try it first, and give it a lot of time to cure. A part of the problem with "Danish Oil" is that there is no standard formulation of it. Every mfg seems to have their own recipe.

Thanks.

Much appreciated.

[EsquireEsque]

Well, after much to-ing and fro-ing, and quite possibly far too much measurement, I've routed the neck socket.



I understand that the neck is supposed to be about 3mm higher than the body (that is the fretboard plus 3mm of the neck itself) - and I seem to have routed a trench 1mm too deep.

I have a back-up though - i'm going to use a "thicknesser" to take 3mm off the body and put a board on the top and then machine it down so that the board is 1 to 2 mm thick and the body is 1mm thinner than it is now.
I originally thought to do this so I'd not have to find a long enough drill bit to drill the channel between the control plate trench and the pickup rout (I can simply rout a connection and then put the top on it - makes it easier to put the shielding in too).

[Trevor Davies]

I think a top of 1-2 mm thickness is very thin! It would make it easier for the channel to the control route.

Long drill bits are quite cheap to buy off Ebay.

[fender3x]

...I understand that the neck is supposed to be about 3mm higher than the body (that is the fretboard plus 3mm of the neck itself) - and I seem to have routed a trench 1mm too deep...

That seems like a lot of trouble to go to for 1-2 mm.

#1: Before fixing the problem it would be prudent to established that it is a problem ;-) To wit: I would suggest dry fitting the neck in the pocket, putting bridge in place, and seeing if you can get it into proper adjustment. If you can, declare victory ;-)

#2: If you can't adjust the saddles down far enough, either shim the neck, or sand off one or two mm from the bottom of the blank--or run your thicknesser on the blank to take off an 1-2 mm. Wouldn't that be simpler than than taking off 3 mm and laminating a 1-2 mm top onto it?

I would only put a whole new top on if you want it for aesthetic reasons. Push comes to shove, it's much easier to get a good solid glue up when you are gluing a piece into the neck pocket than it is to laminate a piece onto the entire top.

I don't think screws are an issue. If the screws are just one or two mm too long, you can simply take a mm or two off the point of the screw. The point doesn't need to be sharp ;-)

[EsquireEsque]

.... actually - I've found that the paper plans that I was using as a guide (pasted onto the body blank) had lifted - and the neck is actually exactly 3mm above the body.

I've mostly taken the paper off the body and noted where things will probably go.





So now I reassess whether to use a top (and the additional shielding and chambering) given that this is my first try.....