Hoopers TL-1TH

[keloooe]

Yea, basswood is soft as a baby's butt!!! makes ur hand tingle if you rub it a bit!

[adam]

Hooper, if you use the "Image" Icon in the icon menu at the top, you need to insert the image URL between the img tags. If you don't have a url, you can post your image on www.imgur.com to get one.

If you just want to post a jpg from your computer, then use the "Choose File" buttons below the text box.

I use Chrome and haven't had any issues.

[sfkhooper]

Time to shape the headstock. Found a design I like (!) and printed it out. Then I taped it to a newspaper on a page with lots of ink and traced over the outline, transferring the newspaper ink to the back of my design. Next, I cut out the shape with a decent margin and lined the shape up over my headstock. Then I simply rubbed over the design, transferring some of the newspaper ink to the wood. Too easy!

Not sure what everyone else is doing for getting their design onto the headstock, but this is a technique my engineer grandad taught me when I was a kid. I've used it hundreds of times since and it makes stuff like this very easy.







Can't find my jigsaw. It's in a box somewhere. Going to grab my father-in-laws later in the day, so onto staining the body in the meantime.

[sfkhooper]

Setup and ready to stain. I'm using a Feast Watson spirit-based stain. I like spirit stains because they soak deep into the wood and have quick recoat times.


After applying the first coat to the body, my worst fears were confirmed. There was a knotty bit of wood around the f-cutout that hasn't taken the stain. Pretty disappointing really but I'm learning to live with it. The staining process went extremey well aside from this. The basswood really drank up the stain. I kept going over the entire surface until I was satisfied the wood's thirst was quenched to avoid patchy areas.


Pretty happy with the back. Ths is actually after the second application, one hour after the first. Dutifully drying, ready for first lacquering tomorrow.

[4runner]

Looks awesome dude.

[GlennGP]

Quote from sfkhooper on April 14, 2013, 06:02
Time to shape the headstock. Found a design I like (!) and printed it out.

...



Can't find my jigsaw. It's in a box somewhere. Going to grab my father-in-laws later in the day, so onto staining the body in the meantime.

Hey, don't do what I did - came around the headstock clockwise with the jigsaw, and the base plate rode up the neck transition when I got to the end, leaving a nice groove for me to sand out!

[sfkhooper]

Thanks dude. Should look great with a few coats of lacquer. I'm going for high gloss, but I'm looking at probably 6-8 coats, maybe more, to get the finish I want. First one just done now. With today's weather I should be right for 3 coats.

Here's the temporary rig I did for lacquering.

[Gavin1393]

Nice vice!

Re: Shaping the headstock

I make a template out of perspex....re-usable, and exceptionally easy to shape.

Print out the shape as you did on the printer. Attach the printed image to the perspex with double sided tape. Cut out the shape on the scroll-saw (jig saw is much the same) and then smooth the edges to shape!

Granted perspex may not have been readily available in the times of your grandfather!

[sfkhooper]

It's a "Z Vice 2". Cost about $300 from the Home Show a few years ago. Worth every cent! This vice is amazingly flexible, even comes with pipe-cutting attachments. Love it; best vice I've ever used!

[sfkhooper]

Got my hands on a jigsaw, so onto the cutting. It was slower going than I expected, hard wood and a blunt blade! But here's the sanded result. I'm very happy with the outcome.

I should point out that my wife, Kerrie, did the actual jigsaw work. She has a much better hand at it than I do, always has. It's the one power tool that I DON'T fight her for! Thanks Hon!



...and here it is hanging from the shed roof after one coat of lacquer. Very nice if I do say so myself!