First build - TL-1TH

[Bakersdozen]

Thanks everyone. There was some loose lacquer still attached, so I picked that away, sanded, tack-clothed, and then resprayed the clear. If I get problems again I will probably go for the CA as I am somewhat impatient with having to wait for yet more lacquer to cure.

Winner! I'm glad you made some progress. Patience is the biggest killer with this style of craft.

[jugglindan]

There is still a bit of a bump where the chip was, as I haven't resprayed anywhere near as many coats. If the weather holds tomorrow I may put one or two more on.

[jugglindan]

After the spate of recent horror stories about stock kit screws breaking I decided to replace mine with something sturdier. Real Parts was out of stock of a few sizes that I needed, so I went to the dread green shed:


As near as I can measure, and recognizing that since I haven't drilled pilot holes I have more leeway, these should do for pickguard/jack, bridge, and neck. I know they are zinc plated not nickel or chrome but they should be a lot sturdier. Plus a pack of 50 was the same price as ~8 screws from Real Parts.

Other progress since last post has mostly been in the pedal building area, but I have filled the chipped lacquer on the neck (not perfectly though, but enough to stop it worsening) and applied a bit more CA to some fretboard spots that needed it.

[Simon Barden]

Not ideal screws, as they aren't the normal dome head countersunk type. Also more for softwood rather than hardwood with those coarse threads.

[king casey]

I'm using similar for the bridge on the 'Mustang' The size is 5G 15mm.
Probably not the ideal, but geez luxury after the cheddar cheese one's they replaced.

cheers, Mark.

[jugglindan]

Not ideal screws, as they aren't the normal dome head countersunk type. Also more for softwood rather than hardwood with those coarse threads.

Hmm, I matched them to the ones that came with the kit, and the thread pitch looked quite similar. Admittedly I didn't measure the pitch as the battery in my digital calipers is flat. Or by "coarse" are you referring to the thread depth (outer to inner radius) rather than pitch?

It's a basswood body if that helps, which I think is quite a lot softer than ash or alder. Oh yeah, except for the maple neck

I agree there is no dome head, but isn't that more for appearance than structural integrity? And to prevent sharp edges if the screw isn't perfectly straight?

Turns out that I need to put in an order with Real Parts anyway, because the volume pot in the G&L died tonight after 7 years valiant service. I soldered a bridge across terminals 2 and 3 as a temporary fix (simulates max volume more or less). And it turns out that no matter how many pots I have stashed, I still never have the right values.

[jugglindan]

Slowly progressing on this build. I have suspended all my pedal building efforts for now while I get this done.

I mentioned before that the bone nut was too thin compared to the plastic kit nut, and thus a very poor fit into the slot. Today I measured with calipers. Plastic kit nut is 4mm thick while the bone nut is 3mm. I have emailed Adam to see if I received the wrong nut or if my kit neck had an unusual nut thickness. Nut width and string spacing look correct.

Thanks to BakersDozen I have some thin veneer that I could use to shim the nut, but matching the colour to the rosewood might be tricky. Would I be better off buying some bone nut blanks on ebay? I do have a set of nut files.

If I do get some bone blanks, can the 12" radius sanding block be used to radius the top curve on the nut? Or is it a different profile that is higher on the bass side, and thus needing a different approach.

[jugglindan]

Some small research suggests that 4mm thick is uncommon. Looking at Real Parts, all the pre-shaped/pre-slotted bone nuts are 3mm thick. All the pre-shaped/pre-slotted Tusq nuts are 3.4mm thick. Blanks in both are thicker, so that's looking like the only option other than shimming to get a snug fit.

[Petebullgtr]

Hey JD. Have you tried Ace Guitar Parts. I've bought quite a few items from them. The service is good and parts are good quality. They have screws, bone nuts and everything else.

P.S. I had the same issue with the bone nut I ordered and I just shimmed it with paper. Once the nut was glued in I trimmed the paper and you can't even see it.

P.P.S. There's a pic of the new nut on my thread in the Build Diary forum.

[jugglindan]

Thanks. I actually read your thread earlier today and commented on the photo rotation issue. I didn't pay close attention to the nut at the time. Is the closeup photo showing the shimmed bone nut? I have 1mm to make up which is quite a few sheets of paper. I guess it is strong in compression. Better not get it wet though!

And you are right, I was thinking I needed to colour match the fretboard but matching the nut colour makes more sense.

I will check out Ace Guitar parts now. Thanks again.