2 builds for school

[Jango]

Hey all, I'm currently attending the Guitar Craft Academy (Musician's Institute's luthiery program) and we have the chance to build 2 guitar over the course of the program. Our first guitar has to have a painted body and a bolt-on neck with a scoop headstock, and our second has to be oil finished with a set neck and a tilt-back headstock. We're also limited to common woods for our guitar, but other than that we're pretty free to choose our hardware and the shape/dimensions/aesthetics of the guitar. I already have both mostly planned out, and will be updating this throughout the course with progress updates.

BUILD 1:
Swamp Ash body (possibly a walnut top, not sure yet, opinions?)
Maple neck w/ W. African Ebony fretboard
16" radius
6 in line reverse headstock (not positive on shape yet, probably Jackson-based)
25.5" scale, 24 frets
MOP Side markers
Modified RR shape
Hipshot Contour Trem
Schaller 16:1 Locking Tuners
Dunlop strap locks
Ebony humbucker rings
SS Jumbo frets
HH design (we wind our own pickups in class)
1 volume, 1 tone, 3 way switch/blend knob (undecided)
Body will be painted white, all hardware gold

BUILD 2:
Swamp Ash body
Maple neck w/ W. African Ebony fretboard
25.5" scale, 24 frets
6 in-line reverse, Parker shape
PRS shape body
SS Jumbo frets
Schaller/Gotoh Floyd Rose (undecided yet)
16" radius
Schaller tuners
Dunlop strap locks
Body mounted HH configuration
MOP Side markers
1 vol, 1 tone, 3 way switch/blend knob
Body finished with gunstock oil, hardware black.

 

[TimSE]

Swweeeeeeeeeeeeeet!

Sounds awesome man. Be sure to get with MANY updates and often

 

[Jango]

Thoughts on the Walnut top over Swamp Ash on the RR?

 

[Littledidweknow]

I love walnut tops, I am doing one on a current build I have going.

 

[Sephael]

walnut does look stunning

 

[scherzo1928]

If you are painting it white anyways, why not just go with the swamp ash body?

 

[sk3ks1s]

^
Yeah. If you're going to paint it, don't waste time, effort, and money putting a top on it.

 

[Winspear]

Awesome! Yeah put that top on the oiled one

 

[Jango]

I was wondering more about the way walnut would change the tone, but alright. I really like the look of natural swamp ash (my Agile 8 is nat ash) and wanted that as the oiled finish. Another consideration about the walnut top; I can do all the routing for wire channels and such on the RR (and put the input jack on the top wing) if I go the top route, otherwise it would be quite a bit more difficult.

 

[scherzo1928]

in my experience, quite more difficult=you learn more.

 

[teleofseven]

in my experience, quite more difficult=you learn more.

but repetition is just as important as making something new


...hmmm. i think i'll make a shirt with that phrase.

 

[Jango]

EDIT: Never mind, I found out I can put a top of the same wood on, which wasn't on option on the order form.

 

[Jango]

Small update, this is the headstock template for the first build. I'll be starting on a practice neck tomorrow, body design is due next week, so there'll be some updates coming up.

 

[Edika]

Looks good! Like a blade of some sort! I imagine these will not be jazz looking guitars hehehe!!!

 

[Jango]

Somebody else mentioned that it looked like a katana, so it already has a name; Celestial Fury. Sounds weird/nerdy, but it's from one of my favorite video games of all time, so it's got personal meaning.

First one for sure won't be, it'll look a lot like this; http://img3.musiciansfriend.com/dbase/pics/products/3/9/0/270390.jpg
except it'll have a hipshot vibrato bridge, no control guard, an ebony board, no inlays, and gold pup rings.

Second one I'm not 100% sure yet, the specs I have up for the second build are totally flexible and I might change my mind between now and then.

 

[Thrashmanzac]

Small update, this is the headstock template for the first build. I'll be starting on a practice neck tomorrow, body design is due next week, so there'll be some updates coming up.

either you have massive hands, or that headstock is really small
to me anyway