Many Beginner luthier questions

[Jzbass25]

Hey guys, I have a few questions regarding building my own instruments. I have always been a diy sort of guy and I have been itching to do a build but I am very new to building instruments still so I need some advice.
These questions aren't really in any order but these are all my ideas/questions and I have done much research on this topic but I want more firsthanders helping me out especially since you guys probably know how to do this on the cheap pretty well; however, even with the research that I've done (off and on for years now) I still feel clueless sometimes.
Also I'm going to use colors to break up the text so it is less taxing.

I apologize for my naiveness, stupid questions and longevity of this post. But you have to start somewhere.

First I want to review the tools:

For a guitar body (solid) the tools I have been looking at is a router, jigsaw, drill press and of course a normal power drill with an assortment of bits. For adding tops you need some clamps and glue. *also spokeshave for tummy cuts and such.

Can I have some recommendations on brands/models for these tools? I want to keep it as cheap as I can but I want them to work well. Also can you do cavities just fine without a drill press or does it make the process more difficult?

Also what is the best way to get an edge around the cavities so that I can have a lip to screw the cavity covers on. (ex. would I cut the route first and then go around that cavity with a short router bit and make a lip)

Also how do you make the neck joint and how do you decide how deep the neck should sit in the body and how much curve should the neck joint get and which tool suits that task best (AANJ is probably the only style I want)

Finally if I were to do a blackmachine clone are there limitations to the type of wood that should be used since the guitar is so damn thin. Also how do you make sure the neck joint is thin but not so thin that it is going to break.




For making a guitar neck I am much less knowledgeable so I have more questions.

First- What is the best way and what is the cheapest way to radius a fretboard, also how do you make a compound radius board.

Second- Fretting and cutting fret slots I am completely clueless on. What is the best way to cut the slots and what tools are needed to fret? I also need info on fret dressing/finishing (tools/how to). I would prefer tools that make the process quicker and easier but also suggest cheaper alternatives please.

Also would you use digital calipers for fret distance measurement or are there tools that make it easy to mark where to cut? Generally I think Im going to stick to 25.5 scale length.

Third- To shape a neck you need a spokeshave and a rasp.
Just what is the best way to get the proper curvature/shape (along with gradient in thickness) that you want and also the best width gradient., I feel like I would mess up somewhere and end up making my neck 3mm thick from trying to correct all the mistakes!

Fourth- Truss rod routing
What tool is best suited to routing the truss rod channel?

Fifth- Where can I buy templates for bodies/necks or how do I make them. Say if I like the suhr modern body, what is the best way to get that shape other than tracing an actual suhr. Also if I had the chance to trace a body or neck what type of material would be best to do the template on. I need some sort of guide since Im not the type that can eyeball a picture and draw a perfect recreation.
I know stewmac has some pickup templates and I believe some bridge templates which is nice.

Sixth- The nut
This is another aspect I dont know real well, how do I make a channel for the nut, whether it be a floyd or other and how do I slot a nut if it isnt a floyd.

Seventh- Headstock angle,
what is the easiest way and what is the best way. Also what tools would I use? Just a jigsaw and make sure I follow a proper angle when cutting?

Eighth- Neck bolt placement/drilling
I need to know the theory behind neck bolt hole placement on the body and neck unless there is not much method to the madness other than keep the neck from moving around or falling off. Also what drill bits are best for making the inset holes on the body.

Ninth- How do I bind a neck or body and what tools are best/cheapest

Tenth- Inlay
Again what tools and methods are used to do inlay on the fretboard. At the moment I am thinking about having a no inlay project though.

Finally!! How do I make sure that my scale length is going to be correct when doing a body/neck. I dont want to do all the work and be like "The floyd rose is too close to the neck so the scale length is all wrong."




I know a few of my questions are guesswork but I like to try and have some method to all my madness.
Also I am generally looking at being a personal hobbiest so I would prefer to keep the tools to the bare minimum but sometimes I would like to make my life easier with fancier tools.
So if there is a way I can make a tool for cheaper or use a less specialized less expensive tool then I will like that but if it is worth it to go the extra mile for a certain tool then I should be more than happy (even though college likes to kill all my fun haha).

At the moment I am looking at either stripping a 7620 body I have and painting it and making a neck for it or selling that body and
making a blackmachine style guitar. (might keep the body though for a rainyday...)

Im leaning towards the blackmachine 6 or 7 at the moment since I dont have a hardtail or any exotic woods and those things look beast without inlay and I sort of want to take that step out of the equation until I am more confident.
Also I dont need to do any special painting for a blackmachine style guitar. (which reminds me, do they just tung oil their guitars?)

 

[darren]

For a guitar body (solid) the tools I have been looking at is a router, jigsaw, drill press and of course a normal power drill with an assortment of bits. For adding tops you need some clamps and glue. *also spokeshave for tummy cuts and such.

For preparing body and neck blanks, you're also going to want a planer and jointer or a drum sander and edge sander. You're also probably going to want a bandsaw.

Can I have some recommendations on brands/models for these tools? I want to keep it as cheap as I can but I want them to work well. Also can you do cavities just fine without a drill press or does it make the process more difficult?

My advice would be to head to the library and go through some past issues of Fine Woodworking. They review all kinds of tools and have recommendations for "best overall" and "best value" that often work at various budget levels. While you can do everything with hand tools, but you'll get better results with your drilling if you use a drill press.

Also what is the best way to get an edge around the cavities so that I can have a lip to screw the cavity covers on. (ex. would I cut the route first and then go around that cavity with a short router bit and make a lip)

Do everything with templates. Therefore, you would have a template for routing the inner part of the cavity, and a template for routing the "lip".

Also how do you make the neck joint and how do you decide how deep the neck should sit in the body and how much curve should the neck joint get and which tool suits that task best (AANJ is probably the only style I want)

Again, use templates. Either buy them or have your own made based on the geometry of your neck heel. The depth of the neck pocket generally depends on how high your bridge is and how thick your neck blank is to start with.

Finally if I were to do a blackmachine clone are there limitations to the type of wood that should be used since the guitar is so damn thin. Also how do you make sure the neck joint is thin but not so thin that it is going to break.

Research and development. There's a reason it's taken Doug years to get to where he is now. He builds a lot of guitars people don't see in order to test things like that.

First- What is the best way and what is the cheapest way to radius a fretboard, also how do you make a compound radius board.

I use a radius sanding beam from StewMac. Sanding blocks are also available for less dough. STEWMAC.COM : Fretboard Radius-sanding Blocks

To do a compound radius properly, you really need an edge sander (or belt sander) and a jig to move the fretboard blank in a conical motion across the sanding surface. Or if you have access to a CNC mill, you could probably do it that way and then sand out the tooling marks. You could also probably build a router jig to do it as well. There's no real easy or cheap way to do compound radius boards that i'm aware of.

Second- Fretting and cutting fret slots I am completely clueless on. What is the best way to cut the slots and what tools are needed to fret? I also need info on fret dressing/finishing (tools/how to). I would prefer tools that make the process quicker and easier but also suggest cheaper alternatives please.

There are lots of different ways to slot a fret board. What's "best" depends on your skills and access to tools. The best way would be to have it done on a CNC mill, which would give you the absolute dead-on most accurate cuts possible. Other options include using a mitre box and fret saw or a table saw and jig.

STEWMAC.COM : Saws and slots

Also would you use digital calipers for fret distance measurement or are there tools that make it easy to mark where to cut? Generally I think Im going to stick to 25.5 scale length.

Get templates made or even just use a fret scale calculator to draw up detailed plans and then print them out on thin paper (making sure to verify that your printer prints at the correct scale), then tape the paper template to the fretboard blank to cut the slots. Then sand off the template when you radius the board.

Third- To shape a neck you need a spokeshave and a rasp.
Just what is the best way to get the proper curvature/shape (along with gradient in thickness) that you want and also the best width gradient., I feel like I would mess up somewhere and end up making my neck 3mm thick from trying to correct all the mistakes!

Go slowly, trust your hands, take lots of measurements as you go. Stop carving when it feels right.

Fourth- Truss rod routing
What tool is best suited to routing the truss rod channel?

You answered your own question. A router with the correct size of bit.

Fifth- Where can I buy templates for bodies/necks or how do I make them. Say if I like the suhr modern body, what is the best way to get that shape other than tracing an actual suhr. Also if I had the chance to trace a body or neck what type of material would be best to do the template on. I need some sort of guide since Im not the type that can eyeball a picture and draw a perfect recreation.
I know stewmac has some pickup templates and I believe some bridge templates which is nice.

If you like a particular shape, the only way to copy it is to trace it, either physically or digitally. If you can get good frontal photographs with little lens distortion, you can sometimes use those as a basis to digitally trace the body and scale it up correctly (using things like the guitar's fret scale length and known dimensions of things like pickups and control knobs as reference points).

If you're handy with programs like Adobe Illustrator, CorelDraw or CAD apps, just about any shop that does CNC, laser or waterjet cutting can make templates for you, based on your files. With time and patience, you can also make your own templates out of MDF.

Sixth- The nut
This is another aspect I dont know real well, how do I make a channel for the nut, whether it be a floyd or other and how do I slot a nut if it isnt a floyd.

Many guitars have nuts that just sit at the end of the fretboard, on a flat spot before the headstock break angle. You can get pre-slotted nuts from GraphTech or other sources, but you'll need some needle files to fine-tune the slot depth when doing the final setup.

Seventh- Headstock angle,
what is the easiest way and what is the best way. Also what tools would I use? Just a jigsaw and make sure I follow a proper angle when cutting?

It can be done on a table saw, a bandsaw, on an edge sander with a jig, or i've even seen people cut them with a hand saw and then clean up later with a jointer or sander.

Eighth- Neck bolt placement/drilling
I need to know the theory behind neck bolt hole placement on the body and neck unless there is not much method to the madness other than keep the neck from moving around or falling off. Also what drill bits are best for making the inset holes on the body.

The theory is to maximize contact area, and not drill through things like the fretboard or the truss rod. The best drill bits to use are sharp ones. Brad point bits have a nice sharp point which will give you better accuracy.

Ninth- How do I bind a neck or body and what tools are best/cheapest

Rout a channel for the binding. Glue the binding in.

Tenth- Inlay
Again what tools and methods are used to do inlay on the fretboard. At the moment I am thinking about having a no inlay project though.

A Dremel tool, fine bits, a scroll saw, files, knives, glue, epoxy filler, inlay material. Inlay is an art unto itself, and it's probably something better learned on its own and definitely not for your first guitar project.

Finally!! How do I make sure that my scale length is going to be correct when doing a body/neck. I dont want to do all the work and be like "The floyd rose is too close to the neck so the scale length is all wrong."

Use a fret scale calculator.

Fret position calculator at Stewart-MacDonald

or

http://www.ekips.org/tools/guitar/fretfind2d/

The FretFind tool will also generate a PDF you can use to print paper templates. The StewMac calculator is handy because it also gives bridge placement measurements for various bridge types.


Overall, just take your time, plan everything out in detail, don't try to cut corners or skip steps, and measure, measure, measure (and measure again) before you cut anything.

Oh, and have fun.

It sounds like you're ambitious but don't quite have enough information to get started. I'd highly recommend doing more reading on the subject. Melvyn Hiscock's book is a great primer on most subjects related to lutherie.

 

[scherzo1928]

First off, I was almoast finished writing my reply, and hit go back by mistake...
So yeah, I might miss a thing or 2 this time around.

For a guitar body (solid) the tools I have been looking at is a router, jigsaw, drill press and of course a normal power drill with an assortment of bits. For adding tops you need some clamps and glue. *also spokeshave for tummy cuts and such.

Well, I have made my first guitar (almoast finished) jsut using a router, a drillpress, and some handsaws. I had a jigsaw, but it flaked out on it's first task.

I agree with Darren though, a planer, jointer and a drum sander will make your life a lot easier. Actually I'm looking for a drum sander now.

Also what is the best way to get an edge around the cavities so that I can have a lip to screw the cavity covers on. (ex. would I cut the route first and then go around that cavity with a short router bit and make a lip)

You need a template for the cavity, and another for the recess. Something like this:

What is the best way and what is the cheapest way to radius a fretboard, also how do you make a compound radius board.

Sanding beam, or sanding block. It will be easier to get more consistent results with a beam, not to mention you can use it to help glue your fretboard to the neck if you want to.

Fretting and cutting fret slots I am completely clueless on. What is the best way to cut the slots and what tools are needed to fret? I also need info on fret dressing/finishing (tools/how to). I would prefer tools that make the process quicker and easier but also suggest cheaper alternatives please.

You can also buy pre-slotted fretboards from Stew-Mac or Lmii. I will recomend Lmii since I've had great experience with their customer service. Besides you can choose from a ton of different woods.
Guitar Fingerboards

Truss rod routing
What tool is best suited to routing the truss rod channel?

Best tool for routing is a router. You will need a 1/4" bit I think.

Where can I buy templates for bodies/necks or how do I make them. Say if I like the suhr modern body, what is the best way to get that shape other than tracing an actual suhr. Also if I had the chance to trace a body or neck what type of material would be best to do the template on. I need some sort of guide since Im not the type that can eyeball a picture and draw a perfect recreation.
I know stewmac has some pickup templates and I believe some bridge templates which is nice.

I dont know where you can find templates, but you can make your own. Find good quality frontal pics of the guitar shape you are after, scale them properly and print them or trace on a piece of paper over your monitor .
I make all my templates on MDF and they work great.

The nut
This is another aspect I dont know real well, how do I make a channel for the nut, whether it be a floyd or other and how do I slot a nut if it isnt a floyd.

Some nuts just sit at the end of the fretboard. Actually, blackmachines are made like that.

Seventh- Headstock angle,
what is the easiest way and what is the best way. Also what tools would I use? Just a jigsaw and make sure I follow a proper angle when cutting?

You can use a table saw or a bandsaw and make a rig to pass the neck through the saw at your desired angle.

Ninth- How do I bind a neck or body and what tools are best/cheapest

Route a channel, and glue the binding.
STEWMAC.COM : Special tools for Binding

Finally!! How do I make sure that my scale length is going to be correct when doing a body/neck. I dont want to do all the work and be like "The floyd rose is too close to the neck so the scale length is all wrong."

Yep, use the fret thing calculator from Stew Mac. It will tell you where to place your bridge depending on the kind of bridge you are using. Best way to make sure it's placed properly is to install it AFTER you have glued your fretboard in place. This way you can be sure that the distance from the nut will be correct.

 

[Jzbass25]

Thanks this is a lot of good information. I'll try and get that book asap (sweet I have a giftcard Ive beens saving that I can use on it!)

It is a daunting task but I feel like it will be worth it in the end. I will probably start with a preradius'd and slotted board and just do a neck and body but once I can acquire more tools, more workspace, more money and more experience then I will keep moving forward.

 

[scherzo1928]

 

[Jzbass25]

Oh I just thought of a few extra questions, is there any cheaper way of making a radius block like the aluminum one from stewmac but be more affordable or do the small radius blocks still work pretty well for making the frets evenly rounded and radiused.

Also if I ever wanted to do stainless steel frets would I need any other tools or is it just much harder to cut and sand?

 

[scherzo1928]

I just cut my first set of stainless steel frets, and they are REEAAAALLY hard. My sugestion is buy cheap tools for cutting them. They will be ruined afterwards .

 

[Jzbass25]

haha ok thanks