Maple, Black Limba, and Ribbon Mahogany Builds

[skate]

I'm starting 3 new 7-string builds.

Specs:
Guitar #1
Body Wood: Ribbon Stripped Mahogany
Top Wood: Flamed Maple
Neck: Flamed Maple
Fingerboard: Ziricote
Pickups: Bareknuckle
Bridge: Undecided
Machineheads: Hipshot
Scale Length: 27"
Total Thickness: 1 5/8"
Finish: Dyed black, Water based Laquear

Guitar #2
Body Wood: Black Limba
Top Wood: Spider Burl Maple
Neck: Indian Rosewood
Fingerboard: Royal Ebony (katolax)
Pickups: Bareknuckle
Bridge: Hipshot
Machineheads: Hipshot
Scale Length: 27"
Fingerboard Radius: 16-20
Total Thickness: 1 7/16"
Finish: lite green that matches the black limba, Water based Laquear

Guitar #3
Body Wood: Ribbon Stripped Mahogany
Neck: Ziricote
Fingerboard: Macassar Ebony
Pickups: Bareknuckle
Bridge: Hipshot
Machineheads: Hipshot
Scale Length: 27"
Fingerboard Radius: 16-20
Total Thickness: 1 7/16"
Finish: Doghair (dyed black with a white pore fill) Water based Laquear

On to the pics!!!!

 

[EOT]

Cool man! I've been interested in how Ziricote would work for a neck for a while now. Let us know your thoughts on it.

 

[skeels]

Way to do it- three at a time!
As always, classy woods man!
Just where do you source out these great pieces?

 

[Watty]

That fingerboard with the sapwood is SICK....love that transition from the pale white to the red and then to the dark brown. That should looks amazing when it's finished!

 

[Polythoral]

That ziricote neck and the katolax board look insane, wow.

 

[LolloBlaskhyrt]

Cool! I love Ziricote! Merry Xmas

 

[Kroaton]

Those fingerboards look amazing. Good luck on the build.

 

[theo]

Wow, nice bits of wood you have there, It's going to be cool watching these builds progress

 

[skate]

Gluing fretboards on necks, routing neck pockets and taking side to side measurements!!

 

[Watty]

Hot damn does that Katalox board look nice with that body. You keeping the body natural to match the sapwood?

And thanks again for agreeing to sell me one of the other pieces!

 

[ThePhilosopher]

Katalox is win, glad to see someone else using it; hell these builds are all win.

 

[skate]

Its been cols and rainy here but there has been time to do some body work!! Lots of Routing has been done this week. Neck Carving is next followed by setting the neck with epoxy!!!

 

[capoeiraesp]

Great choices of woods dude. Each one is unique in its own right.

 

[skate]

I have a small update for ya. I carved the horns of all 3 guitars today!! I use a 1" and a 1/2" chisel on all the bevels that I do on the guitars. I feel it makes things look a lot cleaner and there is less sanding to do on the guitars at the end of the day. As most of you probably know, using a router on maple tops can leave burn marks on the maple if you don"t go around the guitar fast enough. You can always sand off the burns but it takes longer (and I'm not one for a whole lot of sanding).

I wanted this guitar to be very fluid. So I sanded most of the hard lines out.

This mahogany guitar, I wanted to have the hard lines, so you could see the bevels on it with no problem. When the white pore fill goes in, it will look crazy!!

 

[Syrinx]

Damn those look nice!

 

[Levi79]

Wow you've got some choice woods there dude! Work looks great too!

 

[Navid]

How do you get the body bevels done?

 

[skate]

I use small Ibex finger planers on the outside bevels and chisels for the inside horn bevels. When I bevel the outside of the guitars I work on, I make sure to look at the lower curve as well as the upper to make sure that the lines are crisp and even and don"t wonder around.

When I bevel the inside horns, I use a nice sharp chisel. Typically, 1" or 3/4". I flip the chisel over so that the flat part is facing up, and I move the chisel into the wood and flick it up, taking a piece of wood with it. Its almost the same technique that you would use to scallop the tone braces of an acoustic guitar top.

 

[Danukenator]

Man, that Katalox is so beautiful. Love the look of it.

 

[skate]

Neck Carving!! I'll get some more shots of them soon.