First Scratch Build: Maple Walnut neck through-RD

Talk about modding or building your own guitar from scratch.
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EdGrip
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Re: First Scratch Build: Maple Walnut neck through-RD

Post by EdGrip » Thu Jun 09, 2011 9:29 am

That Marauder needs more switches.

This is gonna be beautiful. However, I feel it's someone's duty to point out that RNFR without the F is simply not RNR.

- Ed
"The Gear Page are a bunch of cork-sniffing hedge fund managers who collect $5,000 boutique amps like an old lady collects cats. I wouldn't waste any angst over dilettante amp hoarders who judge tone by the number of zeros on the price tag."

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ForcedFire
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Re: First Scratch Build: Maple Walnut neck through-RD

Post by ForcedFire » Thu Jun 09, 2011 10:24 am

EdGrip wrote:That Marauder needs more switches.

This is gonna be beautiful. However, I feel it's someone's duty to point out that RNFR without the F is simply not RNR.

- Ed
I know...I know... :fp:


;D

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ForcedFire
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Re: First Scratch Build: Maple Walnut neck through-RD

Post by ForcedFire » Thu Jun 09, 2011 7:45 pm

Let there be guitar:

Image

Finally! I cleaned up around the fretboard and brought the neck-through back down level with the body wings. A little clean up on the front but not much. The body glue up turned out great, it all lined up nicely. It's just over 1 3/8" thick.

I cut the body with a speed/rough cut 6" Bosch 344D jigsaw blade and brought it down to the line with the spindle sander.

Image

I wiped it. The flame looks sweet:

Image

Still some glue on the inlays, gotta clean that up...
Last edited by ForcedFire on Wed Jun 27, 2012 6:40 pm, edited 1 time in total.

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the older brother
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Re: First Scratch Build: Maple Walnut neck through-RD

Post by the older brother » Thu Jun 09, 2011 11:52 pm

:?

Looks absolutely gorgeous!
Someone knows where I can find the nearest woodchipper to throw my pieces of junk into?

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Re: First Scratch Build: Maple Walnut neck through-RD

Post by Telenator » Fri Jun 10, 2011 4:22 am

I love the way you made the dark stripes continue through the peghead!

I whipped up a little variation on the pick guard. I don't know what the guard looks like on an RD but, pickguards are one of my favorite things to play with.

Hope I don't offend. Just offering a suggestion on a fine project.

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If you're bored, you're not groovin' - Telenator®

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Re: First Scratch Build: Maple Walnut neck through-RD

Post by ForcedFire » Fri Jun 10, 2011 5:51 am

Not bad, I think I prefer the original:

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Re: First Scratch Build: Maple Walnut neck through-RD

Post by Telenator » Fri Jun 10, 2011 5:53 am

Yes, you're right.

Seeing it on an original guitar I agree with you.
If you're bored, you're not groovin' - Telenator®

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Re: First Scratch Build: Maple Walnut neck through-RD

Post by ForcedFire » Sun Jun 12, 2011 4:02 pm

If you can believe it, I did the control cavity with the dremel. Here's how:

YouTube - ‪Dremel Router Guitar Pickup Control Cavity bit # 654 and # 561‬‏

I drilled for the tailpiece bushings with a 1/2" Forstner bit. I located the hole from the back and drilled from the control cavity to install the ground wire. This couldn't have turned out better, I hit the bottom of the hole dead on:

Image

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I used 18AWG pre-tinned and cloth shielded wire for the ground. You can get it at Triode. I used it for the heaters on my 25W 6V6 Trainwreck Express style amp:

Image

Image

I removed the cloth from one end, pulled it into the bushing hole and twisted around some needle nose pliers for the bushing to contact it. Once the bushings were pressed in I checked for continuity on my multimeter.

I reamed my tuner holes, lined them up, drilled and installed the tuner screws. Rough cut an old beater bone nut that came on my bulldog kit. The ABR-1 is sitting on a couple of pieces of veneer with 2 sets of thumbwheels, one to hold the posts, the other to adjust the height.

I plugged a mic into my tuner and got the whole thing roughly set up to check the intonation. IT WORKS! Pretty cool. Lots to do but at least I know it's going to play great. Maybe I'll make a clip later.

Image

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Re: First Scratch Build: Maple Walnut neck through-RD

Post by Leviman » Sun Jun 12, 2011 11:29 pm

That's the most important part is how it plays! My favorite part of a build is when you string it up and out class some of your store bought guitars 8)
Longhorn build http://www.offsetguitars.com/forums/viewtopic.php?f=8&t=62236

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Re: First Scratch Build: Maple Walnut neck through-RD

Post by Grey » Mon Jun 13, 2011 6:00 am

Actaully, I like the way Telenators pickguard looks over the original.

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Re: First Scratch Build: Maple Walnut neck through-RD

Post by ForcedFire » Mon Jun 13, 2011 6:02 am

Leviman wrote:That's the most important part is how it plays! My favorite part of a build is when you string it up and out class some of your store bought guitars 8)
I'm kind of surprised how good it sounds. I don't think I've ever played a 'naked' guitar, especially not a neck-through maple one. I can hear some of the tight highs from the maple. The lower notes ring really clearly but maybe not as deep as say a LP would. It has tons of sustain. One thing I find really fascinating is if I put my ear on the point of the body (the part closest to your playing arm) it sounds SO loud. Like it could be plugged into an amp. I'm wondering if the way I have the studs mounted right on the edge of the walnut pieces if that helps vibrate the maple wings and resonate better. I really don't know anything about wood and vibration though :derp: .
Last edited by ForcedFire on Mon Jun 13, 2011 6:19 am, edited 1 time in total.

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Re: First Scratch Build: Maple Walnut neck through-RD

Post by ForcedFire » Mon Jun 13, 2011 6:08 am

Grey.exe wrote:Actaully, I like the way Telenators pickguard looks over the original.
It makes me think of the Firebird a bit more in the horn. The original just looks kind of wrong since it doesn't follow the body shape, but I do prefer it.

Ugh, I still can't decide what electronics to put under the pickguard. I just ordered a battery box that I could mount in the back :ph34r: .

It's hard to get a sense of where my playing hand will hit the pickguard at this point because the bridge is just temporarily mounted on machine screws so they force me to play further from the bridge than I normally would.

I've been considering a single rocker switch closer to the neck with a recessed thumbwheel pot and a red LED with either a boost or fuzz, sticking with the "rock and roll" theme of the guitar....

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Re: First Scratch Build: Maple Walnut neck through-RD

Post by quarterpound » Mon Jun 13, 2011 7:01 am

Well fuzz would obviously be for fucking, and this is just a rock n roll guitar, so it just wants clean boost. ;)

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Re: First Scratch Build: Maple Walnut neck through-RD

Post by ForcedFire » Mon Jun 13, 2011 8:15 am

quarterpound wrote:Well fuzz would obviously be for fucking, and this is just a rock n roll guitar, so it just wants clean boost. ;)
Well once the cavity and battery box are in there it's not hard to switch out the circuits.

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Re: First Scratch Build: Maple Walnut neck through-RD

Post by Oig » Mon Jun 13, 2011 12:50 pm

This thing looks sick :w00t:

I really like Telenator's guard suggestion...

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