Search found 47 matches

by Rob Ficalora
Mon Feb 16, 2015 10:27 pm
Forum: Solid-Body and Chambered or Semi-Solid Electric Guitars and Bass Guitars
Topic: 1st Guitar build - father/son project
Replies: 77
Views: 58464

Re: 1st Guitar build - father/son project

Thanks Jim - didn't realize that. Just changed it to public so should work now. It's just a short clip where I walked in on him playing it to show it's done. Doesn't show him going through the scales but the intonation was excellent.
by Rob Ficalora
Sat Feb 14, 2015 10:31 pm
Forum: Solid-Body and Chambered or Semi-Solid Electric Guitars and Bass Guitars
Topic: 1st Guitar build - father/son project
Replies: 77
Views: 58464

Re: 1st Guitar build - father/son project

It's finally done! Almost 2yrs to the day -- it's a good thing he is patient! Here's a (very) short clip of him playing it... http://youtu.be/6FrYezkkxSk. Thanks again for all the info and tips. It was great to get to do this with him and I couldn't have done it without the help of the great folks h...
by Rob Ficalora
Sun Jan 25, 2015 11:32 pm
Forum: Solid-Body and Chambered or Semi-Solid Electric Guitars and Bass Guitars
Topic: 1st Guitar build - father/son project
Replies: 77
Views: 58464

Re: 1st Guitar build - father/son project

OK, it's been forever since we worked on the guitar. Between my work schedule & his sports/friends we haven't had free time at the same time much. Over the past couple of months, we did manage to get the neck finished & this weekend we spent several hours. We are just about done now... This ...
by Rob Ficalora
Fri Jul 04, 2014 4:10 pm
Forum: Solid-Body and Chambered or Semi-Solid Electric Guitars and Bass Guitars
Topic: 1st Guitar build - father/son project
Replies: 77
Views: 58464

Re: 1st Guitar build - father/son project

I'll give that a try on some scrap... Although I think it took me about six coats to get enough to sand smooth without cutting through and ruining the dye.
by Rob Ficalora
Thu Jul 03, 2014 10:15 pm
Forum: Solid-Body and Chambered or Semi-Solid Electric Guitars and Bass Guitars
Topic: 1st Guitar build - father/son project
Replies: 77
Views: 58464

Re: 1st Guitar build - father/son project

We went with the water based poly that I had originally bought. There are a few witness lines* but by the time it was polished out, you have to look very hard under just the right light to see them. But, given that it is difficult to get the wood perfectly smooth on the carved top, I'll use a finish...
by Rob Ficalora
Thu Jul 03, 2014 8:55 pm
Forum: Solid-Body and Chambered or Semi-Solid Electric Guitars and Bass Guitars
Topic: 1st Guitar build - father/son project
Replies: 77
Views: 58464

Re: 1st Guitar build - father/son project

Power came back on and we finished polishing the top. Won't be long till it's done now.

Good thing my son is patient!

It's hard to get a picture that shows off the finish. I put the water spray and scratch remover bottles there; if the pic is big enough you can see the reflections.
by Rob Ficalora
Thu Jul 03, 2014 5:46 pm
Forum: Solid-Body and Chambered or Semi-Solid Electric Guitars and Bass Guitars
Topic: 1st Guitar build - father/son project
Replies: 77
Views: 58464

Re: 1st Guitar build - father/son project

Ugh... Finally got some time with my son to polish out the front. Got it sanded and was in the middle of rubbing compound when our power went out!

Here is a picture of him sanding it. This was 2000 grit if I remember right.
by Rob Ficalora
Wed Jun 25, 2014 10:05 pm
Forum: Solid-Body and Chambered or Semi-Solid Electric Guitars and Bass Guitars
Topic: 1st Guitar build - father/son project
Replies: 77
Views: 58464

Re: 1st Guitar build - father/son project

Slow but steady progress. Clear has been done for a while, finally got some time with my son for him to sand and polish it. We got the back done today. Sanded the finish with 600 grit, then 1000, 1500, 2000, then 2500. Then switched to a polisher with rubbing compound, then polishing compound, then ...
by Rob Ficalora
Sun Apr 27, 2014 6:39 pm
Forum: Solid-Body and Chambered or Semi-Solid Electric Guitars and Bass Guitars
Topic: 1st Guitar build - father/son project
Replies: 77
Views: 58464

Re: 1st Guitar build - father/son project

Finally got a chance to put the first coats of clear. Two medium light coats of sanding sealer... Will lightly sand with about 400 grit and then spray the poly. My son sprayed the back and I sprayed the front. He did great, no runs.
by Rob Ficalora
Fri Apr 18, 2014 10:17 am
Forum: Solid-Body and Chambered or Semi-Solid Electric Guitars and Bass Guitars
Topic: 1st Guitar build - father/son project
Replies: 77
Views: 58464

Re: 1st Guitar build - father/son project

Interesting - I'll have to check into it. For purposes of a guitar finish, is a hard finish more desireable than a softer finish? Thought I'd read that one of the reasons lacquers are generally considered better finishes is because they are generally thinner & allow the natural vibrations in the...
by Rob Ficalora
Mon Apr 14, 2014 6:57 pm
Forum: Solid-Body and Chambered or Semi-Solid Electric Guitars and Bass Guitars
Topic: 1st Guitar build - father/son project
Replies: 77
Views: 58464

Re: 1st Guitar build - father/son project

Is that some sort of sprayable epoxy? What I got was just normal poly like would be used on furniture or cabinets... I got a very good brand, but I'm sure it doesn't cure as hard as an epoxy finish would. Anyway, we haven't started on the clear and temps dropped so it'll likely be a few more days be...
by Rob Ficalora
Sun Apr 13, 2014 6:32 pm
Forum: Solid-Body and Chambered or Semi-Solid Electric Guitars and Bass Guitars
Topic: 1st Guitar build - father/son project
Replies: 77
Views: 58464

Re: 1st Guitar build - father/son project

Put a 2nd coat of dye to deepen the color and we dyed the sides & back too. Waiting for it to dry so we can put the clear on. Planning to use a coat of sanding sealer and then several coats of water based gloss poly.
by Rob Ficalora
Sat Apr 12, 2014 8:00 pm
Forum: Solid-Body and Chambered or Semi-Solid Electric Guitars and Bass Guitars
Topic: 1st Guitar build - father/son project
Replies: 77
Views: 58464

Re: 1st Guitar build - father/son project

Got back from Romania last evening (work trip) and today we sanded back the red/black mix and put the plain red over top. Letting the front dry before we dye the sides and back...
by Rob Ficalora
Sun Apr 06, 2014 6:33 am
Forum: Solid-Body and Chambered or Semi-Solid Electric Guitars and Bass Guitars
Topic: 1st Guitar build - father/son project
Replies: 77
Views: 58464

Re: 1st Guitar build - father/son project

Thanks guys. It is water based dye. The red was already mixed up from a toy box I made years ago - powdered transfast brand if memory serves. For this 1st application we took some of the red and added black Transtint (just a different brand). We used the cutoffs to test the colors. We tried one wher...
by Rob Ficalora
Sat Apr 05, 2014 2:45 pm
Forum: Solid-Body and Chambered or Semi-Solid Electric Guitars and Bass Guitars
Topic: 1st Guitar build - father/son project
Replies: 77
Views: 58464

Re: 1st Guitar build - father/son project

John, awesome info, thanks. We did a little work this morning. Finished sanding and put the first coat of dye on. The dye is red and black mixed. When it dries, we'll sand off most of it leaving the darker red in the soft grain. Then it'll get a coat or two of red. Should make the grain really pop. ...
by Rob Ficalora
Fri Mar 21, 2014 9:21 pm
Forum: Solid-Body and Chambered or Semi-Solid Electric Guitars and Bass Guitars
Topic: 1st Guitar build - father/son project
Replies: 77
Views: 58464

Re: 1st Guitar build - father/son project

I drew it out and 3.5* is what it measured out to, so I made a jig to route the top neck area and then trim the neck pocket to that angle. I think we just have a but more pronounced carve than an actual Les Paul. I also started testing some dyes - black and red. I tried a Bordeaux Transtint, but it ...
by Rob Ficalora
Wed Mar 19, 2014 11:42 am
Forum: Solid-Body and Chambered or Semi-Solid Electric Guitars and Bass Guitars
Topic: 1st Guitar build - father/son project
Replies: 77
Views: 58464

Re: 1st Guitar build - father/son project

Ok, I found a neck angle calculator at www.tundraman.com/guitars/neckangle. Anyone know if that calculator is accurate? Plugging in the measurements from my neck & guitar body, I came up with a neck angle of 3.5* (which I'm assuming is down from parallel to the back so that would correlate to 86...
by Rob Ficalora
Wed Mar 19, 2014 10:50 am
Forum: Solid-Body and Chambered or Semi-Solid Electric Guitars and Bass Guitars
Topic: 1st Guitar build - father/son project
Replies: 77
Views: 58464

Re: 1st Guitar build - father/son project

Mark - thanks for the quick reply -- didn't know it was ok to thin the mounting frame. RE: "get the neck angle right" How do I determine what the right neck angle is? The plans I have call for 85.6* between the fretboard & the body (the vertical edge of the body)... but the plans are f...
by Rob Ficalora
Wed Mar 19, 2014 10:28 am
Forum: Solid-Body and Chambered or Semi-Solid Electric Guitars and Bass Guitars
Topic: 1st Guitar build - father/son project
Replies: 77
Views: 58464

Re: 1st Guitar build - father/son project

We are still at it - or more accurately, back at it. All the pockets are finished and in general, the carve is too and it came out excellent. But assuming a line from the nut to the bridge should be equal distance from the fretboard & both pickups, I think we need to sand down the top a bit more...
by Rob Ficalora
Mon Dec 23, 2013 6:53 pm
Forum: Solid-Body and Chambered or Semi-Solid Electric Guitars and Bass Guitars
Topic: Chestnut electric guitar, first build! (need help ._.)
Replies: 40
Views: 35012

Re: Chestnut electric guitar, first build! (need help ._.)

While new to making musical instruments, I've done a lot of furniture building... I wouldn't worry about the fungus spots. Google spalted chestnut and you'll see how beautiful that fungus can make the wood if it had continued progressing. Once the wood is dried the process stops.

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