First time builder. Looking for a few tips.

[Warren May]

Cruising around on the net I saw a couple of guitars with forearm contours with what looked like 1/4" caps on contrasting wood bodies, like figured maple on mahogany or alder. They don't look half bad if done tastefully so that's also an alternative instead of my earlier comment about a thick cap or a veneer after cutting the contour.

[Ryan Sanders]

Ok, soooo I'm guessing the arm contour is that little slant around the area where I strum and the tummy cut would be that beveled edge in the middle of the guitar? I'm really green with woodworking in general. I know how to face join the boards for the body but when it comes down to what the different sections to cut are called I have no clue. Do you think you could send me a link for those guitars you found on the web Warren? And thanks for the pic and the information on the osage bob. I think I'll try a finger board out of that since I have an abundance of it. I really like the inlay around the soundhole on that acoustic.

[Gordon Bellerose]

You do not have to use 2 separate pieces of wood to build the body. A single piece or 2 - 3 pieces glued together side by side will form a blank, as long as the wood is 1 3/4" to 2" thick. The typical measurement (Fender Style) is a finished thickness of 1 3/4".
This solves a couple of the aforementioned problems of doing a forearm cut. The belly cut can be done either way.