MIMF

I finally finished my over-winter builds with these last two.

Guitar - single piece walnut top, walnut headstock veneer, alder body. alder/walnut neck, cocobolo fret board.

The bass - curly redwood top and headstock veneer, alder body, osage orange fret board, alder/walnut neck.

Those are great Peter!
I've got to try some Osage. Really like the look.

Curly redwood! That's some cool looking stuff. The instruments look great too. You seem productive, a goal to aspire to.

-Eric

That's a lot of yummy, Peter! Did you do any of that oven cooking on the Osage to advance the oxidation (darkening)?

Nice work! I like the way you oriented the grain on the walnut top. And the osage orange fretboard looks cool with the orange dyed finish.

Wait.... do you access all the electronics through the route for the recessed jackplate? Pretty slick!

I've gotta ask, Peter - I note that these and some other work that you've posted have a beveled edge on some highly figured solid wood. The precision of that bevel suggest that you formed it using a router - is that the case? If so, I'd be curious as to what kind of bit you use for that. If I had to guess, I'd think one of those Quadra-Cut Freud bits, but they don't make a chamfering bit in that configuration.

My limited experience with curly maple is that it can be really tough to work. A high-angle smoothing plane and scrapers work well on flatwork as does a jointer or planer with a segmented (e.g. Byrd) head. I've hand-shaped curly maple (I made a really nice little bow-saw) and it was a nightmare until I finally started using files - anything else including super sharp chisels and spokeshaves gave me terrible tear-out.

Thanks all y'all for your kind comments - I'm glad you like them.

Jason Rodgers wrote:Did you do any of that oven cooking on the Osage to advance the oxidation (darkening)?

No, that's the natural color after a year or so. I have another chunk that I cut a bridge off of several years ago, and it's still bright yellow - I have no idea why, same environment.

Dan Hehnke wrote:I like the way you oriented the grain on the walnut top. And the osage orange fretboard looks cool with the orange dyed finish.

The grain orientation was pure serendipity - that's the way the wood fit.
I wiped a coat of garnet shellac on the body to give the redwood more yellow to better match the osage.

Steve Sawyer wrote:I've gotta ask, Peter - I note that these and some other work that you've posted have a beveled edge on some highly figured solid wood. The precision of that bevel suggest that you formed it using a router - is that the case? If so, I'd be curious as to what kind of bit you use for that.

I use a 45 degree chamfering bit for the thicker tops, and a 30 degree one for thinner ones (to give a wider bevel). I go slow and the bits are pretty new, so not much problem with tear out - lucky so far.

Dan Hehnke wrote:Wait.... do you access all the electronics through the route for the recessed jackplate? Pretty slick!

The instruments are chambered, so I drill from the pickup cavity to the chamber. I solder everything outside, then poke it back through the jack hole. I have to tie a string on to the stacked pot shaft (and switch shaft for 2 pickup guitars) and pull it through - not really too hard. I'm afraid to solder to these pot cases (?plastic inside) so I have to run separate grounds. Here's a pic.

Those are nice Peter.
Is that plastic binding?
I remember a comment you made on one of my guitars, saying that the shape was similar to a couple you were working on.
Similar, but not the same, Yours are very nice. That Curly Redwood is pretty.
Where do you buy it?
I don't think I've ever seen it here in Canada.

Hi Gordon
Yes, that is Chinese plastic binding.
The redwood was a gift from a friend who makes boxes and cutting boards from highly figured woods. He roams the northern California and Oregon valleys and coasts looking for wood. I believe he got this piece here: http://www.almquistlumber.com/redwoods.html He thought it might make a pretty guitar.

Peter Wilcox wrote:Thanks all y'all for your kind comments - I'm glad you like them.

Jason Rodgers wrote:Did you do any of that oven cooking on the Osage to advance the oxidation (darkening)?

No, that's the natural color after a year or so. I have another chunk that I cut a bridge off of several years ago, and it's still bright yellow - I have no idea why, same environment.

Ok, I assumed that this fingerboard was a relatively fresh cut. My first has an Osage headplate, fingerboard, bridge baseplate, and control cover, and all look like that now, taking about a year to mellow. I have enough for 3 or 4 more fingerboards, and although I think the bright yellow of freshly cut Osage is lovely, the honey-amber color matches other woods better. I need to experiment to figure out a good way to get it there quicker.

nice, I just got a good piece of black walnut from NC that I'm going to use for some necks.

J