Guitar WIP

Phillip Patton

Phillip Patton

Knifemaker / Craftsman / Service Provider
Joined
Jul 25, 2005
Messages
5,340
Hey All,
I'm embarking on my first from-scratch guitar build. Is anyone interested in seeing some in-progress pics?
 
Absolutely!

Acoustic or electric?

Either one is going to be fun I suspect. :)

B
 
Well, 3 yea's and no nay's, I guess it's a go. :D

Here's the first installment. It's about the only part I have right now, the sound board. Going on the assumption that this being my first try, I'm probably going to make a fair number of mistakes, I'm trying to keep costs down as much as possible. So, I had the idea of using the sound board from an old piano to make the guitar's soundboard, since they use the same wood for both (spruce). So I checked on Craigslist for free piano's and found an old upright that was well past it's prime, and got it for nothing. :thumbup:

It took a few hours to take the piano apart and grind off the braces, but here we are:

gwip-1.jpg


gwip-2.jpg


I was originally hoping to cut the soundboard out in one piece, but there were some cracks around the center seam which I had to cut out.

Right now it's about 5/16" thick, so after joining the two halves together, I'll have to plane them down to about 1/8".

One nice thing about using an old piano soundboard is that the wood has already "opened up".
 
Not trying to hog your thread, but I want to show my interest in your project. Here is my first build of a Dobro/ squareneck resonator guitar. That is what I play. So, that is now my hobby.
 

Attachments

  • dobro-1.jpg
    dobro-1.jpg
    27.8 KB · Views: 168
Okay Phillip, now make sure you take the strings off BEFORE you turn on the buffer ;)

By the way, how is your nose doing? Back around the 7th or whenever I showed up, it didn't look too bad.
 
Cool stuff Phillip thanks for sharing. I love guitars. I have put a few together but have not built one from scratch. I hope to build a few, electric guitars at least, once I have a proper shop. The little hole I work in now just does not have the space for any extra projects. Not to mention the lack of time. I know that if I started building a guitar nothing else would get done.

So what other woods do you plan to use? What scale will it be (Fretboard length)? Well I guess I could just wait and see. :)

Thanks again for sharing.
 
The piano soundboard isn't a bad idea at all, Phillip. A couple weeks back I was reading an online article about a small luthier producing high end guitars and all they use are old piano boards. Their claim was that they have been exposed to so much music/vibration over their life as a piano that they already have that "sweetening" that only time and playing can give a fine guitar.
And, before you ask, I forget where I read it and will never be able to retrieve it unless it's by accident. Age, ya know.... :)
 
Keep those photos coming. When you get her done I think Mike deserves the first song...maybe a lullaby, or should it be something more perky?
 
Phillip, my brother builds arch tops and has got quite good at it. He even went and got his own spruce tree after quizzing the local loggers for just the right tree. If you are interested I can hook you up with him. He is more than willing to go on and on about building instruments LOL. Almost as bad as a knife freak. I know you will make a great instrument as you have the dedication to craftsmanship as shown by your knives
 
Originally, I was thinking of having some of my osage orange logs sawn up into back and side pieces, but I'd never heard of anyone using it, so I was not sure if it would work. Then I ran across this one on the left:

http://www.cumpiano.com/Home/Guitars/Nylon Strings/classic_index.html

So now I think I will use it.

While osage orange isn't my favorite wood as far as color goes, it is cheap, and using wood that grew in my back yard is very appealing to me. :cool:

I was going to have someone I know cut up my log with his portable sawmill, but he does charge some money (very reasonable though) so I decided to give it a try myself.

Here's the log:

gwip-3.jpg


It has some cracks in it, so my first cut is straight through the biggest crack.

Here's the chainsaw. We used to have a Poulan 16 incher, which was fine for some things, but recently we decided to upgrade to a bigger, more powerful Husquvarna. :thumbup:

gwip-4.jpg



First cut:

gwip-5.jpg



Starting the second cut:

gwip-6.jpg


After the second cut, I'll make sure it's smooth and straight on one side, then start on the bandsaw.
 
Keep those photos coming! My neighbor makes all kinds of instruments and I tend to go over there and hang out when the shop door is open.
 
MOAR PIXSHURES!

I think this is a pretty neat project. After seeing it yesterday I keep checking it for the latest update. Does it matter how the cuts are to the grain? Across the grain with the grain ect.
 
Here's some moar pixshures. :D

gwip-20.jpg


Today UPS delivered the curly maple I bought, so I started on the neck. I had originally considered osage orange for the neck, but since it's somewhat more difficult to work with, plus the fact that the maple came all nice and smooth and flat, I decided to go with the maple.


gwip-21.jpg


gwip-22.jpg



Here I'm marking the first cut. It's a little hard to explain, so I'll let the pictures do the talking.

gwip-24.jpg


gwip-25.jpg
 
Last edited:
This cut was amazingly good, considering I'm a total newbie at this. Must have been God guiding the saw...

gwip-26.jpg


gwip-27.jpg


gwip-28.jpg


gwip-29.jpg
 
Last edited:
steelshaper said:
Cool stuff Phillip thanks for sharing. I love guitars. I have put a few together but have not built one from scratch. I hope to build a few, electric guitars at least, once I have a proper shop. The little hole I work in now just does not have the space for any extra projects. Not to mention the lack of time. I know that if I started building a guitar nothing else would get done.

So what other woods do you plan to use? What scale will it be (Fretboard length)? Well I guess I could just wait and see. :)

Thanks again for sharing.
Click to expand...

You're welcome! I'll be answering your questions as we go along.
An electric is in my future too. Feel free to share pics of yours.



fitzo said:
The piano soundboard isn't a bad idea at all, Phillip. A couple weeks back I was reading an online article about a small luthier producing high end guitars and all they use are old piano boards. Their claim was that they have been exposed to so much music/vibration over their life as a piano that they already have that "sweetening" that only time and playing can give a fine guitar.
And, before you ask, I forget where I read it and will never be able to retrieve it unless it's by accident. Age, ya know.... :)
Click to expand...

Well, thanks a lot! I think I have an original idea, and you come along and spoil it. :mad:

Just kidding! Actually, I'm glad you mentioned it. I was sure if it was a really good or a really bad idea; now that I know someone else has done it, I feel better. :)

You could maybe check your browsing history? ;)


Bobby Branton said:
Not trying to hog your thread, but I want to show my interest in your project. Here is my first build of a Dobro/ squareneck resonator guitar. That is what I play. So, that is now my hobby.
Click to expand...

No problem, anyone's input is welcome.

Interesting instrument. I've seen pictures of them, but never heard one played (that I was aware of). Is it played the same as a regular guitar?



go mike said:
Okay Phillip, now make sure you take the strings off BEFORE you turn on the buffer ;)

By the way, how is your nose doing? Back around the 7th or whenever I showed up, it didn't look too bad.
Click to expand...

Don't worry, I won't make THAT mistake again. :eek:

The cuts are all healed up now. No scarring. :thumbup:
BTW, did you and your dad enjoy your camping trip?



Brian_T said:
Absolutely!

Acoustic or electric?

Either one is going to be fun I suspect. :)

B
Click to expand...

Acoustic. Kind of a non-traditional acoustic. I'm making a steelstring with classical dimensions. :cool:
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top