The world of Wez :)

WezV

sides trimmed, end blocks in and top kerfing being glued

http://i36.photobucket.com/albums/e31/WezV/temporary_zpsb979ae39.jpg

guitargeek62

Looking good! I must have a go at an acoustic build one day, looks like fun*. 8-)

The PRS bracing pattern is pretty neat - really does make a hell of a difference too when you play one - they essentially lock up the back & sides to be as rigid as possible (they've even said in interviews that laminates would do fine, if they'd sell), and then combined fan & X-bracing patterns to allow the top to move a lot more than normal. Even if that's all bull, the Angelus I played was utterly sublime.

*Not to all, I'm sure.

WezV

its mainly going to be marketing.

When you start to look at different acoustic constructions styles you see there are quite a few variations out there...  they all work, they can all sound good.   I have had a few proper acoustic makers tell me its less about the pattern and more about the shaping and tap tuning

look at the variation in the classical makers

wheras most steel string makers have stuck to the martin pattern because it worked

then you get stuff like this happening

http://www.premierguitar.com/articles/What_Makes_an_Acoustic_Tick

WezV

really having a push to get some projects finished off now,

This one is now with its new owner:

http://i36.photobucket.com/albums/e31/WezV/super1_zps9323d1a7.jpg

and this one has just been wired and strung - its very nearly there

Now i didn't make or finish the body on this, just responsible for making it all fit and putting a new fretboard on after a very bad scallop attempt.  I have also had to reroute neck pocket 1/4" further into the body, slightly enlarge pickup cavity, plug and redrill neck holes, wire and made a clear cavity cover too

its a richlite baord with SS frets, aluminium and red clay (harvite) inlays. 

http://i36.photobucket.com/albums/e31/WezV/temporary_zps64b16398.jpg

http://i36.photobucket.com/albums/e31/WezV/temporary_zps50840f33.jpg

http://i36.photobucket.com/albums/e31/WezV/temporary_zpsf8626d87.jpg

http://i36.photobucket.com/albums/e31/WezV/temporary_zps181f2151.jpg

http://i36.photobucket.com/albums/e31/WezV/temporary_zps81c5f83a.jpg

http://i36.photobucket.com/albums/e31/WezV/temporary_zpsc5685fae.jpg

WezV

Just been having a clear out and found my first ever in progress pics

2" thick mahogany cut out by hand with a cheap coping saw

http://i36.photobucket.com/albums/e31/WezV/temporary_zps96cc7b2b.jpg

nearly ready for bridge, pickup and paint.  it was a deep set bolt-on neck

http://i36.photobucket.com/albums/e31/WezV/temporary_zps9ddd537a.jpg

brushing on Rustins plastic coating - you can see the second project on the table behind

http://i36.photobucket.com/albums/e31/WezV/temporary_zps847d7c78.jpg

a cheap kit tele waiting for its spalted beech top

http://i36.photobucket.com/albums/e31/WezV/temporary_zps0fbff6a0.jpg

removing the top the difficult way

http://i36.photobucket.com/albums/e31/WezV/temporary_zps1fdc9235.jpg

ta dah

http://i36.photobucket.com/albums/e31/WezV/temporary_zps184fc65d.jpg

ThePrettyDamned

Did you saw the top off?! Not that I'd know how else to do it... Wound up looking amazing though, what are the holes in the top? Just an unusual f hole? Looks cool anyway!

That's a quality first build. Has a quirky, modernistic 60s thing going, way cool.

WezV

Yep, quite a daft way to do it really and I am still surprised it worked.  These days i would use a rouer thicknesser to reduce the body thickness by the desired amount

 

i roughly hollowed it out, painted the inside black and drilled a few different shapped holes in the upper bout as an "f-hole".   There were a few bits of filler filled saw damage around the edge - but less than you would think.   it sounded much better after all the work

 

The first build was too thick and heavy and quite crudely shaped, but it was playable and sounded pretty good.  I tried to reduce the size and clumsiness a few years later but it did not work well

Andyjr1515

Hi, WezV

It's been a few weeks since I last visited this thread.  Many of these are insanely good 

As for sawing off a top, that's insanely....well, just insanely  

WezV

made some new templates and got a couple of bodies cut out.

first is a swamp ash jazz shape for a telemaster.  not sure yet if its going to be thinline

http://i36.photobucket.com/albums/e31/WezV/temporary_zps65f476b6.jpg

and also a redesigned Charvel star... made smaller, thinner and lighter ... and lefty.   Now called 'Starlet'

http://i36.photobucket.com/albums/e31/WezV/temporary_zps4d5affb5.jpg

WezV

the telemaster is ready for finish sanding

http://i36.photobucket.com/albums/e31/WezV/temporary_zps317f3254.jpg

this is a replacement body for a very heavy telemaster which is why we were considering thinline... but its already 2lb lighter than the existing body

juansolo

sweeeeet

WezV

test fit on the little Starlet, now all dismantled and boxed up to be sent off for finishing - my part in the little project is done

http://i36.photobucket.com/albums/e31/WezV/temporary_zps24e8ad6b.jpg

ThePrettyDamned

Looks absolutely great. I have a real soft spot for radical shapes... Though that looks a little less radical than expected. Very cool.

Have a wow.

DrBob

ThePrettyDamned said:

Looks absolutely great. I have a real soft spot for radical shapes... Though that looks a little less radical than expected. Very cool.

Have a wow.

Totally agree on the 'Wow' front.

That 'Starlet' is going to be an 8th birthday gift (Dec 29th) for my lefty daughter Jess. she's been mucking around with my guitars for the past couple of years but whenever she picks them up she always flips them over so lefty it had to be

Allied to that she's picked up her mothers fondness for Glam metal so when asked what kind of guitars she likes she'll always say "Superfast Rock Guitars' & point to images of the Charvel Star deeming Daddy's guitars to be old & boring..

Wez has been an absolute hero on this one, he gamely offered to jump in and do a body, he also offered me a killer deal on a 24" scale Allparts neck but as fortune would have it @Guitargeek62 sourced me a 22" scale MIM Fender Duosonic neck which would be ideal for the little ones first tentative steps on the path to Rock !
So we emailed back & forth & worked out a way to scale down the Charvel Star body, make it slightly more manageable and I'm absolutely knocked out with what he's come up with.

Allied to that he's also put a second set of side dots on the other side of the neck, done a fret dress, flipped the nut & as you can see test built the whole thing up prior to sending it out to my mate Gary for paint (he's the guy that did the Gulf racing paint on the Steinberger in this thread) we're looking at Blue metalflake with Orange flames....

So, yeah, amazing, absolutely amazing

My only worry is that by giving Jess a custom guitar made to her exacting requirements as a first guitar we'll be creating a monster

guitargeek62

I can't wait to see the finish on that one after the work Gary did on the steiny, she's gonna love it! B-)

ThePrettyDamned

Yup, a firebreathing, rock goddess of a monster.

It sounds like the kind guitar I'd play.

WezV

yeah, i can't wait to see the finish either, it should be awesome.

I like taking on simple projects sometimes.  this was a good bit of fun and distraction whilst I am considering my 9 string fanned fret acoustic builds.    

koneguitarist

Nice to see spalted Beech on a tele, thought I was only one !

WezV

I am trying not to think about spalted beech at the moment.

yesterday i was at a local park and they had been thinning some trees, quite a few beech ones by the look of it.   once of the logs had  perfect black rose tattoos on both of the sawn ends, a clear sign of perfect  fine line spalting.   my wife talked my out of trying to get it home

WezV

well, not too much going on at the moment as I am trying to sell my house... but i have a few days off work  so getting little bits done.

yesterday i had a thicknessing session with acoustic woods.  I have had the sets a while and have been putting it off as I thought i would end up doing it with a handplane.  I have done it this way before, nice sense of pride at the end but it takes a bloody long time and with 2 complete acoustic sets to thickness I was not in the mood

the thickness planer it to aggressive to cut wood less than 4mm thick, and its in need of a tune-up and i was not in the mood for that either.  I was tempted to try the router thicknesser but was again worried its too aggressive for such thin woods

then i saw this video:

I have a Safe-T planer as i used to use it on electrics before i made the router thicknesser.   I had forgot about it completely, but a little searching, a bit of sharpening and an hour later i had rough thicknessed 2 port orford cedar tops, a peruvian walnut back and side set and a pair of bloodwood sides.  it started to struggle on the bloodwood back so i will do that by hand at some point.  another hour later and they were all scraped to thickness

a few weeks ago i had glued the back onto the acoustic above but it was not quite right so that got removed as well,

and today i am spraying nitro outside.  terrible idea really, except when you are aiming for this:

http://i36.photobucket.com/albums/e31/WezV/cabrel20_zpsd2688ca1.jpg