Lockdown #2 build - '64 Epiphone Coronet-a-like

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I've always loved these, so I thought I'd build one seeing an original is currently out of my price range. On a whim, I ordered a body from a vendor in Italy, for €90. It arrived today, and I'm quite impressed:





It's two piece alder, which is obviously the wrong wood for a Coronet - should be mahogany - but I'm going to build it anyway, but not before I take some templates off it for future use.

I have some mahogany for the neck, and a lovely piece of streak-free ebony for the fingerboard. Plus, kicking about in my parts drawer: a 70's Gibson mini-humbucker and 70's (I think) Epi wrapover tailpiece. 

Any thoughts on colour? I always thought a nice aged gold would look cool, or even TV yellow.






But first up - I need to finish this:




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Comments

  • PhilKingPhilKing Frets: 1473
    There was a color called Silver Fox that Epiphone made the Coronets in.  I had one for a while, but was selling it for a friend.  It had faded to a green color on the back, probably from the topcoat changing.  Here are a couple of shots of it:


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  • Great shout @PhilKing, but I have a Firebird planned in something similar - I think it’s a dog hair finish (white grain filler over mahogany) with a black top coat and tinted lacquer. 

    Just noticed the much more pronounced round overs on your friends Epi... seems they were inconsistent, that’s a lovely example though. How did it play and sound? 
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  • PhilKingPhilKing Frets: 1473
    It really sounds great, but the neck was a bit narrow for me.  Mind you I am a p-90 fan anyway.

    I still have one Cornet, with similar roundover.  They are both 64 batwing models.  The one I still have was modified to take out the tone and resprayed black as a real punk guitar (a long time back).  Here's a shot of it:

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  • Exciting! Look forward to seeing this build. I love Ivison's version of it too. 
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  • Ice blue nitro ordered, and I have some tinted lacquer here too. Going to try and get close to the greeny blue some Pelham Blue vintage Gibsons fade to...

    need to deepen the pickup route to fit the mini hb too.
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  • Quick update on this, earlier in the week the body entered my state of the art spraybooth, as far as I know the only one of its kind in South Cambridgeshire:

    An action shot of some sanding sealer being applied:




    And, because we all like a mock up, here it is in Ice Blue nitro with some parts on:

     
    The neck is roughed out and gluing up, don't have any pics of it but will take some once its closer to completion. Its a fun build so far!
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  • I took templates from the body before paint, any future ones I make will be mahogany with a more correct roundover.
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  • SteveRobinsonSteveRobinson Frets: 6914
    tFB Trader
    Nice!

    I've just ordered a 16mm radius roundover bit for mine, hoping I can achieve a bullnose edge.
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  • Thanks for the speedy shipping on the paint btw @SteveRobinson, any pics of your Coronet? 
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  • SteveRobinsonSteveRobinson Frets: 6914
    tFB Trader
    Not yet, it's still just roughly sawn! Soon I hope
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  • So, the neck is getting there. I had a hankering for a bound fretboard, but the blank I had earmarked for this was already radiused... huge risk of screwing the channels up when using a rabbetting bit on a palm router!  Then I remembered I had an import board with LP inlays kicking about which wasn't yet radiused. So, after roughing out the headstock yesterday, here's how the neck looked:



    And today, I drilled for tuners, neatened the headstock up a little bit, and cut the binding channels:



    Hopefully tomorrow I'll radius the board and get the heel fitting nicely. The board is light and a little dry in the pics above, but it looks much better with a smidgen of oil:


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  • PeteCPeteC Frets: 409
    The binding channels look really neat - nice work Matt. 

    Whats the maple board going on ? 

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  • Cheers Pete, it was nice to do a straight run for binding channels for a change - when using the bit I have around curves it can vary the depth a little too much.

    The flamed maple board is on the sunburst NR FB, I've not worked on that one for a while... there are a couple of things which needed doing which I haven't got round to yet, sorting out the neck / heel carve and routing the control cavity to name a couple. Should look ok once its done though:

     
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  • I've said it before, but I really like the sunburst you've sprayed Matt it looks great
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  • Thanks @greggreg66 , this one came out ok but there's been a few which I've had to sand off and start again! Wanted to pick your brains about bound necks if you don't mind, as this is my first and your Explorer looks ace - which order did you do things in? I planned to:

    Bind neck
    Get the frets in while the bottom of the neck is flat
    shape and finish

    Was wondering if theres any advantage to shaping the neck first? I couldn't think of one TBH

    Cheers,

    Matt



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  • Behold! 



    And with some frets in:


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  • That looks epic!!

    Sorry I didn't respond, I didn't see it until this evening. I think I cut the fret slots, then glued the FB down, then routed the binding channel, radiussed the FB (fitted dots at that point), fretted it, ground the frets square to the binding channel, bound it, trimmed the binding nibs, carved the neck profile.... all totally copied from Freddy's Fret vid on YT : )
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  • Cheers @greggreg66 , I've gone for frets over the binding on this - considered doing nibs at first, but the binding I had here wasn't tall enough (fretboard edges are about 5mm). 

    Not 100% convinced on the Ice Blue as is, so I might shoot some tinted lacquer over it to darken it a tad / make it look a bit green. Its easy to overdo that though, this is a body which was Sonic Blue with tinted amber on it (I masked a square between the pickups to show the original colour)




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  • PeteCPeteC Frets: 409
    Very nice indeed - agree the tinted coat will knock it back a bit and make it look more subtle 
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  • Yes that's a good shout, think that'd look great
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