You will have no problem doing the neck shaping if you have the right guidance. It's all about having the right markings and you will be surprised how satisfying it is.Tadpui wrote: ↑Mon Jul 24, 2023 7:03 pm @muttley good eye! Yes @WhiskeyJack it was cut by a hand router (plunge router, I believe they call it) by tracing a template several times at increasing depths. After eyeballing the other guys' cutouts, I have to say that mine came out pretty good. So hopefully I won't have quite as much sanding to do as the other guys.
From what I understand, next week we'll drill the remaining few holes (I think all that's left is the bridge mounting screw holes) and maybe run a roundover bit around the edges to keep them from being deadly. I'm really not sure where we go from there, other than to start 5 weeks worth of sanding
I'm a little afraid of doing the neck. Apparently we're doing it all by hand, although the fretboard might already be attached to a pre-cut square neck blank. So it might already be cut to length/scale, I'm not sure. The shaping of the neck profile will be up to us, and that's what I'm a little worried about. I'm sure they'll guide us through it all, it just seems like such an arbitrary process to shape a neck for the first time.
Telecaster build thread
Re: Telecaster build thread
Re: Telecaster build thread
Well that's comforting to hear, I appreciate it. The neck has been the big hangup towards buying a Tele for the last few years. I basically want one that's mostly 50s spec, except with modern switching and a modern C shaped neck profile. Everything I found that had the right look and specs all had those 50s style baseball bat U shaped necks, and I just can't stand playing on those things. So I'll be attempting a C shape if I can muster it. Who knows what I'll end up with though
Re: Telecaster build thread
Well, today we started on the neck. It wasn't particularly interesting work but still pretty cool for a newbie. Although my wife chuckled when I told her I spent the day necking with a bunch of guys.
First we picked out our neck and fretboard. I took mutt's advice from last week and didn't insist on a more classic Fender style maple neck and fretboard. Instead I went with their recommendation of roasted maple, and I went for a rosewood fretboard. I think I picked an attractive one. And I like the wood pattern/texture that I plan to show on the back of the neck.
This was another template and plunge router method, so we put an inner and outer template on the block of neck wood and made several passes to cut it out.
Then we all headed to the office computer to choose and order all of our hardware. I'm going all nickel, with a black/white/black pick guard and a black tele style switch tip. For pickups, I'm hoping to swing an off the shelf Tele set from @muttley if you still have a set laying around. If that's not in the cards, that's ok and I'll go with the Lollar Special T set.
We used the table router to make the truss rod groove in a couple of passes. It went fine, all in all.
Then to the drill press to make guide holes for the tuners and neck pocket screws. I had some blowout on the back side but it'll all be covered by hardware and the neck pocket, thankfully.
Then back to the table router to take off the headstock material that makes up the relief between the height of the fretboard and the much skinnier headstock. The instructor warned that this is easy to mess up, so everybody but me let him make the first pass. After I did the first pass myself, I joined everybody else in letting him do the 2nd and final pass on the table router. He was in the zone and my first pass wasn't great.
Then it was time to glue the fretboard to the neck, and after much eye squinting and pencil markings, I got the pilot holes drilled under the 1st and 14th fret cutouts and tapped in the guide nails. Some glue and a boatload of clamps later, we were done for the day.
Now I'm across the street at Comrade Brewery having a beer, smelling of sawdust and typing to you all. I bumped into the instructor on my way in, he was filling a growler. Apparently after class is beer time for the staff. And for me as well
. I have to imagine that world politics were different when this place chose their very Russian inspired name and branding. But it's hopping here on a Saturday evening, so people must not mind that much.
Pics this week aren't super interesting, but here is what I thought to capture along the way:
First we picked out our neck and fretboard. I took mutt's advice from last week and didn't insist on a more classic Fender style maple neck and fretboard. Instead I went with their recommendation of roasted maple, and I went for a rosewood fretboard. I think I picked an attractive one. And I like the wood pattern/texture that I plan to show on the back of the neck.
This was another template and plunge router method, so we put an inner and outer template on the block of neck wood and made several passes to cut it out.
Then we all headed to the office computer to choose and order all of our hardware. I'm going all nickel, with a black/white/black pick guard and a black tele style switch tip. For pickups, I'm hoping to swing an off the shelf Tele set from @muttley if you still have a set laying around. If that's not in the cards, that's ok and I'll go with the Lollar Special T set.
We used the table router to make the truss rod groove in a couple of passes. It went fine, all in all.
Then to the drill press to make guide holes for the tuners and neck pocket screws. I had some blowout on the back side but it'll all be covered by hardware and the neck pocket, thankfully.
Then back to the table router to take off the headstock material that makes up the relief between the height of the fretboard and the much skinnier headstock. The instructor warned that this is easy to mess up, so everybody but me let him make the first pass. After I did the first pass myself, I joined everybody else in letting him do the 2nd and final pass on the table router. He was in the zone and my first pass wasn't great.
Then it was time to glue the fretboard to the neck, and after much eye squinting and pencil markings, I got the pilot holes drilled under the 1st and 14th fret cutouts and tapped in the guide nails. Some glue and a boatload of clamps later, we were done for the day.
Now I'm across the street at Comrade Brewery having a beer, smelling of sawdust and typing to you all. I bumped into the instructor on my way in, he was filling a growler. Apparently after class is beer time for the staff. And for me as well
. I have to imagine that world politics were different when this place chose their very Russian inspired name and branding. But it's hopping here on a Saturday evening, so people must not mind that much. Pics this week aren't super interesting, but here is what I thought to capture along the way:
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Re: Telecaster build thread
So Truss rod is going in after f/b glue up? Interesting, I dont' do it like that.
I've been away all week but will try and see what I have in the workshop pickup wise. My boy is leaving for the USA in a week or so so maybe able to get him to post them when he gets there and save a bit of time and dosh.
I've been away all week but will try and see what I have in the workshop pickup wise. My boy is leaving for the USA in a week or so so maybe able to get him to post them when he gets there and save a bit of time and dosh.
Re: Telecaster build thread
You maybe in luck. I have a tele neck pickup all wound and potted it's slightly under wound compared to the Lollar stuff but may be a good shout for an Ash body which can be pretty resonant. I will see if I have the parts to spin up a matching neck pickup if you want them. If not I can I have a set in my test bed Tele which I can strip out and box up, they would be nearly new and pretty vintage. Not sure on your time constraints. Up to you, no offence if not.
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Re: Telecaster build thread
Oh I totally forgot to mention the truss rod! It went in before gluing down the fretboard. We stuck it in place with a little silicone and laid a thin strip of painters tape over the channel before putting the board in place. It's a dual-action truss rod, which will be a first for me. I don't think any of my current guitars have the two-way rods. Although I guess I wouldn't have a way to know.muttley wrote: ↑Sun Jul 30, 2023 5:29 am So Truss rod is going in after f/b glue up? Interesting, I dont' do it like that.
I've been away all week but will try and see what I have in the workshop pickup wise. My boy is leaving for the USA in a week or so so maybe able to get him to post them when he gets there and save a bit of time and dosh.
Re: Telecaster build thread
Hey that's awesome, Mutt! I hate to have you tear pickups out of a guitar on my behalf, and I don't want to be a pain in the butt to have you drag out a bunch of gear to wind up one pickup. I mean, I wouldn't argue if you're willing. But it feels kinda gross to have you go through the trouble for me, ya know?muttley wrote: ↑Sun Jul 30, 2023 5:58 am You maybe in luck. I have a tele neck pickup all wound and potted it's slightly under wound compared to the Lollar stuff but may be a good shout for an Ash body which can be pretty resonant. I will see if I have the parts to spin up a matching neck pickup if you want them. If not I can I have a set in my test bed Tele which I can strip out and box up, they would be nearly new and pretty vintage. Not sure on your time constraints. Up to you, no offence if not.
teleneckpu.jpg
What I figured I'll do is go with the Lollar set for the sake of completing the build with the rest of the class. And if we can arrange for a set of Mutt Pups, I'd happily tear out the Lollars and replace them with your pickups for the long run. It shouldn't be too difficult to unload the Lollars on Reverb, and that'll at least allow us to take our time to figure out the best and least stressful way to get some of your pickups in this build.
Does that sound like a reasonable path forward?
Re: Telecaster build thread
Damn man, this is super cool. I'm excited for you. Also a little jealous, cause when you're finished you'll have a Tele you built from scratch, as opposed to mine which was built from parts. I would advise you to take Mutt up on his pickup offer. I haven't played either of my other two electrics (Strat and LP) since I built the Tele three years ago, and 90% of the reason for that is the Mutt Pups.
Re: Telecaster build thread
paulman wrote: ↑Thu Aug 03, 2023 8:14 pm Damn man, this is super cool. I'm excited for you. Also a little jealous, cause when you're finished you'll have a Tele you built from scratch, as opposed to mine which was built from parts. I would advise you to take Mutt up on his pickup offer. I haven't played either of my other two electrics (Strat and LP) since I built the Tele three years ago, and 90% of the reason for that is the Mutt Pups.
Hey thanks guys! I'm pretty excited about it so far.
So this Saturday was a long one. We all showed up at 9:30 and mostly spent the day sanding. Then we sanded. And topped it off with more sanding. Getting the tool marks out of the sides of an ash body was really a trying experience. I still didn't get it perfect, but I was pooped and ready to accept that there are going to be some imperfections in the cutaway and the little "nook" on the other side of the neck from the cutaway. In between all of the sanding, we took turns drilling the last few holes in the body: screw holes for the bridge, wiring access holes between the pickup and control cavities, and the hole for the jack. And we rounded over the top and back edges with the table router.
Then we made more progress on the necks now that the fretboard is glued on. We took to the band saw to trim off excess fretboard, then flush cut it with a table router. Then to the drum sander to put the transition between the nut and the headstock. Mine still needs a little work, but it's mostly smooth and looks pretty cool. Then it was time to mark where the fret and side dots will go. A couple of guys struggled with this, as their eyesight isn't so good. But we all got it done. Drilled the holes for the fret dots and picked out our dots as well (I'm going with some abalone ones that I sifted and picked out specifically).
Then it was more sanding, and more sanding. 120 grit, then 220 grit, then 400. And by the time I'd hit a spot with 400, it'd reveal more imperfections that I'd have to sand out with 120 and start the process over again.
The last task of the day was to put some pore sealer on the body. They're having us use a product called Z-poxy. It was kind of a pain in the ass to work with, but I got it done. Me and the other guy that's doing an ash body were there about 90 minutes after the other guys (alder and butternut) were all done since their woods were nice and soft and sanded down much more easily.
So here are the shots that I thought to capture as the 9-hour day progressed...
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Re: Telecaster build thread
The trick with end grain on the side of the body and removing tool marks and deep scratches is to wet the grain and let it dry off then hit it with a cabinet scraper. Ash is particularly tough in that regard and keeping an edge on the scrapper is key but it will save you hours of sanding. Wetting between sanding sessions is also a standard practice. Sanding is abrasive and you end up just clogging up the grain and don';t actually remove much material. dusting off and wetting to raise the grain will help. The main benefit of a cabinet scraper is that it is a cutting tool, sanding is abrasive.
Re: Telecaster build thread
Looking good though buddy. It's gonna be killer and you will love it. I still get a kick out of string up and playing a build even after hundreds of builds and 35 years.
Re: Telecaster build thread
Well that does sound like it would have been much easiermuttley wrote: ↑Mon Aug 07, 2023 3:52 pm The trick with end grain on the side of the body and removing tool marks and deep scratches is to wet the grain and let it dry off then hit it with a cabinet scraper. Ash is particularly tough in that regard and keeping an edge on the scrapper is key but it will save you hours of sanding. Wetting between sanding sessions is also a standard practice. Sanding is abrasive and you end up just clogging up the grain and don';t actually remove much material. dusting off and wetting to raise the grain will help. The main benefit of a cabinet scraper is that it is a cutting tool, sanding is abrasive.
I'm not sure why they had us do it this way, unless there's just less chance of us messing things up by just using sandpaper. At least that part is over. I guess we still have more sanding to do since we need to sand down the pore filler, and I've gotta get that gouge out of my headstock and correct that crooked transition that the drum sander left. But hopefully most of the sanding is over!Thanks man, I'm really looking forward to hearing how it sounds and feeling how it plays!
Re: Telecaster build thread
Patience and more patience - I'm impressed. A guitar for going to the country.
Cheers
rayc
rayc
Re: Telecaster build thread
Looking good Tad! But that is a lot of sanding... 
My ex band buddy has taken to building acoustic guitars in his garage. OMG, the patience involved. They look good, but I just couldn't do it...
My ex band buddy has taken to building acoustic guitars in his garage. OMG, the patience involved. They look good, but I just couldn't do it...
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WhiskeyJack
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Re: Telecaster build thread
Man that is awesome Tad holy frig. It is really coming together wonderfully. You are doing a hells of a job. Love that carve in the headstock. I had no idea that would have been done with drum sander but DA-DOY, of course it is, what else could possibly be used to make that feature. That is so awesome. Your wood choices and stuff are all growing on me now too.
It's gonna be a beauty!
LOL!! Sanding is giant pain in the ass that took me days upon days and attempts upon attempts. But i actually kind of liked it to be 100% honest with you. It was just one of those tasks that I could kind of put myself into autopilot, and watch how the different grit's took care of the previous grit. Watching what little bit of grain my shitty little basswood body had come more and more to life. FINDING MORE IMPERFECTIONS and fixing them !! etc. I cheated. I used an electric palm sander on the back and top of my body. But i did do the sides and neck all by hand.
It's gonna be a beauty!
LOL!! Sanding is giant pain in the ass that took me days upon days and attempts upon attempts. But i actually kind of liked it to be 100% honest with you. It was just one of those tasks that I could kind of put myself into autopilot, and watch how the different grit's took care of the previous grit. Watching what little bit of grain my shitty little basswood body had come more and more to life. FINDING MORE IMPERFECTIONS and fixing them !! etc. I cheated. I used an electric palm sander on the back and top of my body. But i did do the sides and neck all by hand.
Re: Telecaster build thread
too freakin' cool!
Re: Telecaster build thread
Thanks everybody for the encouragement so far!
This Saturday was a busy day, some really good progress. I had company in town Saturday night and Sunday so I haven't had a chance to jot down what all we did on the guitar this week. I'll try to remember...
We glued in the fret dots, drilled and placed the side dot markers, cleaned all of the sawdust and gunk out of the fret slots (which was very satisfying for whatever reason), cut our fret wire, and hammered in the frets. That was also a very satisfying process for me. I'm kinda good at that part! Then we clipped and filed down the fret ends.
Then came the part that I've been dreading. Shaping the neck. At first, it was going pretty poorly for me. I'm just not friends with the planes that we were using. But once I switched to a coarse rasp, I'll be darned it started actually looking like a neck! After more hacking with rasps and sanding with a radius caul, I've finally started honing it in and it's starting to feel like an honest to goodness neck. My transitions into the headstock and the neck heel still need more work, but that'll be for next week (or I might go in later this week for some extra credit time). So @muttley you were right again, it hasn't been as scary as I thought it would be.
I had to do a quick mock up test fit of the neck to see what it's all going to look like.
Oh and my wife talked me into paying the guys to put a legit finish on it. I'll take it home for a few weeks then return it for the 6 week finishing process. I'm going with either a blonde or a vintage white with a white pick guard, ala Mike Bloomfield circa 1965. Except it'll be semi-transparent instead of opaque. It's gonna be awesome.
Anyways, here are a few shots that I snapped as I was working:
This Saturday was a busy day, some really good progress. I had company in town Saturday night and Sunday so I haven't had a chance to jot down what all we did on the guitar this week. I'll try to remember...
We glued in the fret dots, drilled and placed the side dot markers, cleaned all of the sawdust and gunk out of the fret slots (which was very satisfying for whatever reason), cut our fret wire, and hammered in the frets. That was also a very satisfying process for me. I'm kinda good at that part! Then we clipped and filed down the fret ends.
Then came the part that I've been dreading. Shaping the neck. At first, it was going pretty poorly for me. I'm just not friends with the planes that we were using. But once I switched to a coarse rasp, I'll be darned it started actually looking like a neck! After more hacking with rasps and sanding with a radius caul, I've finally started honing it in and it's starting to feel like an honest to goodness neck. My transitions into the headstock and the neck heel still need more work, but that'll be for next week (or I might go in later this week for some extra credit time). So @muttley you were right again, it hasn't been as scary as I thought it would be.
I had to do a quick mock up test fit of the neck to see what it's all going to look like.
Oh and my wife talked me into paying the guys to put a legit finish on it. I'll take it home for a few weeks then return it for the 6 week finishing process. I'm going with either a blonde or a vintage white with a white pick guard, ala Mike Bloomfield circa 1965. Except it'll be semi-transparent instead of opaque. It's gonna be awesome.
Anyways, here are a few shots that I snapped as I was working:
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