custom building guitars. need help

[rubymaster92]

I'm in the process of building myself a new guitar, but i have little to no idea on what do or get. what i want to do is make a solid body neck-through electric guitar out of pure maple. I want to make everything myself construction wise (excluding the hardware ex. knobs, pickups, tremolo, etc...). I plan on just using a solid block of maple for the whole guitar, neck, body, and all. Now I am not sure if this is possible or practical to do it this way, but i thought it would be cool. I know that I want an ebony fretboard with possibly sharktooth offset inlays, semour duncan blackouts humbucker pickups, and a tremolo system with not only a whammy bar, but the tremolo part where i can make the notes higher (sorry, I'm kinda illiterate when it comes to fancy terms)[I have seen this tremolo system on several ibanez guitars]. I also want a locking nut. I'm making the guitar a dark green transparent stain (so you can still see the grain of the maple) so I think that all black hardware would be best. As for a pickguard, something black that would fit a right handed flying-v style, but with a shorter bottom tail, also preferably black. What I need help with is what else I need for this guitar, like if I need a truss rod or what. Any help on what ALL I need to make this guitar run like a fine tuned machine, where to get some good deals on the stuff, and also maybe a good site or something to help me build it would be much appreciated. Thanks.

[Chuck H]

Wow... Your really better off building a guitar from a custom parts MFG first. Just to see what your up against.

There is sooo much to consider with wood choices. The type of guitar, the pickups, the bridge type, the tone your after (sustain VS. resonance) and the specific frequency and feedback charactetistics.

The question "do I need a truss rod" is very telling. A truly great luthier MAY be able to build a guitar that would not need a truss rod. This is providing that the wood is of impecable quality and the same strings will ALWAYS be available. Lots to tell there. But you'll get it soon enough.

IMHE an all maple guitar will be too bright AND have a quick decay. Not a good combo. Guitars are made from wood composites for good reason. Only when a luthier has built many, many guitars will he/she start to form an opinion on what woods should go where.

It would be an impressive piece if you built it, an all maple guitar from one piece of wood. But little more than a novelty. You would't want to play it much and you'll never sell it for what it's worth.

For an electric guitar there are many choices for body woods that have proven themselves over the years. All maple is not one of them. There is mahogony with a maple top. There is maple, neck through, with softer wood body sides. If you do find an all maple body guitar it will likely be laminated AND have a different wood for the necks fingerboard, at least.

What kind of woods are the guitars you like playing made from. Consider every piece.

If you have a wood shop such that you can do something like this, you're lucky. Enjoy making guitars. Study and use what you like as example and learn along the way.

[rubymaster92]

alright, so maybe i should use like a swamp ash or maybe even a redwood for the wings and a maple neck? and also, do you have a list of things that i need to build this guitar? I know some of the basics, but i want a list just to be sure that i don't forget anything. I also know that there is more to it than just cutting the wood and putting the hardware in, but i'm not too sure as to what. So do you by any chance know of a good website that i can go to that has good step-by-step instructions and a site wherei can find a schematic for a flying-v style? Thanks

[eggle]

maple

i have to disagree with the above poster and the usage of maple to make a guitar.i have a guitar that is all maple with a set neck.the neck is birdseye and the body is of top select maple with a maple burl cap.of cousre it will have a high presence but no more than your typical telecaster.if im not mistaken the george lynch ESP guitar is all maple.put it this way, you will have no trouble cutting through in a band situation, you wont get lost in the mix . the wood you should select is the type of sound your after, BUT more importantly maple is not just maple, alder aint just alder, you need to make sure when your choosing the wood that its going to respond really well.nice even graining etc,not sure where you want to get the piece of wood from but moisture content is important, you can write a book on wood selection let alone building a 1 piece guitar considering you have never done it. id do a lot of reading and ask loads of questions and certainly start off learning basics in guitar construction,would not dive into this straight away as it will more than likey end up a time and costly mistake.

[David Schwab]

Yeah, maple is bright, but very smooth. I think hard ash is brighter. Carvin made all maple guitars for many years. Pedulla still uses all maple. They aren't overly bright at all.

Before you start on a guitar making venture, have you ever done any wood working before? I'd start by betting a couple of wood working books or videos, and you will also need tools, and if you can afford it, machines like a band saw and a router. But you can use hand tools.

Then get as many guitar building books as you can. You will get informations and ideas from each one, but they will do many steps differently.

Being a guitar is tricky, especially if you are designing you own guitar. Besides the ascetics, you have to design something that functions correctly (neck angle matching bridge, fretwork, truss rod, etc.) and something that's structurally sound from a wood working point of view, such as learning how to joint boards and proper gluing technique. Be prepared to buy many clamps!

I got started because I wanted a six string bass and either couldn't afford the ones I liked, or didn't like the others. So I decided to build my own. I ended up spending more than I would if I just bought one!

But now I have a new profession.

[rubymaster92]

I have access to lots of wood working tools necessary and i have experience in the wood working field. I just don't have the money really to be buying books. I'm barely scrapin by to afford everything that I need for the basic building of the guitar. Just so that I don't screw up the neck, is there anywhere that i can buy a custom neckthrough maple neck? and then I could maybe just buy a chunk of maple and glue the "wings" on the neck? and also does anyone have an electrical schematic for a flying-v?

[eggle]

if yr interested

i have the blue print for the flying v if your interested and the electrical schematic. you will need to enlarge it though obviously. all plans and dimensions etc etc are there. give me yr email address
its for a 1983 gibson flying v korina reissue

[rubymaster92]

Alright, i pm'd you wit me e-mail. Thanks. And I think that my wood choice is gonna be a maple neck with a less "bright" sound than maple for the wings. Cuz i was just jammin out on my Johnson, who's wood species is unknown, has quite a "bright" sound to it, whereas my '64 Teisco has a fuller, richer, more bluesy sound, which i like, but would like something in the middle. The Teisco is another species of mystery to me. But I want a middle sound between the bright maple and a more bluesy sounding wood.

[David Schwab]

I have access to lots of wood working tools necessary and i have experience in the wood working field. I just don't have the money really to be buying books. I'm barely scrapin by to afford everything that I need for the basic building of the guitar. Just so that I don't screw up the neck, is there anywhere that i can buy a custom neckthrough maple neck? and then I could maybe just buy a chunk of maple and glue the "wings" on the neck? and also does anyone have an electrical schematic for a flying-v?

Screwing up a neck is more expensive than a book!

Stewmac sells neck throughs with paddle headstocks. They are Carvin necks. I think Carvin sells them too.

Through-body Guitar Neck

A V is a standard type of wiring.

Here's the schematic for a Firebird V, which is wired the same.

http://www.gibson.com/Files/schematics/FirebirdV.PDF

Gibson doesn't seem to have any V schematics, except a V bass, which is the same, except the tone cap.

http://www.gibson.com/Files/schematics/FlyingVbass.PDF

[rubymaster92]

actually, i got lazier. :-) also that neck is EXTrMELY expensive and it doesnt have what i want. Is there anything like that that has a bolt on neck with a carvable headstock and a floyd rose style locking nut? preferably an ebony fretboard with offset inlays?

[David Schwab]

actually, i got lazier. :-) also that neck is EXTrMELY expensive and it doesnt have what i want. Is there anything like that that has a bolt on neck with a carvable headstock and a floyd rose style locking nut? preferably an ebony fretboard with offset inlays?

That neck isn't expensive. Check Warmoth if you want expensive It's average.

[rubymaster92]

well for my price range, it is expensive. I would like something like that but just a bolt on neck that i can custom order what i want on it. are there any websites out there like that?

[spud1950]

well for my price range, it is expensive. I would like something like that but just a bolt on neck that i can custom order what i want on it.

As an example,here's the price list for necks from USACG,a very popular vendor for bodies and necks.You can chose your options for back of the neck shape,fret size,peg head shape,etc.Their prices are considered very reasonable.

http://www.usacustomguitars.com/neckpricing.html

Here's another example.Beautiful necks made to order,with more custom options available.Again,the prices on these are considered more then reasonable for what they are.

http://www.soulmateguitars.com/Necks.htm

If you think these prices are to too high,then your expectations of you're going to have to pay for what you want are very unrealistic.

[Sir Cuitous]

But I want a middle sound between the bright maple and a more bluesy sounding wood.

If this is a first guitar build, you should be happy with just getting a good sound from a playable instrument. It takes years of experience to try to match specific tones with wood choices. Your best bet is to build an existing, well-known model that most closely resembles the sound and feel you like. A bolt-on neck guitar is a fine place to start. Check USA Custom or Warmoth for parts. You should be able to get parts that range from rough-milled to fully finished. Plan the entire guitar and then get parts as you can afford them.

David's suggestion to get a book is good advice. There is an order of operations to build a guitar and each step will greatly impact the later stages of your build. Messing up a step could be critical to your outcome. A book or the instructions in a kit will give you some guidance. There are some very good builders on this forum, but you can't possibly get the whole picture here. Have fun and good luck.

[eggle]

guitars

ok, well its up to you about the neck. you have gone from making a guitar to buying a bolt on neck. reality says your better off buying a kit guitar. it seems your missing the point of actually building a guitar. there are no short cuts, building a guitar is precision work and a lot of patience involved, let alone all the mistakes/errors or such you will come across.all this is a learning process. you cant wake up one day and decide to make a guitar!!!! wont work. being it looks like your going to purchase a neck then that should tell you for a start about your abilities or confidence to start such a project.
not that i want to put you off, but buy some cheap timber, experiment with woods and tools etc,see how things will have to work. once you get confident in what you can do , then decide to buy more expensive woods or such. I like david, i couldnt afford the guitars i wanted back then but the cost of the actual wood materials and hardware is considerabley less than forking out for a branded name(as long as u dont screw up lol), not to mention of the satisfaction of every guitar you do is an immense feeling when strung up and the anticipation. yes im guilty of screwing up the odd neck and measurements when first started out, but these mistakes are important in to your own development.
peace j