PLEASE NOTE
This section is Incomplete
and there is a possibility of alterations at any time,
so if you are following this section please occasionally pop back to
earlier pages to check for new Info - until it has been completed.
" WEB
PROJECTS "
The
idea to do this feature on the website has really
only just come to mind.
Hopefully
it should go along well with pictures to show
each
stage and you will be able follow
step by step.
What I should also say at
this point is.....
The methods that I am going to show are only
one way of going about these tasks - there
are
other ways,
and I also use other methods and techniques. Different
Luthiers use different ways
of going about each task,
and the methods they use depend on the way they were taught or
have discovered themselves through trial,
error
and experience.
There is no real definitive way that each
task must be done - although
some may disagree !
In these sections I'm going to try
to show a way that needs as few tools as possible so that a
small fortune is not required to..... have a go !
This Section
will be on-going
and will probably take a few years
to come together.
First
of all I intend to do an Electric Guitar,
and later
on do an Acoustic, then a Semi
Acoustic
and maybe
a Classical Guitar
and to finish the series maybe a
request
of some kind !
( If things go well, I may be able to 'squeeze' a Bass Guitar in somewhere
as well.)
Web Project 1..... An Electric Guitar
This is a Medusa Junior Custom made
in 1989.
The Huntress is a similar design to this.
This is a 'likeness' on paper to the Angel
in this project.
Essentially what you see above is what we're trying to get by the end.....
.....with maybe a few minor changes.
This picture also shows the outline of the proposed case for the.....
'Making a Shaped Guitar Case' section.
* *
* * *
* * * * *
Firstly I'll tell you why I'm doing this.....
..... Many years ago I
purchased a couple of books on the subject, and was very impressed,
until
I found out, by
working with Chris
Eccleshall, how to do it properly
-
There is a
World
of difference here.
What's
important
to remember is..... you can quite successfully make a guitar by referring to a
book,
but
by learning in a
professional environment
you learn all the things that are
only
possible there. These experiences you just
cannot
get
anywhere else.
I was extremely
lucky to have been in the position of
having an apprenticeship,
especially with somebody with the skills of Chris
Eccleshall, who himself was apprentice at Hills
of Bond Street London - The World
renowned violin makers, repairers and restorers.
On a daily basis,
for two years, I was working on instruments that were either being constructed
for customers
or were
being repaired
for
customers and I was in regular
contact with the customers myself.....
it is a completely different environment to being in a normal learning situation
as in a college or such like. Being involved with in a professional
business where people are spending money,
you cannot afford
to make any mistakes ! You
have to get pretty good very quickly or you can't do the job and consequently it
was not easy - In fact is was very difficult
and extremely challenging.
I think that it is a real pity that the sort of learning experiences I had are no longer
really available in our modern world. I learnt things that are just not part of
any standard curriculum. I cannot really speak highly enough of
Chris,
who was
brilliant.
It is unlikely that I will ever be in a position to take on an apprentice
myself, so I think by doing this section on the website, I can at least, in part,
try and pass on,
some of the
skills
that have been passed on to me.
* *
* * * * *
* * *
PLEASE NOTE
Disclaimer.
All I'm going to be doing is to give
you the information that you need to be able to
construct something with your
own hands using both hand
tools, hand-held power
tools and some Industrial
type tools when necessary..... I will Not
be responsible for any
disasters
during the project(s) and I will Not
be responsible for any
injuries
that may occur - although I have cut myself on
countless occasions over the years, I am
still fully intact
(touch wood), and if
you are careful
and use tools correctly
you should have no problems on that score. If you have any
doubts, please refer to the
relevant
manuals or seek
advice from a professional
near by. I'm sure they wouldn't mind lending you a hand.
Take Care
and Mind Your Fingers.
(
Tools are Potentially, Extremely Dangerous
and can cause Serious Injury
or Death.)
YOU MUST WEAR the
Appropriate Protective Equipment when using all tools.....
Especially when using Machine Tools - including Ear & Eye Protection, Dust
Mask
or Respirator.
Kev.
Important Note.
Before
you consider starting this project you really need some sort of
experience with tools
including hand
tools, machine
tools and working
with materials.
If you do not have the required knowledge, you will
need
help
from someone that has.
I'm going to do these
projects using the tools that I would generally use..... which are in the
main, quite basic and
if not generally available in hardware stores
are available in specialist shops
or by mail order.
I
will be doing a special 'Tools Section' & will also give
sources on the Links
page.
When I first started, I had no power tools of my own but managed to pick up a drill
and stand,
jigsaw,
router
and orbital sander
secondhand. Other than those, the most important power tools for guitar making
are a Bandsaw
(even
a little one is fine..... I had a 'mini' Black & Decker until 1986)
and a Disc Sander
- which is probably the most useful tool you will ever buy..... in my
opinion.
Part 1
For Starters -
Wednesday 8th
May 2002 (05.08.02)
The basic
design tools.
To start with you need a few
basic items.....
A notepad, a couple of
pencils, sharpener
(or sharpening knife), rubber, biro,
a file of some sort
for paperwork, short and long rulers,
a couple of trigonometry squares and protractors,
a compass (not
essential, but useful), a pair of scissors, a
roll of masking tape, and pop down to your local Supermarket to buy a roll of grease-proof
paper or get some large sheets of tracing
paper from a stationers but this will be more
expensive.
A long straight edge
is essential or if you haven't got one, an edge
strip of melamine faced chipboard that most kitchen
units are made of will do for the time being, and you'll need a a tape
measure.
Flexi-curves will also be very handy to help create the
long and sweeping curves of a guitar body.
It would be handy to have some sort of case
to hold all the bits and pieces in - I always find that when I need
a biro or pencil..... I can never
find one ! I'm probably not the only one.....
;0)
With this lot you will be able to start making patterns of the guitar you're going to build - initially on paper, which will then be transferred onto pattern plywood.
Some other small items that
would come in handy are..... a
pickup surround or two, a couple of
control knobs,
an old top nut,
an old scratch-plate
with holes for pickups, in fact any old bits of hardware that's not really a lot
of use for a working guitar. You should be able to source a few bits from
somewhere.
( At some stage you will need to get a proper long straight
edge..... that is a straight
one, and a 2ft metal
engineers rule that is quite flexible and also must
be straight. The most
important part of your patterns will be the centre
line - everything 'works' from that.)
Once you've gathered all that together, you can start to think about possibly copying this project I intend to do - which is a Royale Huntress, or if you feel more adventurous..... design something to your own taste. It is entirely up to you.
Putting the ideas on
paper.
Sounds simple enough..... but it's best
to get yourself prepared.
You'll need a clear
and clean
area to do your drawings on, ideally it's best to have some sort of board
to work on and again a piece of melamine
faced chipboard
(white is best),
the kitchen unit stuff, makes an ideal
surface. A good size would be about 3ft
x 2ft (100cm-ish x 60cm-ish).
The great advantage of using a board is that you can leave
your 'stuff' on it and move the board out
of the way. If you just use a table, and you need to move your stuff - it's a
real pain to clear it away, stash
it and find
it all again when you want to go back to it.
The Guitar Patterns.
I've actually decided to do a version
of my 'Angel'
('V') as well the 'Huntress'
for this section.
I've done outline patterns
on tracing paper, and will make plywood
patterns from those. On these I will
mark out all the relevant components..... The bridge, pickups, knobs, control
cut-out etc, fingerboard position and neck joint. I will make other plywood
patterns for the fingerboard, neck and headstock.
On other pieces of plywood I will do the router patterns for the neck joint, pickups and control compartment cut-out.
I'll try to get some pix up on the site soon.
(23.10.02)
I've also just done a set of
inlay patterns on paper for hand cut Mother-of-Pearl fingerboard inlays.
I'll get these up on the website in sequence with the other pix.
...... I will continue as soon as I can.
Making a
'Huntress'
(21.02.03)
Making
an 'Angel'
(12.02.03)