The Next Big DIY Project

BuddytheReow

BuddytheReow

Moderator
Here in the US, the summer is winding down and the cooler weather is fast approaching. For me, this means less time being outdoors (think pool and/or beach) and more time being home and working on various projects (house projects, pedals, guitar playing, etc.).

My current project is making some cabinets to add on to our entertainment and the bulk of the woodworking is almost done. I finally bit the bullet and bought a router to add some finesse. A router is an incredibly handy tool.

That being said, I've been tossing around the idea of building my own guitar from scratch. FOr now, I think I'm just going to buy a neck/fretboard already done since that's probably above my skill set for right now. A tele seems like a pretty simple body to put together, but I'm not 100% sold on teles since they are not really my style. A super strat may be the way I will go, but I'd rather start with something simple and work my way up.

Does anyone know any good resources or have a spare template/pdf lying around? I'm also considering winding my own pickups to make it more DIY. Has anyone here DIY'd their own guitar (not a partscaster)? Thanks!
 
There is a tele forum with an absurd amount of guitar building knowledge and templates called TDPRI. I think you'll be able to find everything tele related there with a google, and I'm sure many many more variations to mix and match to fit your style. I've looked at the MDF tele templates on ebay and such but I never pulled the trigger on one so I wouldn't know what to recommend because I don't think Ron Kirn sells templates any more.
 
Being your first build, I'd recommend snagging a cheap MDF template before going with a printed PDF. If only just to ensure things like the neck pocket are as close to perfect as possible. I've used a couple from here, and the quality and price are excellent. He's got quite a few styles, including some kit bashed designs.
 
thanx DGWVI, I'll look for a p-up only template from there. I've considered going with these guys here for anything I don't have and for the semi-ambitious there's also this seller on Etsy where I got my 330 from. Solo guitars in Toronto carries a decent set of templates as well. Regarding the neck, the main part is easy, couple places have the fingerboards rounded and slotted for frets. CB Gitty and MGB guitars carry so much to be it's own rabbit hole. They are MOSTLY cigar box/oil can type builds but have tools and parts for 'regular' builds.
 
Solo's got a blank rectangle in its clearance section right now (well, as of a couple days ago); what I don't get is it's a blank and costs ... $200?
Then Solo has a few LPs and other body styles, B-stock blems, that are only $70-100. I guess the cheaper ones (nearly ready to have their necks installed) have bigger flaws than the blank?

Anyway, Buddy, I recommend you go with what you want straight off. If you're not a Tele guy, I don't see the point unless you want a Tele. Compared to pedal building, you start off on a booster or Rangemaster and work your way up to a Fuzz Face etc. Going from a Tele to a SuperStrat isn't much of a jump — kinda like going from building a Tube Screamer to a Muff (or is that Muff to a Tube Screamer). My first build was a combo, PCBs built in this order: Red Llama, 3-band EQ, Green Ringer and finally a boost. Each PCB worked great! Alas, they didn't play well together... 😸 Lotsa people cut their pedal-building teeth on a Muff or TS, so why shouldn't you go for your SuperStrat? Maybe some people here who've already routed out a few bodies should weigh in and I should ...



I should probably exhume that first build and sort it out — my combo-build skills have improved a fraction since then.
 
I bought templates from Solo Guitars, they are good but one advice I would give is do not work of the template you bought. Get some thick MDF and make a copy of the templates with your router, this way if you screw up (FTR I did...) you can make a new copy and keep the expensive original intact.
 
Feral Feline said:
Solo's got a blank rectangle in its clearance section right now (well, as of a couple days ago); what I don't get is it's a blank and costs ... $200?
Then Solo has a few LPs and other body styles, B-stock blems, that are only $70-100. I guess the cheaper ones (nearly ready to have their necks installed) have bigger flaws than the blank?

Anyway, Buddy, I recommend you go with what you want straight off. If you're not a Tele guy, I don't see the point unless you want a Tele. Compared to pedal building, you start off on a booster or Rangemaster and work your way up to a Fuzz Face etc. Going from a Tele to a SuperStrat isn't much of a jump — kinda like going from building a Tube Screamer to a Muff (or is that Muff to a Tube Screamer). My first build was a combo, PCBs built in this order: Red Llama, 3-band EQ, Green Ringer and finally a boost. Each PCB worked great! Alas, they didn't play well together... 😸 Lotsa people cut their pedal-building teeth on a Muff or TS, so why shouldn't you go for your SuperStrat? Maybe some people here who've already routed out a few bodies should weigh in and I should ...



I should probably exhume that first build and sort it out — my combo-build skills have improved a fraction since then.
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What I REALLY want is a custom designed body. I think I need to get my feet wet first with, say, a super strat, before full DIY design. I'm more concerned about the neck pocket, bridge, and pickup cavities being correct. I'm probably gonna do a crap ton of research, get bored of it, then jerry-rig a H-H strat, and be 90% happy with it. I'll tell my wife I want to make another, BETTER one and she'll either roll her eyes or tell me maybe later....
 
BuddytheReow said:
What I REALLY want is a custom designed body. I think I need to get my feet wet first with, say, a super strat, before full DIY design. I'm more concerned about the neck pocket, bridge, and pickup cavities being correct. I'm probably gonna do a crap ton of research, get bored of it, then jerry-rig a H-H strat, and be 90% happy with it. I'll tell my wife I want to make another, BETTER one and she'll either roll her eyes or tell me maybe later....
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I don't see any reason to dip the toe with a super unless you really really want that. My first build was a set neck of my own body shape and it went fine. Not perfect but it's still in regular use. Had i done more than repair work before that it probably would've been... a lil different lol. No regrets.

That being said I've been sort of considering a cheapo flying v kit just for some humbucker action around here and I've never done a kit. The flying v is hilarious to me. As always, you do you boo!
 
Mentaltossflycoon said:
I don't see any reason to dip the toe with a super unless you really really want that. My first build was a set neck of my own body shape and it went fine. Not perfect but it's still in regular use. Had i done more than repair work before that it probably would've been... a lil different lol. No regrets.

That being said I've been sort of considering a cheapo flying v kit just for some humbucker action around here and I've never done a kit. The flying v is hilarious to me. As always, you do you boo!
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I've been eyeing up a flying V as well.

Sigh...gonna drool over the internet for a while. If anyone has any tips or helpful tidbits let me know.
 
A bit off topic, but regarding kits I've had an explorer kit from guitarfetish before and it wasn't possible to intonate it without redrilling the body to move the bridge. Kit guitars are a bit hit or miss in my personal experience, but fun if you want to put the work in. I find the wood on most kit guitars to not be my style, the paulownia? is really light but also really really soft. The soft wood used on cheap guitars is why I picked an ash body one specifically when I got a xaviere from them, and while it's heavier its also super solid which I feel is worth it to me personally.


If you're going to buy a neck and are looking for recommendations, i've always had great experiences with warmoth (in stock purchases). Mine didn't need any fretwork and I was able to set the action unreasonably low right out of the box.
 
swyse said:
A bit off topic, but regarding kits I've had an explorer kit from guitarfetish before and it wasn't possible to intonate it without redrilling the body to move the bridge. Kit guitars are a bit hit or miss in my personal experience, but fun if you want to put the work in. I find the wood on most kit guitars to not be my style, the paulownia? is really light but also really really soft. The soft wood used on cheap guitars is why I picked an ash body one specifically when I got a xaviere from them, and while it's heavier its also super solid which I feel is worth it to me personally.


If you're going to buy a neck and are looking for recommendations, i've always had great experiences with warmoth (in stock purchases). Mine didn't need any fretwork and I was able to set the action unreasonably low right out of the box.
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Warmoth seems to be the real deal, but not the $300+ price rage for just a neck
 
BuddytheReow said:
Warmoth seems to be the real deal, but not the $300+ price rage for just a neck
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Fair, I haven't bought from warmoth in probably 10 years and prices were probably much cheaper back then, I want to say I paid $260 for a 1 piece rosewood neck.
 
wow.. I was in a lumber supplier for maybe 100ish I could get a 23 inch wide, 6(72 inch) foot long 1.5 inch thick slab(multiply all that by 2.54 for metric) south american rosewood slab, whole dang thing had barely a wave in the grain..
 
So what I’m now thinking is a 7 string with a Floyd rose tremolo. Gee whiz those tremolos are expensive! I’m talking an original, not a knockoff. This is going to be an expensive project. The body blank not so much, but all the hardware and finishing materials! This is probably going to be $600-700! Granted it will be over the course of a few months, but I think for that price I may just rather buy one outright. I’m really torn because I thought it would be fun and still want to tackle this challenge.

Sigh

I guess I’ll have to rethink this and still go simple again so I can pickup the learning curve since my first build won’t be my best. Just like pedals…
 
why some of us started with a kit and tweeked it to taste, build the confidence and frankly not give a rip if it went slightly sideways. I thought it was going to cost me around 900~1k to make my Ric copies, but it only gets that close when I add in the cost of the tools, router, bandsaw, drill press templates... I suggest shopping around for some of the parts, fender p-ups themselves are actually decently priced. I went in to a GC and got the mexican manufactured tex-mex strats for $107after tax, found a china kit on Amzaon for like $115 with shipping and some kluson tuners for about $23. ANd what did that give me? pretty much a Fender player grade strat for under 1/3 cost. finagle with a kit as you acquire the parts for the dream build.
 
I do have a kit build that I had tons of fun finishing and putting together. The down side is that the intonation on it is crap. This either means the frets weren’t installed correctly or the bridge needs to be adjusted. I THINK I can carve out the tremolo bridge cavity a bit more, but I only have about a quarter inch to work with until I hit the pickup plate. It might be enough or it might not. I can always fall back on that if I decide not to build one from scratch.

The more I write about this the more I’m starting to realize that may not be the right forum to post in. Oh well. This place is still my bread and butter.
 
It's good, is general discussion not trouble shooting, we need something to make the jingle jangle before we make it echo, thumb and growl! Now I gotta figure out where I put the palm sander to scuff up the paint and do a filler layer on the shartcaster...
 
BuddytheReow said:
So what I’m now thinking is a 7 string with a Floyd rose tremolo. Gee whiz those tremolos are expensive! I’m talking an original, not a knockoff. This is going to be an expensive project. The body blank not so much, but all the hardware and finishing materials! This is probably going to be $600-700! Granted it will be over the course of a few months, but I think for that price I may just rather buy one outright. I’m really torn because I thought it would be fun and still want to tackle this challenge.

Sigh

I guess I’ll have to rethink this and still go simple again so I can pickup the learning curve since my first build won’t be my best. Just like pedals…
Click to expand...
Going simple is always a good thing.

But so is aiming high, as long as you’re able to restrain your need to see the finished product, and proceed at whatever pace it takes. People with experience do tend to get better at the basic operations, but from my experience, the main lessons I’ve learned in the crafts I’ve spent decades doing really ended up being all the ways to most easily get around the mistake I’ve just made. That few disasters really are disasters. I’ve told employees and students that when they flub a step in something, go for a walk, get a cup of coffee, do whatever you need to be in another place for awhile. So you can come back, you can look at the mess with some fresh eyes and figure out the best next step. It’s rarely a true setback.

(major topic shift: sorry😉). If you were to just buy a Floyd 7 string for a similar budget, it will have cheaper electronics and hardware on it. You don’t need to spend on any of that just yet, anyway—not until you have the body fairly completed, and a neck that you want. You can always buy some used, second tier parts as testers, and if it all works, replace them with the quality level you want.
 
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