Elias Graves
Common misfit
What kinda glue?
Walnut Hollowbody Build
- Thread starter Elias Graves
- Start date
telecaster911
Kick Henry Jackassowski
Wick in some cyanoacrylate, or some are actually epoxied in.
fused
Improvisationalist
I don't really know. The luthier did the refret.
Before I went with it I got to see some of his other glued in's and wow, really really nice.
The beauty is, the next refret, they just heat the fret, pop it out and reinstall the new the same way.
No more wood trama to the fretboard.
Been playing the heck out of this thing and lovin it.
If it is cyano glue, that stuff melts/lets go...at about 250 degree F... So a soldering iron touching the fret probably really does do it...
Elias Graves
Common misfit
Looking at all these boards, it's clear that Tom just bought a tree. He did not hand pick wood for appearance. Knots, inconsistent color, sapwood and weird grain patterns make these boards "paint grade" by any reasonable standards. Despite that, people become apoplectic when I mention covering the defects. "It's walnut," they cry. "You don't hide walnut."
Well, you do when the appearance isn't up to standards.
I really don't want to paint. It's a lot of work making a nice looking paint job.
Plus, since walnut is so hard, it doesn't need a great deal of protection. Of course you want to protect from water but it doesn't need much cover from dings and that's why tru oil is so popular with walnut.
Tru oil will darken the wood but won't cover imperfection or correct color. A stain is needed.
I did one test the other day with two stains. First, a dark walnut stain, then an ebony stain. Covered with linseed oil. (Obviously not tru oil but the appearance is the same)
Of course, this wood was rough with no sanding or anything but you get the idea. Dark, but still not hiding everything.
Next, I used Jello's ebonizing trick on the neck board. You need to check each sample, as some don't darken completely and others can be splotchy.
The key ingredients to this "stain" are rust and vinegar. I make my solution by dissolving part of a steel wool paving a jar of vinegar. Any iron will do fine, but the insane amount of surface area on the steel wool means that it desolves completely in a few days, yielding a potent ebonizer.
The effect is striking and is not a dye like a typical stain. The rust reacts with tannic acid in the wood to create the black color. It actually changes the color of the wood.
This is the same effect as leaving a wet glass in an oak table where a black ring gets left behind. Only a handful of woods have tannic acid present in enough concentration to produce the effect.
Maple will to a lesser extent. It turns a pale blue color.
Anyway, enough lecture. Here is the neck, planed and sanded to 150. I scrubbed the solution in with a 0 steel wool pad. A real rough one. That's to make sure the solution penetrates to the bottoms of those deep pores. If you don't get it worked in well, you have natural walnut colored pores and an ebonizer surface.
After staining, I polished it clean with a t shirt and applied one coat of linseed oil.
Well, you do when the appearance isn't up to standards.
I really don't want to paint. It's a lot of work making a nice looking paint job.
Plus, since walnut is so hard, it doesn't need a great deal of protection. Of course you want to protect from water but it doesn't need much cover from dings and that's why tru oil is so popular with walnut.
Tru oil will darken the wood but won't cover imperfection or correct color. A stain is needed.
I did one test the other day with two stains. First, a dark walnut stain, then an ebony stain. Covered with linseed oil. (Obviously not tru oil but the appearance is the same)
Of course, this wood was rough with no sanding or anything but you get the idea. Dark, but still not hiding everything.
Next, I used Jello's ebonizing trick on the neck board. You need to check each sample, as some don't darken completely and others can be splotchy.
The key ingredients to this "stain" are rust and vinegar. I make my solution by dissolving part of a steel wool paving a jar of vinegar. Any iron will do fine, but the insane amount of surface area on the steel wool means that it desolves completely in a few days, yielding a potent ebonizer.
The effect is striking and is not a dye like a typical stain. The rust reacts with tannic acid in the wood to create the black color. It actually changes the color of the wood.
This is the same effect as leaving a wet glass in an oak table where a black ring gets left behind. Only a handful of woods have tannic acid present in enough concentration to produce the effect.
Maple will to a lesser extent. It turns a pale blue color.
Anyway, enough lecture. Here is the neck, planed and sanded to 150. I scrubbed the solution in with a 0 steel wool pad. A real rough one. That's to make sure the solution penetrates to the bottoms of those deep pores. If you don't get it worked in well, you have natural walnut colored pores and an ebonizer surface.
After staining, I polished it clean with a t shirt and applied one coat of linseed oil.
Elias Graves
Common misfit
This board blackened up amazingly well. Before the oil went on, it was pure purple.
I like the color and the oil will look great on it. From ten feet away or more it will just look black. You'll have to look under good light up close to see the grain at all. Even then, you see the shape of the grain and the texture but the color is pretty consistent, however, one of the cool things about this technique is that in the right light at the right angle, the whole thing almost looks like its pre-stained self. It's an odd effect but very cool.
I like the color and the oil will look great on it. From ten feet away or more it will just look black. You'll have to look under good light up close to see the grain at all. Even then, you see the shape of the grain and the texture but the color is pretty consistent, however, one of the cool things about this technique is that in the right light at the right angle, the whole thing almost looks like its pre-stained self. It's an odd effect but very cool.
Elias Graves
Common misfit
That's the actual neck blank.
And, yeah, the wood just turns black.
And, yeah, the wood just turns black.
Elias Graves
Common misfit
Yay! I have an angled headstock face now.
Elias Graves
Common misfit
Man, cutting straight lines freehand on an angle is a mother!
jelloman
Couch'd Tater...
Ya think?
Elias Graves
Common misfit
Yup. I do.
Got it cleaned up now. I think I'm on hold here til I get a fretboard.
Got it cleaned up now. I think I'm on hold here til I get a fretboard.
Elias Graves
Common misfit
Found a couple of wood chisels, though. I'm doing some practice carving now. The walnut is unbelievably hard but seems to carve nicely IF the chisel is sharp.
Guitar Heel
Demented Trick
Elias Graves
Common misfit
Yeah. 
So I did some math over the weekend, shopping parts.
I'm up to about $600 just using plain parts. It's worse with upgrade parts.
I confess I'm shocked. I did the tele for about $300.
So I did some math over the weekend, shopping parts.
I'm up to about $600 just using plain parts. It's worse with upgrade parts.
I confess I'm shocked. I did the tele for about $300.
Elias Graves
Common misfit
I've been asking myself "Self, how you gonna carve the body?"
And I replied "Dunno."
So I figure ill try out some techniques and see what I can find out.
I've done some very limited carving in wood a long time ago. I have, however, carved enough foam to make a like of wheelchair seat cushions from here to Winslow.
I sharpened the one chisel I could find and made a few cuts. This took about five minutes. Unfinished, obviously, but I'm pleased with how rapidly you can remove material even with a small blade. After a few cuts, I started controlling it better and you can get pretty accurate with it. This may work for a lot of the carving.
And I replied "Dunno."
So I figure ill try out some techniques and see what I can find out.
I've done some very limited carving in wood a long time ago. I have, however, carved enough foam to make a like of wheelchair seat cushions from here to Winslow.
I sharpened the one chisel I could find and made a few cuts. This took about five minutes. Unfinished, obviously, but I'm pleased with how rapidly you can remove material even with a small blade. After a few cuts, I started controlling it better and you can get pretty accurate with it. This may work for a lot of the carving.
BoomBoomBigelow
Genius of Love
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Elias Graves
Common misfit
Ha ha! I found my secondary wood. Silver leaf maple (aka soft maple) from mom's place.
MUCH softer than the walnut. Should work well for my needs.
MUCH softer than the walnut. Should work well for my needs.
Elias Graves
Common misfit
New Japanese saw day! This thing is pretty nifty. 7 tpi on one side and 14 tpi on the other.
Very thin blade that's flexible. It cuts fast and very straight.
The handle gets tiresome after a bit, though. I suspect that I'm not using correct technique or something.
In less than five minutes, it sliced 8" deep into this maple.
Very thin blade that's flexible. It cuts fast and very straight.
The handle gets tiresome after a bit, though. I suspect that I'm not using correct technique or something.
In less than five minutes, it sliced 8" deep into this maple.
BoomBoomBigelow
Genius of Love
What are you using the maple for? The neck? Soft maple is more like poplar, than hard, or "rock" maple, which is what is generally used for necks. I think I used it for a body once, which was OK, but I don't know if I'd use it for a neck, don't know if it's stiff enough. Just so ya know.
