Tagged With: Woodworking
It’s a Duesy, Two
When starting the build for the Double Dragon I had already decided to build a second. One for the raffle and one for me. At the time I wasn’t certain which would be which. I was down to one Maple burl cap on hand, so one of them would have to feature a “plain” top. I … Continue reading
Dragon’s breath
Once the guitar was out of the clamps with the neck permanently secured, it was time for finishing it up. The neck joint was flushed with scrapers and sandpaper, and the entire guitar was given a good sanding down to 220. I’d already applied some finish to the inside of the sound hole and so … Continue reading
Digital Abalone
For this guitar I wanted to do something a bit different for the fret markers. Though I considered a somewhat elaborate inlay like the previous two, for this one I was thinking of something a bit simpler and unique. As I’m in software engineering I’d been toying with the idea of essentially labeling the fret … Continue reading
Inlaying My New Logo!
Now that I’ve a new logo, time to get it inlaid into the headstock. I again used the “iron on” trick to transfer the laser-printed logo line art to a pearl blank and then cut it out by hand with a jeweler’s saw and fine tooth blade. I then staged the pieces on a bit … Continue reading
Mahogany and Padauk Neck
Before routing the neck pocket in the body, we need a neck. This guitar again features a Gibson-style angled headstock made with a scarf joint. The bulk of this neck will be African Mahogany like the body. For this guitar I decided to also laminate a “racing stripe” down the center of the neck. A … Continue reading
Final Assembly and Setup
Once the finish cured, I sanded with wet/dry paper starting with 400 grit and then working up to 2000. After than, I polished it with brown jeweler’s rougue and buffed it out to a high-gloss near-mirror sheen. I attached the neck, installed the pickguard and bridge, and then attached the strap pins and tuners. For … Continue reading
Wiring the Wishcaster’s Electronics
A primary difference between this guitar and the previous two is the electronics wiring and installation. The Surfcaster is wired like a Stratocaster — with the pickups and controls attached to the pickguard instead of directly to the body. This greatly simplifies installation and makes it possible to work on the electronics and the finish … Continue reading
Dyeing the Wishcaster Blue
With the neck now attached, it was time for a quick trip to quality control – my eldest son Sean – for a check. Thankfully it passed and so the project moved forward to making the pick guard. Pickguard construction began, as usual, with templates. They were prepared from 1/2″ MDF using the full-size drawing. … Continue reading
The Back “X” and Top Bunk Safety Rails
In the last few weeks since my latest post, I’ve made significant progress on the bed. I applied the finish to the poplar parts and glued up the head and foot ends of the bed. At this point I was able to test-assemble the bed and give the kids a chance to take it for … Continue reading
Test Assembly and Finishing the Ends
Over the last couple weeks I’ve completed the construction of the side and end rails and cut the slats for supporting the mattresses. I also settled on somewhat novel connection hardware for the rails. Woodcraft sells a very inexpensive bed rail set bracket set that are nonetheless very sturdy and heavy duty. I’ve augmented the connection … Continue reading