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Current Production -- General - Page 2

The photos on this page are of my current production batch (I generally make 10 - 12 guitars in a batch) This page will have the photos that are generic to all of the guitars (such as making the rosettes.) At the bottom of the page are links to the page showing the entire batch and to each of the 12 pages for the guitars. It is probably useful to look at all of the individual pages as some photos which are "generic" are only on the individual pages.

This page will focus largely on making the necks and fingerboards.

I glue up blocks of mahogany with the maple/rosewood/maple laminations. Generally I will make enough for two or three years of work, and each block will make two necks as is evident from the layout on these.

Then I bandsaw the rough blanks.

Here the slot for the adjustable truss rod is cut.

Here the necks have had their dovetail joint cut and they are now specific to a given guitar.

Next I lay out and cut the shape of the peghead. the first step of this is to drill the holes for the tuning machines. This, obviously, is for a 12 string. The jig has metal bushings so that the drill bit will not wear the jig, making it inaccurate.

Holes are drilled.

Jigs for shaping the pegheads

Pegheads ready for shaping.

More jigs.

these dowels fit in the machine holes and hold the peghead rigidly while it is being shaped.

Like so.

Cutter in action

Again

Necks with pegheads done and the shaft if cut to rough thickness.

This jig roughly cuts the neck blank to the corrrect thickness.

This jig in action.

This cutter - and the jig - rough shapes the neck - it is by no means a final shaping but it removes a lot of wood very fast.

this neck has pretty much had its "machine work" - most of the rest of the work in shaping it will be hand work.

Truss rod anchor is set into the dovetail

the filler strip is glued in on top of the truss rod, Leaving this.

I use a small block plane or the bandsaw to remove most of the excess filler strip.

this is a tool called a counterbore - the thin rod fits in the truss rod slot.

. Like so.

Leaving a nice pocket for the truss rod adjusting nut.

One of the first steps in making the fingerboard is to drill locating holes which help locate it on a variety of jigs that I use.

A closer view of one end of this jig.

Leaving this hole.

this jig (and the shaper) cuts the overall taper of the fingerboard

Another view. Here the taper has been cut.

A bunch of finished (but not fretted) fingerboards.

Lining up the fingerboard on the neck and body.

Once I am sure that the neck is in straight, I drill locating holes in the fingerboard and the neck to ensure that everything lines up correctly. This is the jig I use to do this. I use a 3/16 nylon down as the locating pin.