Cutting the Truss Rod Pocket

After the design is drawn on the neck, the first step is to carve out the truss rod pocket, using a router and careful measurement. Unfortunately, the router table I purchased on sale at Sears is crap, so I'm going to replace the fence with a piece of wood that is actually straight. After the pocket is cut (note, this takes multiple passes, going slightly deeper each time) the truss

rod itself can be laid in, as shown on the right. I'm using a bottom loading truss rod this time, simply because it's easier to install, but I'm hoping to use one with a top adjustment (modern Fender style) for my next project.

There is still some cutting on the bottom for the screw. This is done with a dremel. I'm borrowing Dan Earlwine's method of truss rod installation here, which involves cutting a small a small piece of wood in a semicircular shape to patch the hole. (see below). It's not an elegant solution by any means, but it does work.


Below is the finished product. In the future, I'll be more careful about making sure the grain lines up perfectly, but I think that's pretty good for a first attempt, don't you?

June, 2010

Ok, I know that I've been remiss in posting lately - sorry. Tax season has me under the gun until mid-April, and, while I have been doing quite a bit of building, I haven't had a chance to post much lately.

I'm trying to do as much building as I possibly can using only hand tools. There's several reasons for this.
1. I have a very limited amount of space at this point, and I simply don't have room for a lot of
large tools.
2. Hand tools are much less expensive than power tools.
3. (This is probably the most important) I'm trying to get as proficient with hand tools as I can
before I graduate to larger tools. Although this is probably slowing me down, I believe that
using hand tools will give me a better feel for the wood and the craft itself, rather than just
using automation whenever possible. Maybe someday I'll graduate to a CNC router and all
the stuff that Olson Guitars uses, but for now I'll start slow.
That said, it would be difficult to do this job without certain power tools. I am using a router, band saw, dremel, and electric drill on a regular basis. All of the actual carving and sanding is being done by hand.

I'm trying to concentrate on building electric guitar necks at this point. I figure that concentrating on one element will allow me to focus more and, if I can do that, the rest of the electric will be much easier. Although my eventual goal is to build acoustics, starting with electrics is much more cost effective, due to the lower cost of spruce for the necks, as well as the $1,000 or so worth of tools that I can postpone buying (for now).

Here's a few shots of what I've been up to:

1st post!

Greetings all! Welcome to my first post on my brand-new blog. I figured since I sent out Christmas letters to everyone with this address on it, that I should at least have something up, so I don't look like I don't know what I'm doing.

The short story: since I'm finally out of school (those of you who know me know what this means) I am finally pursuing something I've wanted to do for several years - build guitars. I've played the guitar since I was 11, and have always been fascinated by every aspect of the instrument. I learned facts about guitars and the people who played them like other kids trade baseball cards. More and more I wanted to get into building, but the time was never right. However, now I have some time and, more importantly, a place to set up a shop in my home. Right now I'm using a downstairs basement that has been rendered unsleepable due to some unforseen water damage. After that room gets repaired, I plan to move operations to a 28x35' heated shop that I'm fortunate enough to have. However, a few more renovations are required before that happens, so I'm in the basement for now. Believe me, since we're in the dead of winter, not having to go outside is a plus.

One thing that really helped me get started was reading Charlie Hoffman's blog at http://www.hoffmanguitars.com where he has a step-by-step guide for building his beautiful handcrafted guitars. He also has links to some other builder's sites and much helpful advice on getting started, tool selection and the like. I am fortunate enough to own one of Charlie's guitars from 1982 and have even been able to visit him in his Minneapolis shop. He and others like him have made me believe, for good or ill, that this goal is attainable, so here I am.

This blog is going to be a chronicle of my labors, both good and bad. Yes, I'm going to post pictures and stories about my mistakes as well as my triumphs. (Probably more of the former, at least for the first few months.) This blog is intended for anyone who is interested in the craft of luthiery, or anyone else with a general interest in guitars. Hopefully I'll be able to encourage some others, and maybe even save a few people some costly mistakes along the way (I'll make them so you don't have to.)