Finished Pics! impmann's Alembic-esque Electric

Andyjr1515

normula1 said:

Looks like you hit upon a template for an electric sitar there

Hmmmm.....now there's a thought

Andyjr1515

And one wenge-bound board:


Don't worry about the fret tang chips - they will be fully covered by the new frets.  Luckily - because this ebony is very, very brittle - none of the chips will show

Andyjr1515

...and a trussrod cover done.  It will be held in place with a neo magnet. 



Still planning to do the final sanding and start the finishing process this week

Teyeplayer

Andyjr1515 said:

And one wenge-bound board:


Don't worry about the fret tang chips - they will be fully covered by the new frets.  Luckily - because this ebony is very, very brittle - none of the chips will show

Brittle or not, the flame in that fretboard looks amazing! I can see why you were so excited by it; it really is quite something.

Andyjr1515

14 frets done, 8 to go



It's a slow, slow job.  I'm basically leaving each one clamped at a time until the titebond is part hardened.  With the ebony being as brittle as it is, I don't want to be having to take any of them out again

You can see the binding in this shot....should have done that in the first place - it definitely adds a touch of class...

BigMonka

I totally agree that the binding adds an extra touch of class, really lovely. And very clever to be able to just add that on to the build towards the end!

Andyjr1515

BigMonka said:

I totally agree that the binding adds an extra touch of class, really lovely. And very clever to be able to just add that on to the build towards the end!

Probably 'lucky' is a better word than 'clever'  @BigMonka  ;

Four more frets to go

Andyjr1515

Andyjr1515 said:

BigMonka said:

I totally agree that the binding adds an extra touch of class, really lovely. And very clever to be able to just add that on to the build towards the end!

Probably 'lucky' is a better word than 'clever'  @BigMonka  ;;;

Four more frets to go

Three two one more fret to go

Andyjr1515

Andyjr1515 said:

Andyjr1515 said:

BigMonka said:

I totally agree that the binding adds an extra touch of class, really lovely. And very clever to be able to just add that on to the build towards the end!

Probably 'lucky' is a better word than 'clever'  @BigMonka  ;;;

Four more frets to go

Three two one more fret to go

...and all in.  Too dark to check they are all OK, but I'm pretty sure most of them at least are going to be fine. 

I'm MUCH happier with the width

TTony

Andyjr1515 said:

  I'm basically leaving each one clamped at a time until the titebond is part hardened. 

So you run some glue into the fret slot, then insert the fret, then clamp it for 30mins (or whatever) and then do the next one?

I'd get glue all over the fretboard!

Andyjr1515

TTony said:

Andyjr1515 said:

  I'm basically leaving each one clamped at a time until the titebond is part hardened. 

So you run some glue into the fret slot, then insert the fret, then clamp it for 30mins (or whatever) and then do the next one?

I'd get glue all over the fretboard!

Almost - I put a bead of glue along the tang and run my finger along it to remove the excess.  Then there's just a small amount of squeeze-out that is still soft enough for me to scrape off the edge of the fret and fretboard.

Andyjr1515

I'll put the bridge on and string it up in the morning but trust me - this is SO much better

Andyjr1515

Quick mock up to make sure it is all functional.  And yes


This is now with the slightly wider 35mm string spacing nut and the strings are now where they need to be in terms of closeness to the edge.  Feels better, too

The frets aren't levelled, crowned and polished yet so still some tidying up to do at the ends, but the binding blends in nicely:


Today SHOULD (I know - it's tempting fate a bit) see the last actual build tasks before final sanding and finishing.

Legionreturns

Looking really stunning now Andy! Great work

Andyjr1515

Legionreturns said:

Looking really stunning now Andy! Great work

Thanks!  


Onto last build jobs.  On of them is slimming down the internal control chamber top so that all of the controls poke through as they should.  Because it is routing down to 4 or 5mm thickness, I always drill at least one hole first to give me the comfort that I'm not going to break through the top!

To do that, I need to know at least where one of the holes is going to be.  Someone asked me why the control chamber was so big...well, and this doesn't include yet the 3-way switch or the battery clip or the general connecting wires or a bit of P90 sitting in the chamber...:


It's going to be quite busy!  Also, the pre-wired cables can be a real, real problem with small chambers.

By the way - while this was on and everything else temporarily fixed, I popped the stacked P90's on top and found some scales that I'm-sure-aren't-from-the-kitchen-despite-the-flour


So, take away the control chamber extra rout, add back the cover, the strap buttons and finish (negligible weight) should leave us comfortably below 6 1/2 lbs 

impmann

Brilliant work Andy!!! :-)

TTony

impmann said:

Brilliant work Andy!!! :-)

You like it then???

impmann

Just a bit!!! ;-)

TTony

Do you think you might end up selling all your other guitars once you've got this in your hands.

*all* your other guitars?

impmann

TTony said:

Do you think you might end up selling all your other guitars once you've got this in your hands.

*all* your other guitars?

Er... no.

Nice try. :-)