I don't think I actually like making guitars.

axisus

I've done 6 or so. The last one seems an age ago, three years ago I guess?

I recently had an idea for a guitar, I sorted out all the spec, bought some parts etc. I've now stalled. The weird thing I realised is that I REALLY want this guitar, but I'd rather just have it without all that hassle! I did a mock-up as usual in Photoshop, and it looks exactly how I envisaged it. I've pinned an A3 glossy print right next to my computer at work, and all day I look at it and think, yes! I WANT to play that! I am however struggling to just get going with the wood. 

I also have two other started projects on the back burner. The other weird thing is that after all these years I FINALLY actually have a workshop in which to do stuff instead of a crappy, leaky old garage outbuilding with tons of junk and tools ruined by water damage. 

Maybe it's just because I'm having a sh*t year and I'm too down. Or maybe I really actually don't like making guitars. I do know that I don't really have the patience, I'm always in rush mode to get a guitar playable. 

Other guitar makers - Do you love doing it?

GoldenEraGuitars

I know I don’t make guitars, I guess im stopping one step shorty of building them because I am the one responsible for the finishes/refinishes… But I have been doing this full-time for 10 years now and I haven’t had a single day when I’ve said I don’t want to do this anymore or I don’t like finishing guitars.

You absolutely have to have a passion and drive to do something creative with a musical instrument, in my opinion.

Don’t force yourself to do anything. Just let it happen when it happens and try to enjoy it when the feeling comes around again.

stickyfiddle

Have you considered ADHD? 

I love planning but often struggle with the doing. (Except holidays, which I get crippling anxiety when planning)

BillDL

If it's any consolation I have had the following items sitting in a corner of my spare room wardrobe since around 1985:

1. A thick slab of maple for a through-neck cut to thickness and with the angled headstock cut,

2. Mahogany wings for the body bandsawn from a slab,

3. A lovely slab of jet black ebony for the fretboard,

4. A home-made single action truss rod, and

5. The full scale plans I drew for the build.

Yes, since 1985!  I drew my plans in 1983 and came up with a headstock shape with a offset tuning machines on each side for straight string travel to them, taking my idea from an Ovation with the mushroom at the end removed.  Along came Mr. Smith in 1985 with his headstock shape.  The wood was from Touchstone Tonewoods when they were a really good supplier of wood, parts and tools before being acquired by Stentor, and I asked a college woodwork teacher I knew to saw out the parts above because I didn't have a bandsaw.  I had a Schaller 3D bridge, Schaller M6 tuning machines, and two Gibson True Blue pickups set aside for it, but over the years I ended up using them for other guitars and never got around to getting any further with that project despite building a few others from scratch in the interim.

I suppose I just kept forgetting about the wooden parts behind everything in that wardrobe (chosen because it's dry and stable temperature).  I'm really not sure whether I am now in the mood to continue where I left off, but this reminds me that I need to dig it out to make sure the wood hasn't warped or split.  Like you, my garage is currently badly congested with all kinds of junk and the roof developed a couple of new leaks over the last couple of years, so I don't really have a decent workshop to use.

ICBM

No. I've built a couple of solid electrics, a bass and two electric mandolins. I didn't like either the process or the results - I'm too critical, and they all had a lot of faults.

I prefer nice perfect factory-made instruments. Sorry...

Sporky

I like the designing. The building is good, but finishing and setup are not my thing at all. 

GSPBASSES

I love making guitars, I've been trying to retire for at least 10 years. I wake up every morning and go back in the workshop after breakfast and a coffee and then remember I retired yesterday. Although now I think failing health will eventually get me out the workshop, but I am planning to make the last 10 guitars as I have at least that much wood in the wood store to use up. But knowing me, I'll still be there in a year's time getting to the workshop with Zimmer frame with an oxygen bottle connected to me. 

Jez6345789

As a hobby builder and running a business I am always tight on time but got a day back in the workshop after best part of 18 months of being too busy on other projects and went home back broken legs aching but having had a great day.

I am heading back to Spain this summer for 3 months and I am setup there for acoustic builds and going to put a load of software and business stuff on the back burner for a few months and get back into acoustic building which is probably my happiest place. These will be the first acoustics in 3 years as I have just got to spain exhausted from work and just did not have the motivation to start anything. 

So I get the frustration of having a picture stuck to your monitor and procrastination on where to start. 

So order the wood and allocate a day to measure mark up and prepare it all and you will hopefully find something click in. 

fretmeister

I was surprised to discover I really liked the task of carving arm and belly curves into a telecaster body.

I found it very relaxing, I suppose partly because it's nothing like my usual day when I'm just staring at Excel. I also enjoyed the colour staining, but the Tru-Oil coating over several weeks did get quite annoying - I don't have a garage / shed to leave stuff out so I do everything on my work desk and then have to put everything away again, so on a Saturday morning if I can't be bothered to pack away work stuff and set up for guitar stuff then it just doesn't happen.

I'm slowly getting better at simple soldering but I've only got a finite amount of room and / or marital tolerance for guitars so I might try a simple pedal kit.

Parts building definitely doesn't save any money though! So far I've spec'd really good parts so it's not been cheap at all!