Embarking on my first Guitar - build from scratch?

[Nadz1lla]

Hi guys,

I'm finally going to save up for materials, and build a couple of guitars for the guys in my band. (I am insisting on them using Nailbombs, so there will be a nice shiny new set in each axe, heh.)

My dilemma is making the neck from scratch or buying one. I know one of my guys likes the Ibanez S-Series as it's slimline and he likes the neck, but finding an Ibanex neck online is a pain, even on Ebay. Has anyone else made their own guitar / neck and how easy / hard was it? I don't want to buy the material for it and then royally muff it up, hehe. I was thinking of getting a scr@p bit of cheap wood and mocking one up but wasn't sure how good a guideline that would be for making the final piece. :?

[WezV]

Making a neck is not as hard as it first seems as long as you plan carefully.   However making a high quality neck with excellent fretwork does make it much harder.

Since you want to make these for your band i would say you will probably have better luck buying a premade neck because it will greatly increase your chances of building something that is playable.  Look into companies like warmoth if you want custom options/profiles.

If you are also making one for yourself i would encourage you to try and make a neck for that one - but dont expect perfect results first time.  It is a good idea to try on a sccr@p peice of wood but as long as you choose a senisble neck wood (something like maple/mahogany is easier to carve than wenge/ebony!!) and plan carefully you shouldnt have too many problems.  Now you may be able to make  a neck but the chances of you being able to copy an ibanez neck successfully at this stage are slim

The other issue is tools.  Fretwork needs a lot of tools - infact more specialist tools are needed for this than any other aspect of guitar making.    Not to mention measuring and slotting a fretboard - although these can be brought ready made and slotted to make things easier.


oh, invest in this!!!

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Make-Your-Own-Electric-Guitar/dp/0953104907/ref=pd_bbs_sr_1/202-4892700-2390218?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1184323469&sr=8-1

[Mavet]

making the neck is about half the work on the entire guitar, and if you never done it before there will probably be mistakes involved.

your best bet is ordering a neck through warmoth ( www.warmoth.com ). they costumize it to whichever specs you ask for within their production line limits (woods, headstock shape, profile, tuners, radiuse, frets, inlays, string spacing...).

or you could order a custom neck from a local builder ( probably more expensive)

[WezV]

The exchange rate is making warmoth seem like a bargain at the moment, even after postage and customs

[_tom_]

About the neck, it might be worth speaking to Bob at Legra. For a standard strat neck made to custom specs, I was quoted about £190. Might work out at about the same price/cheaper than a Warmoth when customs etc are added in. Warmoth was about £170 + customs for me, so Legra probably would've been a better deal.

[WezV]

Just looked again at warmoth and the prices have always striked me as expensive but with the current exchange rate you should be able to get a neck from as little as £100 including customs (not sure what they charge postage).

Thats not a bad price for the apparent quality of the warmoth stuff, but obviously any options you change will push the price up.

always worth e-mailing the locals to see what they charge - some bargains to be had

[indysmith]

finding an Ibanex neck online is a pain, even on Ebay.

http://search.ebay.co.uk/search/search.dll?from=R40&_trksid=m37&satitle=ibanez+neck
really????

[Nadz1lla]

Sorry yeah I meant a specific style really. I mean I found lots of Ibanez necks there. I am being too picky as I want like a Wizard neck but they all come specced for use with a floyd and I just want to put a normal nut on there. Probably being lazy really cos I guess I could just amend it for my own needs, was looking for the easy option of it being exactly to my spec, heh.

Thanks for all the info guys, it's much appreciated.

Oh, Wez, you just reminded me I think I did buy that book a while ago but it's in a box somewhere, lol! I'll have to dig it out as it was pretty good.

Now then....making a Neck-thru...    :lol:

[WezV]

Oh, Wez, you just reminded me I think I did buy that book a while ago but it's in a box somewhere, lol! I'll have to dig it out as it was pretty good.

Now then....making a Neck-thru...    :lol:

I think thats chapter 11 of the book i mentioned - Melvyn Hisc--k shows how to make a thru neck 8 string bass if i remember correctly.  The good thing about that book is it manages to show a hell of a lot of different techniques in 3 guitars that can be applied to most designs.

Thru-necks are relatively simple but getting good stable wood is more important - which is why i have never made a thru-neck with a single piece of wood for the neck section.  I always laminate it with at least 3  pieces of wood.

Its also always very wise to draw eveything out full size before you begin.  I always draw the front view and the side view with appropriate neck angles/string heights/bridge dimensions worked out before i start something new

[lifted]

Try mighty mite necks at ebay or carvin necks

[Nadz1lla]

Thanks again for all the help guys...

Wez, I literally only just had a gander at your site....some beautiful work!!! I only hope that one day my efforts will come close to that quality.

At the moment as a bit of a mess around I have taken apart an old Bronze series Mockingbird and re-painting it, and in my parents garage with only some finishing paint brushes from B&Q it's not looking too bad. Although whenever I go back there to put on another coat there's always bits of dust that have fallen on it and dried in. It's a pain in the rear but doesn't look too bad at the mo. I guess my next purchase will be an Airbrush so I can get a nice finish on the laquer. A proper spray booth is a way off yet though, heh. Should really get my own house with a workshop.   :D

[WezV]

Should really get my own house with a workshop.   :D

no excuses!!! at the moment everything i do emerges from the second bedroom in my two up, two down terrace - although i must confess i dont do my own finishing anymore unless its an oiled guitar - now i ship that out to my cousin (the colourblind git!!)

all the setup and fretwork i do for the locals genrally happens on the dining room table!!

and people wonder why i shun the 'pro' label at the moment.....


... although i must say i have a pretty big garden and there are plans for a nice workshop that fills 49.9% of it   - i will probably still steal the dining room table for small jobs though

[Nadz1lla]

Good old Dining Room table, heh. I live in a tiny flat with my girl who begrudges me bringing more stuff into our already squished-full-of-things flat, so doing the work and keeping the parts there is a no-go. My parents are really nice to let me use the garage, but it's just way too dusty to do the actual paintwork in there. I've whipped a rag and hoover around a couple of times but that dust just keeps a-coming and gets into my finish. Thank goodness this is just a test piece, hehe.

Saving for a mortgage deposit right now and I will insist on buying a house where I have enough room to build a workshop in the garden with a little spray-booth inside. Luxury!  :)

[c0bblers]

Surely this luthiery adventure will cut into your 3T time though nadz? *waits for nadz to figure out who he is*  You using your ninja skills to cut the wood or conventional tools? ;)  You need some sort of anti-dust tent in there or something....