Rear route for tuners done

Well, it came out a bit different than I had pictured it in my mind. A lot more wood need to be removed to accommodate the tuners. They are quite deep. Maybe I should've placed them on the edge and used guides, who knows? It'll be strung-up to test the setup before I finish it. I just need to make a new nut, as I installed the nut before I dressed the frets! Stupid! Another lesson learned...patience! I am happy with the funky design. Since the tuners will be mounted on wood that is thicker than a headstock, I feel good that it will hold up well. Besides, it has the mahogany sides to reinforce it. That little drill attachment worked great for smoothing out the edges.

Tuner back route

I routed the back out for the tuners. A lot more than I thought and I removed some more from the front. I decided to make the front even and not have a slight step between the front and back tuners. I left about 5/8" for the tuners to mount on. I will angle the edge of the rear route for smoothness.

Tuner holes done

I worked out where the tuners would go. Because the string angle is different to the back tuners, I had to carefully set them up. The fourth string saddle is probably going to be further away from the tuner, so I had to place the tuner further back, but not too far back as to interfere with the others. I tried to keep the radius of the body. I decided to route some of the wood under the bridge as it is just a tad high and route some under the back three tuners to allow for a better string angle. The holes were done with a 3/8" brad-point bit. The tuners fit nice. All I need to do is route wood from the back to allow them to fit.

Stopped to pay tribute.

Yesterday, I went to pay my respects to the memory, and to the family of Marine, Mario D. Gonzalez from Baldwin Park, California. He was killed in Iraq by a roadside bomb. As the Marine in charge at the funeral went by the family to give his condolences, the younger brother of Mario hugged the soldier and cried. That was not typical of the Marine, who was only shaking the hands of those in attendance. The was tough to watch. The marine came up to me to thank me for showing up. It was worth it. I went for three reasons: 1) to pay respect for such a sacrifice; 2) to pray for the family and for the soul of the soldier; 3) to let the family know, that they are not forgotten. People out there remember and appreciate what he did. So, my guitar isn't perfect...but I am alive and free. Thank you and God bless you Mario! He was laid to rest on a hill above Covina over the San Gabriel Valley. What a beauiful day and what a view.

Pickup route and wire drill

After some time off to go to Tucson, I finally found some time to get the route for the pickup ready and finalize the spot for the bridge. Always try to erase previous pencil marks as not to confuse them with the new ones. I may have set my template a bit high. We'll see. The template might not be the perfect size. I checked mine and it was too big, so I used a wider bearing to make the route smaller. Came out good. I had to use a Dremel with a long straight bit to get the pickup adjustment arms to depth. Drilling the hole for the wires is a good job at "guestimating." It's better to drill too deep then too shallow, otherwise, there will be lots of repair and frustration. This one came out right-on-the-dot. Instead of tape for a depth guide, I chose white pencil. Reason is, tape moves and you might not see it shift with the bit spinning fast. I did that mistake recently. Pencil doesn't move. I need to find a brad point drill bit, slightly wider than the 1/4" I have. The bridge studs are last, then the decision on how to do the tuners.

Ready for hardware test.

I did the rough sanding and I am ready for touch up and final sanding. I am going to fit everything first, to see how things go, before the finishing part. I layed things out to see where the pickup would be best placed. I tried my best to use regular tuners to keep with the project idea, but it is simply too tight to place six tuners on the edge, even with a tailpiece as a string guide.
I will use the Steinberger tuners I bought for this guitar. The wire hole will be drilled from the side of the body where the volume pot is. The hole will be parallel to the body top. The hole on the edge will be covered with a dowel and the dowel will be covered by the strap button. I think I went a bit far on the strips of wood, but the great thing is I can make it like I want. It started as reinforcment, then became a touch of art.

Neck and top routes

Used two fingerboards as guides for the routing of the excess neckstock. It came out great. I used double-side (carpet) tape to hold the fingeboards. Once I did that, I remembered how I used the back reinforcement pieces, and thought I'd do a decorative one for the front.
The pieces will be a highly figured maple. I think it will be nice. Damn it! I got a big chip by the jack when routing the top. More repair coming up!

Neck glued in.

The neck got glued today. I had to use several clamps to put some pressure on the body top as the slot was a bit loose after I sanded some of the wood. I had handled the wood a bit and wanted a fresh piece of wood to glue to. Maybe some mineral spirits to simply clean the wood would've been better. It'll work. Lots of snug clamps are better than a few overly tightened ones. So far it looks good. I got lots of compliments on the reinforcement strips on the back, so I think I'll do the front too. The neck still need the final shaping and sanding. I also drilled the holes for the furrules today. The face still looks empty...hmm, what to do? The holes might be a tad off-line, between the third and fourth strings, but, again, you just gotta make it work! It's all about making the best of what you got.