Your opinion about my next project

[banjo980]

Hello friends

I'll soon begin my next project... a OAHU Tonemaster inspired 8 strings lap steel
It will be more simple than my previous New Yorker:-)

Scale: 22,5 inches

String spacing: 1 cm (7 cm at the nut/bridge) (I already own a great PU that fits that project, thank you Bent:-))

(BENT, what capacitor do you suggest for the tone control?)

Wood: figured maple
Fingerboard... I will have problems with it as my widest cocobolo fingerboard is 7 cm wide, I miss 5 mm...

I worked the design with TurboCad Mac and would like to submit to you two options about the head shape,

Please feel free to correct me if you find some structural mistake

Thanks,

Xavier





Edit: I updated the body's shape, I thinks it looks more like a tonemaster:


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[banjo980]

I updated the body's shape... and string spacing (66,66 mm on my pickup, so the neck is narrower)

Now I'm working on the head's design...

I need your help:







I think that the last one looks better, the other ones could be used to remove snow from the ground...

It would look like something like that:
http://www.bluestemstrings.com/6339pic1.jpg

he wood is hard maple (body), curly maple (neck) and curly/flamed maple (top) (and flamed koa veneer on the headstock?)
I'd like to finish it with that kind of sunburst:
http://www.lutherie-amateur.com/Forum/v ... &start=440 (scroll down)

I have some questions:

The top wood is 8 mm thick:
Would you try to carve it? or let it flat? If I carve it, the electronics cover will be difficult to manage... Would it look nice flat?
The neck will be a through-body neck... So I'll have to remove wood from the neck to allow placement of the top wood?

On the last blueprint, the max headstock's width is 92 mm... and my wood is only 89 mm (that's why I tried to enlarge it, so I could glue some more wood on the sides of the headstock... What would you do?

Thanks for your help,

Xavier

[Paul Lafountaine]

Hi Xavier,

I am with you. I think the last drawing of the second set is nice. I like the key head design. They all look great though. Nice work.

Here is a link that shows wiring diagrams for various pickup setups. I'm personally looking at using the second picture as my set up were you can switch between two different capacitor sizes.

http://flashbacksoftomorrow.tripod.com/pickups.html

Paul

[azureskys]

hi Xavier, i like the last one on the second set also , a carver top would be very nice if you have a drill press it should be easy to make knobs look good and , just inset the holes ( hope you get my meaning there) or counter sink maybe .I like the 8 string idea also. You can use a small grinder with a sanding disc on it to shape the top ive done it and it works good , with that wood top you might try makeing the control knobs from a contrasting wood , would look sharp , i wish you well on your new build . Russ

[banjo980]

hi Xavier, i like the last one on the second set also , a carver top would be very nice if you have a drill press it should be easy to make knobs look good and , just inset the holes ( hope you get my meaning there) or counter sink maybe .I like the 8 string idea also. You can use a small grinder with a sanding disc on it to shape the top ive done it and it works good , with that wood top you might try makeing the control knobs from a contrasting wood , would look sharp , i wish you well on your new build . Russ

Hi Azuresky,
Thank you for the advice
If I carve the top, the electronics covers must be at the back I'm right?
And what about the through body neck... My idea was to glue the 2 body's wings on both sides of the neck and then glue the top over that.
But what about the carving process nearthe neck?
Do you think I could carve the top and THEN glue it on the top's body?

[azureskys]

hi again , yes id carve the top then do the final sanding when its all together, what might help you in getting the top carved equally is a contour guage , a hardware store might have them for a few bucks, its kinda like a template that you lay on what your shapeing to make sure its the same from side to side etc etc of course you wont need it if your good with your fingers and can tell from running your fingers across it by the feel . Your idea about glueing wings on your through neck is what id do also.I would go with the electronic access on the back of the guitar, hope this might help you a bit, you might get all the pieces layed out get your neck carved to a fraction of what you want do the same with the wings put it all together for a test fit and if it looks good do the glueing then , that way you ll have minimum sanding and finishing left to do, thats pretty much what i do when im building a guitar, all final sanding can be done when it all glued up, i used to do autobody work and would get a car in for repair make new parts that couldnt be bought get it all roughed together then do the final grinding and sanding wood is the same when your makeing something new . hope this helps you a bit. Russ

[banjo980]

Thanks Russ, I keep your advice in mind.
May actual problem is that I can't manage to print my blueprint the right scale... my rings are ovals... And I can't find any printer settings (they are to "100%") to fix the problem...
I really don't understand as I did my fretboard template for the new yorker the same way, and it worked perfectly!

Xavier

[Paul Lafountaine]

Hey Chum,

So how are you doing. Just wanted to ask you what size of pot are you planning on using for the volume and tone control. This will effect the size of capacitor you use.

Paul

[banjo980]

Paul, these are 500 k-ohms ones

[banjo980]

Hello guys,

Still working on my project... in my mind:-)
Still thinking about strings spacing...

My lovely wife gave me a nice birthday gift, a 1981 Sho Bud 24.5 scale 8 strings frypan
The strings spacing is really laaarge... The nut is 6.3 cm width, and the strings spacing at the bridge (not exactly, from center to center of the thru body holes is 7.8 mm
I find it really comfortable to play.
The sound is really sweet, with the horseshoe pickup (even if it's a 1.1/4'' width one, not a pre war 1.5'')


For my project, that makes 75.3 mm from center to center outer magnets, and 10.757 mm between each magnet (center to center, 75.3/7)), measurements done on the TurboCAD drawing.

Do you think that custom PU can be done that way?

Thank you for your help,

Xavier