My Les Paul Build

[alk-3]

[Owl]

That looks great! What kind of pickups are going into this beast?

[The Stumble]

What i dont get is why didnt you glue the neck in place before routing the neck pickup cavity?

You now have the neck tenon to route/remove after the guitar has been spray finished?

[eddym]

Dude, this guitar is going to be superb! your thread has inspired me to build my own.. (I used to be in the cabinet/furniture making trade myself in my youth)

Couple of quick questions if you wouldn't mind,

What specific glue have you been using for bindings and inlays,

Are all your colour coats simply the clear nitro with different dyes added, and what order and how many coats?

Are you sanding between each coat, or how many coats are you applying before you flat the finish back?

Have you found errors on the stew mac plans that might not be obvious at first attempt?

Have you ever thought about turning your back on the cut throat world of cabinet making, and making these puppies to sell??

I will be posting a thread of my own progress, and will be asking a question or two of you as i run into problems if thats ok?

once again, great job. thanks for sharing!

btw, i also wondered about when you were going to get around to chopping the end of the tennon off!

[alk-3]

Originally Posted by Owl

That looks great! What kind of pickups are going into this beast?

Not too sure at this point. I really like the burstbucker pro's, but I'm up for suggestions, any ideas?

[alk-3]

Originally Posted by The Stumble

What i dont get is why didnt you glue the neck in place before routing the neck pickup cavity?

You now have the neck tenon to route/remove after the guitar has been spray finished?

I could have removed the neck tenon before spraying, but the reason I didn't is simply because I didn't get around to it. It took about 2 minutes to get rid of it once I was ready to install the pickups though, so it was not a problem.

[Owl]

Originally Posted by alk-3

Not too sure at this point. I really like the burstbucker pro's, but I'm up for suggestions, any ideas?

I'd suggest a set of '57 Classics (possibly '57 Classic Plus in the bridge) or Seymour Duncan Alnico II Pros. These are lower-output pickups.

[alk-3]

I think my preference lies in the slightly higher output pickups, but i think i may try out the '57's because i have heard a lot about them. I've also heard a lot about Seymour Duncan antiquities, are they any good?

Humbuckers - Seymour Duncan/Basslines

[alk-3]

Originally Posted by eddym

Dude, this guitar is going to be superb! your thread has inspired me to build my own.. (I used to be in the cabinet/furniture making trade myself in my youth)

Couple of quick questions if you wouldn't mind,

What specific glue have you been using for bindings and inlays,

Are all your colour coats simply the clear nitro with different dyes added, and what order and how many coats?

Are you sanding between each coat, or how many coats are you applying before you flat the finish back?

Have you found errors on the stew mac plans that might not be obvious at first attempt?

Have you ever thought about turning your back on the cut throat world of cabinet making, and making these puppies to sell??

I will be posting a thread of my own progress, and will be asking a question or two of you as i run into problems if thats ok?

once again, great job. thanks for sharing!

btw, i also wondered about when you were going to get around to chopping the end of the tennon off!

Glad to hear you're enjoying it!
I've been using crazy glue (CA glue) for the bindings, and epoxy for the inlays. the fingerboard inlays were glued in with epoxy mixed with rosewood powder and the headstock inlay epoxy was mixed with black pigment.

Your question about the colour coats is a bit harder to answer. Nitro-cellulose was used as a base for all the coats, but it was mixed with retarder thinner (10%) and medium thinner (up to about 90%) during different steps depending on what I was spraying, the weather and the purpose of the coat. the colour recipes were mixed as needed and mixed by eye in small batches and recorded for replication. The lacquer I get from my supplier is ready to spray and requires no thinning when used with a standard 1.4mm needle and nozzle, but is best thinned somewhat to avoid the majority of orange peeling.

The wood was sanded to 220 grit (any finer than this and you’re wasting your time, and reducing adherence)

The first coat was unthinned and sanded once dry with 600 grit to knock any grain back down. This is the final sanding until all the spraying is done.

The second coat was unthinned also and used to smooth out the first and build the material.

The third is the amber colour coat and is mixed 30% lacquer to 70% medium thinner 5 oz. of this mixture is then mixed with about 10 drops of amber dye and sprayed to your preference

The fourth coat is unthinned and used to seal the amber coat it is a fairly light coat so it dries quickly without remelting the amber too much.

The fifth is a colour coat again for the burst (70/30 lacquer/thinner) but this time with 12 drops of Burnt Umber and 3 drops of black dye per 5 oz. of lacquer/thinner.

The sixth is a very thin coat of clear to seal again.

The seventh is a colour coat again for the burst but this time with 1 amber, 8 red, and 1 black drop of dye in 5 oz. of lacquer/thinner.

The eight coat is a thin coat of unthinned lacquer to seal the colour in again

The ninth and tenth coat are unthined and fairly thick to build the coat.

After all that dried for a few days it gets block sanded down to flatten and remove any orange peel. This is also the time to drop fill any areas that are giving you trouble

The last coat is about 70% thinner again just to melt the sanding scratches back into the finish.

The guitar is left at this point for a few weeks, I’m waiting a month for the solvents to gas off and shrink back down revealing more orange peel, and then getting the final block sanding, starting with 220 grit and ending with 2000 grit, and finally buffing with compounds.

The order in which this stuff is done is pretty important. If you block sand too early before the lacquer has gassed off substantially it will continue to shrink and become recesses in the final buffed finish, that’s why I drop fill any areas before setting the guitar (or in my case furniture, usually) aside for a month.

I hope I’ve answered your question well enough, but let me know if any clarification is needed



The stew-mac plans are pretty good really, but they are lacking a LOT of information, for unknown reasons. I don’t have them in front of me at the moment but if I recall they don’t give you any measurements for where the bridge is supposed to be, or where the pickups are supposed to be. Also they lack any measurements for the output jack and the toggle switch. You can measure these locations from the drawing, but it does say on the plans that the drawing should not be relied upon for measurements, and to use the written measurements only, so take that for what it’s worth.

I have thought about selling the guitar, but I have now set it all up and installed the hardware I had on hand, and can honestly say it is hands down the best sounding guitar I have ever played. I’ll be posting some sound samples when I have some time so everyone can have a listen. The only reason I would sell it is to be able to build another one, I’m thinking about going for a goldtop next time, what do you think?

I suppose I would entertain offers over $4000.00 (that includes the flight case)…any takers?


I'd be happy to give you any pointers I can, just ask!

[alk-3]

Here is a picture of the back. Click HERE to download the full resolution photo (it's freaking huge)

[alk-3]

And the front, again, here is the full sized one.
Colouring in the photos is not great, but close. Once I have sanded and buffed I'll take some more high-res photos.

[ZoSoHowie]

Hat's off to you, that is one amazing build!!

H

www.howardsstudios.com

[eddym]

Thanks for such a detailed answer!!

The picture of the back is stunning. Very well Done.

Gold top is a great Idea, myself I've always wanted to get one of the 54 oxblood type, if this build of mine goes according to plan, this is what i'd like to do next, with the wraparound bridge and all!! Also with the solid finish wood choices are a little easier (and cheaper)

Here's a pic of Jeff Beck's to show you what i mean

As far as your pups go, you could look at the Classic 57 plus for the bridge (its hotter than the regular) BB pros are great, but maybe this axe deserves something a little more special!

But also if you go onto tonefreaks and ask the custom winders on this forum BG etc, and they will wind you some pups custom to try and get the exact tone you want, and some of the prices are as cheap if not cheaper than regular off the shelf types (seymore duncans, gibson etc) And that is for handmade in the U.S

[eddym]

I just saw the new picture, Simply stunning.

BTW, What Bridge/tailpiece is that?

Also this may/maynot interest you..

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/Les-Paul-Guita...QQcmdZViewItem

Cheers.

[stinger]

Thank you for this build thread. I found it very entertaining and informative. You did a fantastic job on it.

[alk-3]

Originally Posted by eddym

I just saw the new picture, Simply stunning.

BTW, What Bridge/tailpiece is that?

Also this may/maynot interest you..

Les Paul Guitar Headstock decals / transfers on eBay, also Gibson, Electric, Guitars, Musical Instruments (end time 18-Jun-08 07:29:39 BST)

Cheers.

bridge and tail piece are from stew-mac, the bridge is the abr-1 and the tail piece is the repro 50's style aluminum one.

the Gibson logo is one made from real mother of pearl, and the Les Paul script will be applied using gold paint and a silkscreen, but only after the guitar is buffed for it's finial time, but thanks for the heads up!

[alk-3]

Originally Posted by ZoSoHowie

Hat's off to you, that is one amazing build!!

H

www.howardsstudios.com

Thanks very much!

[eddym]

[QUOTE=alk-3;180291]bridge and tail piece are from stew-mac, the bridge is the abr-1 and the tail piece is the repro 50's style aluminum one.

Really, is that the 20 buck one??!! Looks fine from here.. whats the quality like in person??

[alk-3]

Originally Posted by eddym

Thanks for such a detailed answer!!

The picture of the back is stunning. Very well Done.

Gold top is a great Idea, myself I've always wanted to get one of the 54 oxblood type, if this build of mine goes according to plan, this is what I'd like to do next, with the wraparound bridge and all!! Also with the solid finish wood choices are a little easier (and cheaper)

Here's a pic of Jeff Beck's to show you what i mean

As far as your pups go, you could look at the Classic 57 plus for the bridge (its hotter than the regular) BB pros are great, but maybe this axe deserves something a little more special!

But also if you go onto tonefreaks and ask the custom winders on this forum BG etc, and they will wind you some pups custom to try and get the exact tone you want, and some of the prices are as cheap if not cheaper than regular off the shelf types (seymore duncans, gibson etc) And that is for handmade in the U.S

That guitar does have a pretty cool look to it!
I know burstbuckers are not for everyone, and I agree I should get something a bit more special for this one. Thanks for the tips!

[alk-3]

[QUOTE=eddym;180298]

Originally Posted by alk-3

bridge and tail piece are from stew-mac, the bridge is the abr-1 and the tail piece is the repro 50's style aluminum one.

Really, is that the 20 buck one??!! Looks fine from here.. whats the quality like in person??

the tailpiece is this one, and the quality is perfect in every sense of the word.

same for the bridge which is this one..

[G Man]

Damn man, that came out unbelievabley beautiful. If I had $4K I would buy it from youu ikn a heartbeat. but how cool is it going to be to say, "Yeah, I made this one", when people ask where yuo got the killer Les Paul? Looking forward to final buff pictures and a soundclip of two.

As for pickups, I'd order some WB Firewaters for that bad boy.

[alligatorbling]

bravo! you have TALENT! i really enjoyed watching the build, thank you for taking the time to post the photos of your progress. Enjoy that fine peace of art!

[Roman Rist]

Originally Posted by alk-3

I decided after some trial runs that the best way to do it was to make a caul to clamp the binding around the horn.

I realize I am a bit late in replying to this thread

Be that as it may, Good Job!

As to the binding caul, I have done that a million times

It would have been a lot easier if you didnt use that horrible extra thick binding,

Roman

[drewbertca]

Awesome.....I'll take 2 but with a plain maple - use the same grain filler and only one coat of clear over the entire body....

[Paul]

a verry thin burst you have there, could jsut be the angle but it dosnt look good and a bit uneven as well.

[alk-3]

Originally Posted by Paul

a verry thin burst you have there, could jsut be the angle but it dosnt look good and a bit uneven as well.

Thanks for your opinion. It looks just the way I wanted it to look, and can assure you it is definitely not uneven.

[alk-3]

Originally Posted by RFR

I realize I am a bit late in replying to this thread

Be that as it may, Good Job!

As to the binding caul, I have done that a million times

It would have been a lot easier if you didnt use that horrible extra thick binding,

Roman

Thanks Roman!

[lp_junkie]

Truly amazing work and inspiring. I love seeing Les Pauls made from scratch.

I am partial to cherry burst or completely faded bursts, but that finish is absolutely incredible.

One question, did you intend it to be a 59 or 60 replica? I am asking because of the reflector knobs.

[alk-3]

Originally Posted by lp_junkie

Truly amazing work and inspiring. I love seeing Les Pauls made from scratch.

I am partial to cherry burst or completely faded bursts, but that finish is absolutely incredible.

One question, did you intend it to be a 59 or 60 replica? I am asking because of the reflector knobs.

Thanks! It's actually a '59, I just prefer the reflector knobs.

[alk-3]

One more photo, this one best captures the colours of the burst.