Curly Redwood build

RAHAZ · 04-20-2011, 06:24 PM

Here is my solid Curly Redwood build. The wire channels will be routed like the old LP Custom models with a long drill bit and some good preparation. LOL The body was milled on a CNC from the 3D model I created. Last night I routed the perimeter to free it from the frame and did the round over on the back. Here are the photos to get caught up.

In the milling process I ran into some tearout just like Dan (DGNRepair) said I should expect. I have plenty of leftovers to pull a plug from to fix it. Should I cut it out with a forstner bit to create a clean edge then use a plug cutter to create the fill piece to match grain or is there any other options? I pondered doing a custom carve on the upper horn like my Carl Thompson inspired bass but that would mean not doing top binding.

Detail of the back on the lower horn.

Next to the Semi-hollow of the same design.

cain61 · 04-20-2011, 07:26 PM

Dude, that's awesome. Gotta build me a jr. along those lines.

DGNRepair · 04-20-2011, 08:44 PM

Sucks about the tearout. Just find the chip and glue it back in.

What you might be able to do is use some of the wood from the cutoffs right from that area. Then you can make a patch. I have done that in the past, usually works out well.

Cool body shape.

Reverend D · 04-20-2011, 10:03 PM

Thanks for posting this, it caught my eye the other day, the shape is cool and of course redwood its gonna look grand when finished out!

Regards,

Don

RAHAZ · 04-21-2011, 03:24 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Reverend D

Thanks for posting this, it caught my eye the other day, the shape is cool and of course redwood its gonna look grand when finished out!

Thanks for watching. I just wish I didn't have as demanding of a day job so I could work on these before the heat washes in.

Quote:

Originally Posted by DGNRepair

Sucks about the tearout. Just find the chip and glue it back in.

What you might be able to do is use some of the wood from the cutoffs right from that area. Then you can make a patch. I have done that in the past, usually works out well.

Cool body shape.

Haha! The chip as probably sucked up when we were cleaning off the mill.

I'll try my hand at it and post the results. Glad some other folks dig the shape. It's gone through a heap of changes to get to this.

Quote:

Originally Posted by cain61

Dude, that's awesome. Gotta build me a jr. along those lines.

Thanks! If you do post up a thread. I'm a serial gawker in this forum.

shotgunlew · 04-21-2011, 03:40 PM

Heck ya another redwood guitar!

Barnaby · 04-21-2011, 07:31 PM

I love redwood as a guitar wood. This has a great shape and looks like it will be stunning.

I'm also guessing that you can fix the tearout invisibly.

RAHAZ · 04-21-2011, 08:01 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by shotgunlew

Heck ya another redwood guitar!

Yours looks stunning Lew. Roman does amazing work.

I can only hope mine comes out playable and decent sounding.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Barnaby

I love redwood as a guitar wood. This has a great shape and looks like it will be stunning.

I'm also guessing that you can fix the tearout invisibly.

Thank you sir!
I'm going to try to make it invisible. Since this will be only my 3rd build I'm hoping I can pull it off.

cain61 · 04-23-2011, 09:08 AM

I seem to remember that Preeb on TDPRI shows how make invisible repairs on one of his thinline tele build threads over there. Thinline Tele build - Page 4 - Telecaster Guitar Forum

I hope this helps

RAHAZ · 06-10-2011, 02:43 PM

Annnd we have some progress.

Still need to work this top a little more. Redwood is strange to work with.

There are some growth areas that feel lower that the adjacent areas. Is this softer wood that had more removed from the same sanding pressure?

Wetted with a touch of naptha. As you can see it dries REALLY quick out here with 5% RH

DGNRepair · 06-10-2011, 05:11 PM

Looking good. Redwood with big figuring like yours is a bit of a challange to get completely flat. I usually start with a coarse grit paper that will cut both the softer and harder parts at about the same rate. Then as you work your way up to higher grits use a lot less pressure and you will find the results become very smooth. I have actually gotten away from using and orital too much on redwood. On maple I use an orbital all the way up to 220 but on Redwood I stop at 100 and continue by hand from there. Too much pressure is what causes the humps you feel over the figuring. Hope this helps.

BCRGreg · 06-10-2011, 05:41 PM

Use a sanding block with two layers of tshirt under the sandpaper. That will level the surface.

RAHAZ · 06-10-2011, 06:09 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by DGNRepair

Looking good. Redwood with big figuring like yours is a bit of a challange to get completely flat. I usually start with a coarse grit paper that will cut both the softer and harder parts at about the same rate. Then as you work your way up to higher grits use a lot less pressure and you will find the results become very smooth. I have actually gotten away from using and orital too much on redwood. On maple I use an orbital all the way up to 220 but on Redwood I stop at 100 and continue by hand from there. Too much pressure is what causes the humps you feel over the figuring. Hope this helps.

Thanks for the info. As I took it down from the steps to smooth I used 60 on the orbital. I've gone back and started working areas with 120 and 220 on an eraser. It seems to be working, albeit slowly.

Quote:

Originally Posted by BCRGreg

Use a sanding block with two layers of tshirt under the sandpaper. That will level the surface.

Thanks Greg. I've got a stack of "rags" to put to use now.

Syrus · 12-06-2011, 03:15 PM

Looks killer :] !

mdr40z · 12-07-2011, 04:24 PM

I really like it

captcoolaid · 12-07-2011, 10:53 PM

Very cool

jonny · 12-07-2011, 11:44 PM

I really like that horn

Can't wait for more!

RAHAZ · 12-08-2011, 12:55 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by captcoolaid

Very cool

Quote:

Originally Posted by jonny

I really like that horn

Can't wait for more!

Thanks guys. I've got a butcher block counter (honey-do) that bumped my builds but did give me an excuse to hunt down some more wood.

gator payne · 12-08-2011, 03:23 PM

Slight off topic for this thread but kind of related.

I am mostly a fingerstyle acoustic player. because I am a finger style player I like my notes to be rich with overtone and personally I like a little dark melonic flavor to the tone. In acoustic tops no wood does a better job at providing rich complex overtones with a dark melonic feel than Redwood. I absolutly adore Redwood. Just don't look at it wrong or it will dent like a 1990 yugo in a hail storm

gobig2000 · 12-12-2011, 07:40 AM

i love the shap you have come up with!

RAHAZ · 05-07-2012, 08:26 PM

I am having trouble getting this horned fixed... I am hoping someone can point me in the right direction.

I took the rough chipped area and cut it with a handsaw to make a step. Cut a piece of the old blank that matches the area grain.
I wrapped the block with taped sandpaper and pulled it across the step keeping the path straight but there is always a gap...

See below for pictures.

Barnaby · 05-07-2012, 08:35 PM

You could try pressing the two pieces together and pull a thin strip of sandpaper between them (facing the new piece). After a few times, the gap should get considerably smaller. This method is often used in fitting necks.

Maybe someone has a better idea?

djrussell · 05-07-2012, 08:48 PM

Is that bare feet I see!! IN A WORKSHOP! GAWWW! Sorry

Couldnt help myself.

Looking great so far man, I think Barnaby has the right idea. I cant really think of anything else to do unless you were willing to cut another block to see if it works better.

gator payne · 05-07-2012, 09:31 PM

You will either love or hate the dark tone the redwood will bring. Personally it is my favorite top for acoustics used for melonic finger style. It brings a warm throaty bass and lower mid tone kin too a shot of twenty year old bourbon. Goes down smooth and fills you torso warmth that seems to last long after the notes have passed.

IMO the only real issue with redwood is that it will dent if you look at cross eyed.

In regard to a hard time finding curly redwood top blanks like this one, pm me and I will put together a couple contacts for you. Plenty of it out there.

emoney · 05-08-2012, 08:01 AM

Looks like you're on the right path, you just need to sand until you get the gap as close
as you can. From the pics, looks like it needs to be a little more "square" on the body,
where the piece came out. Otherwise, there's always the "slurry" fill for the gaps and
then "Darkburst" the outer edge. Love this body shape, btw.

RAHAZ · 05-08-2012, 02:04 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Barnaby

You could try pressing the two pieces together and pull a thin strip of sandpaper between them (facing the new piece). After a few times, the gap should get considerably smaller. This method is often used in fitting necks

I think I will give that a try.

Thanks!

Quote:

Originally Posted by djrussell

Is that bare feet I see!! IN A WORKSHOP! GAWWW! Sorry

Couldnt help myself.

I knew someone would call me out on that.

Quote:

Originally Posted by emoney

Looks like you're on the right path, you just need to sand until you get the gap as close
as you can. From the pics, looks like it needs to be a little more "square" on the body,
where the piece came out. Otherwise, there's always the "slurry" fill for the gaps and
then "Darkburst" the outer edge. Love this body shape, btw.

Agreed on the squareness and slurry fill. I'm going to try the method Barnaby mentioned. After seeing DGN's bursted redwood build I think it is a no-brainer.

Glad you like the shape.

Davio · 05-09-2012, 01:57 AM

Nice work. I'm glad to see your redwood project. I have a nice little pile for the next rounds of builds after I use the last of the pecan I'm on now. Thanks for posting !

Aleksander · 07-23-2012, 09:10 PM

This is really great!!!. Keep rocking

RAHAZ · 07-23-2012, 09:21 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Aleksander

This is really great!!!. Keep rocking

Thanks man. Been digging your build thread too.

My wood related projects are shelved until the temps go down again.

04-20-2011, 06:24 PM	#1 (permalink)
RAHAZ Senior Member Join Date: Jan 2010 Location: Arizona Posts: 453 Thanks: 7 Thanked 8 Times in 5 Posts	Curly Redwood build Here is my solid Curly Redwood build. The wire channels will be routed like the old LP Custom models with a long drill bit and some good preparation. LOL The body was milled on a CNC from the 3D model I created. Last night I routed the perimeter to free it from the frame and did the round over on the back. Here are the photos to get caught up. In the milling process I ran into some tearout just like Dan (DGNRepair) said I should expect. I have plenty of leftovers to pull a plug from to fix it. Should I cut it out with a forstner bit to create a clean edge then use a plug cutter to create the fill piece to match grain or is there any other options? I pondered doing a custom carve on the upper horn like my Carl Thompson inspired bass but that would mean not doing top binding. Detail of the back on the lower horn. Next to the Semi-hollow of the same design. cooljuk, Reverend D and Syrus like this. __________________ 1932 Gibson L-00 "Stacy" (Needs Restoration) 2003 Epiphone Les Paul Custom Elite "Elly" 2008 Epiphone J-200 "Noel" ???? Tacoma Acoustic-Electric "Ruby" Under Construction 2008 Hilleboe 5-String Bass "Amethyst" 2010 Hilleboe Mjöllnir 2010 Hilleboe Redwood Mjöllnir

04-20-2011, 07:26 PM	#2 (permalink)
cain61 Senior Member Join Date: Sep 2009 Location: La Grande, Oregon Posts: 499 Thanks: 16 Thanked 1 Time in 1 Post	Re: Curly Redwood build Dude, that's awesome. Gotta build me a jr. along those lines.

04-20-2011, 08:44 PM	#3 (permalink)
DGNRepair MLP Vendor Join Date: Sep 2009 Location: Stuck at the bench.... Posts: 1,858 Thanks: 28 Thanked 139 Times in 31 Posts	Re: Curly Redwood build Sucks about the tearout. Just find the chip and glue it back in. What you might be able to do is use some of the wood from the cutoffs right from that area. Then you can make a patch. I have done that in the past, usually works out well. Cool body shape. __________________ DGN Custom Guitars - Handcrafted Guitars, Repair and Restoration Like me on Facebook

04-20-2011, 10:03 PM	#4 (permalink)
Reverend D Senior Member Join Date: Jul 2010 Location: Phoenix, AZ Posts: 1,163 Thanks: 21 Thanked 0 Times in 0 Posts	Re: Curly Redwood build Thanks for posting this, it caught my eye the other day, the shape is cool and of course redwood its gonna look grand when finished out! Regards, Don __________________

04-21-2011, 03:40 PM	#6 (permalink)
shotgunlew V.I.P. Member Join Date: Feb 2008 Posts: 3,906 Thanks: 51 Thanked 13 Times in 7 Posts	Re: Curly Redwood build Heck ya another redwood guitar! __________________ 60% of the time...it works every time.... Gun Control = Using Both Hands!! Everyone Please Pray for Sgt Jeffery Crones and the rest of the boys in iraq! Get some boys! Chris "The Gunhand" Of the MLP Pirates Crew 1986 Les Paul Jr (Cherry red Singlecut ) 1994 MIJ fender Telecaster 52 reissue 1984 JCM 800 1x12 50 watt combo Behringer 4x12 cab (Bugera speakers)

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04-23-2011, 09:08 AM	#9 (permalink)
cain61 Senior Member Join Date: Sep 2009 Location: La Grande, Oregon Posts: 499 Thanks: 16 Thanked 1 Time in 1 Post	Re: Curly Redwood build I seem to remember that Preeb on TDPRI shows how make invisible repairs on one of his thinline tele build threads over there. Thinline Tele build - Page 4 - Telecaster Guitar Forum I hope this helps

06-10-2011, 02:43 PM	#10 (permalink)
RAHAZ Senior Member Join Date: Jan 2010 Location: Arizona Posts: 453 Thanks: 7 Thanked 8 Times in 5 Posts	Re: Curly Redwood build Annnd we have some progress. Still need to work this top a little more. Redwood is strange to work with. There are some growth areas that feel lower that the adjacent areas. Is this softer wood that had more removed from the same sanding pressure? Wetted with a touch of naptha. As you can see it dries REALLY quick out here with 5% RH 155 likes this. __________________ 1932 Gibson L-00 "Stacy" (Needs Restoration) 2003 Epiphone Les Paul Custom Elite "Elly" 2008 Epiphone J-200 "Noel" ???? Tacoma Acoustic-Electric "Ruby" Under Construction 2008 Hilleboe 5-String Bass "Amethyst" 2010 Hilleboe Mjöllnir 2010 Hilleboe Redwood Mjöllnir

06-10-2011, 05:11 PM	#11 (permalink)
DGNRepair MLP Vendor Join Date: Sep 2009 Location: Stuck at the bench.... Posts: 1,858 Thanks: 28 Thanked 139 Times in 31 Posts	Re: Curly Redwood build Looking good. Redwood with big figuring like yours is a bit of a challange to get completely flat. I usually start with a coarse grit paper that will cut both the softer and harder parts at about the same rate. Then as you work your way up to higher grits use a lot less pressure and you will find the results become very smooth. I have actually gotten away from using and orital too much on redwood. On maple I use an orbital all the way up to 220 but on Redwood I stop at 100 and continue by hand from there. Too much pressure is what causes the humps you feel over the figuring. Hope this helps. __________________ DGN Custom Guitars - Handcrafted Guitars, Repair and Restoration Like me on Facebook

06-10-2011, 05:41 PM	#12 (permalink)
BCRGreg V.I.P. Member Join Date: Apr 2007 Location: Lemoyne, PA Posts: 11,705 Thanks: 320 Thanked 2,063 Times in 271 Posts	Re: Curly Redwood build Use a sanding block with two layers of tshirt under the sandpaper. That will level the surface. Aleksander likes this. __________________ Cool guitars, extreme repairs and brutal honesty. www.bcrmusic.com https://www.facebook.com/pages/BCR-M...76454402425822

12-06-2011, 03:15 PM	#14 (permalink)
Syrus Senior Member Join Date: Sep 2011 Location: Greyfield Posts: 1,531 Thanks: 12 Thanked 31 Times in 10 Posts	Re: Curly Redwood build Looks killer :] ! RAHAZ likes this.

12-07-2011, 04:24 PM	#15 (permalink)
mdr40z Senior Member Join Date: Jan 2008 Location: Arkansas Posts: 589 Thanks: 4 Thanked 1 Time in 1 Post	Re: Curly Redwood build I really like it

12-07-2011, 10:53 PM	#16 (permalink)
captcoolaid MLP Vendor Join Date: Nov 2008 Location: Nor Cal Beotch Posts: 11,097 Thanks: 374 Thanked 509 Times in 117 Posts	Re: Curly Redwood build Very cool __________________ http://mhd-pickups.com/ Luthier pricing available. Or visit my youtube page http://www.youtube.com/user/MHDPickups?feature=mhum#p/f http://soundcloud.com/mhd-pickups/madhousedesigns-gameybluesmp3 DC DOES NOT EQUAL OUTPUT. Dc is a resistance value and that is all. It WILL NOT tell you what it will sound like, it WILL NOT make you sound like another player.

12-08-2011, 03:23 PM	#19 (permalink)
gator payne Senior Member Join Date: Dec 2010 Location: High desert of West Texas Posts: 3,334 Thanks: 0 Thanked 271 Times in 24 Posts	Re: Curly Redwood build Slight off topic for this thread but kind of related. I am mostly a fingerstyle acoustic player. because I am a finger style player I like my notes to be rich with overtone and personally I like a little dark melonic flavor to the tone. In acoustic tops no wood does a better job at providing rich complex overtones with a dark melonic feel than Redwood. I absolutly adore Redwood. Just don't look at it wrong or it will dent like a 1990 yugo in a hail storm b-looser, RAHAZ and Eigen like this. __________________ The true measure of a craftsman’s soul can only be measured when all he has learned is multiplied by all he has taught.

12-12-2011, 07:40 AM	#20 (permalink)
gobig2000 Senior Member Join Date: Aug 2011 Location: Sydney Australia Posts: 285 Thanks: 17 Thanked 6 Times in 2 Posts	Re: Curly Redwood build i love the shap you have come up with! RAHAZ likes this.

05-07-2012, 08:26 PM	#21 (permalink)
RAHAZ Senior Member Join Date: Jan 2010 Location: Arizona Posts: 453 Thanks: 7 Thanked 8 Times in 5 Posts	Re: Curly Redwood build I am having trouble getting this horned fixed... I am hoping someone can point me in the right direction. I took the rough chipped area and cut it with a handsaw to make a step. Cut a piece of the old blank that matches the area grain. I wrapped the block with taped sandpaper and pulled it across the step keeping the path straight but there is always a gap... See below for pictures. __________________ 1932 Gibson L-00 "Stacy" (Needs Restoration) 2003 Epiphone Les Paul Custom Elite "Elly" 2008 Epiphone J-200 "Noel" ???? Tacoma Acoustic-Electric "Ruby" Under Construction 2008 Hilleboe 5-String Bass "Amethyst" 2010 Hilleboe Mjöllnir 2010 Hilleboe Redwood Mjöllnir

05-07-2012, 08:48 PM	#23 (permalink)
djrussell Senior Member Join Date: Sep 2010 Location: Australia Posts: 1,032 Thanks: 7 Thanked 11 Times in 6 Posts	Re: Curly Redwood build Is that bare feet I see!! IN A WORKSHOP! GAWWW! Sorry Couldnt help myself. Looking great so far man, I think Barnaby has the right idea. I cant really think of anything else to do unless you were willing to cut another block to see if it works better. gobig2000 likes this. __________________ '13 Maiden DC Special [Build] \| Maiden Telecaster [Build] '12 AXL Badwater 1216 Jr \| Aria STG-003 [Project] \| Maiden Tele Rocket 88 [Build] '11 Hagstrom Viking II \| Maiden Junior [Build] \| Gladiator GG-165 DC Junior '09 Gibson Les Paul Junior [BJA Signature] \| Hagstrom Swede '08 Hagstrom D15CE '07 Gibson Melody Maker \| Fender Telecaster \| Hagstrom F-300 '00 Fernandes FGZ-1C '99 Fender Stratocaster '95 Fernandes Stratocaster

05-07-2012, 09:31 PM	#24 (permalink)
gator payne Senior Member Join Date: Dec 2010 Location: High desert of West Texas Posts: 3,334 Thanks: 0 Thanked 271 Times in 24 Posts	Re: Curly Redwood build You will either love or hate the dark tone the redwood will bring. Personally it is my favorite top for acoustics used for melonic finger style. It brings a warm throaty bass and lower mid tone kin too a shot of twenty year old bourbon. Goes down smooth and fills you torso warmth that seems to last long after the notes have passed. IMO the only real issue with redwood is that it will dent if you look at cross eyed. In regard to a hard time finding curly redwood top blanks like this one, pm me and I will put together a couple contacts for you. Plenty of it out there. __________________ The true measure of a craftsman’s soul can only be measured when all he has learned is multiplied by all he has taught.

05-08-2012, 08:01 AM	#25 (permalink)
emoney Senior Member Join Date: Jan 2010 Location: Best weather in US--Clearwater, FL Posts: 3,466 Thanks: 14 Thanked 17 Times in 9 Posts	Re: Curly Redwood build Looks like you're on the right path, you just need to sand until you get the gap as close as you can. From the pics, looks like it needs to be a little more "square" on the body, where the piece came out. Otherwise, there's always the "slurry" fill for the gaps and then "Darkburst" the outer edge. Love this body shape, btw.

05-09-2012, 01:57 AM	#27 (permalink)
Davio Senior Member Join Date: Nov 2011 Location: Georgia, USA Posts: 806 Thanks: 5 Thanked 1 Time in 1 Post	Re: Curly Redwood build Nice work. I'm glad to see your redwood project. I have a nice little pile for the next rounds of builds after I use the last of the pecan I'm on now. Thanks for posting ! RAHAZ likes this. __________________ "How can you have any pudding if you don't eat your meat ?" - Pink Floyd

07-23-2012, 09:10 PM	#28 (permalink)
Aleksander Senior Member Join Date: Sep 2010 Location: NJ Posts: 274 Thanks: 0 Thanked 2 Times in 2 Posts	Re: Curly Redwood build This is really great!!!. Keep rocking __________________ http://www.myspace.com/alexcalkowski

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