59 burst replica build

[EpiLesPaul59]

Ive been hoarding quality parts to build a 59 burst replica. Ive got some goodies so far justwaiting on bartlett plans to come in a one piece honduran mahogany body blank. So far ive got retrospec inlays, the 50s binding from ebay, Gibson inlay, truss rod, brazilian rosesood fretboard blank and a honduran mahogany 59 copy neck blank from ebay and its pretty far along. Starting on the fretboard as soon as the plans come in. I just need to get a eastern maple top.

 

[Barnaby]

Very, very cool! If you are going for a strict replica, however, that neck looks a bit odd to my eye in terms of vintage accuracy. The truss rod slot looks wrong, for starters. See this post for an example of something much closer to the way that it was done back in the day...

 

[EpiLesPaul59]

The truss rod slot looks wrong, for starters. See this post for an example of something much closer to the way that it was done back in the day...

Thanks for the tip. I did alittle comparing the two and it looks like the only difference is the little hole under the fretboard and the truss rod wasent routed all the way up the headstock to the truss rod adjuster screw. So all in all there will be a few minor things. Im sti excited to get this thing rolling

 

[ARandall]

Also
The slot looks a little wide - typically 3/16" is what the vintage rod width is.
A minor point is there's no drilled hole for the far end of the TR. Much harder to do this when the drill bit is biting unevenly.

 

[pshupe]

Also the back of the headstock looks a little odd. I believe the transition between neck and headstock was a little less severe and the flatter area of the headstock would have run out into the neck.

Check out the Bartlett build around page 7 I believe.

Cheers Peter.

 

[ARandall]

^ Yeah, it looks like a volute type transition. The bursts have a V shape edge to the transition of headstock and neck.

And have you checked that your 16th fret will be positioned on the tenon cut? I like to do this part of the neck shaping well after the fretboard is done.....it means you have a guaranteed measurement of what it is, not what it should be if all goes well.


And don't think we're being hard here - we all like to see great builds being done, and often rescues from mistakes can be seamless if caught early enough. I should know, I've done plenty of rescuing myself.

 

[Barnaby]

Additionally, is the truss rod slot the correct depth and angle? Is it straight or curved? Is the grain of the neck correctly aligned, and are the headstock 'wings' right? These details don't matter so much for a general build or even a lookalike, but they are part of an accurate replica. If you're going to the trouble of getting stuff like the correct binding, then this is of a similar level of relevance, I think.

 

[EpiLesPaul59]

Also the back of the headstock looks a little odd. I believe the transition between neck and headstock was a little less severe and the flatter area of the headstock would have run out into the neck.

Check out the Bartlett build around page 7 I believe.

Cheers Peter.

Thanks, the person who built the neck left some meat at the back of the headstock so i could shape it myself lile it is supposed to be

 

[EpiLesPaul59]

^ Yeah, it looks like a volute type transition. The bursts have a V shape edge to the transition of headstock and neck.

And have you checked that your 16th fret will be positioned on the tenon cut? I like to do this part of the neck shaping well after the fretboard is done.....it means you have a guaranteed measurement of what it is, not what it should be if all goes well.


And don't think we're being hard here - we all like to see great builds being done, and often rescues from mistakes can be seamless if caught early enough. I should know, I've done plenty of rescuing myself.

Nobodys being hard i appreciate all the questions. Thats why i posted here for the best to give me gui dence. Anyways yes the the 16th fret and tennon cut are correct. Ill double check with the barltett plans when they get here.

Ive tried making 2 neck blanks for a epiphone lp that has a broken neck. The first one went well but i messed up alittle and it pissed me off so i tried once more and the wood ended warping in my garage. It was my fault though. So i wanted to try it again for this build, from a honduran blank but for a extra few bucks i just went with this instead because its already milled out.

Heres the add were i bought the neck blank

MAHOGANY17 Deg HDSTK 4 Deg Neck Joint at 16th Fret for Carved Top Neck Blank | eBay

One piece Genuine (Honduras) Mahogany with wings glued onto the sides of headstock

17 Degree Headstock ( NO SCARF JOINT) Angle/4 Degree Neck Joint

Non Stepped on Bottom of Tenon

For Carved Top Single Cutaway

By Penta Guitarworks
Guitarworks
You get a 4 degree neck joint cut in,

a rounded shank, a volute behind the nut,

an 17 degree pitched headstock,

a truss rod slot with the pocket hole, ready for the nut,glued in sliver of wood to catch the bottom trussrod screw hole

and we are even including the wood.Please note measurements

are within 1/32 of an inch.

For 24 3/4" scale.

 

[EpiLesPaul59]

Additionally, is the truss rod slot the correct depth and angle? Is it straight or curved? Is the grain of the neck correctly aligned, and are the headstock 'wings' right? These details don't matter so much for a general build or even a lookalike, but they are part of an accurate replica. If you're going to the trouble of getting stuff like the correct binding, then this is of a similar level of relevance, I think.

Truss rid channel is straight and half inch deep. Now the grain im not sure which way its orientated. Ill post some pics

 

[EpiLesPaul59]

Heres how much bigger the truss rod route is compared to 3/16th

 

[pshupe]

Truss rod route for vintage is sloped from 1/2" - 5/8", so the single action truss rod can work. If it's 1/2" you can fix it by putting 1/8" spacer at one end and routing to 5/8". If you buy the Bartlett plans from - www.bartlettguitarparts.com it will guide you. Check out some of the other stuff there as well.

You may also want one of these! http://www.mylespaul.com/forums/luthiers-corner/253774-headstock-template.html

Good luck

Cheers Peter.

 

[ARandall]

The additional routing to the right depth might also give you a chance to tighten up the width. I worry that the rod will rattle with that gap.

And the rout you have is for a dual action TR that sits just below the f/b

 

[EpiLesPaul59]

Yes I definatly am going to shim on both sides to keep the trussrod from ratteling. No way a dual action trussrod is going in there. Single all the way.

 

[Stephmon]

It might be slick (not to mention satisfying) to incorporate the channel width reduction into the fillet (aka filler strip). I'm picturing an inverted "U" cut into the strip. Some extra fuss, but it presents a 'done in one' approach, as opposed to gluing extra slivers of wood down the sides of the channel. Just my 2 bits...

 

[EpiLesPaul59]

It might be slick (not to mention satisfying) to incorporate the channel width reduction into the fillet (aka filler strip). I'm picturing an inverted "U" cut into the strip. Some extra fuss, but it presents a 'done in one' approach, as opposed to gluing extra slivers of wood down the sides of the channel. Just my 2 bits...

Awesome idea. Ill probally do that

 

[EpiLesPaul59]

Got some goodies in today. That vintage binding from ebay and a Eastern flame maple top.
I was looking for a top which wasent too flamey with a little plain top in it. Kind of like pages number one. So i posted both sides of it. Which side do you prefer?

 

[Drew1986]

Got some goodies in today. That vintage binding from ebay and a Eastern flame maple top.
I was looking for a top which wasent too flamey with a little plain top in it. Kind of like pages number one. So i posted both sides of it. Which side do you prefer?

I think the curl in the second picture looks better.

 

[pshupe]

Are you still doing a replica? I don't think the '59 Standard bursts used flame maple. I'm sure others will chime in.

Cheers Peter.

 

[EpiLesPaul59]

Are you still doing a replica? I don't think the '59 Standard bursts used flame maple. I'm sure others will chime in.

Cheers Peter.

Im trying to make it as close as i can to a vintage late 50s les laul. I was under the impression that they were east maple tops. Some bookmatched, some not. I found this top for 65 with shipping so i jumped on it. Its gonna be sweeeeeeetttt