NG&NBBD - New Geetar & New Bass Build Day

[MisterE]

Hi All,

A while back, I ordered another geetar from Chris Larkin.
The order was for a soloist model, archtop, neck through.
This is the conspec:

Customer	Geert Annys (VSP)
Quotation/Update/ date	04.03.14
Model Type	Soloist carved top Bedemir model
Body Timber	Mahogany or fiddleback sycamore (stained brown) or something else
Top	Lovely quilt as supplied
Colour	Black cherry
Pickups Type & Position	TB4 black in bridge, middle to be decided, Sustainiac at neck
Switching / Circuitry	Vol/piezo volume/Sustainiac intensity/5 way selector/2 mini toggles laid out as Strat.
	Graphtec Acoustiphonic pre-amp.
Bridge/Trem Unit, Type & Colour	Graphtec Ghost LB63 black
Neck Timber	Neck through dersign. Laminates of finest flamed maple with veneer details.
Neck Profile	Flat C.
Fingerboard Timber	Ebony with white binding and those lovely 7 string type inlays!
Fingerboard Camber	16"
Frets type and number	22 Dunlop 6110 (Fender bass type)
Scale length	25.5"
Machines, Type & Colour	6 Schaller M6 bottom locking 6L, black
Comments / Customising	Schaller Straplocks. Fingerboard width 43mm for the trem nut. Black pickup rings.
	2 side outlets. Larkin headstock. Faux binding?

The piece of quilt I wanted to use for the top of this geetar is this

Then I decided I needed a bass too.
So this is the conspec:

Model Type	5B CONTOUR BODY
Body Timber	Poplar
Top and back	Quilted maple
Colour	Gloss AC lacquer, cherry burst.
Pickups Type & Position	Larkin/Armstrong humbucking pickups.
Switching / Circuitry	Mag vol (pull for passive), mag blend, bass, mid and treble, mini switch for mid frequency select(Aguilar active),
	Stacked dual concentric for piezo.
Bridge/Trem Unit, Type &	Hipshot A, brass, gold.
Colour
Neck Timber	Laminates of flamed maple with carbon fibre, mahogany veneers between. Two way trussrod
Neck Profile	Narrow (47-70mm), slim depth.
Fingerboard Timber	Rosewood. Pearl custom markers.
Fingerboard Camber	16"
Frets type and number	24 X 6110 Fender bass frets.
Scale length	889MM/35"
Machines, Type & Colour	5 X M4 gold
Comments / Customising	Contour body, Dunlop Straploks, case.

This is the wood for the bass:

I started the order with ; "I have a plan, and it involves wood"
So that reminded Chris of a scene in Monty Python & The Holy Grail where Bedemir explains that they'll build a wooden rebbit and that he, Galahad and Lancelot will climb out of the rabbit...

So we decided to call the geetar Bedemir and the bass Galahad.

In the following weeks, I'll post the progress of the build.

 

[MisterE]

And we're off... Here's Chris' telling what he did so far...

I spent three hours looking at wood and trying to work out the best way to get the look I wanted for the through neck and eventually decided the right way to go was to have 4 x 20mm wide pieces of flamed maple with three 3mm stringers of mahogany.

So I cut up the maple…

…and laid it out ready to glue it.

 

[MisterE]

First I glued up the through neck sandwich.

Then I cut the pieces for the bass neck and glued them up too.

I then selected some poplar for the bass body,

marked it out and planed it. Then I spotted some hairline cracks which just went into my marked body (the redline) area in that piece so I scrapped it.

So I started on a second piece of poplar and when I planed into that a dark coloured area appeared so I scrapped that piece too. You can’t see these dark patches until you plane into them.

The third piece, I was able to plane to size without a problem.

On the quilt for the bass overlay I marked out and cut out a piece suitable for the headstock overlay then trimmed the remainder to suit the body shape.

On the bass side of the body there needs to be an section removed for the arm relief.

This is smoothed and the overlay bent to fit over this. How I did this is a secret! Well I could tell you, but not the organisms.

You might wonder where the organisms come from.
I posted the first build he did on sevenstring.org
Hence: a post for the organisms.

The overlay was then glued to the core for bass and treble sides.

 

[MisterE]

The sandwiches for the through neck and bass neck have been tidied up - the figure is good.

The headstock for the bass is wider than the shaft so I cut out a piece from the sandwich that would become the headstock and glued ‘ears’ to it to get the required size.

 

[Dutch]

Veeeerrrryyyyyy pretty... I can tell already those will be stellar.

But, IIRC you have several already. Do you reallllllly need another Larkin?



just Dutch Calvinism speaking here. I can see wanting several different models and for variety or backup maybe two of the same. But beyond that, practicality (and financials) tells me to just not look further and I 'm wondering what makes someone want more than two? Seen pics of 8 LPs (even dozens, huge collections) in the same config or like 20 Hamers? I'm thinking: "What the..., why?"

 

[MisterE]

Well I didn't have a bass.
Actually I did, but I gave it to my son.

I have the following Larkins:
A ASAD which is kinda like a LP with a Floyd
A 7-string ASAD with piëzo's and Midi
A strat model
A superstrat

So this one will be totally different and will replace my old Warmoth.
I always regretted back in '92, before ordering the soloist model from Warmoth, not asking Chris if he'd make such a thing.
i always assumed he only made his own models.
So never assume anything.

So as you can see, these will be totally different than the ones I already have.

And I'be already got something special planned for next year.
BTW...that's my plan for Chris' pension...
One new guitar each year

 

[MisterE]

Apparently Chris had some visitors, one with a perfect 1954 Gibson L4 archtop and, a few minutes later, a guy with a Dyer harp guitar

After my visitors left I heard a strange hissing sound in the workshop. I couldn’t see any snakes ( perhaps St Patrick missed one?) so I investigated further to find the water drain valve on the compressor tank was leaking. It took a bit of messing around but I was able to fix it but at the expense of working on your instruments. In the time that was left I planed the joint and glued the bass body halves, cut a section from the through neck for a headstock, dimensioned it and glued on the headstock veneer and did the same for the bass headstock.



Who know what will happen today? Life is a mystery!

 

[MisterE]

I found the two pieces for the tops of the geetars in Holz Fascination, Germany
Chris informed me that the thick piece was actually too thick for the carved top so he proposed to cut a slice off and that could be used for a future project.
So now I'll be obliged to have him build me another geetar next year
Anyway, Chris also needed to cut of two slices from the side for the binding. So he asked me for the dimensions of the model - a G&l Interceptor.
But I was too late in answering his e-mail.
This is what he wrote:

I’m trying to find the name of the limited edition guitar that you have so I can get dimensions and know how to cut the big slab of quilt so that a slice can be used for one in the future. I’m terrified to cut this piece in case I make a mistake (of any kind!)


ChrisBandSaw.

He's always signing his e-mails with ChrisSoAndSo with the so and so related to the message
Next he wrote:

Dear TooLateTwin,

I made an executive decision. I overcame my fear of the dreaded quilt and I cut off the edge of the pieces for the binding which left 180mm and I think this will be enough for any electric guitar. So no need for any ruling on your part.


ChrisDecisive.

He calls me his younger twin since we share the same birthday, have the same sence of humour, share a passion for motorbikes, choclate cake, wine and have a lot of uncanny similarities. We discovered this when I went to see him while he was building my sevenstring.

Next he wrote:

The Lovely Syra didn’t force me to watch any football tonight possibly because there isn’t any.


Dear Doctor. I had this irrational fear of cutting this piece of quilted maple that was causing me anxiety and sleepless nights until now when I decided it was time to get my chainsaw out, put on boxing gloves, a blindfold and attack it. And you know it was not so bad and my life has taken a new and happier path and my creative consciousness has been re-awakened. Thank you for your advice and support. ChrisPatient.


So, as you know, I cut the two edges off the quilt which will be used for binding and then sliced it longways to make it the correct size for the guitar top and this created another 6mm top for another job at some time.

Then I did a rough layout of the through neck on the neckshaft by comparing it to a number of bits of other guitars all of which feature in some way in your Conspec. This actually took a lot of thinking because there are a number of technical difficulties in doing this guitar and I need to be sure that I had covered them all before I did any damage.

After all the thinking I was able to mark up the neckshaft with component positions and other critical bits.

Then I did a rough layout of the through neck on the neckshaft by comparing it to a number of bits of other guitars all of which feature in some way in your Conspec. This actually took a lot of thinking because there are a number of technical difficulties in doing this guitar and I need to be sure that I had covered them all before I did any damage.

After all the thinking I was able to mark up the neckshaft with component positions and other critical bits.

Now I knew what bits of the neckshaft I needed and what bits I didn’t. So I cut those off which made quite a bit of expensive firewood.

Now I knew what bits of the neckshaft I needed and what bits I didn’t. So I cut those off which made quite a bit of expensive firewood.

I prepared the scarf joints for the headstocks as I now knew where they had to be placed.

I made the joints and glued them up.

So endeth the day. It was a good day and having confronted the demon quilt I can now work on with confidence. There will still be those technical problems but I’m pretty sure I have a good handle on them now.


ChrisReborn.



p.s. I also cut out the bass body and thicknessed it but forgot to take a picture. Use your imagination.

 

[laughyouraxeoff]

Man that is giving me some major Gas, I should write him and find out some details on getting a customer guitar, love how he updates his builds, such great communication!!!

 

[MisterE]

Man that is giving me some major Gas, I should write him and find out some details on getting a customer guitar, love how he updates his builds, such great communication!!!

Yep, he's brilliant.
I think at one time I'll make a compilation of al his e-mails. Sometimes there absolutely hilarious.
He and his wife (he calls her The Lovely Syra) ar wonderful people.
They're both very passionate about their art.
Chris is a real woodnut and has been chosen to be a member of the Leonardo Guitar Research Project.
Here you can see the build of one of the guitars for that project:

 

[Hellbat]

It's awesome that he's sharing the build in such detail. I can't wait to see the finished products.

 

[MisterE]

Some more news from Chris:

Good evening WineLovingTwin,


We have opened a bottle of Corbieres and it is rather nice! We both still have colds and can’t taste a lot but we are going to enjoy it.
I got a good bit done today. Trussrods fitted and carbon fibre inserts in the bass neck. The through neck has been hacked again to remove the wood where the overlay will fit and the overlay has been thicknessed and jointed. The fiddleback ‘wings ‘ have been prepared and a veneer of mahogany added to the jointing edge. Looking good.

And we have finished the Corbieres now. Still have the heavy colds but who cares?
I’ll probably glue the wings on tomorrow.

ChrisMedicated

 

[MisterE]

Part deux:

The overlay glued

pickup lead slot:

cutting the sycamore fiddleback for the wings:

Layout for the wings:

 

[MisterE]

Yesterday Chris sent me this:

Strange day. This morning I helped The Lovely Syra dismantle the Castlegregory Carnival Art and Craft exhibition for an hour and then we had visitors from Germany who stayed until lunchtime. They were Joachim and his wife who are on a tour of Ireland. He has bought two of my instruments in the past and has an idea for a new acoustic so I was happy to spend time with him.


After lunch I did some trimming to the through neck (more waste wood!) then dimensioned the wings and glued them on. This is quicker to describe than to do! It’s starting to look more like a guitar now. I then levelled the bass neck ready to make the neck joint. But I can’t go ahead with this until I know the dimensions of the bridge. I was promised that the drawings would be emailed to me last week but of course they were not. I emailed them early this morning to remind them but,until now, They have not responded. It’s annoying.


So just two pics.

ChrisAnnoyed.

 

[MisterE]

This evening, I got another e-mail and this time Bedemir is starting to look more and more like a geetar

A nice technical day which I enjoyed. Loads more expensive firewood created which we will be grateful for next winter.

The joining surfaces between the core and the overlay had to be made perfect and this is done slowly with a hand plane and lost of checking with a straight edge. Satisfying when done right.

To fit the overlay to the core the neck end has to be trimmed….

...and a straight tenon created with the router.

The mortice is cut into the overlay. This has to be exact to keep the strength around the heel area on the finished instrument.

To get this perfect there is a lot of trimming with a chisel. Not only does the joint have to be perfect but the overlay has to line up with the body centre so it takes a while.

One last check.

I then created some even more expensive waste.

And glued the overlay to the core. I used three screws to hold the overlay in the correct position while I put the clamps on. The two nearest the neck are inside of the pickup area and the one in the middle (not visible in the pic) is where the trem will go so the screw holes will not be visible on the finished instrument (unless I have made a terrible cock-up!)

I called Hipshot in NewYork and got them to email me the correct drawings for the bass bridge which was a good result.


So, another good day.


ChrisTechnical.

That's all for tonight folks.
I'm getting really excited.

 

[MisterE]

Lots of new info & pics.

Good evening HairyTwin,
Before that I made a copy template that I fitted onto the rough body to define the final shape. Naturally I forgot to take a picture of the next stage where I used the template to guide a router around the body to remove excess wood. Then I sanded the body edges to the exact shape. I then did a final layout for the pickups and trem positions. I have adjusted pickup position to strat style as the original Jackson template is for 24 frets. Ignore any blue ink marks on the overlay which are just rough guides from many steps ago. What you see now is the final and exact shape. I think the next thing I should do to the guitar is make the fingerboard to ensure that everything lines up. But tomorrow I will work on the bass so it catches up with the guitar.

Making a copy of the template

Sanding the edges

Layout

With a normal through neck with a thinner overlay there is a lot of the neck going under the overlay. In this case with a thick overlay there is much less which is why it was so important to get the overlay to neck joint as perfect as possible yesterday. And it is very good. I think I will put two dowels through the outside of the joint to further lock the overlay and neck together and transfer the pull of the strings through the two components (neck and overlay). A pic when I’ve done this will explain all. I’m thinking out loud which is a sign of madness so I’ll stop.


ChrisRaving

 

[MisterE]

Good evening RedWineTwin,

First, and a day late, here is the copy template for the body that I forgot to take a picture of yesterday. I couldn’t use the master template as I need to allow space for the neck end so I made a copy and mutilated it! This was screwed onto the body top to guide the router.

Also here are the dowels I talked about last night and I fitted today. They help lock the top to the through neck.

While we are at guitar things I made the ebony fingerboard (rosewood bass blank also in the pic), cut the fretslots, made the binding and glued it on.

Next up is the bass.
But that's for later. Time to enjoy the sunny weather ;-)

 

[MisterE]

Part I

Now the bass. This going to be a bit detailed because I want to use this for the Tech Bit in the next newsletter. So, if you are bored, I’m sorry.


This is how I make the mortice and tenon joint for my fixed neck instruments.

First I cut the mortice in the body using a router with a template and guide ring.

The template is aligned with the body and then raised to get the correct neck to body angle. You can see the calculations I did to get this angle written in pencil on the body top!

A router works by cutting away wood with a rotating cutter. The guide ring around the cutter follows the template.

The router is set to a final depth of 26mm and the mortice cut in a series of shallow cuts.

Nice clean job.

Now to cut the mortice on the neck. Both mortice and tenon are offset 3.5mm to the bass side which allows for an asymmetrical final carving of the heel which gives better access than a symmetrical one. The neck angle is transferred to the sides of the tenon and these are cut to the correct depth using the radial arm saw.

Cutting lines are marked and cut oversize on the band saw. Why oversize? Because it is easier to make the tenon smaller to fit the mortice than to make it bigger if I cut it undersize!

With a bit of trimming the tenon is made to fit the mortice.

 

[MisterE]

Part II

The body side of the joint is given the rough shape it will have on the finished, asymmetrical joint and this is transferred to the neck too.

Now the tricky bit. The neck side is adjusted with a chisel so that all 4 faces of the joint match the body perfectly and keep the correct neck angle. I use a feeler gauge to check the clearance. If it goes in the joint is not good enough.

So more chiselling until everything is perfect.

Sometimes this fitting takes 20 minutes, sometimes 6 hours! This one was about two hours. I dimensioned a rosewood fingerboard, cut the fretslots and then checked the alignment and neck angle.

And to finish here is a picture of the most expensive firewood in Ireland!

That’s enough for one day.


ChrisTiredAnd Happy.

 

[MisterE]

I'm a bit behind with my report so here's the update from friday:

First job was to tidy up the bass neck headstock and then glue on the fingerboard.

I trimmed the binding on the guitar fingerboard and checked the alignment (it was perfect).

With the fingerboard nailed in place we now have a guitar shaped thing.

The end of the fingerboard needs to be supported so I made a suitable piece to do this.

Next to headstock binding. First I had to shape the headstock and cut the binding channel. This was more difficult than it would be with a regular neck as the extra weight of the through neck and body made it ‘interesting’ to balance the guitar on the router table.

Quilted maple is very difficult to bend so the best way to fit the binding was to make it in three sections. First the two curved pieces.

Then the long section first bent on the bending iron and then glued in place.

And that was the day done. Next is dinner with a bottle of cold white wine. Yum.


ChrisGlueFingers.