A Gibson for $299!

It's only a Melody Maker, but it is still hard to believe that Gibson would sell any product for this little.  Stripped down to one humbucker and only a volume it is a no frills guitar, but if you like simplicity this would be great!  You can't even buy a decent Epiphone for $300. Check out the Gibson Melody Maker at Musician's Friend.

Jazz Piece

This is the result of playing around with some jazz chords.  Enjoy!

Eddy's Restaurant Performance

I played at Eddy's Restaurant on the second Saturday of June.  Friends of mine from Oak Run came and played some blue grass, too.  We had a great time and best of all the owner asked us to come back and play.  He made the comment that we needed more microphones.  As you can see there was only one.  It worked fine for me, but when there were two vocalists sharing it you couldn't hear anyone.  That can be fixed.  We're planning on it in July.

Catch Up and Blues

Well, there is much that I need to post.  However, I just wanted to put a hold on that and post a little blues piece that I was having some fun with.  For the first time I used my keyboard as a bass.  I want to go back to add it into some of my previous recordings now.  Enjoy!

Guitar Builds

Well, I cleaned the garage which is always the first step in a project.  I also found a great source for bolt-on guitar necks.  It is an e-bay store called EDEN Mart.  There is a great selection of both angled and straight necks for bass and 6 string guitars.  They are all about $45 a piece and $20 S&H.  EDEN also carries everything else you would need to build a guitar.  I am not sure about the quality of things.  I'll see if I can find some reviews and post again.  For now I am simply excited to find necks for a good price (not to mention that they have many inlay options and look good).

The Majesty of You

This a  new song I started on Monday.  It is a bit rough right now, but it'll get there.

Guitar Build(s)

So, I found templates for the bass and... I also found a template for a double cutaway Les Paul (one of my favorite electrics).  I'll probably put two humbuckers on the lp.  I may try to carve the top with a router.  The body will be chambered to provide less weight.  One difference is that the lp will have a bolt on neck instead of set.  The bass will be the same as I have mentioned before.

Here they are.  I may not get started on these for a while due to expense of necks and hardware, but I can begin the bodies at any time.  Expect to see something in the next two weeks!

 

Next Guitar Build?

It is amazing what a little success can do for one's courage.  I have never owned a bass, but have always wanted one.  My all time favorite is of course a Fender.  The Jazz bass is their best looking model in my opinion and the most affordable version is the Squire.  Still, it is $300.

Another great looking bass by Fender is the Jaguar.  It came out recently and is vying for my aesthetic admiration.  Again this is still $300.

Really, $300 isn't bad, but after building a guitar for around $50 (that doesn't include the price of the neck) I have trouble thinking in terms of that much money.

So...I have two thoughts.
1).  guitarfetish.com sells kits for the Jazz bass for a measly $104.
2).  rondomusic.com sells an already finished Jazz bass copy for $119.

Of course, this is only the beginning.  The idea is to take the neck, electronics, and pickguard and transplant them into a body that I would build to match the telecaster thinline I just finished.  I'll have to think it through a bit more, but it might just work!

Intonation

The intonation on the tele is now set thanks to some great advice from my Uncle Kevin.  It plays wonderfully!  Coupled with my little Vox tube amp it sounds great.  Tomorrow I'll record tracks for "Overflow."

Finished!

It is finished!  Here is a video of the way is sounds and looks.  It is amazing to think that only a few months ago this was an idea.  This wasn't as hard as I thought it would be.  Maybe I should build another one in the future?  Next time I think I'll do a Les Paul.  We'll see.  Thanks for being a part of all of this with me!

Polyurethane!

The end is near!  I put the second coat of polyurethane on today.  Take a look.

Stain

A quick video about staining.  It shows how the color of the guitar has changed with the stain.  It really brings out the grain.

Sanding and Striping

More progress.  It is looking less like a goofy woodworking project and more like a guitar!

The neck is on!

I got to work on the telecaster more yesterday and today.  The neck is on and it is looking good!  I still need to do the fine sanding, drill a few more holes, stain and finish it with polyurethane.  Strings won't be on for at least a week, but my fingers are itchin' already!

Gluing

Well, it is coming together!  Starting to look good, too.  I have learned that I need to purchase more clamps.  There are two spots that didn't clamp down and you can see a gap between the poplar and pine.  Oops!  Now I know.  I think it is still fixable.  I'll need to try that next along with fixing the pick guard.  It does look good though.  I'm pleased.

New Video Coming Soon!

Today I finished cutting the top and gluing the three pieces together.  I also started to cut out the pickguard.  That wasn't as successful as I had planned.  I think I can salvage it though.  The rest is looking good.  It should be done drying tomorrow night!  I'll post a video of it all soon.  Time for bed.

Coming Together

I got home early today and Julie wanted the girls to get exercise.  So, that meant while they ran around outside in the snow flurries, I worked in the garage. I think I like it.

More Progress!

I finished my grading early today, so I got to work a bit more on the guitar!  This is a really quick video of what I did.  I also found out that Fender does make a guitar very similar to what I am creating.  The only real differences are the pick guard, the Les Paul like bridge and the dual tone and volume knobs.It is called the Jim Adkins model.  Julie says it sounds like a "fad diet."  Jim Adkins is the lead singer for Jimmy Eat World.  I'll have to look it up.

Telecaster Progress

I've done some more work on the telecaster.  Here is a brief summary of the progress.

Tele Build: Day 1

The girls and I went through the snow to the garage at about 10:00 Saturday morning.  It was cold in the garage.  If I had cut a finger off I wouldn't have known it and I am sure the blood would have been as viscous as pudding. I finished at 4:00 and went in to thaw out.  The video below explains what I was doing.  My breath and layers of clothing give an indication of the temperature.  Ultimately, the redwood was a failure.  I got it all glued together and realized that it needed to be planed.  Planers are about $300.  I considered this briefly, but in the end opted to buy a piece of pine for $5.  My wife acknowledged my profound wisdom.