Father/son Guitar build - not tractor related

[drivadesl]

My son is really into playing guitar and recently asked if I would help him build one. He's 13 and very smart, and I,ve been doing woodworking, metalworking most of my life. I've got a fully equipped basement shop so have all the needed tools. Plan is for an electric guitar and will do all woodworking for tqhe body, neck and head. Will buy the electronic components and do the wiring.

Been looking at how to books so there's a lot of info out there to help with the process. I expect it will take soe time so no rush to finish.

So has anyone taken on such a build and can offer any advice to the plan.

 

[forgeblast]

Check out the grizzley tool site. They have a lot of guitar kits, and info on making guitars.

 

[DelSc]

Guitar building is very rewarding. There are lots of enthusiastic builders all over the country and several websites dedicated to sharing ideas and help on guitar building (like this one is for tractors). There are two large "luthier" organizations in the US:

1) Guild of American Luthiers or G.A.L. If you google them you will get lots of info from their sites.

2) Association of Stringed Instrument Artisans or ASIA.

You can also google "luthier forum" and find several online resources to help you.

I have seen young people your sons age do some very good work on guitars, so good luck and share photos of what you build.

Thanks
Scott

 

[drivadesl]

Thanks for the suggestions guys. Man I thought I knew a liitle about guitars until I started reading up on how to build one! So many details and design differences from one to the next. I will try to keep it simple, but still in research stage right now, many things to consider. Any way I will update as we go. Thanks.

 

[babypp2]

I agree with the author's point of view! I learned a lot. Thank you!

 

[sawduster98]

You'll find lots of building and luthier supplies on ebay too. There are some guys selling template sets for just about any style you can think of. I'm getting ready to build my first from scratch after doing a couple of kit guitars. The kits are actually pretty good for a first project. I have several 'good' guitars but my favorite is a $75 Saga strat kit! Good luck and post your updates. Oh yeah...tons of Youtube videos on how to do just about anything guitar related.

 

[ruralruss]

My son is really into playing guitar and recently asked if I would help him build one. He's 13 and very smart, and I,ve been doing woodworking, metalworking most of my life. I've got a fully equipped basement shop so have all the needed tools. Plan is for an electric guitar and will do all woodworking for tqhe body, neck and head. Will buy the electronic components and do the wiring.

Been looking at how to books so there's a lot of info out there to help with the process. I expect it will take soe time so no rush to finish.

So has anyone taken on such a build and can offer any advice to the plan.

When you finish the electric one try an acoustic!

 

[miramadar]

My advice would be to not skimp on materials. You're going to spend a good amount of time and effort on this, and the last thing you want is cheap-o tuners or pickups. Get the good stuff. Stewart-MacDonald is a great place to get good products.

Are you going to build the whole guitar from scratch? If so, you'll find the neck is the toughest task. The neck angle has to be perfect for proper intonation and playability. I would suggest buying the component parts of the neck already tooled...unless you're really good with a spokeshave. And some woods are toxic...like ebony...and should be sanded with great care.

So, what shape are you going for? Strat? Les Paul? Something else? What woods are you going to use. The wood choice makes a big difference in the overall tone of the guitar. Actually, you should have a good idea of how the guitar will be used before you commence to building it. A "heavy metal" guitar is a different animal than a "chicken-pickin'" country guitar.

I'm a fan of the "mellow" Les Paul sound. So when I built my electric guitar, I went for a mahogany body/neck. If you like a brighter toned guitar, like a telecaster, maple/alder is a good choice. There are scads of different woods you can use that offer different tones and aesthetics.

Please keep us posted!

 

[drivadesl]

Thanks for the replies guys! We decided to build a stratocaster, with some custom touches to it so it's not a direct knock off. Its gonna be called a "matocaster" in reference to my son Matthew . That decision seemed to be the hardest part.

I plan on a swamp ash body with a quilted maple top. The neck will be maple/walnut veneer with an ebony fretboard. He wants to use Humbuckers for the pickups. Any thought on this combo Miramador?

I ordered a routing template which I'm expecting any day now. finding the right wood has also been tuff. I want a book matched look on the body but pricing on woods seems to vary so much I don't want to waste money so I' m shopping still. Ebay looks like a good resource so should find something we like eventually.

Meanwhile i've got materials together to make a miter box for cutting the fret slots. Based on a stewmac design. Not sure but may allso need to build a router box for the body shaping and wire routing.

Expect this will be a long process but worth it.

 

[miramadar]

You choices of woods will lend to a brighter-sounding guitar, but the humbuckers will mellow it out some. What sort of sound are you aiming for? What kind of musical style? The type of pickups will determine a lot. There are lots of options out there...from stock EMG's to custom-wound Fralins.

I have custom Fralin's in my Les Paul replica. A VERY cool option is to have the pickups coil tapped so you can choose between humbucker and single coil. That makes for a very versatile guitar. I have a standard humbucker at the bridge and an "Unbucker" at the neck. The Unbucker is wound heavier on one coil and has a unique sound. Both the pickups are coil tapped, so I can choose between humbucker and single coil. Lots of different tones available to me.