How hard is it to 'finish' a neck?

multi_s · Post by **multi_s** » Sun Dec 08, 2013 2:04 am

i think I'm going to build a guitar, but i want to get an unfinished neck so I can cut my own head stock. How hard is it to 'finish' an unfinished neck? any wisdom? what is easiest?

AxAxSxS · Post by **AxAxSxS** » Sun Dec 08, 2013 2:18 am

by unfinished do you mean already shaped, fretboard and frets installed, unpainted and headstock not shaped? In that case, not to hard. I would recomend leaving etra material so that you can sand and file SLOWLY till you are happy with the final shape.

Decibill · Post by **Decibill** » Sun Dec 08, 2013 11:29 pm

Yeah, if you are just doing the finish work, its doable. I've been working on guitars fro 10 years and I do not recommend fret or fingerboard work as a first project. If you want a solid, easy finish, take a look at the Reranch site. Their spray cans are really good. Lot's of info there too.

multi_s · Post by **multi_s** » Mon Dec 09, 2013 6:07 pm

ya ok thanks, sorry my op was not that clear. I just meant to apply a 'finish'. For example buying something along the lines of this:

http://www.diyguitars.net/EDEN_Angled_P ... 13286.aspx

cutting the headstock myself, then applying some sort of clear coat.

I will take a look at that reranch site. Thanks for the tip.

Decibill · Post by **Decibill** » Mon Dec 09, 2013 11:14 pm

Cool.....Good luck and post pics of the project...!!

Gone Fission · Post by **Gone Fission** » Tue Dec 10, 2013 1:00 am

On maple, Tru-Oil and beeswax is easy as frig. Ernie Ball/Music Man guitars go that way and G&L used to do that as a custom order option.

multi_s · Post by **multi_s** » Tue Dec 10, 2013 3:39 am

Decibill wrote:Cool.....Good luck and post pics of the project...!!

Ya i will for sure. Still investigating at this point... havn't pulled the trigger on buying any parts. I'm trying to cut the body/headstock on a cnc which i bought a while ago but never had time to really learn how to use, so the project as a whole is a bit of a mouthful. Much more for learning some tools/software as opposed to making the dream guitar. So far I haven't done much work on the actual guitar part other than test taking pictures of guitars from the internet and then trying to massage them such that you can get a decent outline in a CAD/CAM program (from jpeg to gcode, freaky ).

This one worked ok. I started with something similar to this:

and got to this with about 10-20 minutes of editing the jpeg in imagej, and then using an app that tries to detect edges in images and draws them as polylines in a .dxf, the type of file autocad and programs like that use. After i draw some hardware holes i will try to cut it out of some crap wood to see the actual results. If it seems ok I will get the rest of the parts and some better quality wood for the body.

Gone Fission wrote:On maple, Tru-Oil and beeswax is easy as frig. Ernie Ball/Music Man guitars go that way and G&L used to do that as a custom order option.

Any suggested source for this?

Gone Fission · Post by **Gone Fission** » Tue Dec 10, 2013 11:03 am

It feeds the beast, but if you need it locally, Walmart stocks Tru Oil. Sporting goods section is what I think I've heard -- a big use for the stuff is finishing the wood stocks of rifles. Wax I've seen at the usual Home Depot/Lowes stores.

Google will get you process for doing guitar necks, but for guitar finishing info and tips TDPRI's "Finely Finished" subforum is a good place to get tips, techniques, and past troubleshooting advice.

Decibill · Post by **Decibill** » Tue Dec 10, 2013 11:29 pm

Cool. I've CNC'd a few guitar bodies, so let me know if you get stuck on anything. Headstock's for me are done faster on the band saw/sander.

multi_s · Post by **multi_s** » Wed Dec 11, 2013 3:27 am

oh wow ok, looks like im in good hands

. i will keep this thread posted. probably not doing much till 2014 but i do really want to try it out.

AxAxSxS · Post by **AxAxSxS** » Wed Dec 11, 2013 4:04 am

I'd like to second the don't cnc the headstock remark. I'm sure its dependant on equipment but I'm putting together a kit right now that was cnc'd and there's a lot of marks where I kinda wish they had left more material alone to be fine finished buy the final assembly person. (me) Any thing you want really perfect I'd leave some tolerance and use the old tried and true methods to make it perfect.

multi_s · Post by **multi_s** » Wed Dec 11, 2013 4:48 pm

ya my expectation is that I will have to do a lot of sanding either way. Mostly I will rough out the shape on CNC then smooth it by hand. I haven't tried any high quality hard wood yet, but with what I have on hand bit/material wise the finish is not that clean, sort ofl eaves a 'fuzz' on the surface.

AxAxSxS · Post by **AxAxSxS** » Sat Dec 14, 2013 12:42 am

Sounds like a good plan :thumb:

Decibill · Post by **Decibill** » Sat Dec 14, 2013 4:20 am

Take your time and don't settle for anything less than awesome.

multi_s · Post by **multi_s** » Sun Dec 15, 2013 5:52 am

Decibill wrote:Take your time and don't settle for anything less than awesome.

haha. words to live by.

definitely going to attempt this first thing in the new year, so I'll post an update. Tanks for your input.

ilovefuzz.com

How hard is it to 'finish' a neck?

How hard is it to 'finish' a neck?

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