Have you built a guitar?

[Brad Baugh]

Hi,

Looking for a summer project and I thought I would build a guitar.  I am not a craftman so figure I would pass on an acoustical and got to one of the tele or strat in a box.  There are multiple people selling the put togethers, but the pictures look like they are all the same company cut out.  Have any of you put one of these package guitars together and have any suggestions?  I am not expecting a super sounding instrument, but just want the knowledge of putting one together ... figure it will be cheaper than tearing one of mine a part and find I can't put it back together.  Thanks for any help or suggestions.

Brad

 

[Dave White]

Brad - that is on my bucket list. I will probably buy one of the acoustic kits from StewMac or Martin.

[UncleHammy]

Yes I have put together a LP kit.  

Two recommendations 1) to to Stewart McDonald and buy some upgrade electronics.  The electronics in the kits are really cheap and 2) check fit the neck and bridge.  If the neck cutout in the body is not deep enough for you to adjust the bridge carve it out deeper.  You can always shim it but if it is not deep enough to allow adjustment of the bridge you will have incredibly high action and nothing you can do to adjust it.  

I used my kit built LP strictly for slide guitar because the action is so high and I have the bridge adjusted to it's lowest setting.

The kits are a fun project and you can customize the finish and all the details to make it a custom for your tastes.

There are some higher quality kits out there if you want to spend $400 or $500.

[Blue Dog]

3 hours ago, UncleHammy said:

Yes I have put together a LP kit.  

Two recommendations 1) to to Stewart McDonald and buy some upgrade electronics.  The electronics in the kits are really cheap and 2) check fit the neck and bridge.  If the neck cutout in the body is not deep enough for you to adjust the bridge carve it out deeper.  You can always shim it but if it is not deep enough to allow adjustment of the bridge you will have incredibly high action and nothing you can do to adjust it.  

I used my kit built LP strictly for slide guitar because the action is so high and I have the bridge adjusted to it's lowest setting.

The kits are a fun project and you can customize the finish and all the details to make it a custom for your tastes.

There are some higher quality kits out there if you want to spend $400 or $500.

Hi Uncle Hammy sounds like you need to shim up the neck on your guitar . its to low. 

[UncleHammy]

6 hours ago, Blue Dog said:

Hi Uncle Hammy sounds like you need to shim up the neck on your guitar . its to low.

Actually @Blue Dog it is the opposite.  The neck is too high, the bridge is bottomed out.

I have shimmed it to get a better angle but it is still too high.  What I really need to do is to take it apart and route out the slot about 1/4 inch deeper.

[Blue Dog]

1 hour ago, UncleHammy said:

Actually @Blue Dog it is the opposite.  The neck is too high, the bridge is bottomed out.

I have shimmed it to get a better angle but it is still too high.  What I really need to do is to take it apart and route out the slot about 1/4 inch deeper.

Ok you mean its bottomed all the way up  not down . Its maxed out I see. My bad 

[Ice9]

I didn't buy a kit, but I did buy a cheap squire Tele from eBay and totally dismantled it, stripped off the paint and refinished it and put it all back together again. I learned a lot about how guitars are put together from doing that.

Good Luck

 

Edited May 23, 2018 by Ice9

[Brad Baugh]

Thank everyone.  I like Ice9 idea and will look for a cheap used guitar and replace parts.  This way I will understand the procedure and what to get and what not to get.  Then I will get a kit that way I can get frustrated with it just not fitting together rather than fit and parts.  Have a great one.

[gotto]

I built a guitar from a kit prepared by Precision Guitar, a company in Canada. Only the body and neck but the fit was “precise”. A professional luthier was impressed with the manufactured product. That said, it was more expensive than the StewMac but less than Warmoth when body and neck are bought separately. Still, additional parts need to purchased and the project can become expensive but it is rewarding and you can end up with an excellent outcome. 

Greg

[colder]

I once bought an empty tele body and neck and built it up. Other than some pickups and cheap parts from allparts, it only involved basic soldering which is about the limit of my mechanical ability

It didn't sound bad at all. A tele (or an esquire!) might be a good place to start - super simple. 

You won't save any money over buying something new though. At least I didn't. But I was paying for the fun.

[Eracer_Team-DougH]

[gotto]

On 5/27/2018 at 5:05 PM, Eracer_Team-DougH said:

Love it! A true "woodworker".

Greg

[Brad Baugh]

HI,

Still digging and I ran into this webpage  (http://www.guitarbuilding.org/store/#!/Individual-Guitar-Kits/c/22006028).  I know nothing about it, but thought I would share since I am finding more and more schools setting up guitar building classes and also offering it to teach math in high school.  I might have had a better math grade if I could have gone home with my own guitar at the end of the semester.

[Brad Baugh]

I'm continuing to learn.  Look at

 http://www.warmoth.com/Pages/ClassicShowcase.aspx?Body=1&Shape=89&Path=Warhead

I'm finding out if you are going to build a guitar and are looking at any resale value forget it unless you buy a recognized brand or find someone that likes what you have made and they are willing to buy it from you.  If you buy a low grade guitar and put all the top bells and whistles on it ... it still sells as the original low grade instrument.  If you look at Warmoth on youtube you can also gain information on building a guitar.  I am kind of leaning toward buying pieces from this company ... i.e. a body and maybe 6-7 months later get a neck etc. and then load it up over the next year or two depending what I want to put on it.  It won't be a Fender, but I don't have the money to shell out for what I would like to have all at one time.  I'll keep you posted as to what I decide and learn.

Oh you may find this interesting ...

http://performermag.com/best-instruments/best-electric-guitars/how-to-build-your-own-partscaster/

[colder]

If you want to keep costs as low as possible, look for used bodies, necks, and other parts on ebay or reverb.

You know what they say, buy used and play for free. 

[Brad Baugh]

Update.  Well, after reading everything I could and going through all the electronic and tone/sound guitar books ... I went back to buy a used guitar like Colder suggested.  Well somewhere between a solid body and a hollow body I began looking at a Fender slim line. And then I brokedown and decided on a new Gretsch (Must of been the night I spent listening to Chet) ... with the board down the middle.  I really like the sound of it and it was set up perfectly.  Never lost a thing accept hours sweating over building a guitar that I probably wouldn't finish because of my ADHD.  Thanks to all of you for your in put and look at a Gretsch the next time your in the hunting mood.  I passed them over too many times, but totally happy now.

[NeilES335]

3 hours ago, Brad Baugh said:

Update.  Well, after reading everything I could and going through all the electronic and tone/sound guitar books ... I went back to buy a used guitar like Colder suggested.  Well somewhere between a solid body and a hollow body I began looking at a Fender slim line. And then I brokedown and decided on a new Gretsch (Must of been the night I spent listening to Chet) ... with the board down the middle.  I really like the sound of it and it was set up perfectly.  Never lost a thing accept hours sweating over building a guitar that I probably wouldn't finish because of my ADHD.  Thanks to all of you for your in put and look at a Gretsch the next time your in the hunting mood.  I passed them over too many times, but totally happy now.

Congrats on the new Gretsch... any pictures?

[Brad Baugh]

Not the top Gretsch guitar on the line ... but neither am I.  

What it did do is to move me on to the advance workout in Steve's Speed and Agility course.  Note I said I moved on ... my fingers are still dragging along behind.  Really recommend this course ... first thing I do every morning after hitting the bathroom and feeding all the animals.  It gives you the challenges and the satisfactions.  Never knew my fingers could stretch so much ... probably the reason they are dragging behind.