Build #3: sitka/black walnut 000

[Neil K Walk]

I can't get the top off without ruining it so I have to make a new one.

I was literally at the neck setting stage and am now about 10 steps.

[Fathand]

Originally Posted by Neil K Walk

I can't get the top off without ruining it so I have to make a new one.

I was literally at the neck setting stage and am now about 10 steps.

That's unfortunate, I had to remove and replace a top but it was earlier in the build, before binding, still a pain and time consuming. Is there a chance you may be able to reuse your top on a smaller guitar build? I used mine to practice rubbing a sunburst.

[Neil K Walk]

Originally Posted by Fathand

That's unfortunate, I had to remove and replace a top but it was earlier in the build, before binding, still a pain and time consuming. Is there a chance you may be able to reuse your top on a smaller guitar build? I used mine to practice rubbing a sunburst.

No, I had to route away a portion on the top that wouldn’t come cleanly off the tail block. The sides and upper bout are fine but as I progressed more and more splits in the grain appeared around the base of the lower bout.

I’m tempted to see if I can remove the bracing and bridge plate, if only for practice in doing repairs. Otherwise, I have a new sitka top on order and already have extra cedar lining, uncut bracing stock, a rosette, bracing and herringbone purfling.

I just need to steam off the old lining from the sidewalk, re-radius sand the rims, then install the new lining and sand some more. Then I’ll turn my attention to the new top.

[Neil K Walk]

I'm resigned to the fact that I won't be able to get the braces steamed off the top so I'm going to use it as a template and cut all new braces.

In other news, I spent a hour or two chiseling off the rest of the kerfed lining then cleaning the future glue joint with a card scraper and some sandpaper. I've already jointed the new soundboard.

[Neil K Walk]

I'm about halfway through thickness sanding the top. It's dusty/noisy work so I like to do it outside and when my wife isn't working from home. I also have to be careful with the spruce as it is soft. Here's my quasi portable workbench that I keep in my basement near to the garage access door. I put caster wheels on it and keep a board of plywood nearby to act as a ramp to move it either into the garage or the driveway. In this picture I have my DIY drum sander and shooting board on it.

[Neil K Walk]

I posted more pics up on flickr. For now they haven't hit me with any additional fees. Here's a pic of me working the top loose. In hindsight I should've used a damp towel between the iron and the spruce and had a digital thermometer on hand:

[Neil K Walk]

Unfortunately, I had real trouble getting the top free of the tail block. I figure that the issue was that the block is birch plywood, which I use in addition to cloth tape to protect the sides from splitting if the guitar were to fall - which it did. The problem is that part of the glue joint is then end grain (in the plywood) which does not respond as well to heat because the wood "drinks" it too far into itself. I ended up having to use a Dremel to cut away a portion of the top.

On the right is the new top (a $60 expense) awaiting a few more passes in the drum sander and freshly cut braces awaiting profiling on the band saw and radius dish. On the bright side, since these are "scratch built" braces and not from a kit I was able to fashion a much tighter lap joint in the X brace so I won't have to use cloth on the lap joint.

[Neil K Walk]

Over the course of the past week I've been removing all the old cedar lining and installing all new lining. The reason I did this was that when I installed the top I did not own the 60' radius dish at the time so the top was flat. Now that I have the radius dish I figured it would be better to start with all new lining and sand the radius into them.

This is a mixed blessing because after sanding I figure I will have reduced the depth of the body by about 1/8". Fortunately, the mitering on my end wedge wasn't to my satisfaction so I get to at least do half of it over.

Here's a picture after having "driven the bus" on the radius dish. I made frequent use of that chair during the process!

[Treenewt]

Hate you're having to redo it, Neil, but it sounds like it's going well, and you're learning a lot about repair!

[Neil K Walk]

Originally Posted by Treenewt

Hate you're having to redo it, Neil, but it sounds like it's going well, and you're learning a lot about repair!

Yes, I'm wondering if I need to bevel the top of the tail block to reduce the gluing surface area. It would open up the lower bout a little more.

[printer2]

Originally Posted by Neil K Walk

Yes, I'm wondering if I need to bevel the top of the tail block to reduce the gluing surface area. It would open up the lower bout a little more.

I do that. The block is the same width as the lining after being beveled. Interesting drum sander.

[Neil K Walk]

Originally Posted by printer2

I do that. The block is the same width as the lining after being beveled. Interesting drum sander.

I'll have to break out the rasp on this one then. I'll do the next one on the table saw like I did with the bevels on this one.