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Thread: tooling up

  1. #1
    Join Date
    May 2008
    Location
    Mountain Home, AR
    Posts
    547

    tooling up

    As I mentioned in my other thread (kiln vs air drying), I'm planning out how I want to go about tooling up to build guitars. I've been reading Cumpiano's book and others and browsing the StewMac site to see what sort of modern tools are available. My shop is tooled mostly for turning and some flat work, so I'm fully aware that I'm delving into another genre of tools that will probably get expensive and mostly won't have any other purpose than guitar building.

    Anyway, I'm interested in doing setup and repair work on existing guitars and most of the tools I'd need to do that I will eventually need for building my own. Seems like a logical step would be to start getting those tools together and doing setup work on friends' guitars to get some practice. Next step would be to start taking on some work from the local guitar store. The owner used to have a guy that did this some, but at the moment he doesn't have or know of anyone locally to do the work. Ideally this work would help to fund future tool purchases so I can increase the scope of luthierie work I can do and eventually get me into building my own.

    For you folks that have been through this before, does this sound like the right direction?

    Another thing I've thought about is taking a couple of days here and there off work to 'apprentice' with a luthier. There aren't any in this area that I know of - the closest I know of are maybe Warsaw, MO and a new one in Conway, AR. I haven't asked them yet, but if y'all know of any others close to Mountain Home, AR that might be willing to let me shadow on occasion please let me know.

  2. #2
    Wes--

    Guitar makers (I do it as a hobby) vary a fair amount in terms of how mechanized they are. I like using power tools when appropriate, but there will always be a lot of hand work in guitar building, even if you tool up to the max.

    Here are stationary power tools I find useful (but none are essential):

    Router table
    Drill press
    Table saw
    Disc sander
    Bandsaw
    Drum sander (used as a thickness sander, not a finish sander)
    Spindle sander

    Pretty much all guitar makers use a router or laminate trimmer for some things. Some use a Dremel. I prefer a laminate trimmer.

    Basic hand tools are pretty important: Chisels, planes, etc.

    Then you get into all of the quirky little hand tools that you never knew existed, and that are only useful for guitar work. You are looking at the StewMac catalog, so that's a great start. Look also at the LMI catalog.

    In the long run, I still recommend building a first guitar by following the Cumpiano book (with online updates, which are really important), then moving onto other ways of doing things after that first guitar.

    Good luck! It is a fun way to spend time in the shop.

  3. #3
    Join Date
    Jan 2015
    Location
    New Hampshire, USA
    Posts
    240
    Hi Wes,
    Its sort of like here, where some builders use hand tools almost exclusively, and some builders use a lot of power tools and make jigs for almost every operation. Most use a combination. I met one builder who primarily made one model, and does everything with router jigs. He keeps upwards of 50 routers in his shop so he rarely has to change adjustments. He puts out about a guitar a week in his shop and is extremely sucessful. Another guy I know builds almost exclusively with hand tools, and only uses a bandsaw to resaw stock and a router to cut binding channels. Everything else is sharp handsaws, chisels, scrapers and planes. He puts out about a guitar a month, and each one is different.

    You can work at mastering some basic hand tools, and build guitars with a fairly modest set of tools. The tools you will want will also differ depending if you plan to specialize in flat top acoustics, archtops, or solid body guitars. One thing you can begin accumulating is clamps. It seems like you can never have too many clamps.

    StewMac and LMI have a great selection of tools, but don't get discouraged or think you cant do set ups or build without all the specialized tools they sell. Some of the specialized hand tools like files with safe edges you can make by altering regular files, and its remarkable how accurate you can work with hand tools with patience and practice. Other stuff like specialized (and expensive) side bending jigs save time, but aren't really a necessity.

    As far as getting started in building by doing repairs to build up your luthier chops and collect tools, it sounds reasonable. I know of some luthiers who did exactly that and others who don't like doing repairs, especially on guitars that they didn't build, so it seems like a personal preference. Some folks really like to specialize in repairs and don't ever get into building. One thing I would caution against is taking on repairs on valuable instruments until you really develop your expertise. Its fairly common to find guitars where an earlier repair caused some bigger problem down the road. Also, some adhesives and finishes are more difficult to deal and have ramifications with future repairs, so you will want to learn a little about this before tearing into your friends guitars.

    One last suggestion. There are a few other forums specifically dedicated to guitar building and repair that you might want to join in addition to this one. The luthier community is pretty generous with helping people who are getting started.

    Let us know what you are looking to build.

  4. #4
    Join Date
    May 2008
    Location
    Mountain Home, AR
    Posts
    547
    Thanks guys! I think my first will be a PRS-like electric in walnut with the fretboard of post oak. Not sure about the neck yet. May have to actually buy a piece of maple, but I've considered bodark or mulberry. I want to try and use mostly local wood at first since I have abundant access to timber and a mill. Next up would be either something along the lines of a Martin D-28 for me or something a bit nicer for my 6 and 9yo boys.

    I turn 41 this year and my plan is to try out a few builds and see how I take to it before I decide if this is something I want to do more than just as a hobby. Hard to beat the instant gratification of turning

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