Portland Guitar Co.

( 251 ) 4-Jan-15

Now with finish more or less complete I have assembled the neck and body and use a template to position the bridge.

( 252 ) 4-Jan-15

Fortunately with the split saddle adjustable bridge the position has a bit of latitude.

( 253 ) 4-Jan-15

Once I am happy with the position I clamp the bridge in place on top of a piece of masking tape.

( 254 ) 4-Jan-15

I use a sharp blade to cut around the perimeter.

( 255 ) 4-Jan-15

Now I carefully remove the finish where the bridge will be glued to the top.

( 256 ) 4-Jan-15

With a little care, the bridge will drop right into place.

( 257 ) 4-Jan-15

A bit of glue and with the use of a special set of clamps I attach the bridge to the top.

( 258 ) 4-Jan-15

After I tighten everything down I clean up the squeeze out with a bit of water and a sponge.

( 259 ) 4-Jan-15

I carefully fashion the six individual saddles and the nut, install the strings and I get to hear the guitar for the first time.

( 260 ) 4-Jan-15

I use this modified dial caliper to measure the string height.

( 261 ) 4-Jan-15

And I use a special set of files to lower the action when needed.

( 262 ) 4-Jan-15

I have a variety of files to help me shape the slots.

( 263 ) 4-Jan-15

Here is the completed nut.

( 264 ) 4-Jan-15

I use a strobe tuner to make adjustments to the saddles until I get the most accurate intonation for each string I can get.

( 265 ) 4-Jan-15

Ta Da!