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Unfortunately I got so wrapped up in carving the neck (my favorite part) that I forgot to take pictures of the process. Nonetheless we can see the results.
Here is a picture of the volute a little farther along.
Portland Guitar Co. | Portland Oregon | Contact Jay Dickinson-503.245.3276 | jay@portlandguitar.com
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Portland Guitar Pretty Good Intonation (PGPG) System
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Finished Build
Orchestral Model
Serial # OM 2.14.65
OM..................... 15" Lower Bout
Body..................... Walnut
Top....................... Sitka Spruce
Bracing................. Engineered asymmetrical modified X-bracing system
Neck..................... 25.4" Scale Maple,
User Adjustable Tilt Action Neck … Variable String to Fretboard Spacing
Dual action truss rod
Fretboard.............. Ebony
Bridge................... Ebony
Binding................. Blooodwood
Appointments....... Shell Inlay
Tuners.................. Gotoh 510 Silver
Nut & Saddle....... Bone
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I have set up the milling machine to drill the holes for the neck adjustment hardware.
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I drill all the way through the heel. This hole will give us access to the adjustment bolt and it will house the strap pin.
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The hardware has a compression ring to prevent it from rattling around. I apply a bit of pressure while the glue sets up.
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And then I drill two holes though the retaining flange and install dowels that will hold the flange firmly in place.
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Before carving the neck I mask off all of the areas I don't want to remove any wood from. I use a variety of power and hand tools to slowly bring the neck to its final shape.
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Here I am drilling holes for the tuning machines.
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I installed burled maple rings to frame the tuning machines.
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Now I am ready to install the binding. First I route the channel for the binding with my "Universal Bindalator."
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This tool allows me to route the channels while holding the router parallel to the sides.
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Before gluing the bindings in place I prepare the edge of the spruce top with some nitrocellulose. This prevents the glue from wicking into the grain and discoloring it.
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The channel around the heel gets a bit of special attention.
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Starting to glue the pin striping in place.
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I have mounted the neck in the heel channel and centered it.
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Now I can fit the binding around the neck and get a good fit.
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Tape and glue to install the binding.
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The binding is installed proud of the top surface and gets sanded down flush with the top.
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The binding was installed shy of the side surface and the side gets sanded flush with the binding.
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The following are a few pictures of the results.
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Next up is detailing and finish prep.