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build a guitar with the custom guitar builders blog | 050612
The Crimson Guitars guitar builders blog, 5 years in and still going strong, follow each and every stage of every guitar build from start to the final demo video. We start this week a bit backwards with a video shoot following the process of wax potting pickups to cure excess harmonic feedback.. the photos of the process will be in next weeks blog but I couldn’t resist getting the video out today.. In other news the unique detachable twin neck guitar and bass combo we’re building is nearing completion and I also get stuck into building a new custom acoustic guitar. Enjoy..
The twin neck, both bass and guitar sides are missing something..
pretty much everything we do is bespoke , especially on builds like this, and the same holds true for the back-plates. Paper templates are made up and adjusted to fit.
Next I bring out some veneers.. the yew matches the colour quite nicely and will do for an outer layer.
Glued up and clamped between two bits of wood and some foam.. the foam spreads the pressure evenly and helps get rid of air bubbles.. though you will have to tighten the clamps up again after a few minutes as the foam compresses.
Turning a new part to help join the two instruments together..
The whole point of this custom build is that when the two are joined that joint is as stable as possible and that takes a little engineering.
Instead of using standard wood screws, that tend to pull out over time, we fit machine bolts and threaded inserts to all our custom guitars.. the last thing I want you to do is drop one of my babies!!
I also don’t like using the usual black felt washers beneath the strap buttons.. leather looks nice and I must say thumping the hell out of the punch is really rather enjoyable.
And of course this build has locking strap buttons.. who wouldn’t!?
A lovely little baby hand drill is brought out to squeeze the upper horn strap button hole, though on reflection a flexible drive would have given even better access..
In the meantime the new 3 ply yew and maple ply has cured.
and is ready to be shaped.
The bobbin sander is most useful here, especially loaded with the quick change Carrol drum which accepts standard paper.. much better than the tubes you normally have to buy!
The first of these small plates was aligned wrong so another is made.. perfection and all that 
finally we sand them all down and get to oiling..
while I apply a few coats of oil to the new backplates I bolt the guitar and bass together.. a process that needs to be tried over and over to make sure it is all working as it should!
Now, back apart as I’ve noticed that the custom steel locating pins are physically connected to the pots, which are connected to the wiring internals and I just don’t like the idea of having a pair of huge antennae poking out the front of the guitar..
I cover most of the thread of the pot with rubber,
and isolate the nut with more plastic.. rinse and repeat and I’m happy..
This leather is only fitted when the bass and guitar are to be joined, it can live in the case the rest of the time.
Back together to test the wiring.. part of the beauty of this design is that the sound of the guitar is automatically routed through to the jack of the bass when bolted together.. the guitars jack will still work though and with a toggle you can select either or both out outs if you want to use a few amps..
Part of the test was high gain.. and here is our problem, in customising the pickups we’ve lost some of the internal integrity and I’m getting some microphonic feedback.. not good for a top end custom guitar.. but then, you’ve already watched the video so you know how it turns out
My work area tends to chaos when I’m concentrating… time for a tidy up!
This custom beauty I’m building for stock is still being oiled every day or so..
But here is what I’m really getting excited about.. I do enjoy building acoustics every now and then!
The bottom joint always needs tidying up so I cut a piece of excess side wood into a wedge.
and glue it in with a few strips of rosewood.
Up to this point I’ve been working from an old template, the time has come to finalise my thoughts on the current build though so I draw up a new plan..
The bridge is designed to transfer tone better.. in short wide bass vibrations = wide bass section of bridge and vice versa.. the bracing pattern and sound hole are drawn in too.
While we’re in the mood for designing guitars here’s a time-lapse following the whole process through..
Back to business, the bracing pattern is transferred on to the birdseye maple top.
and I pull out a chunk of western red cedar.. a soft brace wood to counteract the hardness of the maple.
Brace wood has to be quarter-sawn and split by hand.
Rough and oversized but we’re on the way now.
The end piece has cured and excess sanded away.
the sound hole is marked out next..
And then cut by hand.
and then is tidied up with the bobbin sander.
The first two braces are glued in and left to cure over-night.
the reason for the staggered gluing schedule is to make the carving of each section easier and more precise.
The top and back both need to be curved, it helps keep the whole box nice and strong, but I need to make a few templates..
A bit of maple is planed down to make that template.
Then I start planing each brace down to its final width.. and curve.
A much tidier looking pile of splinters..
The vacuum press comes out and a bunch of braces are glued. The eagle eyed among you will see the area that needed an extra clamping caul after I took this shot.. only one guy spotted it in the live feed.. kudos to him!
The back is next up..
I need some cross-grained mahogany and plane a section flat.
The mahogany is cut in to sections roughly the right length and the cured top is taken out of the vacuum press.
Swaps..
Excess length is cut way.. Japanese saws are amazing tools!
The carving begins.. oh my my I love my job!
Half way there.
The back bracing is curved to match the template.
and the press starts up again.. this really is a beautifully useful tool!
Back to the front and the x-brace, arguably the most important part of the top, is jointed carefully.
I slide that in next to the back and take a deep breathe.
Once cured we have the makings of a new guitar,
and it is going to be a great ride.. come back next week for more.. make sure you sign up on the left for the email notification when the blog is updated next or you could follow us blow by blow through twitter, facebook et al
All my best,
Ben
Crimson custom Guitars UK