Help needed on choice of woods for my RG project...

Swirly · #1 09-20-2003, 07:48 PM

Hi there, im making a guitar body for my school project and since i already have a RG im basing all my desings on that so i can just do a simple copy of the body.
Im making it a fixed bridge model as floating trems are pissing me off latly

and also for ease of building, that way i dont have to worry about routing out the trem cavity and i can just stick a nice fixed bridge on, and have a string thru design.

The only thing im having trouble with is the woods.

I dont really have time to mess aorund with painting and i think that if i f*ck it up then it will be a waste of money and time, so ive opting for a clear coat on a nice wood.

I was originaly going to just do a simple body in say mahogany and clear coat it, but i would love to add a very thin maple vaneer on the top.

The thing is though, im not looking to stain the body , like most vaneer topped guitars are, so this means i have to chose a nice enough body wood that will look nice with a maple top.

Any opinions, or pictures would be great.
Btw, i dont mind spending money on woods, but i dont want to go over board as this will be the first body ive made and i dont want to end up spending sh*t loads of money on really nice woods and then end up messing it up.

Cheers guys

Devo · #2 09-20-2003, 10:07 PM

my own opinion is that you should just make up a body and spray it.

Laminate bodys and multiple layers are just not worth the hassle for a first time builder or if you have little experience. If you make a balls of it, you can use some fillers and when its sprayed no one will ever know.

keep it simple, the routing and chisel work will be difficult enough without having to be perfectly accurate.

as for wood, go for somthing easy to work with and cheap to get like basswood or mahogany.

Steve

Devo · #3 09-20-2003, 10:13 PM

should be able to pick up a nice board of mahogany for around £20 or less in any timber yard.

You wont get anyting in 13-14" widths to do a one piece so dont bother looking. Your going to have to do a two piece. If its rough cut timber, get 6 feet of 9X2 and join em, then thickness it to whatever size you want.

disassociative1 · #4 09-21-2003, 05:32 AM

i would go with swamp ash and dont even bother clearcoating it.

i have a maverick custom shop just like it and its a fantasic sounding and looking guitar.

Swirly · #5 09-21-2003, 12:32 PM

Quote:

Laminate bodys and multiple layers are just not worth the hassle for a first time builder or if you have little experience. If you make a balls of it, you can use some fillers and when its sprayed no one will ever know.

Yeah, although the reason i thought of not painting it first off was because i didnt want to make a ncie body and then end up ****ing the finish up by doing a real **** job of painting, i also dont have anyh painting equiptiment so it will all have to be done by spray cans if i decide to do that. Is that a problem?

Quote:

i would go with swamp ash and dont even bother clearcoating it.

I take it you mean to oil the wood as well? rather than clearcoating it. The only thing with that is that if i **** it up it would be so noticable :/

All suggestions welcome guys. Pics would be great so i could get more ideas

darren wilson · #6 09-21-2003, 01:50 PM

Go with black walnut. It looks beautiful, feels great and sounds fantastic. It's got the warmth of mahogany with a bit more brightness, similar to maple. Being a very hard wood, it's a bit tougher to carve, but it's not as hard as carving maple.

Walnut also takes an oil finish beautifully.

Devo · #7 09-22-2003, 02:50 PM

take it to one of those street sprayers and get them to do a moon scape on it

GhesQi J · #8 09-24-2003, 07:26 AM

I second Devo's opinion to go with painting.
A routing error, scratch or ding is very easily made (especially when it's your first). If you go with paint, you can fill all scratches with filler.

For my first electric, I also chose for a paintjob
http://www.ghesqij-guitarsite.tk/
Surf to "bodyworks" to see how I tackled it.

Good luck with your upcoming project.

Cheers,
Joten[/url]

J Todd Beachler · #9 09-26-2003, 10:02 AM

Dude, balsa. you'll have tone for days. :P

gkelm · #10 09-26-2003, 02:31 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by J Todd Beachler

Dude, balsa. you'll have tone for days. :P

Yes, but balsa is very soft and dents easily, so you'll need a clear coat of around 1/4" think.

But really, you can't go too wrong with mahogany, but I like the ash suggestion...you can find some georgeous grained ash, and it would look great with tung oil, clear, or a light stain. I'm not sure there has ever been an ash-bodied RG (the RG6cst had a veneer, and I've seen some on Ishi that look like ash).
Greg

Swirly · #11 09-26-2003, 02:48 PM

Hmm. Im still doing a lot of the designing atm so im not actually making it atm but its so hard to choose what to do.

I would love a natural looking body but im so worreid ill put all the time into it as well as money, and it will get messed up.

That prolem will be solved with a paint job but i then see two more problems people could shed some light on:

1)Price Is it possible to achive a good finish by painting it yourself, or is it best to take it to say somewhere like an autosprayers and get them to do it propper. Or the clearcoat at least

2) What would the prices be for a usual paint job (primer, colour, cleacoat etc) for both a home job and proffesional (rough price if you can give one please)

darren wilson · #12 09-26-2003, 02:52 PM

If you mess up a natural wood body, you're gonna need more than paint to cover it up.

What kind of mistakes do you anticipate making? I'd still go for a natural wood with an oil finish for my first guitar if i were you.

Just remember to measure twice and cut once and you'll be fine.

Swirly · #13 09-26-2003, 02:54 PM

Hmm, well i think that due to having my tech teacher and school tools at hand their shouldnt be many problems but you never know. What i might do i build the body, if its nice ill oil it.If its got a few chipings where ive routed etc i may consider a paint finish

darren wilson · #14 09-26-2003, 03:00 PM

You'll only really get chips if your router blades are dull or if the wood is not at the right moisture content. Either way, a bit of sanding and planing will remove most damage from a raw wood body.

You can also cut pickup cavities with a chisel. (Anybody remember the old video for "Let it go" by Loudness?)

Don't be too afraid... wood is very forgiving.