Paul O. wrote:
--
Paul O.
"Kiwanda" wrote in message
ups.com...
Paul O. wrote:
In looking at web sites for kits, Tele style, and I am looking at Music
Maker's site which has a tele kit with a Basswood body. I've heard of
some
different woods for the body, but not Bass wood. Is this a good wood for
the
body, or are they using it to just make the kit cheaper? I'm a ways from
doing this, but I am looking to see what's out there. Thanks.
Anyway, making the body took about two hours in the shop (minus gluing
time). You can make a tele in probably 30 minutes, if you have a
template for routing the pickup cavities handy. I've never made a tele
(I have a Fender already) but if I were planning to make one I'd
probably use white ash or alder for the body before basswood.
Good luck!
-Kiwanda
Some snippage....Thanks for the input. I have been thinking of making the
body and buying the neck. I think it would be fun to build one, just got to
decide on the parts I want and add up what it might cost.
It'll be more than you think! Take a look at rec.music.makers.builders
for some threads on cost...many people are putting $700-1000 into their
guitars. At the other end (where I'm working) it's going to be hard to
build a guitar for less than $200 even if you buy parts used on Ebay.
Make a list and check prices on the following (assuming you'd buying a
finished neck):
pickups
tuners
bridge
volume/tone pots
switch(es)
switch top(s)
knobs
jack/jack plate
pickguard ( if you want one)
neck plate
screws
strap locks
Then look around for sources of 8/4 wood suitable for guitar building.
None of the small mills around here routinely cut 8/4 so my best source
is 75 miles away and charges about $4/BF for ash ($75 will make me
about four bodies at that price). I buy figured maple or walnut for the
tops on Ebay, which I resaw myself to get 2-3 tops from a typical $15
board. If you're building necks then you need to consider the cost of
fret wire, nuts, and fretboards in addition to the rock maple blanks
for a Fender-style neck.
It all add up pretty quickly. But the first time I plugged in a guitar
I had built and it played better than the last NEW Fender I'd purchased
I was hooked. That one cost me perhaps $200, but some of that included
leftover parts that went into the next one too.
best,
Kiwanda