Deleted
Deleted Member
Posts: 0
Likes:
|
Post by Deleted on Apr 5, 2014 9:36:12 GMT -5
Hello, this is an ambitious one. I have this left-handed guitar here Carvin DC135 1988, which i have converted to right hand, a long time ago. I bought this used and real cheap. well not in this state, but you get the point. It plays very good, but access to the last frets suck, it is equivalent of a 21 fret guitar, so i kind of loose the last 3 frets. How possible is to route the guitar to make for a deeper cut away, i.e. to be on par with the upper , original cutaway? Is that suicidal? will it damage the static forces of the guitar, ruining it? please share your views!
|
|
|
Post by newey on Apr 6, 2014 21:46:29 GMT -5
I've gotten away with re-contouring an Ibanez cutaway similar to this. You can't take off a whole lot or you will lose the integrity of the neck pocket if you go too far. But you might be able to shave a centimeter or so, down into the curved area of the cutaway. But it's a risky thing to do. Go too far and the thing is shot completely. So, don't blame me if you wreck it in the process. It's been several years, but as I recall I used a drum sander to reshape the curvature, then some carving and lots of hand sanding along the side of the neck pocket. Of course, this also necessitated a complete refinishing, and was just part of a total rebuild, going down to bare wood.
|
|
Deleted
Deleted Member
Posts: 0
Likes:
|
Post by Deleted on Apr 7, 2014 2:26:52 GMT -5
Thanx Newey, but lets not forget that this is a neck-through, no neck pocket, no set-in gluing with this one. I have read, the body is just two (alder??) wings glued to the main neck rock-maple backbone. In the specs : www.carvinmuseum.com/decade/images/88-dc135.html it doesn't even specify the wood of the body wings. The two body wings do not contribute nothing to the stability of the neck. I have written to Carvin as well to ask about stability issues, sustain, etc... The hard part for me would the painting, lacquering with clear coat, i have never done this. When i get to it, i would be grateful for some pointers.
|
|
|
Post by newey on Apr 7, 2014 4:43:32 GMT -5
Oh, well if it's a neck-through design then it should be doable. Ideally, you'd use some sort of a bandsaw to do this. Lacking that, I did a lot of sanding . . .
|
|
Deleted
Deleted Member
Posts: 0
Likes:
|
Post by Deleted on Apr 7, 2014 4:51:23 GMT -5
How about some flat, semi-circular and round wood rasp set? Sandpaper would come come later in the equation.
|
|
|
Post by newey on Apr 7, 2014 5:35:56 GMT -5
That would work, just go slow. The problem you'll have is that, until you get through the finish, you'll be gumming up your tools, especially if it's one of those thick poly finishes.
Since this is going to require a complete refinish in any event, I'd advise taking the whole body down to bare wood before you even attempt the carving.
|
|
Deleted
Deleted Member
Posts: 0
Likes:
|
Post by Deleted on Apr 7, 2014 6:01:03 GMT -5
^^^ Why? i am terrified at this idea! Why wouldn't just local-spot only painting/clear-coating work?
|
|
|
Post by ux4484 on Apr 7, 2014 7:04:54 GMT -5
Because you won't be happy with the results...
You could get away with it if it was just clearcoat and one surface (I did just the top of the Cortez Tele, it's nigh invisible and just THAT took me two weeks), but you'll be affecting 3 surfaces, and have the guard to trim as well (is it still there?). It's like trying to touch up the middle of your cars front fender, it'll drive you nuts every time you play. Now if you were to Eddie it up with striping tape and the like, you could get away with spot covering it, because it'll be so busy, who'll notice?
|
|
Deleted
Deleted Member
Posts: 0
Likes:
|
Post by Deleted on Apr 7, 2014 7:18:38 GMT -5
This guitar already looks as a monster. So looks are not a problem. I would not touch anything of vital importance. The two body wings i regard them as passive elements, i would not go beyond this. I would prefer leaving it alone as is, than going for complete body sanding.
|
|
|
Post by ux4484 on Apr 7, 2014 8:17:37 GMT -5
Is that a current picture GD?
I had to chuckle at your 21 fret comment... Until a couple years ago... All my guitars had 21 frets...
|
|
Deleted
Deleted Member
Posts: 0
Likes:
|
Post by Deleted on Apr 7, 2014 8:29:15 GMT -5
Is that a current picture GD? I had to chuckle at your 21 fret comment... Until a couple years ago... All my guitars had 21 frets... it looks much better now, better than this : about 21 frets, if you play chords then i guess no problem, but if you play solos at higher frets, 22 or 24 are nice. Its nice to use them, especially if they are there
|
|
|
Post by ux4484 on Apr 7, 2014 9:53:03 GMT -5
There's a beautiful pawn shop reverse jaguar bass at a local shop... 32" scale, great MM style pups. They can't sell it for the life of them. 20 frets and the bottom 5 are useless. If it was a Squier priced around $300, it would be gone... But anyone who's going to dish $800 will be expecting those last 5 frets.
|
|
|
Post by ux4484 on Apr 7, 2014 16:24:18 GMT -5
Oh, BTW... I'm working on the Bass cousin of that Kramer this week:
|
|
Deleted
Deleted Member
Posts: 0
Likes:
|
Post by Deleted on Apr 7, 2014 22:44:07 GMT -5
heh heh smells like 80s!
|
|
|
Post by ux4484 on Apr 7, 2014 23:19:23 GMT -5
So do I! It's actually from '03: it's Samick made-Gibson owned-MosicYo-sold Kramer Striker 522S. It's pointy, and actually quite nice after a cleaning, string change, setup, and wiring mod (changed it from split coil to S/P, boy does it BOOM now). It's a contradiction... Great hardware and pups (even a dual truss rod), but cheap cavity cover (not routed in), paint job (thick, but shows every scratch), and plastic strap pegs. The work I've done is probably worth more than the bass is, but it IS a player.
|
|
Deleted
Deleted Member
Posts: 0
Likes:
|
Post by Deleted on Apr 8, 2014 3:18:17 GMT -5
Hey, smth i noticed on my Carvin which set me into consideration. I have been shown a neck-through the body looks like : My guitar has a floyd rose. How on earth does it manage to have stability from neck to bridge, if there is hardly any wood under the bridge? Does it follow some triangle shape when it glues to the body ? in order to accommodate enough strength to support the bridge? I just can't get it now that i think about it. Maybe the side wings are now of vital importance to the stability of the neck? acting as the connecting element between the weak-hollow are around the bridge and the stronger area to the neck?
|
|
Deleted
Deleted Member
Posts: 0
Likes:
|
Post by Deleted on Apr 12, 2014 4:42:43 GMT -5
Wife went out today, i was alone with the kids, perfect time for action! I think i did it, i used a rotary wood carving tool attached to my power drill + 60 grit sandpaper for smoothing. Result : Here is the view underneath to show where the wood was when the pickguard was installed: And the tools : As a result, now i can reach (with some bearable difficulty) the 24th fret with my little finger, generally i guess its close to perfect, and currently i hesitate to go any further. Did not notice any alteration to sustain, tone, stability. As a side note, the wood seemed to be remarkably strong and hard! it was pain to carve out even with the power tool! I kept the wood dust just in case. Just need your advice now. What should i do to protect the wood? What should i do next? primer? paint? clear coat? Should i visit a carpenter shop and buy some paint/clear coat?
|
|
|
Post by newey on Apr 12, 2014 6:34:16 GMT -5
I'd say you should do a bit of finish sanding to smooth out the jobsite before you start any refinishing. Use decreasing grits. Put away the power tools and work by hand.
Even a good refinishing job can't fix a poor sanding job.
|
|
Deleted
Deleted Member
Posts: 0
Likes:
|
Post by Deleted on Apr 12, 2014 9:34:16 GMT -5
Now that i've seen its stable, I might go a little deeper, to reach full accessibility and then i'll do the sanding job. I doubt that stability might be affected.
|
|
Deleted
Deleted Member
Posts: 0
Likes:
|
Post by Deleted on Apr 13, 2014 3:07:06 GMT -5
|
|
|
Post by ux4484 on Apr 13, 2014 12:06:02 GMT -5
GD, I realize this guitar ain't about "pretty", but it just went from "carpenters dream" (flat as a board, and easy to screw) to full on "pig party". Finish sand that baby to a smooth contour at the least.
If you love it that much, I would consider a refinish. Then you could loose the guard and fill the screw holes, and tidy up the gaps you have around the pups.
It's black... You don't even have to get down to the wood, just past the cover coat.
|
|
Deleted
Deleted Member
Posts: 0
Likes:
|
Post by Deleted on Apr 13, 2014 13:25:32 GMT -5
GD, I realize this guitar ain't about "pretty", but it just went from "carpenters dream" (flat as a board, and easy to screw) to full on "pig party". Finish sand that baby to a smooth contour at the least. If you love it that much, I would consider a refinish. Then you could loose the guard and fill the screw holes, and tidy up the gaps you have around the pups. It's black... You don't even have to get down to the wood, just past the cover coat. Thanx, finally I hated the permanent marker (sharpie) solution, and i sanded it off. I used sandpaper 80 and 100 grit. Now it looks like : I guess sanding seal, primer, color, clear coat are due next? Dont worry about the holes, that's the easy part! Also i agree about the second pickguard (the first one is already gone). Those were fit by the previous (left-handed) owner. Those pickguards were never standard in Carvin DC135.
|
|
|
Post by roadtonever on Apr 13, 2014 14:48:22 GMT -5
have you tried wrapping the sandpaper around a cylindrical object?
|
|
Deleted
Deleted Member
Posts: 0
Likes:
|
Post by Deleted on Apr 13, 2014 15:03:15 GMT -5
have you tried wrapping the sandpaper around a cylindrical object? yup my finger now, really this is a good idea!
|
|
Deleted
Deleted Member
Posts: 0
Likes:
|
Post by Deleted on Apr 17, 2014 12:55:44 GMT -5
long story short :
|
|
|
Post by newey on Apr 17, 2014 12:59:31 GMT -5
Well, better than it was . . .
|
|
Deleted
Deleted Member
Posts: 0
Likes:
|
Post by Deleted on Apr 17, 2014 13:17:12 GMT -5
Well, better than it was . . . acrylic man! the poor man's answer to color! Tomorrow some water-based varnish is due to take place.
|
|
Deleted
Deleted Member
Posts: 0
Likes:
|
Post by Deleted on Apr 26, 2014 13:56:43 GMT -5
with acrylic varnish :
|
|
|
Post by newey on Apr 27, 2014 6:11:54 GMT -5
You have done well, grasshopper . . .
|
|
Deleted
Deleted Member
Posts: 0
Likes:
|
Post by Deleted on Apr 27, 2014 9:00:42 GMT -5
Thanx! i think its a little lighter in weight than it was, but it plays as good!
|
|