new guitar build ideas plz

[pyrroz]

Hello, good ol' Pyrros here with some plans for a new guitar, my #7 (the #6 is an acoustic). Here is the deal :

as back in the 2011 when I joined here not much have changed, still after the same configuration : white body, maple fretboard, scalloped frets, 22 frets, easy heel access (shaved/bevelled/contoured heel) , HSH , + floyd rose .

I have the neck, non scalloped non floyd, pretty good and tested on a guitar for a considerable amount of time. So as far as neck is concerned the only job to be done is the scalloping and routing for a locking nut.

Now the nody, I dont have any available guitar body. It is easier to source a white normal heel, normal trem routing, SSS strat body, than what I am looking after.

I have no woodworking power tools at all. What are my best bets? Going to my trusted luthier would be an option but his stuborness is turning me away.

[frets]

Hi Pyrroz,
So you’re looking for an HSH Floyd Rose routed body? Do you have a price point in mind and do you want it finished or unfinished? I have a couple of good online resources that you can trust to make you a good body.

[pyrroz]

Dec 24, 2020 13:49:46 GMT -5 frets said:

Hi Pyrroz,
So you’re looking for an HSH Floyd Rose routed body? Do you have a price point in mind and do you want it finished or unfinished? I have a couple of good online resources that you can trust to make you a good body.

thnx Frets ! (merry Xmas btw), I have seen the GFS bodies. I want it finished white, minimal job to be done by me. Also buying from USA/CA/AUS/JPN/KOE/CHI is a problem, lots of taxes, high shipping costs.

[thetragichero]

with some practice, a drill (decent quality, variable speed from say 500 to 3000+ rpm) with some quality forstner bits along with some quality chisels can serve as a router. this is what i use for everything besides beveled edges on cabinets (for which i use a router table. much more confident using this than a router in free space)
i use a handheld band saw for rough cutting bodies but a jig saw could be used (i don't care for em with anything thicker than 3/4" ply because the blades tend to angle out). a spoke shave and a rasp can do the finer work and contours
then you need a piece of wood and some sharp drill bits (i prefer brad point so that i know the hole goes where i want it to) and some bravery, along with a full size template (there are some sites with pdfs of many popular body shapes. print in poster mode, cut out
the overlap, tape together, and start tracing). make sure to work from a good center line so that everything goes straight

[newey]

There are any number of places that will make you a "custom" guitar body, but "custom" in this area means you choose from a series of pre-defined options, it's not "hey, whatever you want!". Warmoth can get you everything you want- Alpine White finish, FR rout, HSH, etc, everything except for the contoured heel. And, of course, if you buy it already finished, then you can't countour the heel yourself. And, what you want from Warmoth will set you back about $500 USD.

USA Custom Guitars tended to be a bit cheaper than Warmoth, I bought a Tele body from them years ago, but last time I looked, they had merged with someone else and their website was not up and running.

If you've got the neck already, it would probably be cheaper to find a whole guitar with the features you want and swap out the neck. How about this for a multi-step plan?:

1) Locally (meaning in the EU, to avoid customs duties, etc.), find a cheap, white HSH guitar with a FR rout and with a neck pocket that will fit your neck (which hopefully isn't some oddball size). This guitar will no doubt have cheap pickups and hardware, and probably a crappy neck.

2) Strip out all the pickups and hardware, remove the neck. Sell all that stuff to recoup some of your cost.

3) Get your neck work done and mount your neck.

4) Buy the pickups, FR trem, etc that you want and reassemble the guitar.

5) Play it and enjoy it.

I'd be willing to bet this would be a much cheaper way to go than having a custom body built.

[frets]

Hi Pyrroz,

I have several recommendations for bodies that I personally know are of good quality and craftmanship. and won’t break the bank (still expensive though). The first is BYO Guitar. They build the best bodies with the best materials at the lowest price point. You can order a custom made two piece swamp ash (or other wood you prefer) HSH with Floyd Rose rout, front or rear cavity for $172 ($20 more for a rear rout). It comes unfinished but you could ask them to do it in white for an additional $50; or, you could ask your Luthier friend to shoot it. So, somewhere around $230-$250 for a two piece swamp ash HSH finished. www.byoguitar.com/Guitars/BYO-Custom-Shop-ST-Body__BYO-CS-ST.aspx

Another firm I’m familiar with that does excellent work and is fairly priced is Alloy Guitars. www.alloyguitars.com/
With they, you can tell them exactly what you want and they’ll build it for you. Expect about $300 for a painted body.

If you “go” with a GFS, be sure to buy a “non blem” body. If you buy one of their cheaper HSH bodies with a Rose rout, you will not be happy with their bargain or blem items. Every guy I’ve seen who bought one had a body they brought to me to fix the Rose rout. So just a bit of advice, if you go with GFS, you’ll save yourself a lot of headaches if you buy their standard full price bodies. Expect to get basswood.

One last one that produces decent quality bodies is Allen Eden at aeguitars.com/

Again, you’d have to request the body you wanted according to your specifications.

Like Newey said, there are a lot of body builders. The ones I recommended are in the lower priced good quality category. If you decide to go with a custom builder, expect to pay $400+ for a high quality body.

[pyrroz]

I thank all my good old friends from 10 yrs back!

Merry Xmas!

Lots of good advice here, I'll research them.

[newbe]

I have just finished making a one piece strat guitar with hand tools a drill and a router. I made the jigs by hand for use with the router but you can use wood planes as well and this is what I did for the finishing, the router was used for flattening and basic shaping. The truss rod and titanium bars was also used with the router in the neck. all other work was used with hand tools. I an only a hobbyist woodworker.
If you do the work yourself just take your time, it took me 9 months to make the guitar, so I would suggest you have a go.