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Neck Help

Okay, I jumped in to this wonderful hobby last night by picking up materials for my first build. Local cigar shop hooked me up with some boxes and I picked up some poplar 1x2s. Got home, measured things out and started trying to remove wood on the neck so that it would fit into the box and the lid would close. I have limited handtools and a few hand power tools. I first tried a long rasp that I had and after about 10 minutes, realized that this was not going to work. Then I took a small hand saw and sawed straight down to the depth that I needed and did this every 1/4 inch. I then took a skil saw and removed the pieces. This was very uneven and now I have to take the rasp and try to straighten it all out. Is there an easier way to remove this wood without a band saw? I have a Dremel but could not figure out a way to use it. I don't mind buying what I need and if a band saw is what I need, I guess I can find one but would prefer to keep things on the cheap. Thanks.

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Permalink Reply by Dan Sleep on April 19, 2012 at 2:01am

Are you talking about notching the neck so the lid fits down into it? Can you post a pic of what you have so far?

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Permalink Reply by Dan Sleep on April 19, 2012 at 2:02am

And BTW, having a band saw will make a HUGE difference, and make it much, much easier to build.

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Permalink Reply by Tnfishdaddy on April 19, 2012 at 3:15am

Yes, I am talking about notching the neck so the lid fits down. Also going to need to do the same for the head area of the neck. I will post pictures later tonight. Good news is I think I scored a band saw from a guy that I teach with who has a smaller (9") band saw that is going to let me borrow it. Keeping my fingers crossed.

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Permalink Reply by Bad Finger (Eric) on April 19, 2012 at 3:18am

You dont need a band saw! Gwt a set of chisels and remove the poplar like butter. Use those vertical cuts you made and pry off the bits then smooth. Use the rasp and file to finish.

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Permalink Reply by BT Cohosh on April 19, 2012 at 6:11am

Second what Ed said: use a sharp chisel to knock the slices out. I smooth with a rasp/file combo, but, remember, that part doesn't show, so it just needs to be "smooth enough"--which means whatever you want it to mean.

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Permalink Reply by Bad Finger (Eric) on April 20, 2012 at 3:13am

Yep, and the same method works great from my super-high tech, newest model, most favorite, money can't buy poverty, workbench.

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Permalink Reply by Tnfishdaddy on April 20, 2012 at 3:47am

That's awesome. Lol. Might have to give that a try so I can watch television while I am working. Of course the wife might frown on all the sawdust.

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Permalink Reply by Bad Finger (Eric) on April 20, 2012 at 4:10am

I'm sitting on a 5 gallon bucket and I have my smartphone sitting on something next to me. Streaming Netflix. :)

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Permalink Reply by BenBob on April 19, 2012 at 6:26am

Coping saw will do it, but I'm not sure it's faster than a chisel.

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Permalink Reply by the anonymous pick on April 19, 2012 at 8:35pm

you can avoid this cut alltogether , by just attaching the neck to the inside of the box .. and then placing a fretboard on the neck that is the same thickness as the box lid to make it flush .

ie; if your box lid is a 1/4 inch thick ,, use a 1/4 inch fretboard .. so its flush on top .

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Permalink Reply by Tnfishdaddy on April 20, 2012 at 3:49am

What are you using as fretboard? I like the idea of a separate fret board but that seems like more cutting and extra steps. Is there a board sold in that size that is easy to find?

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Permalink Reply by Bad Finger (Eric) on April 20, 2012 at 4:12am

You can get the same 2" width boards that are thinner. Just glue to the neck board and you're good to go. You might consider keeping the fret board at least 1/8" higher than the box lid so you have enough room to strum and still low action over the frets. Unless you're doing slide-only.