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what's your method of thinning the headstock?

Posted by SoulStew on January 7, 2014 at 1:05pm in Building Secrets, Tips, Advice, Discussion

I have been searching for a good way to thin down the headstock on a CBG I plan on building in the near future but have not found a good example of what I should do.

The neck and headstock will be built out of 1x so without any shaping the headstock will be 3/4" thick. I am going to put a scarf joint on the neck/headstock at about 15 degrees and then glue on "wings" to get the width I want.

What will be the best way to thin down the headstock an 1/8 of an inch or so? should I take it off the front side, back side, or both? Should I sand it off or use a saw? I'm definitely a little confused. I have searched for pictures or video (being able to see it would help me out) but have had a hard time finding anything.

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Replies

  • Manny Lopez February 2, 2014 at 4:57pm

    I have used a router and a table saw.

    The router table was a bit small and getting a nice clean job was near impossible. I would assume a better and more stable table would have made this much less of an issue. There was still some tearout in a few spots as well, but proper router technique (scoring) would have mitigated that.

    The table saw I used was in a high end cabinet shop, and this was the method suggested by a cabinet maker. I just made a series of crosscuts a blade width at a time. Afterwards i pulled the piece lengthwise across the blade to remove many of the kerf marks left by the blade. Minimal hand sanding was required and due to the blades direction, there was minimal pulling from the tool. It may be more time consuming and less sustainable as you need to run the saw for a bit longer than the router, but it really makes a clean job of it, and ensures good crisp cuts and 90 degree angles.

    Next I will try some scarf joints.

  • John Drake January 25, 2014 at 1:30am
    Have a look at this old thread.

    I posted photos of how I cut a scarf joint and thin the headstock

    http://www.cigarboxnation.com/forum/topics/cuting-out-head-stocks?c...

    Regards John D
    • RTZGUITARS > John Drake January 26, 2014 at 12:45am

      A router if you have one  table saw.    I shape neck with these   just mark the sides and grate some cheeze

      21-295_L.gif

      251305xlg.jpg

  • 14 buck bass (aka antonio) January 23, 2014 at 6:16pm

    a nice tool that works well and also works well for shaping necks , one that i enjoy using . Because i come from a metal fabricating background i happened to have it in my shop. since i had no wood working tools at the time.  A 4 1/2 angle grinder. put a nice 80 grit flap disk on it. not the tapered kind but the boxy kind and you can shave and shape all day long with it.  its quite handy. and you can buy a cheapy at harbor freight for like 10 or 12 bucks. with the online cuepon.

  • Matt January 23, 2014 at 5:58pm

    I love reading ya'lls methods here...

    I have no tools, and poor wood working skills, so to inlet for the box lid, I use the method illustrated by Reeds Taylor, but I have no chisels yet, so I shove a flathead screwdriver in my cuts and wiggle it back and forth till the piece breaks loose and pops out, then clean it up with a file and sandpaper.

    For thinning down the backside of my neck, I pop out the old Ka-Bar Komodo folder and shave off slivers till it looks right, then clean it up with a file and sandpaper.

    Redneck ways...I gotta get me some tools!

  • Dan Bullard January 11, 2014 at 8:06am
    The easiest method I use is this. At a yard sale I stopped and found a router, very inexpensive. And found a router table on craigslist. Installed the router under the table and adjusted it to the height I desired and trimmed all I needed away. Fast, cheap and easiest way to do it. Done in less than a minute. Minimal sanding also. Router was $10 and table was $15. Also use it to trim a small area under soundboard for the piezo to rest. Happy building.
  • Hellhound Custom Built Guitars January 10, 2014 at 2:05pm

    quick and the dirty for me is I have just started doing scarf joints myself. I have used probally all of the methods mentioned above but in the sake of not aggravating myself I have found that using two diffrent boards one being standard 1x for the neck then i cut my scarf and i have another board which is standard purchace at lowes not sure of the exact dimensions but it the perfect thickness already and wide enough you dont need wings probally a 5/8 x 2 do the reverse scarf on this piece. I do it all on my table saw with good results. glue them together, shape head stock , top with fret board and you are off and running.. Welcome to the nation build lots and play often....

  • Warren Shirley January 8, 2014 at 7:40pm

    I get my 1x2's at Lowes or Home Depot. In some bins underneath this wood is some 1/2" x 2 wood. I cut my 12 degree angle on both of these  and now have a 1/2 thick peg head.

  • SoulStew January 8, 2014 at 6:51pm

     In regards to the picture Reeds Taylor posted.. I'm going to be put a 15 degree scarf joint on the neck/headstock so I will have plenty of angle to get good pressure on the nut. I don't like the look of that style headstock anyway, which is why I'm going the scarf joint route.

    My tuners don't quite go through and screw together in a 3/4" headstock. That is why I needed to thin the thing down a bit. All is well now and I believe I have it figured out.

    Thanks again Y'all.

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