Comment

Comment by David McQueen on November 5, 2013 at 2:13pm

You can get the brass at a hobby shop. I used 3/32" rod because 1/16" does not fit in my drill. If you stay small, you can nip it off using the same tool as you are using to nip your frets. I did one using 1/8". My tool would not cut it so I had to saw each marker, which was a real pain.

Comment by Andy Parkin on November 5, 2013 at 10:35am

This is Great David! At first glance it looks like one of mine, but reading about your materials and construction, not at all. It's beautiful! Natural wood n brass.. hmmmmm. Every one of our homespun guitars is so different, it's great

Comment by David McQueen on November 5, 2013 at 9:52am

I have a friend with a potable saw mill in Northern Ontario. So these are the woods native to there as opposed to oak, maple and other hardwoods from further south.

The tamarack AKA larch, is a really strange wood. It is not normally used for this type of thing. It is very dense. It likes to warp. you can bury it in the ground for 50 years and it won't rot. Try to burn it in a wood stove and it will burn right through. So it has been really interesting trying to work with it. This is the second CBG I have used it in. I have one piece left. So far I have had no problems.

Comment by Uncle John on November 5, 2013 at 7:32am

Neat to have access to those good woods.

Comment by David McQueen on November 5, 2013 at 2:00am

Probably can. Google is my friend. It must be done.

The top is interesting. It was a slab of tamarack about 5/16" thick. Tamarack is really tough and I couldn't sand it down. So I cut it in slices and ran the slices through my planer. Then I glued it back together. I was pretty much able to keep the look of the original grain.

The paper birch on the fret board is not stained ( actually, nothing is stained). That is the colour it goes after about 6 heavy coats of mineral oil. I am hoping that will be enough to prevent some soiling if it gets heavy use.

The black ash is a real kick to work with. It has the same grain as red oak but has a honey colour when finished. It is a little softer. Where oak feels hard and slightly brittle when working it, this has almost a spongy feel. It is rediculously difficult to plane it down. It is like the blades are just bouncing off the wood instead of cutting.

Comment by Uncle John on November 5, 2013 at 1:42am

Handsome.  Very nice and so different in theme and woods.   Love the woods.  Can you play the Lumberjack song?