[Dublin82]

I am starting this thread in order to keep track of my first guitar build. I've barely started and I still haven't planned every part out or chosen every color yet but I have decided to build a Telecaster style guitar. I received the piece of Ash in the mail this morning and apparently my first step is going to be to laminate two pieces together as the wood is only 9" wide. I'll most likely be uploading pictures of every step and asking questions along the way so I appreciate any help that I receive. I'm very excited.

 

[RIFF WRATH]

Congrats.
Still anxiously waiting on my kit. To do from scratch is out of my league at this point. Are you building or buying the neck?
cheers
RIFF

 

[Dublin82]

I'm pretty sure I'll be buying the neck. That seems like something that has to be perfect or it just won't sound right.

 

[Lowtones]

Congratulations, I look forward to watching your build.

 

[elcabong]

Congrats! Interesting project; do you have any drawings or reference?

This is something I may try in the future. I will be watching. :banana:

 

[Dublin82]

Yeah I've got a scanned drawing and someone had a hand sketch that they sent me.

 

[Dublin82]

Here is the drawing I received and printed at work. I was able to print it at work using a plotter so it's scaled at 1:1.

Here's the piece of Ash that I ordered. It's 54" long, 9" wide and 2" thick.

I glued the drawing to a piece of MDF and cut it out using a bandsaw. After sanding the edges to match the drawing perfectly I can use it as a template to cut out the Ash once it's laminated.

 

[bagpipe]

I had a telecaster made for me by one of the "old hands" on TDPRI. He sent me pictures of the guitar in progress. I posted them on this website - they may be of some use to you:

Tele

 

[peter benn]

Dublin 82: Before you get too far with drilling holes, obtain a real US Fender OV bridge, and the US ferrules, and the US neck plate. Having a quality neck with machines mounted ahead of time won't hurt, either. Plus a quality pickguard. This is all to prevent misalignment of key parts that might spoil your later aesthetic and utilitarian experience.

 

[Dublin82]

Yeah I was going to see which parts I should order first. I was going to use 'Warmoth.com'.

 

[Dublin82]

Almost done sanding the template edges. I'm going to order some parts in the next few days but I can't afford to order everything at once. Which are the first one's I should get?

 

[Hamm Guitars]

The bridge and the complete neck (with nut machine heads, plate and bolts). Playability comes first and you will need to mock up the guitar to make sure you are on the right track.

The pickguard is important, but it can be 'made to fit' if you need to make minor adjustments. It would really suck to find out that your pickup is off center at the end of the build, so I would recomend exercising a little patience and gathering all of the parts first, it might save you some grief.

 

[Dublin82]

Does anyone have a typical parts list for a Telecaster. I want to make sure I've ordered every part I need and don't have to wait for a screw or something small that I forgot. So far I've listed:

Body
Neck
Pickup - Lead
Pickup - Rhythm
Bridge
Tuning Machines
String Ferrules
Pickguard
Neck Plate
Knob - Volume
Knob - Tone
Knob - Switch
Input Jack
Input Cup
Strap Holders

 

[elcabong]

Body
Neck
Pickup - Lead
Pickup - Rhythm
Bridge
Tuning Machines
String Ferrules
Pickguard
Neck Plate
Knob - Volume
Knob - Tone
Knob - Switch
Input Jack
Input Cup
Strap Holders

A few things I do not see in your list (some may be bundled with your items):

Selector switch
Neck plate screws
Pickguard screws
Control plate
Pots

That's about all I can think of!

 

[Dublin82]

Finally some progress! I ordered the neck from Warmoth.com. I went with their "Pro" Telecaster neck, unfinished (so I'll be doing that myself), "Boat" radius on the back of the neck and drilled for "Gotoh Tuners" which I'll be ordering in a few weeks. I ordered this first just so I could make sure I router the body out to the right size where it connects to the neck. Any tips for finishing the neck yourself?

 

[Greenman]

For the back of two of my basses necks I used Minwax Fast-Drying satin polyurethane. It feels fast and not sticky like some gloss finishes. Cheap and easy to use.

 

[Dublin82]

Cool thanks. So I just buy a can of this stuff and follow the directions?

 

[Greenman]

Cool thanks. So I just buy a can of this stuff and follow the directions?

Warmoth necks come sealed with an oil based sealer so they are ready to go. Just scuff and clean before and between coats.

 

[Lowtones]

Two things I would like to suggest. 1. The first thing that you must do is mark a center line on the guitar body as well as your template to use as a reference for everything else. Then mark a centerline down the neck when you get it. I use a regular pencil or a white colored pencil for darker wood. The reason for this that if your neck pocket is not perfect, You have the necesary reference to be able to accurately align the neck, body and center the bridge. You can check this with a straight edge. If those are true then everything else will be. I mark the center of everything when I make a guitar. If the mark gets sanded or rubbed out I re-draw it. It's an essential reference.
2. For finishing your neck I would like to suggest Min Wax tung oil. There are many brands of tung oil on the market but from personal experience Min Wax is great for this application. It will give you a very pro looking finish in either gloss or satin. Just apply a light coat with a sponge stick and wait two or three minutes and wipe it off with a lint free cloth. You should then let it dry for at least six hours. Usually you can do two coats a day and lightly scuff every two or three coats with 0000 steel wool. It will take about six coats to really build it up but you will get a great finish. Do not try to brush it on and let it dry thick as it will not turn out as well. After you have built the neck up to the finish you want, very lightly buff the neck one last time with the steel wool then wipe it down with Old English furniture oil. You will have a slick and sexy feeling neck that will look like it came right off of the show room floor.

 

[Greenman]

Unfortunately Warmoth will not waranty a neck with an oil finish unless it's Tru-Oil.