Improvements To The Body

2013-11-13

Sanding away the blue

The blue color and dull finish had to go. This meant another big round of sanding. I worked mostly with sandpaper, chisels, and files. I used rotary tools on the curved edges. And I borrowed a router to do the new recesses for the cover plates.

Both of the previous guitars were heavy. That gave me a freedom to remove as much material as I wanted. Removing material improved the look and the weight.

Sanding away the blue

As part of shaping the body, I filled in some low spots and sanded them to match the wood. I also routed out recesses for new cover plates which would cover the unused voids from the previous phases.

Horns Area

Improving the horn shapes

The inside of the horns are a hard area to work on. I used rotary tools, files, and sandpaper to slowly work the horns into shape. And patience!

Improved horns

This photo shows the area where the horns join the body. I worked on carrying the circle across from one horn to the other. I also cleaned up and squared up the flange where the neck mounts.

I don’t love this heel design, but it was made necessary back when I first designed the body.

End Of Body Shaping

After sanding and shaping

This photo was taken after most of the body sanding and shaping was finished. In this photo I am setting threaded inserts, which will allow the pickguard to clamp down tightly.