Tiny Offset project...

Talk about modding or building your own guitar from scratch.
User avatar
Don_Karnage
PAT. # 2.972.923
PAT. # 2.972.923
Posts: 72
Joined: Sat Apr 07, 2018 4:42 am

Re: Tiny Offset project...

Post by Don_Karnage » Sat Apr 07, 2018 9:54 am

Really cool project! I like the headstock shape but can't decide if I like the "two-tone" thing... Love that tailpiece though!

User avatar
solfege
PAT. # 2.972.923
PAT. # 2.972.923
Posts: 544
Joined: Sat Feb 10, 2018 5:05 pm
Location: Philly

Re: Tiny Offset project...

Post by solfege » Sat Apr 07, 2018 1:04 pm

I think I like the 2-tone headstock too. Be interested to see how it looks relative to the body and the overall shape of the guitar, though.

User avatar
epizootics
PAT. # 2.972.923
PAT. # 2.972.923
Posts: 719
Joined: Wed Jun 28, 2017 10:29 pm
Location: Lyon, France

Re: Tiny Offset project...

Post by epizootics » Sun Apr 08, 2018 1:58 am

Cheers guys!

The headstock seems to make more sense when seen with the body. Basically, the two-tone thing mirrors the contrast between the sapwood and heartwood.

Image

Image

(sorry for the filters, it's really bright in the flat today and I tried...and failed...to get something closer to the actual colors)

I'm thinking I'll stick to a small round steel plate on the headstock, centered on the line between the two woods. I also added the paper template for the pickguard. The guitar will only have a volume control and one of those small metal three-way selectors.

User avatar
Don_Karnage
PAT. # 2.972.923
PAT. # 2.972.923
Posts: 72
Joined: Sat Apr 07, 2018 4:42 am

Re: Tiny Offset project...

Post by Don_Karnage » Sun Apr 08, 2018 2:49 am

Maybe if you made the darker piece have a bit of an angle towards the rest of the headstock? Might make it look a bit more as if it was made on purpose?
Love that idea for a pickguard on those last pictures btw! Makes it look a lot more like a complete guitar.

User avatar
solfege
PAT. # 2.972.923
PAT. # 2.972.923
Posts: 544
Joined: Sat Feb 10, 2018 5:05 pm
Location: Philly

Re: Tiny Offset project...

Post by solfege » Mon Apr 09, 2018 2:16 pm

epizootics wrote:
Sun Apr 08, 2018 1:58 am
Cheers guys!

The headstock seems to make more sense when seen with the body. Basically, the two-tone thing mirrors the contrast between the sapwood and heartwood.

Image

I also added the paper template for the pickguard. The guitar will only have a volume control and one of those small metal three-way selectors.
Oh with the pickguard it makes such perfect sense. There's a virtual line between it and the line on the headstock that I really like. I'd tweak the angle of the bottom of the pickguard to better parallel the downward angle of the body next to it, however. Unless you're really rolling with the cubist multiple perspectives thing.

User avatar
epizootics
PAT. # 2.972.923
PAT. # 2.972.923
Posts: 719
Joined: Wed Jun 28, 2017 10:29 pm
Location: Lyon, France

Re: Tiny Offset project...

Post by epizootics » Sun Apr 22, 2018 9:45 pm

Phew...This guitar should have been completed days ago but my wife and I caught a horrible stomach bug which had us paralyzed in a nauseous comatose for almost two weeks. Damn Spring and its germs! I did manage to catch up a little bit this week-end, though:

Image

I ended up going the Dog Ear route with the pickups. The not-so-cool thing with bakelite is that it is BRITTLE, I should have known better...The tops cracked a bit when I inserted the magnets in the bobbin. It'll either give the guitar a lived-in vibe or just look sloppy, I'll see how they come out after potting.

The pickguard was fashioned out of some leftover stainless steel sheet I found in a skip on my street. Very practical to live in a city where every other building seems to be a work site. The jack socket mounting is an SS washer, it still needs polishing but I should have thought of that years ago, it is a perfect solution for surface mounting. I have had to be very careful in placing everything, what with that body being so tiny. Next project is going to be a huge offset inspired by the Crucianelli Elite, and I'm kinda looking forward to working on something less claustrophobic ::)

Almost there...

User avatar
epizootics
PAT. # 2.972.923
PAT. # 2.972.923
Posts: 719
Joined: Wed Jun 28, 2017 10:29 pm
Location: Lyon, France

Re: Tiny Offset project...

Post by epizootics » Sun Apr 29, 2018 3:40 am

Uh. I feel a bit guilty but I could not resist assembling the guitar for a test ride at practice yesterday although it is not finished yet. I usually justify my inability to wait by saying I had to make sure all the parts fitted before I got started on the finish... :whistle:

So here is the little bugger at the minute:

Image

Image

Image

I still need to round off the sides of the tailpiece, polish the metal bits, and fill up that stupid rabbet I wish I had never routed in the first place, then spend a week shellac-ing the hell out of it, but it is functional as is. Actually, test-assembling it was not completely futile, I realized I needed to trim the insides of the visible part of the pickup cavities around the dog ears, which are a bit too tight right now. I was a bit apprehensive as this was my first real "from the scratch" design, and I wasn't sure the odd shape would work with a human body. I must say I was pleasantly surprised...That bridge & tailpiece setup is really comfortable to play and leaves enough meat behind the tune-o-matic for the hand to sit properly in spite of the tiny body.

The guitar's relatively light weight (there's still a lot of heavy metal screwed onto that little piece of wood) wasn't unwelcome after a seven-hour long practice! It does neck dive a bit though, I need to find a better position for the strap pin at the front. the good thing is that it is currently attached to the middle of the rabbet, and the hole will disappear under the finish later on.

In terms of sound...Gee, I think I really like those Rick-ish pickups. Enough so to make me want to start making a Jazzmaster version of it, as they would fit without any problem under a JM cover provided the holes are enlarged to 6mm. I went for a single 500K volume pot (no space left for a tone pot!) and that bridge pu' really BITES! Plenty of jangle and twang depending on the picking area. The mid position is more civilized, with crisp highs and round mids. The neck position makes me wonder if I didn't route the cavity too close to the neckbecause it is a bit too bassy for my liking, but it gives a nice counterpoint to the treble aggression of the bridge. Anyway, I recorded little snippets with my silly ass VST guitar plugin:

https://soundcloud.com/not-i-records/neck

https://soundcloud.com/not-i-records/middle

https://soundcloud.com/not-i-records/bridge


Now I need to finish it by the 10th of May if I want to try it in a gigging situation... :squint:

User avatar
antisymmetric
PAT. # 2.972.923
PAT. # 2.972.923
Posts: 3601
Joined: Mon Apr 26, 2010 11:32 pm
Location: New Zealand

Re: Tiny Offset project...

Post by antisymmetric » Sun Apr 29, 2018 12:56 pm

Awesome! Sounds great, and some cool visual details too- the latest being those pickups that look "floating", and those pointy recessed dog-ears as well. Inspiring to see some fresh ideas. :) 8)
Watching the corners turn corners

User avatar
marqueemoon
PAT. # 2.972.923
PAT. # 2.972.923
Posts: 7343
Joined: Mon Jun 20, 2016 9:37 pm
Location: Seattle

Re: Tiny Offset project...

Post by marqueemoon » Sun Apr 29, 2018 2:20 pm

Love the sounds!

User avatar
Rgand
PAT. # 2.972.923
PAT. # 2.972.923
Posts: 1171
Joined: Sun Mar 05, 2017 3:55 pm

Re: Tiny Offset project...

Post by Rgand » Sun Apr 29, 2018 2:38 pm

I just found this thread. What a great idea! Looks and sounds great. Very, very nice.

User avatar
epizootics
PAT. # 2.972.923
PAT. # 2.972.923
Posts: 719
Joined: Wed Jun 28, 2017 10:29 pm
Location: Lyon, France

Re: Tiny Offset project...

Post by epizootics » Sat May 12, 2018 9:54 am

Finally...

Image

Image

Image

It is technically *not* finished yet but I am going to have to keep this one on the shelf for now - I have my first order ever ( :) ), which is going to be this one's big sister:

Image


I gigged it for the first time the other night (hence the dings!). Man, is it a pleasure to have super-light guitar. No back pain. My jumping around was greatly improved.
I gave it a few coats of shellac, put proper tuning gears on the neck, finished the metal parts and...voilà for now. The filling up of the rabbet will have to wait.

I also realized I had switched the pickups around when I first assembled it, which is why the neck pickup was this dark originally!

I'll make a video tomorrow of this funky little beast...

Post Reply