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Re: What's on your workbench right now?

Posted: Mon Dec 31, 2018 6:10 am
by rank
mackerelmint wrote:
Mon Dec 31, 2018 3:48 am
Not exactly on the bench YET, but...

I just bought a lathe? It'll take a few weeks to get here, but I guess I'm officially charging into the market void left by Staytrem's exit from global commerce. :derp:

So once I've found my legs with my cool new tool, I'll probably make a few sets as freebies for OSG folk who're willing to test 'em and give me feedback so I can make whatever refinements need doing. It's a stupid simple object to manufacture, but I'm new to this and need to get it right. Planning on making them in brass and nickel plated steel in 7.25 and 9.5 radii.

So watch this space, I guess. This is happening. :bored: :wacko: :wtf: :derp: :D
That is fantastic to hear! Good luck with it!

Re: What's on your workbench right now?

Posted: Mon Dec 31, 2018 12:36 pm
by mackerelmint
Shadoweclipse13 wrote:
Mon Dec 31, 2018 4:35 am
Nice!! What lathe did you end up getting?
Oh, just a harbor freight chineseum one thanks to Trump's moronic trade war. Once all the tariffs and duties and shipping were factored in on the one I wanted, it wasn't at all affordable or even cost effective. So I'll put in the work and make better parts for it and swap out the spindle bearings to kill the runout and get better finishes. It'll make all the saddles I want and also the little parts I'm planning on making for my car. It'll pay for a bigger one when it's time for that, I'm sure, so it's OK that I didn't get the one I really wanted. I can leapfrog that one when it's time for an upgrade and find a good example of an older, skookum production lathe that'll also let me turn gun barrels. I also got to use one of those infamous HF coupons and save a bunch of money, so that's pretty good.

Re: What's on your workbench right now?

Posted: Mon Dec 31, 2018 12:40 pm
by mackerelmint
rank wrote:
Mon Dec 31, 2018 6:10 am
mackerelmint wrote:
Mon Dec 31, 2018 3:48 am
Not exactly on the bench YET, but...

I just bought a lathe? It'll take a few weeks to get here, but I guess I'm officially charging into the market void left by Staytrem's exit from global commerce. :derp:

So once I've found my legs with my cool new tool, I'll probably make a few sets as freebies for OSG folk who're willing to test 'em and give me feedback so I can make whatever refinements need doing. It's a stupid simple object to manufacture, but I'm new to this and need to get it right. Planning on making them in brass and nickel plated steel in 7.25 and 9.5 radii.

So watch this space, I guess. This is happening. :bored: :wacko: :wtf: :derp: :D
That is fantastic to hear! Good luck with it!
Thanks, man! You know, I've felt for a while that I owe you for that shipping mistake I made and the hassle that caused for you, so if you want a set, just let me know. You were more patient than I deserved. It'd make me happy to repay that kindness.

Re: What's on your workbench right now?

Posted: Mon Dec 31, 2018 1:46 pm
by rank
mackerelmint wrote:
Mon Dec 31, 2018 12:40 pm
Thanks, man! You know, I've felt for a while that I owe you for that shipping mistake I made and the hassle that caused for you, so if you want a set, just let me know. You were more patient than I deserved. It'd make me happy to repay that kindness.
I would love to try it out because it sounds like it will be great but you certainly don't owe me anything. Things like that happen & was no hassle for me really. It was unfortunate that the guy was uncommunicative for so long but I always felt it was more of a hassle for you because we couldn't get an answer from them.

Re: What's on your workbench right now?

Posted: Mon Dec 31, 2018 1:50 pm
by mackerelmint
^^^

That's mighty kind of you. All the same, when I'm up and running, just shoot me a PM and let me know what spec you'd like and your address and I'll send you a set.

Re: What's on your workbench right now?

Posted: Mon Dec 31, 2018 3:59 pm
by blimpage
mackerelmint wrote:
Mon Dec 31, 2018 3:48 am
Not exactly on the bench YET, but...

I just bought a lathe? It'll take a few weeks to get here, but I guess I'm officially charging into the market void left by Staytrem's exit from global commerce. :derp:

So once I've found my legs with my cool new tool, I'll probably make a few sets as freebies for OSG folk who're willing to test 'em and give me feedback so I can make whatever refinements need doing. It's a stupid simple object to manufacture, but I'm new to this and need to get it right. Planning on making them in brass and nickel plated steel in 7.25 and 9.5 radii.

So watch this space, I guess. This is happening. :bored: :wacko: :wtf: :derp: :D
🤩🤩🤩That's fantastic! Can't wait to see/hear/buy more!

Re: What's on your workbench right now?

Posted: Wed Jan 02, 2019 4:54 pm
by solfege
mackerelmint wrote:
Mon Dec 31, 2018 3:48 am
Not exactly on the bench YET, but...

I just bought a lathe? It'll take a few weeks to get here, but I guess I'm officially charging into the market void left by Staytrem's exit from global commerce. :derp:

So once I've found my legs with my cool new tool, I'll probably make a few sets as freebies for OSG folk who're willing to test 'em and give me feedback so I can make whatever refinements need doing. It's a stupid simple object to manufacture, but I'm new to this and need to get it right. Planning on making them in brass and nickel plated steel in 7.25 and 9.5 radii.

So watch this space, I guess. This is happening. :bored: :wacko: :wtf: :derp: :D
Sign me up for testing if need be!

Re: What's on your workbench right now?

Posted: Thu Jan 03, 2019 7:28 am
by epizootics
I'd love to say I'm in too, but postage to France might make it expensive. I'll buy one when it's OSG approved though :)

This silly little thing is on my workbench right now:

Image


...which not so long ago looked just like this one:

Image


Someone from my old work gave it to me and I really needed a pickup test guitar. So far, I've been using my gigging instruments for that purpose, but I could do with something that would allow me to put them in/take them out faster. And since I'm too vain to keep that godawful-looking guitar in its original shape, I modified it a wee bit :ph34r:

Re: What's on your workbench right now?

Posted: Thu Jan 03, 2019 7:55 am
by Rgand
epizootics wrote:
Thu Jan 03, 2019 7:28 am
This silly little thing is on my workbench right now:

Image
I like it. Please post a pic when it's done, assuming you'll put a finish on it. Where will you put the strap buton? On one of the neck screws?

Re: What's on your workbench right now?

Posted: Thu Jan 03, 2019 9:40 pm
by epizootics
Rgand wrote:
Thu Jan 03, 2019 7:55 am
epizootics wrote:
Thu Jan 03, 2019 7:28 am
This silly little thing is on my workbench right now:

Image
I like it. Please post a pic when it's done, assuming you'll put a finish on it. Where will you put the strap buton? On one of the neck screws?
That's a good question, one that always makes me scratch my head for a week before I get fed up and drill a hole in the wrong place. Experience taught me to do this *before* finishing :) I'm never sure with those short-horned guitars, I was going to go for the upper horn but maybe that's not a good idea?

Finish will be minimal - I'll just smooth out the sides, giv'em a bit of a stain and rub in some PU. It won't be a pretty guitar, as I'll have to make something of an Olympic swimming pool route in the middle of it, since I need the room to put all sorts of pickups in there - I have been working on prototypes that are even larger than JM pu's, and will still need some extra room to wiggle them in. I'm thinking of routing out a 1" wide strip along the pickup route and replace the original wood with another one that will snap in and out using neo magnets. I also need to work out a way to make it plug & play - maybe those snap-in speaker connectors like the ones you find at the back of hi-fi amps? Each pickup will have an on/off switch, and the pots will be 1Meg with a circuit in which I can just insert a resistor in parallel to bring the resistance down to 500k/330k/250k. I'd like to pick Shadow Eclipse's brains about this one...

Re: What's on your workbench right now?

Posted: Thu Jan 03, 2019 9:45 pm
by blimpage
epizootics wrote:
Thu Jan 03, 2019 7:28 am
This silly little thing is on my workbench right now:

Image
Looks way better now!

Re: What's on your workbench right now?

Posted: Thu Jan 03, 2019 10:07 pm
by Rgand
I like this idea. Looking forward to seeing it finished.
epizootics wrote:
Thu Jan 03, 2019 9:40 pm
That's a good question, one that always makes me scratch my head for a week before I get fed up and drill a hole in the wrong place. Experience taught me to do this *before* finishing :) I'm never sure with those short-horned guitars, I was going to go for the upper horn but maybe that's not a good idea?

Finish will be minimal - I'll just smooth out the sides, giv'em a bit of a stain and rub in some PU. It won't be a pretty guitar, as I'll have to make something of an Olympic swimming pool route in the middle of it, since I need the room to put all sorts of pickups in there - I have been working on prototypes that are even larger than JM pu's, and will still need some extra room to wiggle them in. I'm thinking of routing out a 1" wide strip along the pickup route and replace the original wood with another one that will snap in and out using neo magnets. I also need to work out a way to make it plug & play - maybe those snap-in speaker connectors like the ones you find at the back of hi-fi amps? Each pickup will have an on/off switch, and the pots will be 1Meg with a circuit in which I can just insert a resistor in parallel to bring the resistance down to 500k/330k/250k. I'd like to pick Shadow Eclipse's brains about this one...
You may want to give these little jobbers a try. I did my Telerauder with them and they are good for a lot of use plugging and unplugging things.
Image

Also, you could put threaded inserts in the neck and put a strap button on with a machine screw at the upper corner of the neck plate.
Image

Re: What's on your workbench right now?

Posted: Thu Jan 03, 2019 11:42 pm
by Gordon
Rgand wrote:
Thu Jan 03, 2019 10:07 pm
You may want to give these little jobbers a try.
Ah, finally! I used to use similar pin connectors from Acme Guitar Works (I think):

Image

It was so practical! But they stopped offering them... And was never able to find such small and useful quick connectors. I've tried RC shops, nothing. Maybe I wasn't looking in the right places...

Re: What's on your workbench right now?

Posted: Fri Jan 04, 2019 2:19 am
by epizootics
Rgand wrote:
Thu Jan 03, 2019 10:07 pm

You may want to give these little jobbers a try. I did my Telerauder with them and they are good for a lot of use plugging and unplugging things.
Image

Hey, that's perfect! Thanks for the tip. Even after a few years of ordering all sorts of weird parts on the internet, it can still take me a week to figure out what to search for...

The threaded inserts/metal screw/strap attachment combo is a good idea, but I've never been a huge fan of having the strap button in this particular place - I'm a bony guy and metal there digs straight into my ribs :o Do you reckon it'll definitely neck dive with the button on the upper horn?

Re: What's on your workbench right now?

Posted: Fri Jan 04, 2019 8:19 am
by Rgand
epizootics wrote:
Fri Jan 04, 2019 2:19 am
Hey, that's perfect! Thanks for the tip. Even after a few years of ordering all sorts of weird parts on the internet, it can still take me a week to figure out what to search for...
Yeah, sometimes a search is not all that easy to figure out. Remember to cover those with shrink tubing so they don't ground out on something else.
epizootics wrote:
Fri Jan 04, 2019 2:19 am
The threaded inserts/metal screw/strap attachment combo is a good idea, but I've never been a huge fan of having the strap button in this particular place - I'm a bony guy and metal there digs straight into my ribs :o Do you reckon it'll definitely neck dive with the button on the upper horn?
I'm not an expert on balance. I think you were going to try a button on the upper horn first. Since it's a test guitar, maybe you could do that and if it dives, then address it. Maybe you could just screw the strap on under one of these conical washers so it wouldn't tend to snag. They're much like the ones used in aircraft cargo holds so things don't catch on screw heads.