Ken McKay guitar build log for OFC

Thanks Shrigg.




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Ken

 

I only use old-growth plywood for my jigs.

Seriously though I find that good plywood helps with making nice durable jigs I usually use the birch plywood from the home centers and that seems good enough MDF is not durable for molds even though I have a couple of them that are doing fine but the edges chip.


The molds are three part. The bottom section is the exact shape of the guitar like this


the top section takes into consideration the gap filled by the layup plus the silicone heating blanket plus the aluminum slats.
And the third part is the cutaway insert presser.
Each of the three sections has six pieces ganged together in a group. No matter how careful iamb they don't seem to line up perfectly requiring some sanding to make them smooth and flush.



Then I apply wax as if I'm using them for cross country skiing. This allows the layup to slide easily as it's pressed into shape.

There is more fabrication to do. This piece helps guide the lay up into the cutaway section where it's Pressed in the final operation.

Holes drilled for a rod that will hold the cutaway section.




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After preparing the sheets veneer the uf glue was applied. These sides are three ply.

The layup is loaded into the press I find this a two person operation. Luckily help is at hand.

The cutaway gets pressed in after the main section and heat is applied.


At first I had a lot of rejects now I have the methods down.




With this done it is time to put away the molds and clear the decks for the next operation.


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Ken

 

It comes In handy. Thanks


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Ken

 

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Thanks Jack that means a lot to me.


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Ken

 

Nothing to report today.
Here are the parts for the rim pressing mold.


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Ken

 

Now that we have the sides pressed and The rim mold complete we need to make a light weight Garland. Garland is the word for a violin rim. I like to use that term.

The next thing I do and actually this is the first part of the guitar to take shape is make the center block.


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I start out with inch and a half soft, lightweight maple. I dimension the stock so that is slightly oversized in sickness and 4 inches wide and slightly over sized in length.


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Trace the template on the block and cut it on the bandsaw finish up on the sander. This pictures to show you have to make sure that your sander table is Square. Just a little hint just things can go really wrong if you're not Square.


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Ken

 

This operation actually takes a considerable amount of time sanding just to remove the line. Everything has to be perfectly square.
Next I take the ribs and sand one side flat. I have done it many different ways but find that this big sander works


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Ken

 

Like this. It's important to keep everything square again.


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Ken

 

Check everything for Square.


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Ken

 

You can see now that everything sits flat on one edge with just a little bit of weight on top.


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Ken

 

I prepare the bandsaw by making sure the gap between the blade in the fence is about 1 1/2 inches and then again I make sure that the fence is parallel to the blade. If it isn't The table can be tilted.


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Ken

 

Slice them off like sausage.
Careful with your fingers though.


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Ken