Fully hollow and carved Les Paul

Jez6345789 · May 2020

Another inspiring build coming together nicely.

PhilKing · May 2020

Hi Wez, I found this, not sure if it is what you were thinking of, but it looks like it will clean up nicely. There is felt stuck to the underside of the crossbar, as if it is designed to touch the top. It's sat on a VHS tape, for size comparison:

Image: https://i.imgur.com/npcQ6AC.jpg?1

WezV · May 2020

Thanks @PhilKing ; not sure it would be right for this as it would lead me down a more heavily aged route. I was planning a relic at first, but am leaning away from it now

I have got the back on this now and the neck is being glued in... I got the body all cleaned up just and it's looking spectacular even if I do say so myself. It's actually got me considering a totally natural finish and no wear at all.

Although I think I'm going to go down the middle...a VOS style finish and hardware. Aged a bit, but not worn. We will see

PhilKing · May 2020

That's fine, this was the best looking of what I have.

WezV · May 2020

its does look great as it is...i would build something totally different around it

here are some pics of where we are at prior to gluing the neck in

wiped down with white spirit to pop grain and show where i need to do more sanding

PhilKing · May 2020

The back looks stunning as well. It's going to be a very cool guitar.

WezV · May 2020

thanks, I'm really happy with it so far... hope i can get it together for a test fit this week.

There are a few jobs left before I start finishing it. First, clean up some glue spots in the cutaway. Second is to repair a bit of side damage you can just see in that last photo. I levelled the rims in the router thicknessing jig, and it caught a splinter on that edge. Most of the damage went when i sanded the last bit, but still need to do a small fill there. I also need to get the cavity cover levelled off so it can stay in situ when i finish.

part of me is tempted to add a slight roundover to the back edge, but i'm resisting it

Roland · May 2020

A roundover sounds a good idea from the player’s perspective, but would dull the crisp double bound vibe which the top and back edges give it.

WezV · May 2020

That's the dilemma... i'm loving the crisp lines it has at the moment.

maybe a tiny bevel???

Winny_Pooh · May 2020

WezV said:

That's the dilemma... i'm loving the crisp lines it has at the moment.

maybe a tiny bevel???

That'd work at the forearm position

ICBM · May 2020

I would definitely *not* bevel it, even slightly. It will detract from the 'double bound' and 'antique instrument' look.

PeteC · May 2020

Looks wonderful even now before finishing. A tiny bevel or very small rounder would create a violin-type vibe ?

SteveRobinson · May 2020

What about a bead like on a violin/cello? That would be different, then a rubbed shellac finish to complete the string section look?

Teyeplayer · May 2020

SteveRobinson said:

What about a bead like on a violin/cello? That would be different, then a rubbed shellac finish to complete the string section look?

That’s a cool idea, wisdom awarded (though it did initially fat thumb a lol on the iPhone, apologies and corrected).

roberty · May 2020

I bloody love this

WezV · May 2020

a violin beaded edge will be too much for this. I want to keep as much of the crispness as i can, but there is a very good reason it cannot stay as sharp it is.... those sharp edges chip far too easily.

So a slight bevel/chamfer is the practical choice. I'm not talking large visible facets here. Bendedetto does it on his unbound La Venezia model, you can hardly see it but its enough to stop pesky chips

Image: https://benedettoguitars.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/06/lavenezia.jpg

at the other end of the price scale I have an old unbound german style archtop that has a bevelled edge as faux binding right through the finish, and i don't mind that either... i took a shot at the tailpiece as the age related wear has made it more inconsistent everywhere else

Corvus · May 2020

Dead nice ... I like the streaking in the top, seems to sit right with the overall vibe.

WezV · May 2020

I have done a test fit.

It's very interesting. Sustains like a solid body, so I'm putting that down to the neck join.

Single note runs are absolutely beautiful, but it's starts to sound like a 335 when strumming acousticly... Quite boxy. Tbh, that's what I expect from such a small body anyway, but I might be able to do some tweaking of the carve to see if I can wake it up a bit more.

It's great though. I'm loving it so far

ICBM · May 2020

WezV said:

a violin beaded edge will be too much for this. I want to keep as much of the crispness as i can, but there is a very good reason it cannot stay as sharp it is.... those sharp edges chip far too easily.

I would go for a simple uniform roundover with about a 3mm radius on the front and the same or very slightly larger on the back. It will keep the crispness of the double-bound look but not add anything that takes away from the simplicity of it.

My Vintage V300M has an unbound mahogany top and back like that, it looks great and doesn't seem to chip.

WezV · May 2020

it will probably be even less than 3mm... its simply a case of knocking the sharp edge off to stop it catching. wouldn't be so bad on the quartersawn sycamore top but the flat sawn mahogany back will chip if you look at it funny

anyway, test fit

the sharp eyes amongst you will notice the f-holes did end up slightly off kilter. The whole top ended up slightly off after being glued to the rims so the centre join is perfectly centred at the tail block, but 4mm towards the treble side of the heel...thankfully i spotted it before i routed the neck pocket and corrected for string alignment, which is spot on. technically, the f-holes are also slightly too far down the body too as they don't quite line up with the bridge. A few learning points for when I do this style of build again

also, this old bridge has a couple of issues, note its slotted further towards the treble side.. the base is also 5mm longer on the base side too... which makes my slight error with the f-holes look massive.. thankfully, i will be making a bespoke bridge for this

i put a plate in place to see how it looked... think a simple torty version could really work

Sarge · May 2020

Bloody handsome!

Roland · May 2020

If it’s any comfort, the floating bridge on my Hofner President was always way off centre.

roberty · May 2020

All strung up! How's it sounding? Looks very very cool

WezV · May 2020

roberty said:

All strung up! How's it sounding? Looks very very cool

WezV said:

I have done a test fit.

It's very interesting. Sustains like a solid body, so I'm putting that down to the neck join.

Single note runs are absolutely beautiful, but it's starts to sound like a 335 when strumming acousticly... Quite boxy. Tbh, that's what I expect from such a small body anyway, but I might be able to do some tweaking of the carve to see if I can wake it up a bit more.

It's great though. I'm loving it so far

WezV · May 2020

Roland said:

If it’s any comfort, the floating bridge on my Hofner President was always way off centre.

I was just a bit confused. I knew it was gonna be a little off centre so was surprised when it looked this far out... I had not actually payed much attention to the bridge as it's not being used on this except for the test fit.

The plan is to make a one piece bridge out of African blackwood.

ICBM · May 2020

With a custom-made bridge and a pickguard over the front end of the treble f-hole, I think you'll be able to make the asymmetry disappear

. Although I'm not really a fan of pickguards, even on archtops...

I still think the three-diamond tailpiece would look much better too

.

PhilKing · May 2020

Perhaps if you have a sunburst it would hide it a bit, though I don't think I would care about it. I think it looks fantastic.

WezV · May 2020

PhilKing said:

Perhaps if you have a sunburst it would hide it a bit, though I don't think I would care about it. I think it looks fantastic.

It certainly will, but I'm of the same opinion. It's a learning point, not a show stopper

TTony · May 2020

WezV said:

it will probably be even less than 3mm... its simply a case of knocking the sharp edge off to stop it catching. wouldn't be so bad on the quartersawn sycamore top but the flat sawn mahogany back will chip if you look at it funny

I've used an Arris trimmer on the sharp edges of (eg) furniture legs to achieve that.

You could probably achieve the same effect with a rub round with some abranet - but trying to do it in one complete movement all around the guitar with consistent pressure so that you end up removing the same amount all round?

WezV · May 2020

TTony said:

WezV said:

it will probably be even less than 3mm... its simply a case of knocking the sharp edge off to stop it catching. wouldn't be so bad on the quartersawn sycamore top but the flat sawn mahogany back will chip if you look at it funny

I've used an Arris trimmer on the sharp edges of (eg) furniture legs to achieve that.

You could probably achieve the same effect with a rub round with some abranet - but trying to do it in one complete movement all around the guitar with consistent pressure so that you end up removing the same amount all round?

Consistent pressure doesn't do it because side grain sands easier than end grain... So I think I will cut it in with the Dremel and a mini router bit to ensure its consistent regardless of grain pattern

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Fully hollow and carved Les Paul

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