Roadhouse Build thread

[rgand]

OK, then. Today I started work on the next project. I've been making patterns and ordering things. All that done, I was in the garage readying for the first cut on the beautiful piece of mahogany I got from Ian (thanks, man) when the brown truck drove up and handed me a suspicious brown box straight from Warmoth.

It is made with their new meat cleaver headstock design.

Actually, I will cut my own headstock and thanks to Brian, got it ordered with the straight 6 paddle headstock.

EDIT: the neck pictured here was not used and further along, you'll see the actual one that got installed on this guitar.

The first cut on the body so it's officially underway, now.

This thing has an amazing grain that follows the body shape.

Ready to route, now.

So what's it going to look like?

The Roadhouse:

It looks a lot like the Telerauder but it's considerably narrower (+-1") and shorter (+-1/2") so it'll fit in a readily available case. The color will most likely be a brown to clear burst, not the blue pictured but that was drawn long before Ian came along with the mahogany.

 

[AirCap]

Reminds me a bit of some G&L models. Love the mahogany!

 

[rgand]

Thanks, that mahogany is really something. It deserves better than just transparent blue, although that would still be nice.

 

[bagman67]

Oh, gee, you placed your template perfectly to accent that swerve in the grain. I'm so happy to see that blank finally turning into a guitar.

 

[rgand]

I moved the outline all over both sides of the piece, turning it both ways and all, before I found that exact grain alignment. Anything else was not dynamic like that. I'm tickled as toast. Thanks, Ian. It's a spectacular piece.

 

[Cagey]

That really does work out well. Gonna be a spectacular piece.

 

[rgand]

Thanks, Kevin. I'm looking forward to making this one.

 

[Logrinn]

Awesome! One could think that the grain decided the shape.

Narrower you say? Do you mean the waist? We will need some side-by-side comparison later on.

By the way - that bridge on the mockup ... is that based on a real bridge?

 

[stratamania]

That twisty grain really matches the body shape well. Look forward to seeing how you progress.

 

[Fat Pete]

...By the way - that bridge on the mockup ... is that based on a real bridge?

It's a Trem King

 

[rgand]

Awesome! One could think that the grain decided the shape.

It almost did. It certainly determined the placement.

That twisty grain really matches the body shape well. Look forward to seeing how you progress.

Thanks, I had to angle the template on it to take the best advantage of the grain.

Narrower you say? Do you mean the waist? We will need some side-by-side comparison later on.

The whole thing is proportionately narrower. I did it that way to retain the overall look. That will make a good picture when it's completed.

...By the way - that bridge on the mockup ... is that based on a real bridge?

It's a Trem King

Pete is right about the bridge (thanks for posting the link, Pete). It's a Trem King TKS-2. They mount solidly to the body like a hardtail and the tone block works the strings. I have wanted to try one so that's what I ordered. Had to get some routing patterns and a bit to do the job. If this works out, I'll go with these when I want a vibrato on any future builds. They offer a shorter one (TKS-3) that works for humbuckers.

 

[fdesalvo]

The week I've had - I need a thread like this.  Looks amazing!

 

[rgand]

Thanks, Frank.

I worked up a brown burst with pearl pickguard to see what it might look like. I'm likin' this a lot.

 

[Cagey]

That's attractive. What is that neck pickup?

 

[rgand]

Thanks, Kevin. That neck pickup is a Bill Lawrence L500C. The bridge is a Bill Lawrence L290TL. Becky got them out to me in a couple weeks.

 

[Cagey]

I'll be interested to hear how that L500C works out in that position. I've used some L500 pickups, but only the "XL" versions, which can be pretty aggressive. But, even those are surprisingly versatile with just the volume knob.

 

[rgand]

I'll be interested to hear how that L500C works out in that position. I've used some L500 pickups, but only the "XL" versions, which can be pretty aggressive. But, even those are surprisingly versatile with just the volume knob.

It's just a slight bit hotter than an L500R, which I put in my Strat a few years ago. Becky recommended it to match up better with the L290. I have no experience with the L290 so this will be interesting.

 

[rgand]

You'll see this on Doug's neck plate thread but I wanted to include it here. Doug does spectacular work. This is stainless steel. Beautiful stuff when worked properly.

 

[Cagey]

Nice! Gonna look great on the guitar.

 

[rgand]

The neck has steel inserts and a new headstock shape.