Advice for an absolute beginner

[T89Rex]

Hi all! Long time lurker, first time poster. I'm looking to put together my first Warmoth guitar as a present to myself for finishing my PhD in two months' time but I'm a little bit nervous about whether I have the skills to do it myself. I'm pretty comfortable with a soldering iron, much less so with a drill.

I've just about convinced myself that I'd be able to drill the pilot holes for the tuning pegs, but everything else has me a bit worried, particularly bridge and pickup placement. So to the experienced hands out there, is there any part of assembling a guitar that you wouldn't advise a complete novice to attempt? What's the hardest part, and what the things I'm likely to have overlooked in my planning.

At present, the plan is to go for a black korina Mooncaster with a Goncalo Alves/Pau Ferro Neck, Tune-o-Matic bridge/stop, Filtertrons, and Sperzel Trim-Loks. Is there anything in there that leaps out as a terrible choice?

Thanks in advance!

 

[TonyFlyingSquirrel]

If you have someone that is experience nearby that could mentor you side by side, that value would be priceless.

 

[Cagey]

If you're going to buy the body/neck from Warmoth, the trickiest parts to drill will be done for you. Namely, bridge mounting holes and/or routing, tuner holes, neck mounts, and pickup routes. Past that, the drilling gets fairly minor. Electrical is pretty straightforward unless you wanna do something bizarre. There are tons of diagrams on the 'net for just about everything that's been done, but if you manage to come up with something new there are a number of talented folks here that are generally happy to help, make suggestions or will point out the error of your ways.

The setup is often something that leaves a lotta people cold, mainly because it takes some unusual tools and experience. But, even that is manageable. You'll do fine if you just go slow and ask a lotta questions.

 

[zebra]

At present, the plan is to go for a black korina Mooncaster with a Goncalo Alves/Pau Ferro Neck, Tune-o-Matic bridge/stop, Filtertrons, and Sperzel Trim-Loks. Is there anything in there that leaps out as a terrible choice?

That sounds like a great concept for a build, btw!  Excellent choice of woods!

 

[rgand]

That'll sound good. Here's much what that will be like although this one has a mahogany/ebony neck. And a silver finish.
[youtube]WQ2915d_o6I#t=0[/youtube]

 

[Nightclub Dwight]

I'd say that anyone who can finish a PhD program in two months should have no problem putting together an electric guitar.  Since it is your first, I'd let Warmoth do the bridge and pickup routes for you.  In fact, let Warmoth do as much as possible.  You will still have to drill some minor things like pickguard screw pilot holes, and perhaps pilot holes for the tuners as you mention, but that is pretty straightforward as long as you go slow and think things out.

If you do have any problems, the best advice is to stop, walk away and take a break.  If, upon returning to the project you still have questions, don't hesitate to ask away here.  Most likely someone has dealt with the exact same question.

And remember, if something does go wrong, there is usually a way to fix it.  But it is always nice to avoid the problem in the first place.  Good luck!

 

[T89Rex]

Thanks for all the advice guys. rgand, that guitar was definitely the inspiration for what I'm planning to assemble. I'm just a little bit unsure about a mahogany neck.

So it seems like the only drilling I'll need to do is the pickup rings, the tuning pegs, and maybe the jack plate? Is there anything I've forgotten? And when screwing the neck onto the body, is there any way to get it wrong (aside from putting long screws through a contoured heel pocket? Is there any need to shield the controls with humbuckers?

 

[Verne Bunsen]

Welcome to the forum! Sounds like a cool build, and I look forward to seeing it happen!

Regarding the neck screws, use some kind of lubricant (wax or soap works great) and remember that you're cutting threads in the wood the first time you do it. Slow and steady. Any time you remove the screws after that, make sure they go back in following the same path by rotating the screw backwards till it "clunks" down into the threads. They'll last forever this way.

When drilling holes, I always start by putting blue painters tape over the hole location, fitting up the part in question and solidly marking the location with an awl. That keeps the drill bit from wandering as you start your hole and will help you keep the holes where you want them. Make sure to mark your depth on the bit with tape or something, to avoid a very sad accident...

After drilling and before inserting a screw, use something suitable to countersink the hole and remove the finish from directly around it. I use a conical grinding stone for a Dremel, spun by hand. It doesn't take much. This will keep the screw threads from grabbing and pulling up the finish.

Good luck!

 

[rgand]

Thanks for all the advice guys. rgand, that guitar was definitely the inspiration for what I'm planning to assemble. I'm just a little bit unsure about a mahogany neck.

I feel that your choice of neck and fret woods is much better than mahogany because it will sound great and you won't need a finish on it. The feel of raw wood is like nothing else. Looking forward to seeing photos when you can.

 

[Fat Pete]

...So it seems like the only drilling I'll need to do is the pickup rings, the tuning pegs, and maybe the jack plate? Is there anything I've forgotten?...

Strap buttons unless you only plan on playing sitting down.

Shielding's not generally regarded as necessary with humbuckers, though many will do it anyway. Shielded cable is definitely a good idea - especially on any longer runs.

Some people have found the lower horn toggle position has caused them difficulties with fitting. If I was putting Mooncaster together (and I so want to), I'd use one of the 5 control positions instead.

 

[T89Rex]

Is this sort of wire appropriate: http://www.stewmac.com/Pickups_and_Electronics/Wire/Shielded_Circuit_Wire_-_25_feet.html ?

I have read a few posts about people struggling with the switch in the lower horn. Putting it with the rest of the controls on the lower bout does seem to be the easiest solution but I'm planning to set up a little bit like the attached picture and I'm not super keen on the idea of the Strat tone knob overhanging the the F-hole. I'm not sure whether that's just a quirk of the mock up or whether it really would though. Probably something to ask Warmoth before I ask them to drill that fifth hole.

 

[Cagey]

Fishing wire and/or components through hollow bodies is never any fun, but it's not like you have to do it all the time. Just be patient, and once it's done, it's done.

The way I've usually done it involves using a bit of a wire shirt hanger and maybe some string or wire. The hanger wire is firm enough that you can direct it from the outside, and by tying a bit of string or thin gauge wire to the end you can guide that to the hole from one of the larger holes, such as an F-hole or pickup hole. Once you have a hold of the string at the hole, you can tie the other end of the string to the switch or pot you need to install, and pull it through the body to the hole. A little finagling there, and you're good to go.

This guy does a similar thing using the string, but he had parts installed to start with before disassembly so he didn't need to feed the string to the holes using a wire or whatever; he was able to pull the string from the outside using the parts. Still, you can see how you can get parts in place without needing access to the backside of them.

[youtube]YNYBnAqYDwk[/youtube]​

 

[Strat Avenger]

I hate to be "Mister Negative" here, but honestly, I believe it's a big waste of money to attempt to build a guitar if you have no skills or previous experience. I suggest first getting some experience by working on/modifying existing low-cost guitars. That's how I got the skills to build my Warmoth guitars.

If you really want a Warmoth guitar now, you could always order all the parts and then pay someone with experience to put it all together for you. That way, it won't get screwed up, and at least it will have all the custom features that you want while costing a fraction of what you'd pay for a Fender Custom Shop guitar (or Tom Anderson or Suhr).

 

[T89Rex]

I had a chat with my dad who reminded me his neighbour is a carpenter, so between us we should be able to sort everything out. Worst case scenario I just run to the local luthier to sort out all my mistakes.

One last question before I dive in, I'm planning on a 9.5" straight radius neck. Will there be any issue with a Tune-o-matic bridge, which I believe is set for 12"? It seems like a tiny difference that a file should be able to fix but I thought I'd ask the wiser heads before I committed.

 

[Cagey]

Filing the saddle slots will take care of any inconsistency you might feel. It won't be much, maybe .010" or so by the time you get to the outside strings, so you may find after assembly that you don't need to do anything. If you do, just be sure not to go too far, as you can't put material back. You'd have to replace the saddle and start over.

 

[clearwavestudio]

Once you have all the parts, it takes an afternoon to put it all together. Drilling the pickguard screws was the most difficult thing for me. It took a few times for me to learn how to do it perfectly. Which means there are a few chipped holes under my pickguard :-\. I can do it now. Maybe practice on a friends guitar.  :toothy10:

Do this: put it together, spend some time doing the setup, play it for a few weeks, enjoy your guitar. Then take it to a professional to do the final fret finishing and a pro setup. It will be the extra icing on the cake that will make it a "custom shop" quality instrument.

 

[T89Rex]

In the end I decided to leave the assembly to somebody far more experienced than I am. Some folks around these parts might've heard of him - I hear he stops by every now and then. I have my first electric - a Squier strat - back home and a Squier tele I bought as a burner while I'm overseas for uni that I'm going to pull apart and tinker with before I move on to a build of my own a bit further down the track.

Final build if anyone is interested will be:

NECK
Style: Jazzmaster®
Construction: Modern Construction
Scale: 25-1/2"
Orientation: Right Handed
Neck Wood: Goncalo Alves
Fingerboard Wood: Pau Ferro
Nut Width: 1-11/16"
Back Shape: Standard thin
Fret Size: SS6105 (Stainless)
Tuner Ream: Sperzel (25/64")
Radius: Straight 9.5"
Fret #: 22
Mounting Holes: Standard 4 Bolt
Inlays: Cream Face Dots
Side Dots: White Side Dots
String Nut: GraphTech White TUSQ XL - Earvana Nut

BODY
Model: Hollow Carved Top Mooncaster
Orientation: Right handed
Scale: 25-1/2"
Wood: Black Korina on Black Korina
Rout: Rear Rout
Pickup Rout: Humbucker (Neck), None (Middle), Humbucker (Brdg)
Controls: X-V-V-T-T-Tog (Mooncaster)
Bridge: TOM/STP, Angled Pocket
Jack Rout: 7/8" (22mm) Side Jack Hole
Neck Pocket: Strat® Shape
Mounting Holes: Standard 4 Bolt
Contours: Contoured Heel
F-Holes: 2
Binding: Cream Binding
Top Finish: Seafoam Green
Back Finish: Seafoam Green
Finish Type: Satin Finish

TV Jones TV Classics pickups, Sperzel Trim-Lok tuners, TonePros Tune-o-Matic bridge. I've ordered cream knobs and pickup rings (and black rings just in case) so it should look a little something the attachment when it's done, with slightly different pickups.

 

[Logrinn]

Both versions look absolutely gorgeous.
Be sure to post lots of pictures when it arrives.

 

[T89Rex]

Parts have shipped today! So excited!

 

[rgand]

:icon_thumright: