2nd kit?

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Andy Mitchell
Posts: 58
Joined: Mon Dec 28, 2020 8:54 am

Re: 2nd kit?

Post by Andy Mitchell »

Just an update on that 2nd kit that I decided to build. It's a StewMac OM, and coming together nicely. I'm super-slow at these things, but anticipate being able to play it in a month or two.

Here's a pic the first test fit of the neck to the body:
20210522_083758.jpg
There were a couple of new things to learn vs the dread that I built as my first kit. First was the diamond/square fingerboard inlays... the dread's were round, just needed a drill to do a good job. These had to be carved out by hand (after I broke the first 1/32 router bit and was too cheap to buy another, lol):
20210522_083702.jpg
Second thing was working with those little skinny '18' style purfling strips. Came out OK, but I learned that weld-on 16 can soften that stuff enough to give you wobbly lines if your not careful:
20210522_083642.jpg
Last item was working with stain. The dread was rosewood, so I didn't have to worry about that (although the oil in the wood did cause it's own difficulties). This one is mahogany, and I wanted it to be a bit darker. Didn't know exactly what stain to use, so I took a shot and tried Minwax 'English Chestnut'. Turned out OK I think, but won't know for sure until all of the finishing is done.

Cheers,

Andrew
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ruby@magpage.com
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Joined: Thu May 24, 2012 8:03 am
Location: Chestertown Maryland

Re: 2nd kit?

Post by ruby@magpage.com »

Looks great - what is your finish material?
Ed M
Andy Mitchell
Posts: 58
Joined: Mon Dec 28, 2020 8:54 am

Re: 2nd kit?

Post by Andy Mitchell »

Finish is going to be wipe-on poly. There's only a couple preliminary coats on the body right now, so it looks pretty rough. But I got a pretty decent finish on the first guitar (see pic), so I'm optimistic with this one too.

Andrew

Here's the back of that first guitar:
20210522_083315.jpg
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Andy Mitchell
Posts: 58
Joined: Mon Dec 28, 2020 8:54 am

Re: 2nd kit?

Post by Andy Mitchell »

Been a while, but I'm almost finished this 2nd kit now and I thought I'd post a pic and a few wrap-up thoughts.

First, I love the finished guitar. It sounds really great to me, and the slightly wider neck makes for a different playing experience from my previous dreads. I'm still not completely accustomed to the smaller body size, but think I could easily come to see that as an advantage as well.

I personally like the trim style I selected - I know '18' probably seems plain to many of you, but the very first guitar I ever bought was trimmed in that style and it's a sentimental thing for me. It's not 'authentic' I know (the rosette is wrong to start with, and I couldn't bring myself to delete the 'dart' on the headstock it came with), but I think it still looks sorta cool.

Finally, I can see how a few things in the instructions for this kit would be puzzling to someone building their first guitar. But there's so much info out there on the internet to help that I think it's do-able if you do a bit of research on your own, or ask questions here. I've watched so many hours of John Hall's videos that I feel like I know him personally, and they have all been a great help on both of the guitars I have now built. Thank you, thank you, thank you! And thanks as well to those who helped on the forum.

I'm already thinking about the next one.

Wishing you all a great summer,

Andrew
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Stray Feathers
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Joined: Sun Sep 08, 2013 11:39 pm
Location: Ladysmith, BC

Re: 2nd kit?

Post by Stray Feathers »

Beautiful job! On to your next build . . .
ruby@magpage.com
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Joined: Thu May 24, 2012 8:03 am
Location: Chestertown Maryland

Re: 2nd kit?

Post by ruby@magpage.com »

Andy

She looks great - the proof is in the playing, though. How does she handle??

Ed M
Ed M
Andy Mitchell
Posts: 58
Joined: Mon Dec 28, 2020 8:54 am

Re: 2nd kit?

Post by Andy Mitchell »

ruby@magpage.com wrote: Tue Jul 13, 2021 2:31 pm Andy

She looks great - the proof is in the playing, though. How does she handle??

Ed M
I really like it. The neck shape is different from any of my other guitars (more of a 'C' than I am used to, if that makes sense) but it's not unpleasant. The tone is just as nice as the dread I built earlier, but in a different way. The midrange seems to come out a bit more prominently, with about the same amount of sustain. It sounds sweet... especially when not pushing things all that hard. And I can absolutely see why the fingerpickers like these guitars, that little bit of extra room on the fretboard makes a big difference for dummies like me when trying to pick out clear single note melodies.

Thanks for asking!
ruby@magpage.com
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Joined: Thu May 24, 2012 8:03 am
Location: Chestertown Maryland

Re: 2nd kit?

Post by ruby@magpage.com »

What do you mean by extra room? A wider nut? Wider bridge pin spacing? Pay careful attention to the way it sounds - my ear is not very good but still on a couple of mine the sound has changed daily for a week or two - very interesting
Ed M
Andy Mitchell
Posts: 58
Joined: Mon Dec 28, 2020 8:54 am

Re: 2nd kit?

Post by Andy Mitchell »

ruby@magpage.com wrote: Tue Jul 13, 2021 5:54 pm What do you mean by extra room? A wider nut? Wider bridge pin spacing?
Yes, both the neck and string spacing are wider on this guitar than they are on any of my dreadnoughts. Pic attached, not exactly clear but I think it shows up even there. Edge-to-edge string spacing at the nut on the dread is 1.489", on the OM it's 1.569".

The wider nut caused me quite a bit of consternation when I first noticed it, but I followed up with StewMac and they said it was how they intended it to be.

Andy
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Andy Mitchell
Posts: 58
Joined: Mon Dec 28, 2020 8:54 am

Re: 2nd kit?

Post by Andy Mitchell »

ruby@magpage.com wrote: Tue Jul 13, 2021 5:54 pm Pay careful attention to the way it sounds - my ear is not very good but still on a couple of mine the sound has changed daily for a week or two - very interesting
Yes, I too found the way both of my home-built guitars acted in the first few days/weeks to be interesting. I was really disappointed the first time I strung up the dreadnought - it sounded terrible, and wouldn't play in tune. But a week or so later (and after some setup fettling) it all came good. I've played it now every day since February and I think it is still improving as it goes along. The OM (I think) will probably follow a similar path. I know it started out with a very similar sort of disappointment the first time I tried to play it anyway! But now it's stable enough to hold a tune and sounds pretty good. Hopefully it gets better with time and use too.

All of this opinion is coming from a very non-expert in guitars, so take anything I have to say with a grain of salt. It could just be that rose coloured glasses for my own handiwork is making me think these things. End of the day though I still love both of these guitars, for whatever the reason... and I guess that's all that really counts.

Andy
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