Homemade kerfing, how I do it!
Posted: Thu Jan 02, 2014 11:25 pm
Tommy asked if I'd post how I've been making my kerfing.
I don't use any fancy made machines, but just a couple of really, really simple jigs.
I start out by dimensioning the stock for the kerfing. So far I've been able to use mahogany "scraps" that are already in my shop; left overs from neck billets, unused heel block stock (12" long), and the like.
It helps to have a band saw and a thickness sander. It is important that all your pieces are exactly the same size; thickness and height. You can make them any size you want, but remember we want to keep the guitar light, so don't make massively thick kerfing. Mine end up being about 3/16" wide by 7/16" tall, and are a triangle shape.
So I start out by getting my stock made. Then I use double sided tape to stick a piece to the edge of a flat and square edged board, which I will use to push the stock into the blade and make the cut. I set the block clamped to the band saw table so my depth of cut is just where I want it. Then I start cutting, advancing the stock lining up the previous cut with the indexing mark on the block. This is easier then you may think, and once you get the hang of it you can get going as fast as any machine I've seen on YouTube.
I don't use any fancy made machines, but just a couple of really, really simple jigs.
I start out by dimensioning the stock for the kerfing. So far I've been able to use mahogany "scraps" that are already in my shop; left overs from neck billets, unused heel block stock (12" long), and the like.
It helps to have a band saw and a thickness sander. It is important that all your pieces are exactly the same size; thickness and height. You can make them any size you want, but remember we want to keep the guitar light, so don't make massively thick kerfing. Mine end up being about 3/16" wide by 7/16" tall, and are a triangle shape.
So I start out by getting my stock made. Then I use double sided tape to stick a piece to the edge of a flat and square edged board, which I will use to push the stock into the blade and make the cut. I set the block clamped to the band saw table so my depth of cut is just where I want it. Then I start cutting, advancing the stock lining up the previous cut with the indexing mark on the block. This is easier then you may think, and once you get the hang of it you can get going as fast as any machine I've seen on YouTube.