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Finished my first kit. Thought a scratch built would be a real challenge. Is it twice as hard, 10X, 100X...? I was going to replace the rosewood back and sides with Texas black cherry. and probably the neck also . and use live oak (which is like a rock) for the fretboard and bridge.

What do I do about the bridge? buy a spruce one or go with a hardwood on it too(like cherry)?

If I ruin it then it will be a decoration for the wall.

use live oak or persimmon

Sorry, I didnt mean "bridge" for wood type. I meant "top". what kind of "top"? buy a spruce one or use the same cherry of the body?

My guess is that there is a reason you do not see many acoustic guitars with cherry tops, I never tried one so have no real experience. Spruce is nice as it has a great stiffness to mass ratio. I have heard good sounding guitars with Mahogany of Hawaiian Koa tops; so it is possible to make a good sounding guitar with some hardwoods. If you are making an electric guitar, what ever you want is fine.

although I'm one that likes to bump the system, I kind of like to do stuff a little different than the norm but this is one area that I like to stay traditional. The top is like the heart of the guitar, it's basically the speaker of the guitar so it's not an area that I am comfortable playing around with. I put so much time in my project (and money of course) that I don't want to risk ending up with a beautiful pile of firewood. However, it is your project, your guitar, your decision, if you want to make a top out of some exotic wood that no one else has used before then go for it. All I'm saying is I wouldn't do it but I'm not you.

David L

I'm doing my first guitar from scratch. I have no idea how much more difficult it is than a kit. It probably depends on the kit and how much is done for you. What would be different? Was the neck pre-shaped in the kit? Was the dovetail joint cut? Sides profiled? Fingerboard shaped and slotted? Bridge carved?

I basically build somewhere between kit and scratch (more towards kit) I purchase all of the components separately, that way I get exactly what I want and then sub out the processes that I'm either not equipped to do or am not comfortable doing myself. It may cost a little more that way but I get to pick the exact pieces that are going to be used.

David L