New acoustic guitar build...questions/help please

[beginner]

thanks, appreciate the help

I think i'll try a light coat of shellac to the interior as a sealant.

I've already done a single 1 lb cut as a preliminary sealant to the outer surfaces.

I did not coat the neck/body interface but.....it sounds like I'm going to have to do some scraping at the site for the bridge.

live and learn

[MaineGeezer]

Oh....yes. You want the bridge/top glue joint to be on bare wood.

[beginner]

thank you. i did use a single 1 lb coat shellac to the guitar interior as well as to the truss rod route. fun build so far.

[beginner]

Thanks everyone. I got the truss rod all routed and a thin cover fit over it with a flat surface on which to ultimately glue the fretboard.

I just glued on the headstock/pegboard onlay.

Tomorrow i'll put a coat of shellac on the neck (not on the top where i'll install the fingerboard. I'll also put on a second coat of shellac on the sides and back of the guitar.

Over the following days I'll do the AquaCoat, 1 coat per day just in case as i live in a coastal climate.

Subsequently I think I'm going to French Polish ruby shellac on the back and sides which are mahogany.

I won't do the Front of the guitar till I have at least a couple of coats done on the back and sides. I'll first attach the then completed neck to the body.

In that way i can be sure of the placement of the bridge and saddle. I'll then finish the front of the guitar with a plantina light shellac to the spruce top.

I know its a slow pace but I have to spread out the tasks over a few hours a day as I tire easily with chemotherapy.

[beginner]

Wanted to thank you, ask another question.....and thought i'd update the post.

The technique you shared (shellac then AquaCoat) is working great. I just started a couple of hours of French Polishing and you can already see the nice color and sheen emerging.

I think i'm going to French Polish the neck as I already own the product (I'm trying to keep costs down and I already have the shellac). I hope this proves to be a good and comfortable finish for the neck as well.

In the coming days I'll be ready to glue the fretboard to the neck. I'm installing the frets just now.

Wondering, is there a good way to match the width of the neck base to the width of the fretboard?

I considered using files or rasps but I'm not sure I'm good enough to accomplish such a long straight edge.

It would be really disappointing to be left with a wavy instead of straight end result.

Maybe adhere some sanding paper to the bench top and then rub the neck/fretboard back and forth to to match the dimensions? Might be a little tough with the pegboard in place?

I don't own any heavy wood working machines. A neighbor has a spindle sander but I can't imagine that a round spindle sander would be great at sanding a long straight margin.

Appreciate your suggestions/help.

and again, thank you.

[Kevin Sjostrand]

Hi Beginner
We've all been there!

What you want to do is glue the fretboard inplace and THEN bring the neck shaft width down ush with the fretboard.
If you have a small block plane you can plane the material down close and finish up with long sanding block with about 120 grit on it. It's not that hard to do....go slow and just kiss the fretboard edge.

If you don't have a block plane or a spoke shave then use what you have to remove most of the material...sanding block with a heavier grit will remove the wood pretty quickly. Just take your time and you'll be fine.

Kevin

[beginner]

thank you.....i absolutely understand the process that you've kindly described. Very much appreciated.

[JLT]

I think i'm going to French Polish the neck as I already own the product (I'm trying to keep costs down and I already have the shellac). I hope this proves to be a good and comfortable finish for the neck as well.

Maybe those with more experience in French polishing can chime in here, but I would personally stay away from that method for necks, because French polishing has a reputation for not holding up well to repeated contact with the skin, and there's no part of a guitar that's handled more than the neck. Maybe I'm wrong about this, though.

My guitar and mandolin necks have always been finished with Tru-Oil, available for not much money at gun stores. I figure that a product made for gun-stocks would hold up well to that, and there are some good videos on how to use it. My favorite one:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A6zmitxywKU

[Tomcat]

This exchange brings to mind some beginner questions:

Is it common to use different finishes for the body and neck?

When doing so, do you generally finish both parts before connecting them, to avoid gaps and overlaps?

Does the headstock get the neck finish since they're intimately connected, even though the wear will be significantly different?

Thanks :-)

[beginner]

great questions....i'm interested/curious as well.

I've spent a good few hours over the recent days trying my hand at French Polish technique. It seems to be forgivable (so for) a beginner.. I think applying a couple of quick shellac coats as a sealant and then the AquaCoat was a great suggestion as the subsequent shellac coats seem to be working out well.

I must admit that I'm very much enjoying this build.

I really needed something, a project to keep my mind active, to learn something new, dealing with some medical issues and this is perfect.

I've tried as best as i can reasonably do to minimize expenses. I have few wood working or electrical tools which is fine as I don't have much experience or knowledge in using such tools.

I was gifted some very nice chisels and some scraper cards which are awesome tools to have for the build. I picked up 2 inexpensive Japanese pull saws (large and small) which are working out well.

The kit was on clearance and of good quality. All in all the process has proven very gratifying to date....and it looks so nice to my eye.

I must admit that i'm a bit frightened about an upcoming step in the build....securing the neck to the body, establishing the appropriate angle, insetting the different planes. Reading a lot.

Appreciate everyone's help very much.