So, it's clear to me now where I want to start from. In a nutshell, I like the playability of a Les Paul, the sound and looks of a Wolfgang.
But to effectively join these characteristics in holy matrimony it is paramount to understand what it is that makes for these properties. I've not found all answers to the mountain of questions that soon presents itself when you embark on such a quest. And a lot of answers spawn a set of questions all their own. There is probably excellent education to help you answer all of those but I'm not going to design everything from scratch.
But I learned it's important to try and find out as much as you can as you will encounter a lot of variables that will have a marked effect on your design. For instance, if you like the sound, looks and feel of a stoptail you'll inherently have to angle your neck back from the body and no more dive bombing for you of course. Dive bomber extraordinaire? Know that a Floyd Rose bridge will rob you of some sustain and string replacement takes thrice as long.
Many guitar builders seem to agree that a good way to avoid pitfalls in a design is to simply draw your guitar full scale. Beginning with the essentials, the strings for instance.
This emediately raises questions. How long do I want them? How far apart? Radiused or flat? Or do I want equipment that lets me alter such a configuration later? And so on.
Answering questions that present themselves when putting a design on paper in this manner make it either a lot of tedious work or just more fun. I could still avoid all this by trying to copy the best guitar I ever played but this way you actually get a chance to peek over the shoulders of guys like Leo Fender and Les Paul. Electric guitars gradually start making more sense.
But to effectively join these characteristics in holy matrimony it is paramount to understand what it is that makes for these properties. I've not found all answers to the mountain of questions that soon presents itself when you embark on such a quest. And a lot of answers spawn a set of questions all their own. There is probably excellent education to help you answer all of those but I'm not going to design everything from scratch.
But I learned it's important to try and find out as much as you can as you will encounter a lot of variables that will have a marked effect on your design. For instance, if you like the sound, looks and feel of a stoptail you'll inherently have to angle your neck back from the body and no more dive bombing for you of course. Dive bomber extraordinaire? Know that a Floyd Rose bridge will rob you of some sustain and string replacement takes thrice as long.
Many guitar builders seem to agree that a good way to avoid pitfalls in a design is to simply draw your guitar full scale. Beginning with the essentials, the strings for instance.
This emediately raises questions. How long do I want them? How far apart? Radiused or flat? Or do I want equipment that lets me alter such a configuration later? And so on.
Answering questions that present themselves when putting a design on paper in this manner make it either a lot of tedious work or just more fun. I could still avoid all this by trying to copy the best guitar I ever played but this way you actually get a chance to peek over the shoulders of guys like Leo Fender and Les Paul. Electric guitars gradually start making more sense.
Full size drawing in the making. In the upper right corner lies "make your own electric guitar & bass" by Dennis Waring & David Raymond. A fine source of reference for me, crammed with very readable know-how.
Lower right corner, rocket fuel for the aspiring guitar builder: Big mug o coffee and King Oscar's excellent Gaffelbiter on toast.
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