Stinking Fish Guitars

I can't believe so much time has passed since I last posted, for the last few months life has just got in the way and besides the kitchen still isn't finished.
Mind you for some time Deans guitar has driven me absolutely mental, it's got an issue I've never before come across and I still can't work out what it is..
The box one its own shuts beautifully nice and square with no gaps.. put the neck in and when the lid closes there's about a .5mm gap on the front edge..Before anyone says oh the neck is just to thick be shaved down a bit then I suggest you duck because a volley of grenades is on the way..
I have measured, double measured, triple measured, measured in my sleep and on the toilet, the neck is not too thick.
There is nothing that appears to be catching, no wired snagging or the pickup relief not being too deep.. Everything is as it should be, I've done this enough times to know how one goes together and never has this happened to me before..
I've even walked away from it and ignored it completely in the desperate hope it would magically cure itself but alas no, life would not be that kind..
Anyway it won't be long now before I I can get back into the shop and really go to town..

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Work has ground to a bit of a halt at present.
I had a bit of an issue with the table saw, it's rather alarming when the blade comes loose and starts wobbling like crazy.. I've sort of got it back together and locked up but in the back of my mind a voice is telling me don't use the thing until the new replacement part arrives...
It's just a small part, the collar the blade sits on, it got a bit chewed up.. Only problem the replacement part is only available in the States and not one supplier will b**g it in an envelope and ship it international..
I sent pleading emails but most of the time didn't even get an answer.. Obviously they're all making way too much money to bother about anyone other than locals..
Still I have managed a work around so the replacement should arrive in due course..
In the meantime I can't really proceed much further on Jay's bass but I will get the last tiny bit of Deans' done and pics posted.. I forgot I even needed to do it to be honest..
In the meantime I'm painting the kitchen, not something I'm relishing..

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I've been at a bit of a loss as to what wood to make the fret board from for this build..
I didn't think I had anything suitable so the plan was to go and raid Gary's shed.
I had one last look through a stack of offcuts and trimmings and low and behold hiding from view was this gorgeous bit of Tasmanian blackwood.. It was bang on big enough almost to the point where I was beginning to think I'd made it for another build and put it aside and forgotten it..
I'll not put binding on it as that will masks the lovely grain figuring on the side..
The rods have been epoxied into the neck so that's all done.. Going to have to put things aside for a little while to catch up on some other stuff.
Also I have a wee issue with my table saw that needs sorting but super happy I found this beautiful bit of wood.. When the finish goes on this stuff really razzles and dazzles..

I have two friends, Ken and Gary, that have been absolutely pivotal in me learning what I have thus far. No one learns in a vacuum, everyone needs a mentor or mentors and I'd never have gotten this far without them.
This morning I was in the workshop delighting in having the opportunity to break out my favourite Stanley 7/12 router plane and something hit me, both these men come at woodwork from different angles..
One of those men makes dust, the other makes shavings, one is a very talented hobbyist the other a top of his game professional and I'd not really noticed or fully appreciated the importance of those differences.
Gary is a hobbyist and when he goes into his workshop he makes dust, lots and lots of dust in fact if there is a machine capable of making dust that man has it and uses it..
Ken on the other hand is a life long professional but when he talks about going into the workshop he always says going to make shavings.. Sure he uses a lot of machines but his mindset is sharp blades, hand tools that literally make shavings.
I think that is why my workshop has ended up the way it has, part machine, part hand tool.. I love the accuracy of the machine but love the time spent guiding a hand tool that makes a perfect shaving.
Why is this important or worthy of one of my rambles, not sure but as you get older these things come into focus much more acutely..
I guess what it means is that when I gift someone a guitar that is not so much indicative of me but indicative of the gift those two men gave me and somehow that really means something..
This is an aside but I think I now fully understand why Ken has the name Owen prominently written on the stunningly gorgeous wooden bike he built for himself.

Might not look like much but progress is progress but my mind has been preoccupied with other things..
I actually can't remember the last neck I did that wasn't laminated, I'm really hoping and trusting it'll be okay, I'm sure it will it's heart Rimu..
The colour won't come up until the finish is applied..
Anyway the neck and heel are done just have the head to finish off before gluing it up and fitting the rods..
I have no idea of what to make the fret board out of at the moment, I think a raid on Gary's shed is in the wind..

I have no idea how the US postal system works but considering it's 2026 it needs a serious overhaul..
I have the last guitar waiting to be finished, I buggered up the sticker for it I had then decided what the hell I'll order another..
That was on the 27th of last month, as of today the tracking number says it's finally in the air, not arrived here, just left the US..
It's a sticker for # # # # # sake, put it in an envelope b**g a stamp on it and go..
The stupid thing is it didn't have to go a gazillion miles overland to get to a departure point.. The place I bought it from was in Illinois, the place it departed the country was, you guessed it Illinois. It took 20 days to get from one part of the state to another..
Ah well in the meantime it looks good on the wall but dang it should have been done and dusted by now..
Just to add to my 1st world problems I buggered up a the heal on the neck for this bass so it's an emergency trip tomorrow to raid Gary's shed..

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This next bass I'm going to go for a different look, something softer, more understated..
The box itself is not shiny with lots of fancy design work, it's simple and muted.. I've spent a bunch of time rummaging through the stack looking for combinations but most of the stuff I have is dark or stuff I have other plans for everything just seems to overpower the subtlety of the box..
So thievery has prevailed and I've stolen this lovely piece of Rimu from Gary's shed.. I'm even resisting the temptation to laminate it up with other woods, just simple golden Rimu on a soft pale yellow unvarnished box.. I will do the fret board binding in a dark wood just to set that off..
I've been lead to believe (true or not) that laminated wood is stronger than straight wood so to get that ni**le from out of the back of my head I'm going to b**g in four titanium rods into the neck instead of the normal two.. That should hold the thing in place..

well it's finally buttoned up, the strings are on and when plugged in it makes a noise..
A little bit of a 60hz hum but it's a single coil pickup , you have to expect some..
It's quite possibly because of the strings I've used.. I had a rummage through the drawer after a set and I found a pack of Pink Neon Fluorescent strings.. Where they came from lord knows because I don't remember buying them but I figured what the hell and b**ged them on..
What it means is even though the bridge is earthed the strings aren't..
Ah well not my problem someone drew the short straw and got pink florescent :)
I've hunted and hunted and just can't find that sticker so I've done the dumb thing and ordered another so the Visa card has got another workout..
In my hunting adventures looking for the sticker I found some buffalo horn so I'll make another nut from that..
All in all not far from being thrown in the post..

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I'd forgotten to epoxy a small block into Deans one so I've done that but can't lock it up until that cured..
In the meantime today I got a bit of a march on the next.. It's a 3 string upright bass for Jay..
Buying this box was a bit of a hope and a prayer.. The box is designed to look like a crate so instead of having the usual flat top to work with there are these straps across the top to deal with..
Rather than cutting through them I've decided to b**g fillets in to bring it all up to level, if you get my drift..
I think it'll turn out pretty good and if nothing else it'll force Jay to stand up during practice with the band instead of falling asleep on the couch..

Panic over with the wiring, I had done it right (sort of)..
Gary popped in yesterday and while here had a look and in 2 seconds saw the problem.. A couple of filaments from the hot wire from the pickup were hanging in the breeze and touching the pot case shorting everything out.. He snipped them off and everything worked.. I couldn't even see them but his beady eyes did..
All things being equal it should be done by next weekend if I can find this damn sticker from Deals Gap..
I know I have it somewhere I would never have thrown it out..