Official Luthiers Forum!

I'm about ready to start an Explorer build.
All locally harvested lumber: Sycamore, Chinaberry, Walnut, and Mesquite.
I hope to make templates this weekend.
Any comments on the design?
Thanks,
Dan

_________________
wah
Wah-wah-wah-wah
Wah

Kinda hard to get all the nuances of it from what you're showing, but it looks like a retro modified exporer, like an mosrite guitar and an explorer collide. Very cool!

yeah i hate the headstock! looks like someone got drunk and walked into a wall with the guitar and bent the headstock!

Thanks, I figured everyone would hate it, but I hate the hockey-stick headstock more.
I may take the dimple back out on the top of the headstock and replace it with a simple arc.
I don't like the jackplate, but I'm not sure an endplate will fit on the edge of the skinny body.

_________________
wah
Wah-wah-wah-wah
Wah

I toned down the headstock. I think I like this one.

_________________
wah
Wah-wah-wah-wah
Wah

i guess i'm just not a fan of the 3+3, on anything except an archtop or acoustic....
the explorer is such a free, wild, energetic starburst design, it seems a shame to have a compact "normal" looking headstock...seems like a "buzz kill" to me, when your eyes move from the body to the headstock(he heh that could be called a "butterface").
this is probably not translating well; aesthetic design is tough to describe with words . IMHO, if you MUST go 3+3, maybe play around with offsetting the 2 gangs of tuners...i am certainly no authority, just very opinionated

below, i just grabbed a rectangle and dragged it east a few cm, thats all....

Thanks, I totally agree about not using a ho-hum boring headstock.
I have good technical skills but lack artistic skills.
I'll keep playing with it.

_________________
wah
Wah-wah-wah-wah
Wah

I like it. It's cool to do new things with old designs, my singlecut design is basically a telecaster, a PRS, and a les paul all formed together. I've done strats with 3+3 headstocks and a reverse headstock telecaster.

Love me some Explorers....

_________________
"Act your age, not your shoe size" - Prince

Final headstock design.
Combined the hockey stick, A, and V style headstocks and came up with this.

_________________
wah
Wah-wah-wah-wah
Wah

Looks like it melted in the sun, Dan.

_________________
"Act your age, not your shoe size" - Prince

Thanks! (I think).
My thought was that it got a little toasty during re-entry.
Hopefully it no longer looks like it got smashed into a wall.
My daughter likes it, and she's the artistic family member, so I'll go with it.
I just cut out a template for it today.

_________________
wah
Wah-wah-wah-wah
Wah

I like the Explorer shape.

Walnut and maple like the Gibson E2. Rosewood fingerboard with ebony binding. Ebony pick guard.







The DeExplora



Look for some pics of a Gibson custom shop Explorer. They cut a part of the headstock off making a point kind of thing. Might give you an idea of what to do. Or not to do.

Glen

that acoustic explorer is cool! but why does the top edge look all wonky? almost looks like the purfling is all coming out...?

Arm bevel.

Pretty sweet, Glen!
It looks like a custom Gibson.
I'm copying the body shape because it sits nicely on the leg, and it looks cool.
I'm winging the rest.
Thanks for the photos.
My lumber's in the garage, my tools are ready, but it's too cold in the shop to work.
I really need to order the hardware before I do too much cutting.
I'm using all local wood: Sycamore body and neck, Chinaberry top and back, Mesquite fretboard, and Walnut binding.
Dan

_________________
wah
Wah-wah-wah-wah
Wah

So after two attempts at routing the wierd headstock shape, I went with the plain old "A" style.
I had tearout and chunks thrown out trying to route the shape.
I could cut it out with a scroll saw, but figured it would be too delicate to withstand a bump.
Now if I can cut the neck pocket without failure, the rest should not be so stressful.
Dan

_________________
wah
Wah-wah-wah-wah
Wah

Thats not a job for a router; they are evil and should be regarded as a last resort. Chisels, man!
Are you using mahogany or maple?

Sycamore and Chinaberry - locally fallen trees.
Thought I'd build some "green" guitars, although this one will be red.

_________________
wah
Wah-wah-wah-wah
Wah

I really like your wood choices, they look very nice! I wish I had more usable local varieties to choose from. we get some nice flamed maple here and there, and lots of poplar, sometimes with flame as well. other than that we got birch.... which I'm told makes a nice neck if you can get it quarter sawn.
I'm about to start building an explorer for a guy, and I'm having a hard time finding any accurate measurements for it, care to share any? Just the body is all I need, if you didn't mind sharing

Use good quality, sharp router bits & take severel light passes.

Also pay attention to how the cutter is slamming into the wood & change your feed direction to prevent blow out. You will have to climb cut at times so be very careful to prevent it from self feeding.

Kevin Looker

_________________
I'm not a luthier.
I'm just a guy who builds guitars in his basement.
It's better than playing golf.

I have started working on the Explorer again.
I strung it up and the action is great.
I bought an accurate straight edge that helped me achieve a dead-straight fretboard.
I should have some pickups by the weekend.
The body is about 3/4" thick. I think I have the bugs worked out.
Cutting the pickup cavities removed about half of the neck tenon thickness.
Since the action is very low, the scale may be over-compensated.
The notes get progressively flatter past the 12th fret. I'll figure something out.
Dan

_________________
wah
Wah-wah-wah-wah
Wah

Interesting design for the layers of wood.
Looking forward to the completion of the project.

_________________
"Act your age, not your shoe size" - Prince

Me too brother!

_________________
wah
Wah-wah-wah-wah
Wah

I Love it alot! Explorer envy here. It's turning out great. Love the woods.

_________________
Jason Moe
LaCrosse WI 54601