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Very nice looking bridges! What are you using for software?

M

I feel like I've been on a chisel search for the whole of my woodworking life. The best I'd ever had was a set of 3 that my older brother brought back from Germany as a gift -- I was 12 years old and they are now well used. I've bought and sold-on more chisels than I care to remember, looking for ones that would truly hold an edge so I could spend my time working wood, rather than sharpening steel. My Marples set goes from 1/8" to 1.25" -- they are nicely balanced and sharpen easily to a glorious edge, but tiny chips appear on that edge from the moment they see a piece of hardwood.

Finally, I found a set that actually do exactly what is written on the box -- the Veritas PM-VII bench chisels from Lee Valley: http://www.leevalley.com/US/Wood/page.aspx?p=69847&cat=1,41504. They are beautifully made, as you would expect from Veritas, and they really only needed a polish on the back and a few swipes on the secondary bevel. But the best thing, is that the edge really does last. Couldn't be happier -- my quest for chisels is now over.

My Husqvarna 440. I hear Shane uses a similar model frequently. Great for inlay work, setting neck angles and saddle slots. It puts the Lumberjack back into Lutherie. Also great for destroying "builds-gone-bad."

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Doug

Don't let fear or common sense stop you from trying to build something

Ever get any complaints from the neighbors about noxious VOC's?

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Doug

Don't let fear or common sense stop you from trying to build something

I knew a guy who used one of those for finish sanding furniture. Very quick!

Alex

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"Indecision is the key to flexibility" .... Bumper sticker

Free is alway best! I paid $326 for mine, but I expect it to be worth every penny. I'll use mine for finish only, and my XPC gun for stain.

Alex

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"Indecision is the key to flexibility" .... Bumper sticker

This is something I have been working on. I call them Dremel Fans. They are little propellers that slip on to the 1/8" shaft of an inlay bit. They blow the dust away. This is one of those ideas that actually worked better than I imagined it would. Friends who have used them say things like "Where have you been all my life?"

Thank you...yes, they turned out very nice.

https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid ... =3&theater

...a shot of John Mayes at Healdsburg with that Ivory bridge on a guitar. I feel a bit presumptuous highlighting my small part in a rather large body of accomplishment...but there it is. Those bridges were made for John who designed them on Rhino...I believe. The model was sent to me and I generated the holding fixture and the toolpaths for the part with Soldiworks and MasterCam X5.

I understand that Ivory blank cost $250. I was terrified of ruining it so I developed the tool path using Bloodwood scraps. John also sent many African Blackwood and Rosewood blanks as part of the order so when it came time for the Ivory...I had it wired down pretty well.

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I read Emerson on the can. A foolish consistency is the hobgoblin of little minds...true...but a consistent reading of Emerson has its uses nevertheless.

StuMusic

I'd love to get one of your Dremel Fans. Where are they available? Just getting geared up to do some inlay work.

Great minds think alike. I had the same idea, but used a short piece of 1/8" wide strapping tape that just sort of flaps in the wind. Work great. They stay on the bits when not in use.

Pat

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formerly known around here as burbank
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http://www.patfosterguitars.com

[/quote]


Don't feel presumptuous Stuart. You did an amazing job. Here are some better pictures:







And yes they were drawn in Rhino by me, although some of the surfacing was done by a friend.

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John Mayes
http://www.mayesluthier.com

I remember Stuart posting the threesome some time ago - I thought I had saved it but no... so was happy to see these pics resurface.
I just love the design and execution, and pretty cool to be able to use ivory...
My fave tool:

I read about the tape idea on Frank Ford's frets.com. I thought that little plastic propellers would be a bit snazzier. I tried to find them on-line looking at hobby stores for toy boats but nothing seemed to fit. My brother-in-law has a 3D printer and we sketched them out in a CAD program and he made up some prototypes. We made a few adjustments and then he printed up a couple of hundred. I've been handing them out to builders just to get feedback.

Oh yes...MUCH better pics.

Love how that polished!

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I read Emerson on the can. A foolish consistency is the hobgoblin of little minds...true...but a consistent reading of Emerson has its uses nevertheless.

StuMusic

Dude, you ROCK...!
I should have bought that other lathe from you.... but then I'd need a mill too...

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"I want to know what kind of pickups Vince Gill uses in his Tele, because if I had those, as good of a player as I am, I'm sure I could make it sound like that.
Only badly."

This is genius! You should market these, not give them away!
I'd be happy to pay you for a couple of them.

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

Actually its My Troji ..... I use that thing all the time now .... Mounted wheels on it so I could move it easier .

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The Shallower the depth of the stream , The Louder the Babble !
The Taking Of Offense Is the Life Course Of The Stupid One !
Wanna Leave a Better Planet for our Kids? How about Working on BETTER KIDS for our Planet !
Forgiveness is the ability to accept an apology that you will probably NEVER GET
The truth will set you free , But FIRST, it will probably Piss you Off !
Creativity is allowing yourself to make Mistakes, Art is knowing which ones to Keep !
The Saddest thing anyone can do , is push a Loyal Person to the point that they Dont Care Anymore
Never met a STRONG person who had an EASY past !
http://wiksnwudwerks.blogspot.com/
http://www.facebook.com/groups/GatewayA ... rAssembly/

My tool is the little screwdriver I use to install the tuners.....means another one is done

OK I'll bite.

I have trashed the Stew Mac Golden Age Tuners a couple of times, but I will give kudo's where they are due.

I bought their Bridge Saver when it first came out and have used it on 4 different guitars. It has made my money back a couple of times already. I repaired a 57 Martin D-28 and a 61 Gibson J-45 both which normally would have required replacing the bridge plates. Saved the original plates and the value of the guitars.

This thing works and if you repair guitars it will pay for itself the first time you use it.

It gets 3

Here is a picture from their site since It shows it better than me just taking a static picture of mine.

Bob

I love working on electrics and we see tons of them every day. And when I do my go-to tool representing the very first thing that I ever do to most electrics (after a good triage, playing it for a min or two, etc. and developing a mental plan of attack for this specific instrument) is Frank Ford's awesome "Jack The Gripper" tool.

I have yet to work on an electric guitar where the input jack is not loose or has never been properly snugged down. These days many acoustics suffer from the same problem.

The tool takes under a minute to use and is a real money maker. Mine has paid for itself 1,000 times over by now and still going strong.

Kudos to Frank!!!! Jack The Gripper: Highly recommended!!!

My 1931 Voitlander Inos II 6x9cm medium format...

I love my new WoodRiver #4 plane...

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Steve Sollod (pronounced sorta like "Solid")
www.swiftcreekguitars.com

For me it is whatever tool I need at the moment that I already own. Sometimes it's a pencil.

Tim

My Veritas No. 4 with PM-V11 iron. It's just about the best plane I've used.

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John Lewis
Wannabe builder owned by 2 crazy dachshunds

The pin router I rigged up from a Dremel drill press to do headstock inlays. Got the idea from Charlie Hoffman.

The company that CNC's your logo will make a pin router template. This thing has worked great.

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It's not what you don't know that hurts you, it's what you do know that's wrong.