The Hub

This thing had a conveniently placed hole in the neck pickup cavity that ran all the way to the end of the tenon, presumably the entry point for the long drill bit that drilled the access from pickup cavity to control cavity before the neck was originally fitted. I injected several pipettes of hot water into this hole while heating the fretboard extension area with a silicone blanket to loosen the extension from the body. Reactivated hi…

I'll start by saying I don't post much because it's confusing to know if I should post on this site or the Patreon site, both are hard to navigate, etc. Also, I sent this question to the last "elder" meeting but I have no idea what the outcome was (I thought there would be some answers documented for those that can't attend live). So, with those frustrations out of the way... I have in my backlog a 1988 PRS Studio. It has HSS pickup c…

I have two guitars I am working on that are missing a few parts and wanted to see if anyone has them that they would like to sell. I have a customer with an early 50's L5 that he got when he was 10 years old. He wants to reinstall the dearmond rhythm chief but is missing the long beam that connects the controls to the pickup and the small bracket affixes between the string run between the tail piece/bridge. Second, I have a 1978 telecaste…

Being new here, thought I would post an introduction. My name is Paul McGill Mcgillguitars.com I have been making guitars since 1976. I have lived and worked in Nashville since 1985 when I relocated here to work in the repair/restoration shop at Gruhn guitars. 410 Broadway, now a novelty shop. I was there a short time before commiting full time to guitar making as I had done prior to moving here. My main influence as a guitar maker was Ro…

Howdy gang! I was recently trying to find something in my shop and came across a box of 500k linear taper pots. I always use audio taper for volume, but what do you guys and gals think of audio versus linear taper for tone control? I've seen both used, but it's been a bit since I wired a guitar from scratch and can't remember which I prefer. Thoughts?

So, nothing against Luminlay which is an amazing component, with a top notch quality level, but they're quite expensive for what they are. I was messing with ideas and formulas over the past couple weeks, and I think I reached a nice level of quality. On the left my own 'luminlay', on the right the genuine one. Still need to manage how to control the bubble formation but I can finally see the finish line.

I've built some acoustic guitars and I want to get into some electric builds. On that note, I have a highly regarded player around here asking if I could wire an existing solid body to his liking. He is providing two 500K pots, two P90 pickups and a 3 position switch. He wants two volume controls, no tone control. He's quite an accomplished player and I don't know enough to question him. I got a Seymour Duncan diagram from their si…

I've done a few neck resets lately, (new territory for me) using the StewMac Heat Stick. It does a fine job releasing the glue, my problem is filling the hole in the 15th fret slot so that it isn't noticeable. I did a lighter colored rosewood board lately that certainly could have been better. I'm thinking of trying the needle/ steam method instead but haven't found a controllable source for steam. I would appreciate any advice with…

I've done the Fender Grease Bucket Circuit mod on a lot of Strats and it always works. A customer recently brought in a 335 kit for wiring. It got 3-TV Jones humbuckers, each wired to a Seymour Duncan Triple Shot Mounting Ring, 3 separate volume controls and a master tone with the Grease Bucket circuit. My client wanted to see a clear diagram of the wiring, so I got GuitarElectronics.com to generate one. I've used them several times in…

I need to make a router template for a rear access control cavity in the PRS style of 1 vol +1 tone +1 switch? Placement of pot and switch holes aren't important, just the contours of the cavity so I can print a routing template. Does anyone have a file? Thanks! Justin

Hello fellow Looths, I had a question in regards to a curious issue from a customers guitar. The guitar was brought to me in part because the customer was having an issue where the guitar was intermittent and would ground out. It's a partscaster with an HH pickup configuration, one volume, one tone, 5 way switch, and the tone control splits the humbuckers. The pickups are quick connect Dimarzio's. I took the pickguard off and noticed tha…

Not sure if this is the best place for this, but whatever. I need somebody to check my logic here--I could be completely wrong in my thinking. I'm about to start up my new shop in Ireland, and the humidity/temperature situation is VERY different than the Greater Washington DC region. I will also be unlikely to have as complete control over temperature and humidity as I did in our extremely tight, air-conditioned house in the US. I also k…

$300 plus shipping. Used twice. Comes with foredom, foot control, Stewmac router base, And stand. Comes with 1/8” collet. 3/32” available but can’t find it currently. Will sell without router base for $250.

Have you ever had a really stubborn bridge plate to remove? I had one not too long ago that seemed to resist wetting with a damp cloth, and subsequently all the heat I could get from my silicone heating pads. After much effort I got about 80% of it out cleanly. The remaining 20% required hours of work with a finger plane. That experience made me think about the Brown's Guitar Factory bridge plate removal tool I had purchased years ago,…

I have a Rickenbacker 620 on my bench; I have repaired the neck pickup (it came loose, uninstalled) and I am stumped with where the wire should dip into the control cavity. There is no hole in the route for the magnets, I assume it runs under the floating pickguard, but I dont see any relief or path under the main control panel. This has the toaster style pickups and dates to the 50's. Thanks in advance.

I am having a little trouble bending my first acoustic sides. The wood is a interlocked mahogany. I am hand bending on a temp controlled 2" curling iron. I have thicknessed the sides down to 1.9mm but still got some wrinkling and cracking trying to bend around the cutaway. I am trying to figure out how to improve this for the next attempt. I have read some conflicting information on how to do this though. Thus far my plan for the next a…

This is my second iteration of a gramil that can be used to fully cut the channels for binding and purfling as opposed to using an electric router. I am working on my first acoustic now but initial tests look promising. Features round beam so you can lightly scratch at first like a marking gauge. Depth control of the exacto hobby #11 blade. The edge for the beam is also shaped so it won't pop out like other wedges. Pretty quick to make…