Shots of the Curbow’s

The Curbow 2 –

So after rushing to get the Curbow #2 project into a presentable mode before Christmas Eve, I delivered it to my client with the electronics disconnected and the control cavity cover not installed.

I now have it back as well as her sister for a small action adjustment and a photo shoot-

Curbow 2 Antiquity Pups

First Completion – Curbow1

Curbow Completion 2

Birdseye Neck with Ebony Fingerboard

I’m testing a few methods to record simple samples for this blog.

This first test is using my iPad and garageband to record a simple test.

Curbow Project Update #4 – Delivered for Client Test on Christmas Eve

Curbow #2 85% Completed

Hello to all, I hope your Holiday has been everything you expected and you were on Santa’s Nice list. If not, then I expect you had a good time last year.

The Curbow build is almost completed. At this time, all routing has been completed, the bridge has been placed into position, the pickups have been installed, the string height has been set and the neck relief has been initially set. There are still a few setup maters to address but the guitar is playable to get a feel of how it will play. Once the client returns the guitar, I’ll complete the setup and electronics, polish and clean the guitar for final presentation.

Here is what is left to complete on this project:

• Finish sanding and  polish / buffing. There will not be any finish applied to this body given the material – Purpleheart. The client wishes this piece remain natural
• Electronics need to be connected. This is still in the design phase. My client is weighing the switching options so we have yet to nail down the switching / voicing. The pickups however, are “Golden Age” variety. They are of the vintage tone / voice similar to that of the PAF’s and a Jazz pickup for the neck position.
• Installation of the RFID Theft recovery device provided by Snagg
  

  Curbow #2 neck-joint

My client is having this guitar commissioned as a gift for his wife, so this was a perfect opportunity to present it to her as an extra Christmas gift. My client contacted me about 1:30 Monday afternoon to arrange the drop off. I was able to leave the Pig Roast at my house for the evening to deliver it to him at the studio by 6:00 PM on Christmas Eve. Just in time to be wrapped and placed under the tree for the morning. I’ll be getting this guitar back the first of the week to wrap up the remaining tasks but the overall project to the point where it can be played and it’s voice can now be heard.

For additional information on this project or another CGT build, click HERE–

Curbow Update 3 – Centerline and Neck-Joint

Over the last few days, I’ve been working on the completion of the contour of the neck back. What I’ve got for now is a pretty thick neck. .85″ at the 1st Fret and about .95″ at the 12th. Once again, it’s a 24 fret, 25.5″ scale Ebony with a modified Vine of Life Inlay on a beautiful AAAA grade Birdseye maple neck with a Hot-Rod Double action truss rod.

I used a large poster board with graph lines and a Drafting “T” to determine the center-line on this guitar. By centering the body on the graph, you are easily able to mark and apply the center-line onto the body. This line will be used for all routs as well as the bridge alignment and strap locks.

The neck-joint was routed to a depth of .725″ to allow for the string to body height my client is requesting. This is then supplemented with a thin sanding screen to help the neck grip well to the epoxy coating these bodies have as the laminated material separating the top half and the bottom half of the guitar body.

Next up will be the Bridge placement as well as the pickup and control cavity routing.

Curbow Build Update 2 – Inlay and Neck Build

Vine of Life MOP Inlay

The Curbow build came up again on the schedule this week as I started the Inlay on the fingerboard. As you can see, it is of the Ibanez vine of life style. Mother of Pearl (MOP) inlayed into the Ebony Fingerboard slotted to 25.5″ scale, 24 frets. This fingerboard was hand selected for it’s slight figuring that will become evident when the neck is completed and applied to the Purple-heart body.

Once the fingerboard is routed, the pearl is glued into place using super glue. This will keep the MOP in place until the epoxy and ebony dust filler / seal are applied.

Once dry, sanding, shaping and cleaning are completed and the inlay is inspected. Once passed, the inlay side of the fingerboard is protected with card-stock for the remainder of the glue up process.

The Birdseye maple neck blank was slotted for the truss rod and rough shaped using the center line created from the square side of the blank.

Hot Rod Truss Rod in place-

Clamped for 24-hrs

The truss rod slot is filled with silicone sealant to prevent rattling or strange resonant vibrations during playing. Glue is applied to both mating surfaces and distributed evenly. Once clamped, the neck is allowed to set clamped for 24 hours. When cured, the clamps will be removed, the blank will be edged to match the fingerboard and prepped for contouring.

If you have any questions about this or any other project, feel free to contact me here-