Stew Mac Kit?
 

Pardon if this has been covered before, but has anyone tried building a guitar using the Stew Mac dread kit (either the hog or RW version)? Any thoughts? Are there other kits as good or better?

Thinking this might be a fun project at some point...

Thanks!

Hi B

As LJ said post it here...someone is building a stew

http://www.acousticguitarforum.com/f...splay.php?f=44

I am about to purchase a kit from Luthiers Merchant International (LMI). I believe they have better prices, many more options, better woods and more free guidance.

For example, you can customize your kit and they will bend your sides for you (you will also need to buy several tools specific to luthiery and a few braces). So you can make your guitar as simple as you like with no designs and no inlay, no rosette or any of that and just concentrate on building the guitar itself (which is what I will do my first time through). Also they will do a lot of work for you if you like, like routing, sanding etc., but it is costly. All in all if you don't mind some work and some research, you can build yourself a nice solid wood top and back, solid sided guitar out of any combination of wood you choose for under $400.00. I am going with Indian Rosewood back and sides, an Adirondack top with a rosewood neck, a Madagascar ebony fretboard and standard Gohtah tuners. If I enjoy it, I will build another but I will try to add some paua abalone and some other bells and whistles.

Good luck and have fun.

That's awesome. Document your progress and share! If I don't get scared away, I might take the plunge! Thanks for the heads up re LMI. I forgot about them.

THANKS!

It would be cheaper to buy a kit unless you know a local source for tools and woods. I went with the "from scratch" method and it is pretty expensive yet I feel a little more rewarding.

If I started over I would go for a kit, simply because of the time it has taken to make the jigs and forms/moulds etc just to be able to start doing certain things on it. However, bending the sides has probably been the most rewarding part of the job so far, even though they are far from perfect.

I definitely will be posting about it as I will need plenty of advise! I am in Iraq right now, so everything is still in the planning stages. Eventually I would like to try to build a fanned fret. We'll see, but LMI is definitely the way to go IMO. I'll let you know if I come across better prices somewhere else, but LMI is know for their quality.

My step dad lives in the Adirondack and he has a bunch of land up there. We are going to be cutting our own spruce after we do a few builds. I'll probably still buy the Rosewood though. But there are Walnut, Maple and Cherry trees up there as well. I'll probably give those a shot too. Saves money and it's a better story if you ask me. But initially I think a kit is the way to go.

We both have the same goal, however the more I look into it, the harder it appears it will be and the more respect I have for the guys and girls making guitars in general and especially things like fan frets.

I plan on making a few more 6 strings after my first build then maybe trying a 12 string...


BTW, this could be a good discussion in the DIY section if it can be moved by one of our moderators.

Actually I have been doing some reading on building fanned frets, and it's really not the rocket science that I thought it was. After all these things have been built since the 1500's.

Some of the prices from these private luthiers are insane. Like Mike Greenfield. He's charging $18,000 for a practically naked fanned fret. It's not even Koa either. Come on man. I could buy a new car for that amount of money. Lets just say I'd feel more comfortable attempting to build the guitar than the car.

In this day and age there is more than enough information available for anyone with the motivation, patience and willingness to learn to be able to build themselves a high quality guitar. Maybe not luthier grade, but hey do I really need that? I'm not Don Ross, and I'm not rich. I play at open mics and in bars and I'm in the military. Plus it just seems like a fun endeavor. Nothing is impossible, least of which is building a guitar.

Interesting stuff. I also wonder about C.F. Martin kits.

joeybagadonutz, I hope you can dive in as planned when you get back from the middle east. And, I agree, using local tonewood would make your guitars more personal and meaningful, especially for customers from the area/New England.

Thanks for the help, guys!

the lmi kit wizard lets you choose from everything they have in stock, and if you get a fully serviced kit (that includes bending and stuff), everything is 10% or more off. that's definitely the way i'd go! you will need an lmi account, and then you can play with it, make changes, and so on. really cool!

http://www.lmii.com/CartTwo/GuitarKitWelcome.asp

thanks for the tip. I'm going to look it up right now. I am wondering if he is using Grade A solid woods? It seems that this is the most expensive part to the LMI kits. I could choose a much cheaper woods from LMI, I just have no interest in doing so.

Have a good one.

Thanks, Larry. Wonder if this is the guy; Blues Creek Guitars:

http://cgi.ebay.com/Martin-Guitar-ki...5#ht_720wt_958

Hey blindeman,
if you haven't done so already, check out the kit guitar forum at http://kitguitarforum.com
I don't have a pony in this race but I highly recommend the book that he sells on kit building.

Best of luck with the kit
Ron