Not much action out of me lately, I am at a crossroads. First off these were to be a quick build and a little bit of fun and not really too concerned with the results. Besides all the side projects that got mixed in with them I find really like to make things the best I can. Well if not the best I can at least not waste time and materials. Being that the materials for the bodies were already there and would not be used otherwise I threw in some crating wood that was of little value otherwise.
Things I found, going from a 22" neck made of fir to a 24" hardwood one makes the new guitar unbalanced and neck heavy. My original guitar almost wants to sit at any position with no effort. The new neck and small body do not seem to go well together.
This body had the least resonance when taping the top, actually more like just a thud. My original rang like a drum without the bridge on it, the two other cedar ones have much of the same resonance, the other pine top has less but still has a little musicality to it. It has an abundance of treble and not much bass strummed with a pick. On the plus side finger picking it sound more balanced as I have no nails to speak of and any brightness has to come from the guitar.
I really like the way the neck came out, I thought it might be a little thin as I had little depth on the neck to work with and fought to keep every last mm of wood on the back. The combination of the wood, the amount of grain that is filled with the ebony color and the jatoba fretboard looks like it has been around for many years.
Also I am not crazy about the bridge position, just too far south for my liking on a flattop.
Now since I already glued up the necks I will still have the top heavy feeling putting them on the remaining bodies. I have molds I made up from an old Stella student guitar that might provide a better balance especially with the quartered white oak that I have. The look of the neck and giving the oak a vintaged appearance may make for a good combination. I could also do the current bodies with a 22" neck and use fir again (and I said I never wanted to do another with fir).
So I may travel down another dirt road on my guitar making journey, just not sure which fork in the road to take yet. I have been forced out of work for my health and have some free time although I do not know if I will be able to return in weeks or if it will take a year if at all. I certainly have enough projects and materials to keep me busy in either case. I would like to have a couple of guitars done by Christmas to give as gifts. Have to mull things over a little.