A McKnight Skinny Slope Dreadnaught for cigarfan

[Tim McKnight]

Originally Posted by Psychopasta

I have just joined this forum and spent the whole morning reading this post. Wonderful, wonderful guitar and artistry bringing it to life!

Hey welcome to the forum Psychopasta (love your screen name). BTW, I am a pasta lover myself and my wife might even describe me as psycho at times too so it looks like we share some commonalities.

Originally Posted by Treenewt

Tim, that burst looks amazing! Love all the detail that goes into your build pics (kudos Mary!). Dennis, this is looking to be quite the special instrument!

Thanks Treenewt. We almost threw in the towel on the burst because the supplier that I bought my burst colors from for the last 20+ years decided they no longer were going to make those colors available for us. So Dennis was kind enough to compromise on the burst using the colors that I had on hand. He has been a pure gem to deal with throughout the entire process.

Originally Posted by Neil K Walk

That's looking really nice, Tim! Sorry if Kurt and I distracted you.

Sadly it doesn't look like we'll be seeing this one in person though. It looks like our 13 year streak is going to be broken.

Let’s hope McJam 13 will happen later this year, perhaps in early fall? Then maybe we can twist Dennis’ arm to bring this beauty with him?

Mary does a great job on the pictures. I’d like to expound on the sanding and buffing schedule that pictures can’t really capture. I dry sand the entire body and neck with 600 grit sand paper. Next I wet sand with 1000 grit to remove the 600 grit scratches. Next course is to wet sand with 1500 grit to remove the 1000 grit sanding scratches. Last we wet sand with 2000 grit to remove the 1500 grit sanding scratches. Therefore the entire body and neck have 2000 grit sanding scratches on them.

The reason we wet sand is because the sandpaper is so fine that the microscopic distance between each sanding grain is so small, the finish quickly clogs or loads up the microscopic voids in the sandpaper surface. By using a mixture of soap and water while sanding, allows the fine finish particles to float away and not clog up the sand paper.

Since the surface of the finish is left with 2000 grit scratches, the next step is to buff those scratches out with a cotton flannel powered buffing wheel. We apply dry buffing compound to the flannel surface of the buffing wheels. The compound is made from a type of clay mixed with super fine aggregate abrasives. We hold the buffing compound bar to the spinning wheel and it transfers and impregnates the surface of the wheel. The spinning wheel is held (lightly) against the finish and the (medium) compound removes the 2000 grit scratches and a slight gloss now appears on the surface of the finish. Next we “rake” the spinning wheels to remove the medium compound grit from the cotton flannel wheel and then we apply “fine” compound to the wheel. The fine compound removes the medium compound scratches and the gloss increases a bit more. Finally, we switch to another wheel that is dedicated to using only the “very fine” grade of buffing compound. This is the final step of the process and brings up the mirror like gloss.

Sorry to get long winded but I don’t think the process is clearly understood by a few pictures and bears further explanation. It takes several hours from the start of the sanding to the final course of buffing.

Thanks again for following along...

[gregc]

There's a book in this thread; a very good book!

[cigarfan]

Originally Posted by Psychopasta

I have just joined this forum and spent the whole morning reading this post. Wonderful, wonderful guitar and artistry bringing it to life!

Thanks for joining us in the thread and welcome to AGF! Glad you enjoyed the pics! More surprises to come!

Originally Posted by Treenewt

Tim, that burst looks amazing! Love all the detail that goes into your build pics (kudos Mary!). Dennis, this is looking to be quite the special instrument!

Thanks for the kinds words. And I do believe you are right. A very special instrument indeed.

Originally Posted by Neil K Walk

That's looking really nice, Tim! Sorry if Kurt and I distracted you.
Sadly it doesn't look like we'll be seeing this one in person though. It looks like our 13 year streak is going to be broken.

I wouldn't count it out yet. And God willing, I will be there with this beauty!

Originally Posted by gregc

There's a book in this thread; a very good book!

Yup. 475+ pics and videos so far. And I do believe there will be a coffee table book when all is said and done.

[cigarfan]

Here is a very exacting process as the bridge is glued to the top.













I do believe I see some bear claw in that top!

[Howard Emerson]

Hi Fan,
I'd say that the exacting part was removing the lacquer precisely AND having placed those indexing pins to start with!

After that it's fairly easy, which is why you do the hard stuff beforehand!

I really can't wait to hear how big that shallow body sounds. I have no doubt it will be the most comfortable guitar you own!

I believe a trend should be started.

Best,
Howard Emerson

[Carpinteria]

Absolutely beautiful guitar! Tim, what glue are you using for the bridge?

[Tim McKnight]

Originally Posted by Carpinteria

Absolutely beautiful guitar! Tim, what glue are you using for the bridge?

Thanks C but the design work credit goes to Dennis. I'm just the grunt who makes sawdust. The glue is a better replacement for the excellent white glue that LMI used to sell until their supplier went belly up. This glue is made by Spectrum Adhesives and I believe the part number is CP-01 but Ill have to check my jug after while. It dries clear, is EXTREMELY hard, doesn't creep, doesn't slide around when clamped, tacks quickly, sands easily and it can be reversed with heat and moisture. I've been using it for the last 6-7 years with excellent success.

[Nemoman]

Won't be long now, Dennis--looking so awesome!

[Godfather]

I have been following along almost daily. I, like so many others here, eagerly await completion of this gem. It truly is one of the most beautiful guitars I have seen.

[cigarfan]

Originally Posted by Howard Emerson

Hi Fan,
I'd say that the exacting part was removing the lacquer precisely AND having placed those indexing pins to start with!
After that it's fairly easy, which is why you do the hard stuff beforehand!
I really can't wait to hear how big that shallow body sounds. I have no doubt it will be the most comfortable guitar you own!
I believe a trend should be started.
Best,
Howard Emerson

Thanks Howard. You may be right ... thin is in!

Originally Posted by Carpinteria

Absolutely beautiful guitar! Tim, what glue are you using for the bridge?

Glad you like it Mr. Carpenteria! And welcome to our forum!

Originally Posted by Nemoman

Won't be long now, Dennis--looking so awesome!

Not long at all. I am really excited about this one. Tim has described the "rumble" when he sands the box. I want to feel it myself!

Originally Posted by Godfather

I have been following along almost daily. I, like so many others here, eagerly await completion of this gem. It truly is one of the most beautiful guitars I have seen.

Well thanks! Glad you like it. And thanks for hanging in there with us.

[cigarfan]

Tim and Mary have outdone themselves. An incredible amount of work accomplished today. And a record (for me anyway) 50 pics and videos.

First off, leveling of the fretboard. Chalk is applied before sanding.









After a pass of a sanding beam, the remaining chalk shows the remaining low spots.







This area is called fall away. It's blended into the fretboard with a shorter sanding beam.

[cigarfan]

Then the fretboard angle is measured to the bridge. Perfect!





Center of the fretboard is marked to position the inlays.









Once the inlay positions are confirmed, each is traced before cutting of the pocket with a router.

[cigarfan]

Again, a light sanding before the inlays are glued in.









Then the inlays are leveled. • Video 1 • Video 2





Each of the fret slots are cleaned of debris.







The claw hook fret slot cleaner thingy (tech term) is used to remove all sanding dust and shavings from the fretboard.

[cigarfan]

Several different grit sandpaper are used to final sand the fretboard and bridge.







Then it is time to cut the fret wire.







Each fret is filed flat on both end to fit the space between the end of the slot and the binding. Video

[cigarfan]

I asked Tim to place a hemispherical shape at each end of the frets. I've had it done on a couple other guitars as it is more comfortable running your hand up and down the neck when you play. It is a option Tim offers.

The following pics depict the steps required to accomplish a hemispherical shape at each fret end. Painstaking and exact!