Novice builders and weather?

[ClaptonWannabe2]

What do you guys do? And what do you more experienced guys do? I am at a point where the steps I need to perform are messy. Mainly routing binding channels. This is Texas and this time of year we have some of the most wild swings in temp and humidity. It’s 35 degrees this morning and will be a perfect 65 later today. Humidity will be very low for here though.

I had an issue last year with the last cool front catching me while gluing my back plates. Warm mild but muggy Texas morning. I glued and clamped and weighted the plates. It began to rain and by the time the rain stopped it was cool and crisp. I had a lovely Indian Rosewood potato chip the next day.

Now that my sound box is closed and the neck glued up I’m just waiting. What do you guys do? Or do you do nothing, realize this is a hobby and a slow one, and just wait it out.

I am a garage builder. I have a window unit to handle heat, but no heater to handle cold. A heater dries things out anyway.

[runamuck]

You don't need to be concerned about temperature and humidity routing binding channels. Just don't glue any bracing on the top or back, or glue the top or back to the sides unless the RH has been in the mid 40s for a couple days in your shop.

People building guitars regularly most often keep their shops at a regulated RH by using a humidifier/dehumidifier

[DickHutchings]

My suggestion is to start another build or 2 and work on stuff that isn't affected by the weather. Only brace or close the box on the perfect days.

[Skarsaune]

Close the garage door - you won’t be as affected by weather swings.

I build in my basement and have a dehumidifier. The basement is too damp in the summer even with the dehumidifier, so my building is pretty seasonal. Which works with my life - the farm is a lot less busy in the winter. I do have a room upstairs I do some work in. I monitor the humidity in both locations.

As redir said, it’s the cross-grain gluing that is most critical to do under controlled/low humidity conditions. Across grain expansion is way more than longitudinal expansion. So that’s bracing tops & backs and closing the box (gluing tops & bottoms on) for me.

Cutting binding channels, you should be fine.