mate,as an old machinist ,I can appreciate the work and precision in a common sense way that you are doing.That flat stone bench is a great idea.I saw a guy honing transmission valves on such a bench years ago ,great way to keep stuff flat.You can never have too many jigs. Cheers Ross from Aussie
Fascinating the different methods builders use to achieve the same result, i seen a few do the neck tenon 4 1/5 deg angle on a router, you do it with a hand saw.
Cool video. A lot of perfection is achieved in this video, so, every time the word, "perfect," is spoken take a drink. You use some similar jig and fixture ideas and designs to some I have used over the years.
Great demo. I have made 3 LP types myself, so it's interesting to see how other woodworkers do it. One thing I noticed is that your fingers are pretty close to the saw blades...good thing that you have good concentration and eye to hand co-ordination.
Not much of a wood cutting guy here, but i'm looking up all your tools as I watch and i think i'm ready to get into the world of cutting bodies and necks! Planning to put together my own Tele soon, then eventually i'll be making guitars from a rough piece of wood. Can't wait to start this venture! Same with engineering effects pedals too!
Very cool. I've always wondered if Gibson just glued the Ears on the Headstock or made a joint for them to fit into. Great video & for once, I typed in what I was looking for & this was the first video on the list. Great video & great job. Those Jigs pay for themselves after the first couple necks..... Great video to download too.............
Very interesting! Thanks for sharing. I downloaded your video on my HD in case you take it off one day, when you realize you're giving away too many good ideas. Peace...
Hi making my second guitar first one was a warlock I do like the les Paul body style and just curious if I wanted to use the body style of a les Paul but use a recessed Floyd rose do I still have to use a 4 degree neck angle
I have just found this channel and am learning heaps. So thanks for sharing. There times with the routing where you appear to be pushing against an end grain corner, and I am worried about tear out. Are the sides unfinished at that stage so you can clean up and tear out? Or what is the secret?
Hi! what a great job! i have a question. Reading some cad project for the lp 59 i see that the basemant in which the neck will be glue have to be 3.5°..so according to these project how can i saw this angle? considering that i have a rouler and a jigsaw. any tips? ty best regards gabriele
in terms of tone right now, my current guitar i have a 58' reissue tele from fender; ash body and maple neck & fingerboard, its also very light. i wanted to create a guitar that was opposite of my 58' tele. basically opposite in the way of tone AND playability. (i want all the latest advances to give me better playability. ie:compound radius, for bends, truss rod access at headstock ect.) basically all the things my 58' dont have. and yes warmoth has bocote.
lookin at getting a tele neck made up for my alder tele body.. i definitely want a Q-sawn maple neck but dont have a clue as to what the fingerboard should be, in your experience whats a good tone wood for fingerboard? no limit in terms of money. at warmoth im lookin at figured ziricote, ebony (black & madagascar) King wood, bloodwood ect.. any help would be greatly appreciated, until then ill be sifting through your videos watching ur wood reviews. thanks.
Big D. Thanks so much for all the vids/info. Fine work on the jigs. Do u sell your neck jigs? If not how come? I cut my hdstk angles on my miter saw. Setting the neck of my last guitar I experienced the same prob at glue up time,it had a very tight neck pocket as well....the heel didnt want to seat properly. Whats the cause of that?
0:01 are those one-piece necks or do the headstocks be derived from another chunk and sticked onto after subsequently? 18:28 what a perfection bro! in future i think i'll want to ask you to build a LP to me
Hey, do you cut the back of the tenon so that it has a sloping angle? You didnt show how the back is cut and only showed how you cut the cheeks of the tenon - im curious how you cut the back of the tenon to match the break angle of the neck , because if you dont cut it angled, the back of the tenon would not sit well on the floor of the neck pocket ..... I hope i explained myself well
Looking for a source for the type of router bit you use in this video, looks to be 2.5" or greater, w/ top bearing, or configurable w/ multiple bearings, if you don't mind sharing :)
I know it’s an old video and this is 2021, but still incredibly informative. Question though, why does every RUclips hands on video have at least one safety boy, preaching about saw clearances…..anybody who has your skills has enough common sense to not cut your fingers off, I would think.
Hey Derek ive been trying to reach you about finding out how much a Les Paul kit of yours is and can't seem to find anything out.if you could get back to me and let me know if you still make them and sell them I'd appreciate it.thanks a bunch and love your content.cheers
Question for you Sir. I have seen several videos of people making guitars even the factory made units and all of the ones I have seen done you use two pieces of wood to make wings on the sides of the tuning head. Why? Why isn't this just made out of a solid chunk of wood instead of adding these two little wings and then routering them off?
it comes down to the sizes that are easily commercially milled. Those little wings add a decent amount of size and a lot of that extra size would be cut away as waste wood. Its cheaper to use the wood in common sizes
***** Thank you....Also do you think that I can buy a do it yourself guitar kit that would produce a good playable guitar? I see a lot of these kits on the market ? And do you sell your beautiful creations?
Jerry Lake I don't like the kits that are out there. The china kits are worse than you would think. I was making kits a few years ago but moved away from that. I have some of my guitars up on www.bigdguitars.com
Your router bit is too short. I have several similar applications. I was able to get a 1/2 inch by 4 inch tall straight cut bit for like $26.00. It saves so much time from resetting bit height and taking multiple passes. There's a bunch of sites you can get a custom one from. I think I used tool orbit or orbit tool. Nice vids man. Keep on rockin.
+BigDGuitars - you just watched him butcher that poor piece of mahogany with poor routing skills and you would rather have a neck with tear out than a true gibson neck? YOU CRAZY MAIN. I like to watch some of his videos too but he needs to take some basic wood working classes.
Enjoyed the video but please, please use push sticks on the router table - my heart was in my mouth watching you rout! It only takes a millisecond of kickback to find your fingers hitting the cutter - trust me on this. Also install a pin on the table so you can safely start the cuts - a pivot pin makes life much safer! Keep up the good work :)
Philip Edwards He doesn't need push stick or pins because his template starts before the cut. Also his clamping system allows him to keep the cutter well away from his hands. All his cuts in this video look like a very competent way to use his machines.
Seriously...the bigD guitar guy needs to get his head squared-away with safe power-tool skills. I noticed the headset and glasses when he used the table router, but when using the table saw, his hands went way past the danger zone. 11th grade shop class...you need a push stick. using the hand router...ear protection but NO eye protection. . not a lot of custom work missing 3 fingers or an eye. safe first.
So there yo go, after about 1/2 hour 45 min you can build a les paul neck (as long as you have thousands of dollars in specialized tools and jigs) hahaha. It's funny but hey the guy can build some pretty cool guitars I'll give him that for sure. Show us people who don't have a huge shop full of every tool how to build a les paul. I bet you could. Thanks for the awesome videos.
Wayne Henderson can build a Martin flattop, with only a pocket knife practically … for those of us who build its just a pain in the ass… but for someone with no experience it would be an unqualified disaster… wanna start building with little $$ in tools? Build a flattop guitar like a tele.. then build a strat.. then build a Les
HOPE YOU DIDN'T TAKE MY COMMENT THE WRONG WAY, I JUST STUMBLED ON TO THIS VIDEO AGAIN AND REALIZED MY COMMENT WAS A LITTLE RUDE, I DIDN'T INTEND IT TO BE SO. I'M AN ADMIRER OF YOUR BUILDING SKILLS FOR SURE AND HAVE ACTUALLY LEARNED A TON FROM WATCHING YOU AT WORK. THANKS AGAIN FOR THE VIDEOS.
Collect used tools slowly and carefully. I ahve done this over a couple of years and now I have a shop that has better tools than some commercial shops. I don't build guitars but my shop mate Brian does.
Hey man! Been watching your videos for about a year now and I really love your work. And I wonder if you sell only necks? Have a 72 Gibson sg with A neck beyond repair. So. I need a new one. Would you take the job?
my grandfather was a wood worker when he passed on I got most of his tools and left over wood. I made a lot of mistakes along the way, in wood and in tools. still learning but getting there. Inlay vid coming next.
***** That sounds really neat. Better to keep those kinds of things in the family and put them to good use, which hey, guitar making...can't get any more useful than that. I've learned a lot from your videos, please keep them coming, thanks!
***** Very cool, just got my instruments in music stores last year, they want quality but the also want stock, they won't even look at you unless you have atleast 25 units on hand at all times. your on the rite track with your jigs! great work, nothin better then hand crafted.
I guess I wasn't the only one thinking safety. After he made that first cut, rather than just pulling away, he kept rolling along. I'm screaming in my head "You're cut is done! Why are you still sliding you hand along!!!???".
you might think people are trying to help by posting links but dont overlook the fact that your videos get alot of views so they are also kind of advertising on your back
no disrespect intended here, but i will not be glueing a headstock together haha. I don't care if i have to cut wood away and waste it, I would prefer all one piece neck. But this is your guitar, not mine ;)
you should learn how to do a vintage les paul neck without the neck heel that hides the joint between the neck and the back of the body. the only reason that exists was so gibson can do a shit job setting necks and hide the resulting gap. if you're building custom guitars, you should show off the perfect neck joint between the tenon and the body. If I was going to have a les paul built and the builder did the neck heel like that, I'd find another builder. That "norlin heel" is the single biggest cause of the decline in quality of gibson guitars.
This is going to be another wonderful series! I love learning from you! Thanks so much for your time and vids!
Pam
What a clean video...
Really impressive how you got your stuff together man, my questions are answered !
Thank you
mate,as an old machinist ,I can appreciate the work and precision in a common sense way that you are doing.That flat stone bench is a great idea.I saw a guy honing transmission valves on such a bench years ago ,great way to keep stuff flat.You can never have too many jigs. Cheers Ross from Aussie
As a luthier I really appreciate how much easier a strat neck is to produce and work with
Fascinating the different methods builders use to achieve the same result, i seen a few do the neck tenon 4 1/5 deg angle on a router, you do it with a hand saw.
Cool video. A lot of perfection is achieved in this video, so, every time the word, "perfect," is spoken take a drink.
You use some similar jig and fixture ideas and designs to some I have used over the years.
What a great job you do. Thanks for posting this vid.
Great demo. I have made 3 LP types myself, so it's interesting to see how other
woodworkers do it. One thing I noticed is that your fingers are pretty close to the saw
blades...good thing that you have good concentration and eye to hand co-ordination.
Not much of a wood cutting guy here, but i'm looking up all your tools as I watch and i think i'm ready to get into the world of cutting bodies and necks! Planning to put together my own Tele soon, then eventually i'll be making guitars from a rough piece of wood. Can't wait to start this venture! Same with engineering effects pedals too!
great videos,you do excellent work
Very cool. I've always wondered if Gibson just glued the Ears on the Headstock or made a joint for them to fit into. Great video & for once, I typed in what I was looking for & this was the first video on the list. Great video & great job. Those Jigs pay for themselves after the first couple necks..... Great video to download too.............
Great tutorial thanks Big D!
Great videos! Thank you for all info! :)
Like the 59 of course,,.as far as specs go,,.Your work looks great.I want one.
Very interesting! Thanks for sharing. I downloaded your video on my HD in case you take it off one day, when you realize you're giving away too many good ideas. Peace...
I'm from Michigan to. Great video
Very interesting!!!Thank you!
Hi. Do you have any video showing how to shape/carve a LP neck profile? Thx a lot for the great videos!!!
wonderful!
thanks for response
Alternately liquid hyde glue would be reversible and also would be slick and lubricate the neck going into the body.
Hi making my second guitar first one was a warlock I do like the les Paul body style and just curious if I wanted to use the body style of a les Paul but use a recessed Floyd rose do I still have to use a 4 degree neck angle
I have just found this channel and am learning heaps. So thanks for sharing. There times with the routing where you appear to be pushing against an end grain corner, and I am worried about tear out. Are the sides unfinished at that stage so you can clean up and tear out? Or what is the secret?
I just ordered a gibson explorer laser cut template.
Hi! what a great job! i have a question. Reading some cad project for the lp 59 i see that the basemant in which the neck will be glue have to be 3.5°..so according to these project how can i saw this angle? considering that i have a rouler and a jigsaw. any tips? ty best regards
gabriele
Hey! Where do you get the big bottom bearing bit? Shown at 8:46
in terms of tone right now, my current guitar i have a 58' reissue tele from fender; ash body and maple neck & fingerboard, its also very light.
i wanted to create a guitar that was opposite of my 58' tele. basically opposite in the way of tone AND playability. (i want all the latest advances to give me better playability. ie:compound radius, for bends, truss rod access at headstock ect.) basically all the things my 58' dont have.
and yes warmoth has bocote.
Amazing craftsmanship Your guitars must be expensive? Beautiful work
at 8:27, are those bearings just around the shank or what?
lookin at getting a tele neck made up for my alder tele body.. i definitely want a Q-sawn maple neck but dont have a clue as to what the fingerboard should be, in your experience whats a good tone wood for fingerboard? no limit in terms of money.
at warmoth im lookin at figured ziricote, ebony (black & madagascar) King wood, bloodwood ect..
any help would be greatly appreciated, until then ill be sifting through your videos watching ur wood reviews. thanks.
Big D. Thanks so much for all the vids/info. Fine work on the jigs. Do u sell your neck jigs? If not how come? I cut my hdstk angles on my miter saw. Setting the neck of my last guitar I experienced the same prob at glue up time,it had a very tight neck pocket as well....the heel didnt want to seat properly. Whats the cause of that?
How do you scrape the excess binding off the top?
RESPECT
What are the dimensions of your uncut piece of wood that you will later turn in 2 Les Paul necks?...Thanks!
What is the proper gibson lp angle?
Do you sell your jigs? I'm working in an Explorer and I am having trouble figuring out the neck
0:01 are those one-piece necks or do the headstocks be derived from another chunk and sticked onto after subsequently?
18:28 what a perfection bro! in future i think i'll want to ask you to build a LP to me
Hi. How deep do you route the truss rod groove on your Les Pauls?
Hey, do you cut the back of the tenon so that it has a sloping angle? You didnt show how the back is cut and only showed how you cut the cheeks of the tenon - im curious how you cut the back of the tenon to match the break angle of the neck , because if you dont cut it angled, the back of the tenon would not sit well on the floor of the neck pocket ..... I hope i explained myself well
Looking for a source for the type of router bit you use in this video, looks to be 2.5" or greater, w/ top bearing, or configurable w/ multiple bearings, if you don't mind sharing :)
Hi Derek You should re upload these videos
Are you still buying these slight spiral router bit for the neck profile? Where do you source them? Thanks!
Why don't you sell a 59 lp diy kit.i can't seem to find one that's close to yours,I'm trying to build one like the derrig copy that slash has.
How do I order one of you Lps? Would you be able to do one with a floyd Rose? Thanks
Really enjoy your youtubr channel. But do you do,les,paul kits?
Where do you get your routing bits at? Wht are the dimensions of the bit?
Hi great vids where do u get your templates from?
Hey, is a great job! Your Jig Templates are useful. Why does everbody create a Les Paul, SG or Strat, there are no Flying-V or Explorer?
do you still make these bodies and necks if so love for you to build me a set
I have jig envy. :)
took me a while to figure out how to do this right...
I’m thinking about have a guitar built. Your web sight says to shoot you an email, but there’s not email? Are you still building?
Will you do a body video too?
I know it’s an old video and this is 2021, but still incredibly informative. Question though, why does every RUclips hands on video have at least one safety boy, preaching about saw clearances…..anybody who has your skills has enough common sense to not cut your fingers off, I would think.
People are angry
If your cutting a strait truss rod slot, it's way easier to do on the tablesaw.
Do you sell these jigs or know of a place that sells similar jigs?
Epoxy would work better for gluing on a neck I think...it is slick and will lubricate the wood. I use it on tight joints.
Clueless.
How much for a stock Les Paul Standard??My name is jimmy.
Figuring out your jigs must have taken some time, great video!
Still selling these neck blanks?
B From Ontario, Canada
I haven't I should!!!
what does "score the wood" mean? what is that?
It means "to make a mark" as in a penciled line or a straight etch in order to use as a cutting or sawing guide.
Do you still make necks
Hey Derek ive been trying to reach you about finding out how much a Les Paul kit of yours is and can't seem to find anything out.if you could get back to me and let me know if you still make them and sell them I'd appreciate it.thanks a bunch and love your content.cheers
hey man I am not doing kits. Gibson came after me years ago so I don't do a bunch of work on them anymore.
Question for you Sir. I have seen several videos of people making guitars even the factory made units and all of the ones I have seen done you use two pieces of wood to make wings on the sides of the tuning head. Why? Why isn't this just made out of a solid chunk of wood instead of adding these two little wings and then routering them off?
it comes down to the sizes that are easily commercially milled. Those little wings add a decent amount of size and a lot of that extra size would be cut away as waste wood. Its cheaper to use the wood in common sizes
***** Thank you....Also do you think that I can buy a do it yourself guitar kit that would produce a good playable guitar? I see a lot of these kits on the market ? And do you sell your beautiful creations?
Jerry Lake I don't like the kits that are out there. The china kits are worse than you would think. I was making kits a few years ago but moved away from that. I have some of my guitars up on www.bigdguitars.com
Your router bit is too short. I have several similar applications. I was able to get a 1/2 inch by 4 inch tall straight cut bit for like $26.00. It saves so much time from resetting bit height and taking multiple passes. There's a bunch of sites you can get a custom one from. I think I used tool orbit or orbit tool. Nice vids man. Keep on rockin.
thanks will take a look.
I wish I could commission you to build me a guitar.
I'm in the UK and would buy a les paul kit off you over a Gibson any day,do you sell to the UK?
I was selling kits a while ago, had one bad experience and stopped doing it.
+BigDGuitars - you just watched him butcher that poor piece of mahogany with poor routing skills and you would rather have a neck with tear out than a true gibson neck? YOU CRAZY MAIN. I like to watch some of his videos too but he needs to take some basic wood working classes.
Sensible foot wear is a key to guitar building I see lol
Enjoyed the video but please, please use push sticks on the router table - my heart was in my mouth watching you rout! It only takes a millisecond of kickback to find your fingers hitting the cutter - trust me on this. Also install a pin on the table so you can safely start the cuts - a pivot pin makes life much safer!
Keep up the good work :)
Philip Edwards He doesn't need push stick or pins because his template starts before the cut. Also his clamping system allows him to keep the cutter well away from his hands. All his cuts in this video look like a very competent way to use his machines.
Seriously...the bigD guitar guy needs to get his head squared-away with safe power-tool skills. I noticed the headset and glasses when he used the table router, but when using the table saw, his hands went way past the danger zone. 11th grade shop class...you need a push stick. using the hand router...ear protection but NO eye protection. . not a lot of custom work missing 3 fingers or an eye. safe first.
So there yo go, after about 1/2 hour 45 min you can build a les paul neck (as long as you have thousands of dollars in specialized tools and jigs) hahaha. It's funny but hey the guy can build some pretty cool guitars I'll give him that for sure. Show us people who don't have a huge shop full of every tool how to build a les paul. I bet you could. Thanks for the awesome videos.
challenge accepted. I will do this.
Wayne Henderson can build a Martin flattop, with only a pocket knife practically … for those of us who build its just a pain in the ass… but for someone with no experience it would be an unqualified disaster… wanna start building with little $$ in tools? Build a flattop guitar like a tele.. then build a strat.. then build a Les
Maybe the Gibson Lawyers will have a good time with this video!
HOPE YOU DIDN'T TAKE MY COMMENT THE WRONG WAY, I JUST STUMBLED ON TO THIS VIDEO AGAIN AND REALIZED MY COMMENT WAS A LITTLE RUDE, I DIDN'T INTEND IT TO BE SO. I'M AN ADMIRER OF YOUR BUILDING SKILLS FOR SURE AND HAVE ACTUALLY LEARNED A TON FROM WATCHING YOU AT WORK. THANKS AGAIN FOR THE VIDEOS.
Collect used tools slowly and carefully. I ahve done this over a couple of years and now I have a shop that has better tools than some commercial shops. I don't build guitars but my shop mate Brian does.
Hey man! Been watching your videos for about a year now and I really love your work.
And I wonder if you sell only necks? Have a 72 Gibson sg with A neck beyond repair. So. I need a new one.
Would you take the job?
I would need the guitar and I would need some time to get it fixed. that would be a good series!
send me some pic at derek @ bigdguitars dot com
I can just smell the saw dust
jigman
Did you study how to become a luthier somewhere or did you teach yourself?
my grandfather was a wood worker when he passed on I got most of his tools and left over wood. I made a lot of mistakes along the way, in wood and in tools. still learning but getting there. Inlay vid coming next.
***** That sounds really neat. Better to keep those kinds of things in the family and put them to good use, which hey, guitar making...can't get any more useful than that. I've learned a lot from your videos, please keep them coming, thanks!
Do u sell any of the guitars u make?
not at this point. someday soon. I have some designs that I am working through and like sharing too many voodoo things about guitars today.
wait what am I saying... the purpleburst is on ebay right now!!
*****
Very cool, just got my instruments in music stores last year, they want quality but the also want stock, they won't even look at you unless you have atleast 25 units on hand at all times. your on the rite track with your jigs! great work, nothin better then hand crafted.
where are your safety glasses?
I guess I wasn't the only one thinking safety. After he made that first cut, rather than just pulling away, he kept rolling along. I'm screaming in my head "You're cut is done! Why are you still sliding you hand along!!!???".
Please build me a custom Les Paul!!! ha!
+Hot Potatoes Why don't you just build your own its not magic
Only Gibson can build you a Les Paul
you might think people are trying to help by posting links but dont overlook the fact that your videos get alot of views so they are also kind of advertising on your back
I watch this vids and I don't even know how to use a normal saw.
It is never too late to learn.
Клееная башка грифа!!! Оригинально, такой хрени я ещё не видел.
no disrespect intended here, but i will not be glueing a headstock together haha. I don't care if i have to cut wood away and waste it, I would prefer all one piece neck. But this is your guitar, not mine ;)
Gibson does it that way at the factory
when i ask you this im thinking in terms of playability not beautiful looking.
you should learn how to do a vintage les paul neck without the neck heel that hides the joint between the neck and the back of the body. the only reason that exists was so gibson can do a shit job setting necks and hide the resulting gap. if you're building custom guitars, you should show off the perfect neck joint between the tenon and the body. If I was going to have a les paul built and the builder did the neck heel like that, I'd find another builder. That "norlin heel" is the single biggest cause of the decline in quality of gibson guitars.
It should be titled how too bootleg a LP and get sued by the SEC and Gibsons Lawyers!
very true, I don't make them anymore for a reason.
when i ask you this im thinking in terms of playability not beautiful looking.