Ever wondered how to build an electric guitar? Just the thought of doing it on your own may be a daunting task. As such, patience is a true virtue in coming up with your own string instrument. And learning the basics will make you lessen the period of time for trial and error.
Get the Tools Needed.
First and foremost, you need the tools and important parts to start this project of yours to learn how to build an electric guitar on your own.
Some of the essential tools are the plunge router and router bits, a jig saw, an electric drill and drill bits, clamps, soldering iron and solder. Optional tools include the drill press to make drilling an easier task, a belt sander, and others.
For basic parts, you may also need a body blank made from Birch Plywood or bought from a retailer. A premade neck is also needed. Don’t forget to have a hard tail type bridge, too. Tuners are also needed for the basic parts on electronics. Control knobs, a sheet of black plastic, potometers, pick-up rings, capacitors, input jack, and control switch are also essential.
Know Where to Get Your Supplies.
Buying those supplies from reputable companies is also needed. Of course, you wouldn’t ant to have parts and supplies that will not work best for you. So why waste your time buying just anywhere else?
A few suppliers and shops where you can get your needed equipments are: Guitar Parts USA, Guitar Fetish, Stewart MacDonald, Guitar Parts Online, EBAY, Catalina Guitars, DJs Guitars, Seymour Duncan Pickups, Guitar Parts Central and Guitar Jones USA.
Plan What You Will Do.
It’s also imperative to plan on what you need to do when you start making your string instrument. Think of it this way: You might just have more errors if you don’t. So take a few minutes to think about what you need to achieve.
A pre-design would work for you. For this, you might like to consider the scale length of the guitar, pre-plan a design concept on paper, and plot out the possible pieces before you start with the actual task.
If you don’t have any idea what a scale length is, it is merely the measurement of the string from the nut (which is located at the fretboard) to the bridge (which can be seen at the mid section of the guitar’s base). Usually, this may have a measurement of about 3/16 inches to about 1/16 inches for the low e string to the high e string. If you want to get detailed information on the probable measurements that you need to keep in mind, you might need to get your own manual of building your instrument, or asking someone who has already built their own instrument on their own.
As such, it’s important for you to ask if you don’t know what to do next.
Learning how to build an electric guitar is really a time-consuming task. But it is one that you can make enjoyable especially if you understand the basics you need to start this project.
