Are You Paying Too Much For Guitar Making Materials?

In this video, I will offer some suggestions on how to save money when buying materials to make a guitar. If you would like to help support my channel and get something cool in return, please consider the following:
www.eguitarplans.com/
kzbin.infostore
#guitar #woodworking #luthier

[@billsguitargarage]

Chris, do you plan to do a video on how you process the shells to get the actual inlay out of it? I'd be very interested on how you do that.

[@spoonerluv]

Agreed - I was just about to comment this

[@TimTrOn3000]

It's really not worth the effort. The smell is horrible

[@nymsmacgregor7232]

It's also poisonous.... If you are cutting an abalone shell, the unwanted part is toxic to inhale. Use a really good respirator.@@TimTrOn3000

[@TimTrOn3000]

Use a tile wet saw if you try it.

[@ReallyBadJuJu]

My first guitar (recently finished) was an LP Jr. DC, built entirely from pieces of a shelving unit and other scrap that was in our house when I moved in. I believe most of it is cedar. The only things I bought were hardware and electronics. Even the inlays are made from the brass screw heads that held the shelves together, and the headstock overlay is some thin maple ply that was a drawer bottom. My current build is an offset thinline tele, in which I am using redwood cull lumber from home depot for the top. It's a 3-piece top arranged so there is a stripe of heartwood down the center, a stripe of sapwood on either side, then more heartwood out to the edges...plus some interesting looking knots. I enjoy trying to elevate humble materials.

[@scillyautomatic]

Yes! Please do a video on processing the shell for inlays. So cool! I never even considered processing shell myself.

[@sunn_bass]

Great video. Getting a wide variety of lumber, especially exotics, has never been easier for the average builder, but getting high quality lumber is more difficult in my opinion. A couple specialty stores I used to use in the 80's and 90's are no longer. Online vendors are iffy at best. In any case, it's always best to see the wood before buying. Great video as usual.

[@markmelville6670]

I was fortunate from the start of my building to have an old logger in the Adirondack mountains who cuts wood for builders. I can go to his barn and pick through everything he has.

[@CaptainJack2048]

I have a local hardwood dealer, but I mostly get furniture wood there. The interesting figure or straight grain boards can be hard to come by. When I buy online, I only buy from places that have pictures of the actual wood (which weeds out quite a few stores) and I usually buy some inexpensive smaller pieces (turning blanks, or thin boards that might be a good fretboard for example) to test the waters with them before I spend money on a bigger piece. That way, I don't get any surprises, or no more than I might get if I'd looked at the piece first.

[@dantahoua]

Great! I'm curious how you manage to process those shell! 😊

[@HellcatCustoms]

I was just looking at Black Walnut lumber on eBay today and noticed the blanks advertised for guitar bodies is double or triple the price vs buying big slabs. It's crazy how much extra is added with the "Luthier Tax"

[@johne.5941]

All, I'd recommend against processing your own abalone shell. Abalone is toxic (as in asbestos level toxic)--yes you can safely work with it, but it takes A LOT of precaution to be safe around the dust.

[@HighlineGuitars]

Maybe someone can post links to scientific studies that will confirm the dangers of Abalone dust and how safely deal with it. All I can find are articles that are either anecdotal or lack legitimate support. I want to know what makes the dust toxic as well as the frequency and volume of exposure that's considered dangerous. To say Abalone dust is asbestos-level toxic demands verifiable evidence to support the claim. Asbestos is banned in 69 countries (ibasecretariat.org/alpha_ban_list.php) and in the U.S. it is heavily regulated (www.epa.gov/asbestos/asbestos-laws-and-regulations). There are no such bans or regulations regarding the processing of Abalone that I am aware of. That being said, common sense dictates that proper precautions should always be taken whenever dust is generated while processing any material. As to what the proper precautions should be depends on the material and its proven danger. With Abalone, there is no official guidance and that begs the question; why isn't there any?

[@scottakam]

Thanks. I don't think you mentioned it but things like abalone dust can be hazardous to work with. Anyone working with it, make sure you wear proper protection. Which you should do when working around any kind of dust of course.

[@HighlineGuitars]

See my response to the comment left by @johne.5941

[@christianboddum8783]

You're a smart man, probably why you're still in business 😉

[@billysmether6237]

Thanks Chris!

[@HighlineGuitars]

Any time!

[@bluglass7819]

Find a local sawmill. I get so much interesting wood milling myself or using a local mill. Takes patience to dry but well worth it.

[@orpheus3342]

Nice shirt! Gotta say this channel has been really helpful in planning my first guitar build, so thanks for all the vids!

[@_mysilentblue2227]

Nice tips Chris.

[@HighlineGuitars]

Thanks 👍

[@trinacria1956]

Thanks! Hope you show how you process the shells!

[@ColdSkilletGuitarlive]

When the student is ready the teacher will appear. Im stoked royal that you appeared in my video feed Chris. Awesome videos. The few little grains of salt mixed in the glue kind of just blew me away. Most help videos on KZbin have a nasty way of hiding the tiny details and leaving a bitter taste. Of course people are selling their skills on youtube no doubt, but some of us pikers (rhymes with biker)just wanna take a weird 25 dollar wallmart guitar with a triangle shape and make it better without ending up with more than 100 bucks in it. Out of the box those things are just wall decorations but they are a nice challenge that dont require a 250 thousand dollar shop to make. Hillbilly tech. Not that you are a hillbilly . Im a hillbilly.😂 Thanks amigo.

[@HighlineGuitars]

If you could see me on the weekends standing in creek panning for gold, you would say to yourself, “What a hillbilly.”

[@dalgguitars]

I use AAAAA grade Poplar only. Then I paint it. ;-) Also, I've always had great luck buying exotic fretboards from LMI. Too bad they're going away.

[@juulz8714]

I’m about to move to Denver! Where I currently live I never had any lumber suppliers. Happy to hear that Denver has some. Mind sharing what those are in Denver? I’d love to take a look when I’m there

[@HighlineGuitars]

Austin Hardwood, Paxton Lumber, Rockler, Woodcraft, and yes, Home Depot!

[@KitWN]

In the comments on the headless design you said that the tuners and string clamps came from Aliexpress. How do rate the quality v price of parts bought there (how long does the 'gold' plating last for example) and do you have any preferred suppliers? I have made my own headless tuners for one guitar that fit inside the body rather than cluttering up the top but am looking to source more conventional parts for my next build. Thanks for all the great tips and advice in your videos, you are the Mythbuster of the electric guitar world.

[@HighlineGuitars]

AliExpress is just a retailer like Amazon or eBay. The products they sell are made by other independent companies, not AliExpress. The bridge and string clamps are made by a company located in Japan. That’s all I know. The manufacturing and finish quality are very high. My preferred bridge and tuner manufacturer is Hipshot.

[@DrewLittle]

I love the rock and mineral show myself. I always get a few things, but rarely anything for guitar building (I'm just starting out). Mind if I ask what local suppliers you may recommend for wood? I'm in denver myself and have been having mild success with Rockler, but it can get pricey quick there. If not, absolutely no worries... I know secret stashes can be worth their weight in gold in the long run ;). Thanks for the tips as always =).

[@HighlineGuitars]

No secrets on my channel. I mostly use Austin Hardwoods. I also check with Paxton Lumber as well as the Rockler you mentioned and Woodcraft.

[@DrewLittle]

@@HighlineGuitars Thank you!

[@GlarryGuitars]

I hate the term tone wood or musical grade. It's always their way to tax a luthier.

[@p_mouse8676]

Or what about "industrial grade laminate wood", aka plywood 😂

[@googleuser318]

Agreed, but that tax always gets passed on to the consumer too.

[@zapa1pnt]

Tone wood is a legitimate terminology. It tells you the wood, when tapped, will ring with a tone/note, like a tuning fork. As opposed to lumber, like oak, which gives a dead Thunk, when tapped. However, I think it best to do your homework, to understand, for yourself, what species are considered tone wood and what are not and not accept the word of a seller. In regard to "musical grade", I think that may be someone's way of saying tone wood but I would not accept it as meaning anything. What matters is the specie of the wood they are selling.

[@googleuser318]

@@zapa1pnt sure some woods will ring better or differently to others. But even within a single species each piece will ring differently. But pretty much all wood will ring, even plywood. Does this ringing quality really make a better sounding instrument? Maybe in some cases, I think more noticeable with something like acoustic instruments. But even then I'm not sure I'm sold on the whole tonewood thing. I built a tagelharpa from plywood just to rough out a design. Then I built another one out of "tonewoods". Guess which one I preferred the sound of? You guessed it... plywood believe it or not. Now I'm not saying "plywood is better than spruce", I'm only saying in this one instance I preferred the sound of one instrument over the other, but there are a LOT of other factors at play there. I used to work for Taylor guitars and Bob Taylor is well known for going out to the dumpster and grabbing a old oak pallet and making a stunning instrument from that. I just can't subscribe to this idea that quality instruments must be made from a specific species of tonewood. I personally just think the word tonewood is misused these days as a selling point, marketing tactic, etc. It is a way to drive up the cost of a piece of timber. Different woods sound different, which I think is pretty undeniable. The level of impact this has on say an electric instrument I reckon is very debatable. And this list of so called tonewoods is constantly changing. Almost as if every time a manufacturer has a need to add a new timber to the list so they can market it as a revered "tonewood". 😉

[@oakhurstaxe6392]

Partially disagree, for sound on electric guitar there is no such thing as "tonewood". If you are going to paint guitar after, "tonewood" is going to be a waste. If you want a bare wood finish, like oil finish, tonewood is good because it likely won't have cracks or knots, and many times will be figured. I use tonewood to describe if it is good looking or not, not for tone.

[@sgt.grinch3299]

Interesting question.

[@waynehughes8297]

Unfortunately I was one of the people who bought a AAAAA piece of flamed maple off the internet that had been sliced to book match but hadn’t been joined together. I’ve not been in a position to use it yet so it’s been stored on top of each other with space between them. The problem is that they have bowed a bit. What’s the best way to get the two pieces flat again? Or do I join them as is but manipulate it to match up as I clamp it? Or have I now got an £80 piece of scrap? Any advice will be truly appreciated.

[@HighlineGuitars]

Warm up the hump side with a heat gun right before you glue it to the body. It'll flatten out, but will likely bow once it has cooled. If the blanks are thick enough, you can run both sides through a planer to flatten them permanently.

[@waynehughes8297]

@@HighlineGuitars Thanks Chris, I was thinking of putting it through a thickness planer (not that I have one 😂). Can I flatten them the same way before I attempt to join the 2 pieces together to make the drop top? I can try and find someone with a thickness planer and finish it off with that. Cheers👍

[@DominelliGuitars]

I think the standard grading system (AA, AAA, AAAA, Master, etc) is Ok. People need to understand that it's going to vary from vendor to vendor, and over time, as you mentioned. But to become a good luthier you just need to learn what wood works for your style of building, and in general, it's better to over pay for great wood than get a deal on a bunch of mediocre wood.

[@HighlineGuitars]

In your first sentence, you use the words, “standard grading system.” In your second sentence, you say, “it’s going to vary from vendor to vendor.” It is therefore not standard and of no reliable use. Overpaying for so-called “great wood,” is just an excuse for poor negotiating skills.

[@DominelliGuitars]

It's considered a "standard grading system" but it's not assumed to be universally consistent, like how they might grade gold bullion or something like that. Anyone who has bought enough tone wood over the years knows this. If you are going to order wood from LMI, Madinter, etc, the vendor cannot just say "Yeah, don't worry, I'll send you some good wood and charge you accordingly!" They must try to adhere to some type of system. Years ago I suggested to one dealer that they should grade on acoustic principles, and I've heard that Pac Rim Tonewood now does that. Aesthetic grading is not enough.... Sorry I stumped you! I thought it was kind of obvious what I meant.@@HighlineGuitars

[@markhusbands2037]

I sure like poking around at Austin Hardwoods

[@sparrowhawk81]

Trick question. Everyone is paying too much for everything these days hayyooooooo *rimshot*. But seriously....

[@homebuiltshop]

Ahh, the old "luthier" tax.

[@biggcustomz8583]

👍

[@jpdenk]

An excellent video, but I worry that you may have shot yourself in the foot by telling people that the Denver area is well supplied with wood suppliers. I wouldn't be surprised if people start buying up the good wood there for reselling at higher prices. Also, a safety warning would be good when you talk about cutting and grinding abalone shell and other shell products. Breathing the dust that results from that is VERY unhealthy and can cause serious illness. My mother used to do lapidary work, and she ended up very sick as the result of working with abalone shell without taking precautions because she wasn't aware of the danger.

[@HighlineGuitars]

See my response to the comment left by @johne.5941