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What are some basic tools needed for neck carving? Spokeshave? Rasps? Which models?

Thanks
Richard

Yes! ( )
Seriously, I use a spokeshave for a primary bevel, then rasps for secondary bevels, then fairing. Both a big, nasty, aggressive rasp, then one made from alternating old metal bandsaw-blade sections (one of the best!).

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Dave
Milton, ON

agree with all of the above.

i have a super cheap spokeshave from grizzly that gets the job done.

its a blast carving though end grain in the heel with a freshly sharpened chisel!

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sweat the small stuff.

Ones I've done by hand have been done different ways:

Roughed on bandsaw, spokeshave, rasp (microplane), scraper, sandpaper

Roughed with hand-saw and hammer (yep!), spokeshave, belt sander

The cheapest way is to use the hand saw to cut kerfs almost to the line to rough out the shape (knock 'em off with a hammer), then use a spokeshave to get close, then finish up with a rasp, scraper, and sandpaper.

A bandsaw can save some time to a lot of time depending on size and how good you are with it. Carving by belt sander is messy but it sure works nice if you can control it! There's also Mario and his Lancelot...

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Bob Garrish
Former Canonized Purveyor of Fine CNC Luthier Services

Bob I'm glad you elaborated on the handsaw and hammer technique, because I pictured you pounding that handsaw through the wood with the hammer.
I use Microplanes, radius cabinet scraper, and sandpaper. I really like the Microplanes.

Check out the heel carving video at the bottom.
http://www.cnclinear.com/video.html
I want one of these for Chrismas.
Here's a good link for a how to carve a neck.
http://www.liutaiomottola.com/construct ... kCarve.htm

I use:
Rasps, chisels, saws, sandpaper sticks, and knives for the curvy parts (Heel and headstock joint)
Spoke shave and sandpaper board for the long shaft parts.

I know guys who carve out their necks with plate glass.

I think much of the method is determined by the wood you are carving.....
Soft, easy carving woods go faster with edge tools... (Mahogany, Cherry, soft Maple, Walnut)
Super hard woods seem to go faster with Rasps and wood files for roughing out.. (Oak, etc.)
Curly grain woods seem to really like sandpaper and methods that favor abrasives..... (Curly maple...)

In the end, I finish everything with sandpaper (Either sandpaper wrapped around a dowel or stuck to a sanding board)

Thanks

John

Everyone already knows I have the biggest tool on the forum, no need to brag



I think it's actually an underrated method of 'by hand' stock removal. It can be really fast and works just as well on really hard to carve woods like padouk, bloodwood, and purpleheart. Before I had a bandsaw, that was my go-to technique.

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Bob Garrish
Former Canonized Purveyor of Fine CNC Luthier Services

On mahogany necks, I cut is as close as I dare on the band saw, do the Safe-T planer thing, follow up with the draw knife, rasps, files and sand paper.

For hand tools, I don't think anything is faster than the draw knife, you can still see the guy doing one-offs at Martin (at least you could when I took the factory tour some years ago). From personal experience I know it can sometimes be a little too fast if you don't pay attention, or if you use difficult, figured woods. I only use it bevel down, pay close attention to grain direction and usually don't have any problems.

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Rian Gitar og Mandolin

The tapered thickness of the shaft is cut first with a Wagner Safe-T-Planer. Then a center line is drawn down the length of the back of the neck. The key thing in my process is leaving that center line untouched until the final sanding. With each neck I do, I do more of it on the belt sander before moving on to rasps and knives. I don't make facets or anything. I just go at it and remove all the material that doesn't look (and feel) like the finished neck. When it's right, then I shoe-shine it with a sheet of sandpaper; that's when the center line disappears.

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Todd Rose
Ithaca, NY

https://www.dreamingrosesecobnb.com/todds-art-music

https://www.facebook.com/ToddRoseGuitars/

My next major jig to build .
http://frets.com/FRETSPages/Features/CF ... fox035.jpg

After basic shaping of the neck with the bandsaw and drill press Robo Sanders and jigs,(http://kennedyguitars.com/_Kennedy_Guit ... ing_9.html) my sequence has evolved into:

1. Shaping the heel with the pneumatic drum sanders from Grizzly on a cordless drill and various rasps and rounded sanding blocks

2. Shaping the profile perfectly at the 1st and 10th frets using the microplane, Nicholson and Grobet rasps, and sanding sticks.

3. Merging the headstock and heel transitions into the 1st and 10th fret areas with chisels, rasps, and rounded sanding blocks.

4. Hogging off excess wood between the 1st and 10th frets with an air sander with 40G until very close and finishing with large sanding blocks to level the shaft and complete the merge.

5. Merging the neck profile into the fretboard transition. (Really helps the feel of the neck when playing)

If it's nice out I'll do the messy work outside.

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It's not what you don't know that hurts you, it's what you do know that's wrong.

Terrance, what are the two slots for in your fixture?

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Aoibeann

The fixture was something one of my kids bought from Martin probably 15 years ago. The slots were supposed to correspond to the 1st and 10th frets and allowed one to slide a thickness template in while carving. I actually don't use them for anything as the taper of the neck is already done when I clamp it on.
Terry

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It's not what you don't know that hurts you, it's what you do know that's wrong.

Great. Thanks.

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Aoibeann

you should try one of these from Lee Valley .. I use an older but very similar one ...half round japanese milled tooth file, 10 inch .. part number 62W30.85 - removes wood like a dozen chisels - all at once ...

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Tony Karol
www.karol-guitars.com
"let my passion .. fulfill yours"

at A.S.I.A. this year i met a guy named Gilligan. (wish i knew his last name)
he made a spoke shave out of a peice of pipe and brass bar stock.
in short, he cut a slit down the length of the pipe, inserted a sharpened peice of brass in the slit.
pretty much it made a curved spoke shave to carve the heal.
if anyone knows gil, or has one of these, post a pic.

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Bring me a sane man, and I will cure him.

The easiest way I`ve found to carve the heel is a heel nibbler.I learned this from the Hanalima ukelele manuel.Using a 10" table saw to nibble at the heel.All you have to do is clamp a stop on the saw table at the proper location and using your miter square run the heel up to the stop and nibble away.It`s very fast and simple and creates almost a perfect heel.The rest of the neck I carve using a spoke shave and a #49 and #50 Nicholson rasps pretty much the way Todd described.
James

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James W Bolan
Nashville Tennessee

I read the heel nibbling bit on the Cumpiano website - I tried it on my practice neck and I liked it. Although my the heel on my real necks will probably be done by hand. The table saw opens up too much potential for an accident while doing this.

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It's this new idea from recent decades that everyone gets a participation award. - MUX