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Hey all,

I am about to start my first build, and am wondering what you would consider the most essential tools to have. I have access to a full shop, so all of the saws, planes, scrapers, drills, etc. will be available to me.

What specialty tools would you recommend to purchase right away, and which ones could wait until my future instruments?

Thanks all!

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--Leanu--

Something to cut the rosette channel.

Something to cut the binding & purfling channel.

Something to dome the top with.

Some way to joint and join the top and back

Some way to bend the sides

Some sort of mold for the body

Some way to make a fretboard

Clamps for:
Gluing Lining
Cluing the braces
Gluing the top & back to the body

I'm probably forgetting steps but those are the main things for which you might need specialty items. In all cases, there's a variety of tools you could use from hand methods to power tools and they all work well. In some cases (clamps especially) one item can be used for a variety of options.

Check out the instructions for the stew-mac guitar kit, they're very well written and have an excellent (though somewhat large) tool list in there as well.

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I'm just working on finishing my first, but I'd say a good 1 1/2" hp router with 1/2 and 1/4" collets, a table saw and a drill press have all been very handy and I'd recommend a decent joiner though you could certainly use a plane and a shooting board to join your top pieces. I used a joiner to adjust the parallel of my neck from the back to the top before I did any of my carving, and I found it very handy.

As far as hand tools go I've used a sur-form or a microplane, rasps, files and rifflers. You'll need a fret saw of some kind, ( I built my own slotting jig), crowning files and fret end files if you're going to do your own frets, some forstner bits, brad point bits and possibly some nut slotting files. Get a good tri-square, straight-edge and lots and lots of clamps. I have spring clamps, c-clamps, and wood jaw clamps and will be getting some luthier clamps when I get the money. I am looking at violin or finger planes right now, and am anxious to try my new dremel with a plunge jig that I bought from Stew Mac to do some inlay work.

The more I think about this question the harder the answer becomes, I think I might have a tool problem.

Depending on the shop you have access to, the planes and chisels available might not be tuned up where they should be. I'd start off with a set of good chisels, a good block plane, a good smooth plane, cabinet scrapers, a good thin bladed backsaw (for fret slots and cutting braces etc.) and a good sharpening arrangement (plus burnishers for the scrapers). There's nothing more pleasurable to use than a well tuned, sharp plane. There's nothing more frustrating to use than a plane that isn't set up right...

As many clamps as you can lay your hand on.

After that, I'd go for a good router. Build the jigs it takes to rout bindings, rosettes, etc. You can also use a router (along with a jig) very successfully to joint tops and backs of flat topped instruments.

It really doesn't take a lot of highly specialized tools, but a lot of the tools that you'll commonly find in shops aren't really tuned up to the point where they are usable for fine work. Get the basics so you'll have your own. Like Andy said, the StewMac recommendations are pretty good, if somewhat broader than they need to be.

Dave

A good caliper...I have the Starrett micrometer, and a dial unit too...a cheap one. Use them alot...and I have maybe 10 of those little General 6" steel flexible rules with the 64ths and 32nds. Keep them all over the place. A- 1" Diamic long blade (8-9")paring chisel for voicing.

As a hand tool almost-purist, my most used tools are:
1/2" chisel
block plane
card scraper (and burnisher for it)
3/4" violin knife
ryoba saw
old Nicholson rasp
half round and knife style needle files
coping saw
jeweler's saw
spokeshave
hand crank drill (get a 2mm brad point bit... useful size for a lot of things in guitar making)
cam clamps (two each of 4" and 8", three 6")
6 or 7" combo square (doubles as a short ruler/straightedge)
36" straightedge graduated to 1/64" (for checking flatness of surfaces and accurate measurement of fret slots and bridge positioning)
and of course, a few grits of sandpaper.

As far as specialty tools go, for fretting you'll at least need a saw to cut appropriate width slots, and flush ground nippers.

A coarse diamond stone is great for leveling frets, as well as sharpening tools and shaping bone nut/saddles. You can skip leveling on your first guitar and just make the action a bit higher, but if you do level then you'll also need a fret crowning file. The offset diamond file from StewMac is excellent, but expensive. Either pay it, or look for an old style file from someone who upgraded Not worth paying full price for an old style file, IMO.

A thickness caliper for plates is nice to have to check evenness and sanity-check that your thickness is in the general vicinity of "normal" (every piece of wood is different, so exact numbers mean nothing). You can make one for cheap using a dial indicator and plywood.

If you're building a steel string, you'll need something to route saddle slots and truss rod slots. I use a dremel with StewMac router base, but a laminate trimmer would be better. You'll also need a bridge pin reamer. StewMac and LMI sell good ones. Grizzly sells bad ones.

For binding channels, I use a gramil and chisel. Tricky and time consuming work, but much cheaper and less space-consuming than a router jig.

For bending, I use a hunk of 3" exhaust pipe from the local muffler shop scrap bin with an electric charcoal starter shoved into it, and run through a dimmer switch.

A lot of the tools you'll need will depend on what construction style you want to do. My style is most similar to that shown in the Cumpiano&Natelson book. Most common seems to be the radius dish+go bar deck+solid outside mould style. Read all you can and decide what's best for you.

Any tool I dont Currently Own ! LOL

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The first tool you need is the Cumpiano book. In this book you will find the most essential tools you need to build with.

Oh, and one more very important thing- an accurate hygrometer. Good ones for a reasonable price here http://www.burgessviolins.com/products.html

I don't know what the weather is like where you live, but most likely you'll need a dehumidifier if you want to brace plates in the summer. But depending on how fast or slow you are, it may be winter by the time you're ready for bracing anyway.

If you have an equipped shop (or even if you don't), simply plan things out, and buy tools as you need them.

Tools for fretting and slotting nuts are very specialized. You will not find to many ready substitutes in even the best equiped wood shop. Tapering bridge pin holes is another special tool. If you plan on doing your own inlay work you will need at least a jewelers saw and most likely someting much smaller than a trim router to cut the pockets.

_________________
Brian

You never know what you are capable of until you actually try.

https://www.howardguitarsdelaware.com/

One of my favorite workshop tools that does a lot of work is an older 1980 rockwell homecraft 10in tablesaw.I purchased it for 75 $ used off craigslist outfitted with a $5 freud 7.5in diablo ultra thin rip blade.It is a true workshop workhorse doing a multitude of luthiery and shop chores effortlessly, cleanly and with a minimal $$$ investment .I have a larger 3hp solid cast iron t. saw , that sees much less use. Outfitted with a number of inexpensive jigs ,it can perform a lot of luthery tasks. ripping neck stock and veneers , slotting bridges.Straightening sides, backs and tops prior to clamping/planing, making kerfing, making a scarf joint on headstock, fretting, etc etc

Can't forget the small stuff...probably my most used tools in the shop are a 6" pocket rule graduated in 1/8", 1/6", 1/32", and 1/64", a pencil and pencil sharpener, and a machinist square.

ruler elbow
stainless steel protractor
eraser
and a cup of hot coffee

Patience and humility.

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1: a working brain
2: a set of skilled hands

-jd

Hey all,

Thanks so much for all the advice. Luckily, the shop that I have access to is used to build windsor chairs and other high quality furniture, so it is pretty well equiped. I will, however, need a lot of the specialty tools you all mentioned as well as the coffee and working brain.

I have recieved most of my wood, so I'll keep you posted!

Thanks!

_________________
--Leanu--

Funny, I was just saying to my wife last night. I thought I was learning how to build a guitar. In fact, I've been learning patience and humility. Unfortunately, emphasis on the humility -:)

Ste

Jigs, shop made tools, forms, benders, templates. Stuff you can't buy.
at least 1/2 the fun of a new build is setting up the shop to get it done.

_________________
Greg
http://garibaldiinstruments.com/

you'll need a fret file, and you'll have to make the plunge eventually to get a set of nut slotting files. Also a fret saw.

_________________
"Preoccupation with an effect gives it power and enhances the error"
from "Your Owner's Manual" by Burt Hotchkiss.