Official Luthiers Forum!

Now that I've sold my milling machine I need to build a jig for bridge slotting. I would like to use the drill press but could also use a laminate trimmer. So I'm looking for ideas - thanks!

_________________
Steve Smith
"Music is what feelings sound like"

I often use a cross vice with a drill press and the right size end mill.

_________________
http://www.Harvestmoonguitars.com

I have one that works great and is simple to build. I will get pictures loaded later today.

James

I obviously do mine off the body. Got this idea from Robbie O'Brien. Works really great!

John, I've thought about picking up a cross-slide vise but was concerned that the cheaper ones might have too much play to get a good clean saddle slot. What type of vise are you using?

James - thanks, I'll look for it later.

Beth - that's something like what I was thinking of when I thought of using a router. Looks like it would be relatively easy to build.

Todd - that's nice. Kind of hard to see but is that a round bearing/linear shaft arrangement you're using on the base?

_________________
Steve Smith
"Music is what feelings sound like"

Yeah Todd, did you buy or make that base? All cool jigs shown by the way.

_________________
http://www.CostaGuitars.com
PMoMC

Simple and effective... clamps down adjacent to the top of the bridge and the slots on the upper ledge allow for precise slot location and angles. A router/lam trimmer/Dremmel (I use a plunge base on a Foredom) rides on the ledge using the top as a fence. The bottom has leather attached to protect finishes when done on a guitar where the bridge is already attached.

Mine is one of the cheaper ones about $110 I will try to find what brand. I am sure it would horrify a machinist, but I have gotten clean slots.

_________________
http://www.Harvestmoonguitars.com

Steve,

I built mine after seeing a picture of Beth's but also built a "track" platform so it could be used on the drill press. Just clamp the white platform down to the drill press, line it up with where the bridge slot should go, set some stops, and slide the carriage under the bit.

Steve,
The easiest way for me to show it is setting up a dummy page on my firestripe website. Hope this helps:

http://www.firestripepickguards.com/?page_id=915

I use this for slotting bridges on the guitar. However, It can also be used by fixing the bridge to a board and mounting the jig above it if want to slot the bridge before it is installed. I have always slotted my bridges before they were installed. If I had known how easy and accurate this was, I would have changed over years ago.

James

Where do the parts come from?

_________________
http://www.CostaGuitars.com
PMoMC

Some great ideas. The on-the-guitar jig from James gives me some ideas for a jig that could be used on or off the guitar like his.

Thanks all.

_________________
Steve Smith
"Music is what feelings sound like"

I forgot to mention that I add stops at each end of the jig if I am not cutting a through slot saddle. A plunge laminate trimmer helps out with this also. I am trying to decide which brand of plunge router is best for me in the laminate trimmer size.

Thanks.



Right?? I originally looked at it on my phone, but now on a big screen, it looks more harderer to make. Lucky for me, I don't need to slot my saddles any longer, but if I ever go back to doing it myself....

_________________
http://www.CostaGuitars.com
PMoMC

I think Todd's setup would be hard to beat for slotting bridges on the bench. I think I will build a version of James' setup so that I can slot bridges on the bench or on the guitar.

_________________
Steve Smith
"Music is what feelings sound like"

Our wives love us because we can fix everything

_________________
Steve Smith
"Music is what feelings sound like"

Not the engineers that I worked with at G.M.

Alex

_________________
"Indecision is the key to flexibility" .... Bumper sticker

It is true that not all engineers are created equal

_________________
Steve Smith
"Music is what feelings sound like"

Some of us are Civil

_________________
A man hears what he wants to hear, and disreguards the rest. Paul Simon

Me too

_________________
Steve Smith
"Music is what feelings sound like"

I like the way you did the index-able stops.

You said optical components - is this made from part of an old enlarger?

Also do you have a photo of it in use on a guitar- I can see using that with maybe a piece of lexan to index it into the correct position?

_________________
Steve Smith
"Music is what feelings sound like"

Wow, I didn't see the blue tooth unit

_________________
Steve Smith
"Music is what feelings sound like"

Is this the one? He uses a laser to show him the routing path. A little more sophisticated than my spruce stick.

https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid ... =1&theater

https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid ... permPage=1

https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid ... permPage=1

Very nice tool.

James

Here's mine, knocked together out five dollar's worth of plywood in about 5 minutes for a specific job.

It's a piece of plywood with the correct bridge slot angle sanded into the front, glued to a plywood base, for the router edge guide to bear against. There's another piece of plywood behind the bridge to support the back of the router, the surfaces that the router rides on were sanded flat after the glue dried to assure a perfectly flat saddle slot bottom. The center line is marked, and little wood stops were glued onto the top to mark the boundaries of the slot length. I had to fine tune them a little after I cut this bridge slot, but no biggie. I use double stick to hold the bridge down, and then I use the two wedges to hold it firmly in place immoveable while the slot is cut.

All I gotta do is mark the center of the slot on the blank and the jig automatically cuts the slot the right length and the right angle.

The bridge is held firmly in place and CANNOT MOVE, whilst the bottom of the slot is cut perfectlt flat and works well with UST's.

If I'm making a replacement bridge for a guitar I make the holes first, use those to hold the bridge in place on the guitar while I mark the front edge of the bridge parallel to the first fret, and then the location of the saddle, then I pop it into the jig, cut the slot, shape the rest of the bridge, and glue it down.

I don't like cutting the slots on the guitar simply because the foam rests aren't conducive to perfectly flat saddle slots in my opinion, so I remove the bridges from guitars to re-cut slots on existing bridges.

_________________
Old growth, shmold growth!

Wow, that is nice!

_________________
Steve Smith
"Music is what feelings sound like"