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My latest and more fun with CNC
https://www.luthiersforum.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=10101&t=44095		 Page 1 of 1
Author:  weslewis [ Thu Sep 04, 2014 9:02 pm ]
Post subject:  My latest and more fun with CNC
This is a 12 string I built a while back and just didn't like the way it sounded or played, so I retopped it and made a new neck, the top is falcate braced to basically standard size bracing for falcate guitars, the nut and saddle were cut on my small cnc and are fully compensated for each string, the result is a very loud and great sounding and great playing 12 string. the string spacing is drawn using cad and machined into the nut for playability, the final setup is as follows.
relief at the 6th fret is <.010 and > .005, action at the 12th fret is .080 for the low e and .070 for the high e, action at the 1st fret is .013 high e .015 be and .019 for the rest of the strings, measuring with my tuner the cents difference at frets 1,5,7 and 12 are

Low e +2 +5 0 -12
a +3 -6 -3 -2
d +1 +2 +3 +3
g +1 -3 -4 -3
b -1 -2 -3 -8
e 0 -2 -3 -6

nut and saddle are tusq
Author:  patch [ Fri Sep 05, 2014 1:38 am ]
Post subject:  Re: My latest and more fun with CNC
whoa! impressive.

a couple of questions...
how do you drive the strings to their placement on the bridge out of coming form the same hole? is there a slice in the bridge?

i've been thinking about trying tusq. what are your thoughts on difference in tone than with bone?

how did you get the tusq black? i've only seen it in white, did you dye it?

great work
Author:  weslewis [ Fri Sep 05, 2014 6:08 am ]
Post subject:  Re: My latest and more fun with CNC
bridge has two slots per hole, I have been getting 1/4 " tusq blanks from sporthitech off of ebay they come in black and the bridge is a two piece laminate with carbon fiber in the middle, works with the bridge plate which also has a piece of carbon fiber laminated between it and the soundboard to add stiffness, all part of the falcate bracing system designed by Trevor Gore
Author:  Chris Pile [ Fri Sep 05, 2014 9:26 am ]
Post subject:  Re: My latest and more fun with CNC
Quote:
how did you get the tusq black? i've only seen it in white, did you dye it?


Tusq brand nuts and bridges are available in black or white.
Author:  dzsmith [ Fri Sep 05, 2014 12:01 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: My latest and more fun with CNC
Very lovely Wes!
Author:  DannyV [ Sat Sep 06, 2014 9:45 am ]
Post subject:  Re: My latest and more fun with CNC
Nice! Good for you for reviving it. Looks great. How much cnc is into it besides the nut?
Author:  weslewis [ Sat Sep 06, 2014 4:04 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: My latest and more fun with CNC
Various things like the bridge, bridgeplate, the soundhole which is a oval shape,the rosette and inlays, the headstock inlay is done with male and female piece cut with a v bit, fretboard outline but not the fretslots , those are with a stewmac blade and jig. fretboard markers, endgraft , so actually quite a bit is done with the cnc,its a "smart" router, and of course templates like the headstock ouline and tuner holes.
Author:  JasonMoe [ Sat Sep 06, 2014 7:42 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: My latest and more fun with CNC
Is that cocobolo binding? I love it
Author:  weslewis [ Sat Sep 06, 2014 9:02 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: My latest and more fun with CNC
binding is zebra wood,one of my favorites
Author:  murrmac [ Sun Sep 07, 2014 4:14 am ]
Post subject:  Re: My latest and more fun with CNC
weslewis wrote:
... the bridge is a two piece laminate with carbon fiber in the middle ...


Difficult to tell from the picture, does the glue joint in the bridge run horizontally or vertically ? It looks like a solid piece of wood, the joint (and the carbon fiber) is well concealed.
Author:  Andy Birko [ Sun Sep 07, 2014 8:13 am ]
Post subject:  Re: My latest and more fun with CNC
Well done! Is that Aspire you're using?
Author:  Haans [ Sun Sep 07, 2014 8:26 am ]
Post subject:  Re: My latest and more fun with CNC
Good looking modern 12. What is the scale length?
Author:  weslewis [ Sun Sep 07, 2014 9:01 am ]
Post subject:  Re: My latest and more fun with CNC
Glue joint runs horizonatally, its v carve pro , my drawings are done on Rhino and scale length is 25.4, here is a couple of pics of the bridge layup and how it is cut out, the pauduck is a 6 string bridge for another guitar but same process, the last one is the cocobolo bridge for the 12 string which has a slot milled in for the pickup so the saddle fits flush in the slot below the saddle rather than just having the saddle sit on top of the pickup
Author:  Andy Birko [ Sun Sep 07, 2014 9:06 am ]
Post subject:  Re: My latest and more fun with CNC
weslewis wrote:
Glue joint runs horizonatally, its v carve pro , my drawings are done on Rhino


Ah ok, I get it. I mistook that for a full 3D thingy. I use v-carve pro for my inlays. It was worth the money just for that!
Author:  weslewis [ Sun Sep 07, 2014 9:18 am ]
Post subject:  Re: My latest and more fun with CNC
I am still leaning this cnc thing and having a blast , V carve pro is worth every penny for a guy like me, Rhino makes it easy to draw and clean up drawings so vectors are closed before importing to v carve pro, which seems to be where I always struggle. I have become a real convert to Trevor Gores falcate bracing / carbon fiber system which requires precision to execute properly during the building stage, having this small cnc fits the bill perfectly, just like the Guitar building addiction I can see this cnc thing becoming another addiction beehive expecially since I have been acquiring software and already have desires for a larger machine wow7-eyes ...
Author:  Andy Birko [ Sun Sep 07, 2014 2:45 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: My latest and more fun with CNC
weslewis wrote:
Rhino makes it easy to draw and clean up drawings so vectors are closed before importing to v carve pro, which seems to be where I always struggle.


You should dig deeper into V-carve's vector manipulation tools. I deal with a lot of vector files from various sources and VCarve pro's tools for dealing with really poorly done vectors are really well done. They did a fantastic job of anticipating the types of problems you'll run in to and know exactly how to fix them with just a couple of clicks.

I use SolidWorks for my 3D design and sometimes have to resort to VCarve to fix up some of the stuff I've received, even if ultimately I use in in SolidWorks with VisualMill for the CAM end.
Author:  Dave Fifield [ Tue Sep 09, 2014 4:35 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: My latest and more fun with CNC
Very nice, and extremely interesting design/implementation.
I have a few CNC questions if you don't mind Wes?

What size bit did you use for the general milling?
What size bit did you use to cut the string slots?
Did you cut the string slots in the nut all one size (small, 12 mil?) and then finesse them with nut files?
How did you hold down the Tusq nut blank for CNC cutting?

Thanks,
Dave F.
Author:  weslewis [ Tue Sep 09, 2014 8:22 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: My latest and more fun with CNC
on the nut I used a .031 bit for the compensation milling and the e a d g strings a .0197 bit for the high e and b and also the octvaves , the vice is the top half of a harbor freight drill press vice. The string slots were milled close to the depth to match the radius, I then reduced the bottom to get the nut close then final string height done with fret files.
Author:  weslewis [ Tue Sep 09, 2014 8:25 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: My latest and more fun with CNC
Attachment:
nut forum.pdf
Here is the string spacing , equal spacing between the sets with adjustment made for string widths , made for good playability [:Y:]
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