Philadelphia Luthier Tools & Supplies

This is a continuation of our last post. We are only working on the mahogany body and getting close to the final shape.

Thickness plane the body to 1 3/4″ and trace the body outline on the body blank.

After tracing the outline, I used a band saw to cut out the shape and making sure to leave about 1/16″ – 1/8″ at the edge. This will make routing the final shape a lot easier. Mount the template to the body blank using 2 screws placed where the pickup cavities will be.

Using a router, route the shape with a flush trim bit. Before removing the template you need to transfer the center line to the body blank. Use a square to continue the center line onto the back side. After removing the template also label the top and bottom.  This will help to prevent mistakes later.

Sand the outer edge with a sanding block.  Use sandpaper, wrapped around a 2″ pvc pipe, for the inside curves.

Next we will be routing out the control cavities and the cavity plate recesses.

This is my first attempt at a guitar build blog. I will be building a Les Paul style guitar and be using the parts that we sell at Philadelphia Luthier Tools & Supplies.   There will be lots of pictures and detailed explanation of the process.  I’m hoping that this will be a great resource that my customers can use.

First, we will be gathering all the wood and parts needed for this project. All the wood was sourced locally at Exotic Woods in S. Jersey.

3 piece Honduras Mahogany body, Quartersawn Honduras Mahogany Neck blank (enough for 2 necks), Flitch match maple top, rosewood fingerboard, and holly headstock veneer.

Close up of the flitch matched maple top. Looks like a very good match.

Les Paul guitar plans, neck templates, headstock, body templates, and angled control cavity template.

These are a sample of the part we will be using. Most items are available at Philadelphia Luthier Tools & Supplies.

We will be updating our progress a couple of times a week.