This is the best explanation of setting a dovetail set .. This explains.. angle, centerline, elevation..and where to attack each one .. So simple now.. I watched this , set my neck in 20 minutes... so simple.. no bolt-ons for me anymore...nothing scary about dovetail anymore.. Sanding instead of chisel.... so simple .. I'm not using the chisel unless I have too much to take out.. but then I'm going back to the sanding block asap..
These videos saved my sanity. I found that fitting the dovetail was by far the hardest part of my kit build so far and all I've left to do is put the bridge on. Could not have done it w/o studying your technique here. thanks!
Thanks John. I think that was the best of many great tutorials that you have posted. I watched it today when I was struggling a bit with a dovetail neck set on a scratch 00 guitar that I am building and my neck set is ready to go.
This was a simplified neck set I must say, well worth the time to watch the entire process. I think I'll start the discussion by advising new builders to pay attention to John's advice on the prepping the rims video. It's so important to establish the neck angle before setting the top. Also, I couldn't imagine doing it without the 28' disc. I used John's screw the neck block idea on my last build and wow what a difference it made down the road in the build. #2 HD-28 completed and sounding amazing. Breaks my heart to see my mold and go bar deck empty, I feel I need to build another already.
The neckset is the most important step in building a guitar. If you are a novice I would recommend a trained luthier either do it for you or do it along with you. The last thing you want to do is have to steam the neck back off and do it again. If you are "skilled" you could probably do it yourself. I set the neck with the fretboard taped on and the bridge in the proper place. I use a ruler, straight edge, and a piece of string to simulate the two outside E strings. I measure and check everything " over and over and over"...then glue on the neck.
Wow I have been looking at my first guitar building project, not knowing what to do next. I'm at this exact point. Now you've given me the EXACT knowledge I needed to get over this hump and move on with my project. Thank you!!! Also I can see lots of things I ought to have done in getting this far, so I hope it's not too far out. We'll only know when I put strings on it and see if I can get it into tune I guess. Thank you!!
@@KBorham Thanks for asking Is it really that long? I guess it is but it doesnt seem like it. MY first guitar build. There are a bazillion parameters that have to be spot on to get a good sounding instrument. I was not optimistic. I expected to have to build a couple to get a reasonable instrument But to my utter delight, it is the best guitar I have ever played! I got everything right first time out!!!! it is good and loud, great for playing in a bluegrass band, it is intonated pretty well (not perfect but better than I expected), the frets are in just the right places because it plays in tune. Thanks to this video I must have got the neck placement right because the action is lower than any other guitar i've ever had but it doesn't buzz. I had been stuck at this neck angle spot fretting about how to do it, and scared to go ahead and have a go. Then i saw this video, watched it a couple of times and dived in. My only regret with 001 (that's her name) is that i was so impatient to hear what she sounds like I rushed the finishing. That's not as good as I know i could have achieved if i'd taken the proper amount of time.
@kboreham life has intervened in the mean time. I have all the materials for 002 and I’ve got all the tools and jigs etc I had to buy and/or make for 001 but I was a full time carer for my ailing wife, then she passed away . One thing has got on top of another. I’m not complaining just explaining how come I haven’t got on with building 002. Then 003 and 004 etc just for fun add in some eye issues, a heart event and triple bypass and it just sounds like a whole lot of excuses It’s a good thing I wasn’t depending on selling guitars for a living!!
Unbelievable! Great video! I have been watching your videos. Talked to you about buying one of your kits. Always great communication, and great guitar company. As a first time builder, it gives the me confidence to pull the trigger...to have help like this! Thank you for what you do!
On my first build I chose not to use the composite fingerboard and bridge and substituted both with Ebony. On my second build I just built the kit as it was supplied so I could hear the difference. Both are HD-28's from martin and built identical outside of fingerboard and bridge material. From my viewpoint there is a night and day difference between real Ebony and composite. The Ebony guitar is much much louder and warmer sounding. The composite material sounds good, but I'd recommend spending the money on the real deal if you like big sound. Maybe Glen and John could do a video on the difference between the two?
Hi, that's such a great help, thank you! Is it possible that the older video series about setting the neck are no longer on TH-cam? It seems that I can't find them anymore...
Very informative videos. I am working on my sixth guitar and think the neck set is superior to my other guitars from your instruction. If my neck is fretted, what straight edge distance should I be looking for at bridge location without the saddle? I think I have read just kissing the bridge but want to make sure before I do any more adjustment!
Jim Cain No that is just a temporary shim. The point is that you need to address the points in order. If you start adjusting the tenon it may throw things out later. Once you get the neck angle , center line and fretboard plane ( twist) then you adjust the tenon. You may or may not need a shim in the dovetail , it all depends on the neck . Hope this answered your question. please feel free to ask more if you need more clarification. We are here to help
blues creek guitars I have everything lined up nice but I ended up with the neck a bit below the top of the guitar. What would be my next step? Thanks for your quick reply.
blues creek guitars I have a video on preparing the rims if you don't have a the 28 for dish you can use a wide sanding stick chalk the top rim and work the sanding block back and forth using a 1/4 spacer on the tail block only work the area only above the sound hole.
take one step at a time getting bindings neat is all about prep. Set the channel so you sand the sides to the bindings not scrape bindings to the sides.
How hard are you clamping that dovetail in to take measurements? I'm working on a little soprano uke right now and I'm terrified that if I tighten too much I'll crack the neck block.
Hi John, I am currently doing my first year of instrument making, and want to get prepared for building my first instrument on my own. I wanted to ask you if you happen to know of any luthier tool/wood suppliers in Europe? I live in Ireland and it's just so expensive shipping from the States. Any help appreciated, love your videos by the way, been watching them everyday since discovering Blues Creek Guitars :) Thanks, Darren
Hi John. i watched the other videos on fitting a dovetail, then i this one came on, so i figured what the heck cant hurt. watched it as well. my problem is; i took TOO much off the tenon. so i added a couple shims. when i glued the neck on, the shims (~1/8" per side) stuck to the body great. The original glue joint between neck and shims failed when i put it under tension. (not titebond, but it is yellow carpenters glue.) Im wondering how i should go about repairing this. the worst part about it is, im on a fixed income and cant afford to buy new wood... should i make new shims and try it again? should i mix up a whole crap load of glue and sawdust, pack it around joint and try to recarve the tenon? should i mix up a little sawdust and paste to pack around shims? any help would be greatly appreciated. thanks allyn
I glue shims in when needed so be sure you apply glue and clamp well. No on the dust and glue. Be sure you get a tight fit when you clamp. If your glue joint failed look to see that you did get all the old glue out. Tite bond or elmers will work just be sure your joints are clean and mate well you should be fine.
thanks so much for the quick reply. i will be getting some titebond before i try glueing it together again. I spent a couple hours last night cleaning up the inside of the joint in the body with my small craving knives and emery boards. i will be cleaning up the outside of the dovetail today. will let you know how it goes. thanks again. allyn P.S. - awesome work. love your videos. VERY informative. keep it up...
This is the best explanation of setting a dovetail set .. This explains.. angle, centerline, elevation..and where to attack each one ..
So simple now.. I watched this , set my neck in 20 minutes... so simple.. no bolt-ons for me anymore...nothing scary about dovetail anymore..
Sanding instead of chisel.... so simple .. I'm not using the chisel unless I have too much to take out.. but then I'm going back to the sanding block asap..
thanks we are here to help
These videos saved my sanity. I found that fitting the dovetail was by far the hardest part of my kit build so far and all I've left to do is put the bridge on. Could not have done it w/o studying your technique here. thanks!
glad that you found them helpful that is why Glenn and I do this.
The Pragmatic Luthier sent me here for some instruction. I have been instructed! Many Thanks!
Thanks John. I think that was the best of many great tutorials that you have posted. I watched it today when I was struggling a bit with a dovetail neck set on a scratch 00 guitar that I am building and my neck set is ready to go.
Fantastic! You demystified the neck dovetail. Thank you.
My first build, you just saved me from screwing up the joint.
I am happy you found these videos useful that is why we do them .
Perfect video. I'm setting a neck right now and this is so timely. Thank you for these video's....much appreciated.
Thanks a lot! This will help later on when it´s time for the neck to be attached to the guitar body - on my very first guitar project.
You're amazing sharing all this knowledge with us John.
I truly appreciate all your videos. Keep them coming!
your making me blush
This was a simplified neck set I must say, well worth the time to watch the entire process. I think I'll start the discussion by advising new builders to pay attention to John's advice on the prepping the rims video. It's so important to establish the neck angle before setting the top. Also, I couldn't imagine doing it without the 28' disc. I used John's screw the neck block idea on my last build and wow what a difference it made down the road in the build. #2 HD-28 completed and sounding amazing. Breaks my heart to see my mold and go bar deck empty, I feel I need to build another already.
glad that you enjoyed it and found it useful. I so enjoy sharing what I have learned.
Thank you. Appreciate all your effort.
Nice to see someone show the "Fudge" factor. Good job!
The neckset is the most important step in building a guitar. If you are a novice I would recommend a trained luthier either do it for you or do it along with you. The last thing you want to do is have to steam the neck back off and do it again. If you are "skilled" you could probably do it yourself. I set the neck with the fretboard taped on and the bridge in the proper place. I use a ruler, straight edge, and a piece of string to simulate the two outside E strings. I measure and check everything " over and over and over"...then glue on the neck.
It was an informative and clear video lesson , very helpful Thank you for posting it
very simple work but you make it hard
Wow I have been looking at my first guitar building project, not knowing what to do next. I'm at this exact point. Now you've given me the EXACT knowledge I needed to get over this hump and move on with my project. Thank you!!! Also I can see lots of things I ought to have done in getting this far, so I hope it's not too far out. We'll only know when I put strings on it and see if I can get it into tune I guess. Thank you!!
glad we could help thanks for the kind words
@Mike K, how did your build turn out? Its seven years later.....
@@KBorham Thanks for asking Is it really that long? I guess it is but it doesnt seem like it. MY first guitar build. There are a bazillion parameters that have to be spot on to get a good sounding instrument. I was not optimistic. I expected to have to build a couple to get a reasonable instrument But to my utter delight, it is the best guitar I have ever played! I got everything right first time out!!!! it is good and loud, great for playing in a bluegrass band, it is intonated pretty well (not perfect but better than I expected), the frets are in just the right places because it plays in tune. Thanks to this video I must have got the neck placement right because the action is lower than any other guitar i've ever had but it doesn't buzz. I had been stuck at this neck angle spot fretting about how to do it, and scared to go ahead and have a go. Then i saw this video, watched it a couple of times and dived in. My only regret with 001 (that's her name) is that i was so impatient to hear what she sounds like I rushed the finishing. That's not as good as I know i could have achieved if i'd taken the proper amount of time.
@@afpwebworks that's awesome! Any more builds after 001?
@kboreham life has intervened in the mean time. I have all the materials for 002 and I’ve got all the tools and jigs etc I had to buy and/or make for 001 but I was a full time carer for my ailing wife, then she passed away . One thing has got on top of another. I’m not complaining just explaining how come I haven’t got on with building 002. Then 003 and 004 etc just for fun add in some eye issues, a heart event and triple bypass and it just sounds like a whole lot of excuses It’s a good thing I wasn’t depending on selling guitars for a living!!
Thank you so much for doing this video! This clears up a lot of confusion for me! I can't wait to build another guitar!
we are here to help We are glad you found this video useful.
again thanks for the input
Thanks, real good job. Great confidence booster.
Unbelievable! Great video! I have been watching your videos. Talked to you about buying one of your kits. Always great communication, and great guitar company. As a first time builder, it gives the me confidence to pull the trigger...to have help like this! Thank you for what you do!
so glad you found this helpful
On my first build I chose not to use the composite fingerboard and bridge and substituted both with Ebony. On my second build I just built the kit as it was supplied so I could hear the difference. Both are HD-28's from martin and built identical outside of fingerboard and bridge material. From my viewpoint there is a night and day difference between real Ebony and composite. The Ebony guitar is much much louder and warmer sounding. The composite material sounds good, but I'd recommend spending the money on the real deal if you like big sound. Maybe Glen and John could do a video on the difference between the two?
Very detailed instruction. Thank you!
Wonderful! John is a master! Cheers!
Hi John. You sir are bad ass. Thanks for the video and glad I found you.
glad you found it helpful thanks
Wish there was more on the (angle). Quickly explains it with out much demo because his original cut was good.
This video is wonderful! A few times other earlier videos are mentioned (a 5 part?), are they still up on youtube or somewhere else for purchase?
Hi, that's such a great help, thank you! Is it possible that the older video series about setting the neck are no longer on TH-cam? It seems that I can't find them anymore...
yes re took them down as the newer ones have better information
Excellent brother!!!! I do have two interchangeable words for "Dovetail" however, and that's ""Router Bit, and template!! Ha!
Very informative.
Very informative videos. I am working on my sixth guitar and think the neck set is superior to my other guitars from your instruction. If my neck is fretted, what straight edge distance should I be looking for at bridge location without the saddle? I think I have read just kissing the bridge
but want to make sure before I do any more adjustment!
If you use tape as a shim does it stay in there when you glue it up or is that just temporary? Your videos are such a great help. Thanks.
Jim Cain No that is just a temporary shim. The point is that you need to address the points in order. If you start adjusting the tenon it may throw things out later. Once you get the neck angle , center line and fretboard plane ( twist) then you adjust the tenon. You may or may not need a shim in the dovetail , it all depends on the neck . Hope this answered your question. please feel free to ask more if you need more clarification. We are here to help
blues creek guitars I have everything lined up nice but I ended up with the neck a bit below the top of the guitar. What would be my next step? Thanks for your quick reply.
Jim Cain You need to sand the neck angle into the top
it may be best to call me
blues creek guitars I have a video on preparing the rims if you don't have a the 28 for dish you can use a wide sanding stick chalk the top rim and work the sanding block back and forth using a 1/4 spacer on the tail block only work the area only above the sound hole.
I’ve done seven or eight dovetails that worked okay but I’ve yet to succeed with neat bindings!
take one step at a time getting bindings neat is all about prep. Set the channel so you sand the sides to the bindings not scrape bindings to the sides.
Are the other five videos gone?
How hard are you clamping that dovetail in to take measurements? I'm working on a little soprano uke right now and I'm terrified that if I tighten too much I'll crack the neck block.
MAKE IT AS TIGHT AS YOU WOULD IF YOU ARE CLAMPING FOR GLUE
I just ascertained that I best leave the building to the experts....
John, Do you have a video of cutting the dovetail joint? Thanks, Rick
in my case no as I use a milling machine I think Robbie O Brien may have one in his series
Hi John, I am currently doing my first year of instrument making, and want to get prepared for building my first instrument on my own. I wanted to ask you if you happen to know of any luthier tool/wood suppliers in Europe? I live in Ireland and it's just so expensive shipping from the States. Any help appreciated, love your videos by the way, been watching them everyday since discovering Blues Creek Guitars :)
Thanks, Darren
I really don't it seems many order from the states I wish I could be of more help sorry
***** Thanks for your reply. Yes it certainly seems that way! What luthier suppliers do you know of in the States? thanks.
Darren McCarthy Musica
depends on what you need. Contact me through my website blues creek guitars and we can help
Madinter in Spain www.madinter.com/en/
Maderabarbe in Spain maderasbarber.com/en/
Rall in Germany shop.rall-online.net/en_GB
Hi John.
i watched the other videos on fitting a dovetail, then i this one came on,
so i figured what the heck cant hurt. watched it as well.
my problem is;
i took TOO much off the tenon. so i added a couple shims.
when i glued the neck on, the shims (~1/8" per side) stuck to the body great.
The original glue joint between neck and shims failed when i put it under tension.
(not titebond, but it is yellow carpenters glue.)
Im wondering how i should go about repairing this.
the worst part about it is, im on a fixed income and cant afford to buy new wood...
should i make new shims and try it again?
should i mix up a whole crap load of glue and sawdust, pack it around joint and try to recarve the tenon?
should i mix up a little sawdust and paste to pack around shims?
any help would be greatly appreciated.
thanks
allyn
I glue shims in when needed so be sure you apply glue and clamp well. No on the dust and glue. Be sure you get a tight fit when you clamp. If your glue joint failed look to see that you did get all the old glue out. Tite bond or elmers will work just be sure your joints are clean and mate well you should be fine.
thanks so much for the quick reply.
i will be getting some titebond before i try glueing it together again.
I spent a couple hours last night cleaning up the inside of the joint in the
body with my small craving knives and emery boards.
i will be cleaning up the outside of the dovetail today.
will let you know how it goes.
thanks again.
allyn
P.S. - awesome work. love your videos. VERY informative.
keep it up...
How much I would like to do this and so impossible for me. From a retired accountant.
Wanna set my neck and help me find where to put my bridge
We do not see how you realise mortase...how?