r/Luthier • • 21h ago

Terrasonic is ready to ship!

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215 Upvotes

New version of my Terrasonic model.

A DiMarzio EP1111 three-way switch controls both pickups simultaneously:

• Up — Series: Full humbucker output, thick and punchy.
• Center — Coil Split: Single-coil character with more bite and clarity.
• Down — Parallel: Both coils active, brighter and more open than series, while retaining hum cancellation.

A separate three-way blade selects neck, bridge, or both, giving nine combinations in total.

Body: Korina Top: Burl Ash Neck: Birdseye Sapelle Fretboard: Brazilian Rosewood

This one features my new 6 in line headstock design.


r/Luthier • • 4h ago

HELP Paint ready questions

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8 Upvotes

I’m getting ready to paint this old Strat body I stripped down, is leaving the paint in the electronics cavity or neck pocket an issue? she’s wet in the pictures following a 400 grit sand.


r/Luthier • • 4h ago

ACOUSTIC Seeking repair options, please.

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4 Upvotes

I bought this damaged D-15 Martin for $300 with the intention of repairing it as project for our family guitar club. We are novice woodworkers with our only guitar building experience coming from the Woodcraft build your own acoustic guitar weekend class. Our first club meeting is Nov 4th and I expect there will be plenty of discussion on how best to repair her. My opinion is for the repair to favor sound quality over appearance since she's 26yo and my plan is to name her Scar-let. The crack starts just above the sound hole and wraps around to be just short of the strap button. Any advice will be greatly appreciated ! Thanks, GCG


r/Luthier • • 16h ago

Advice

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38 Upvotes

Got hammered and dragged my poly finish les paul across my driveway thinking it will be a cool relic job. Should I pay someone to relic the whole guitar now because I’ve ruined it? I don’t think there is a way to salvage it


r/Luthier • • 6h ago

Router or chisel?

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4 Upvotes

When I made a test body out of poplar, the pickups fit just fine. It was an up cut bit and when I cut this it was with down cut bit. Both 1/4”. This was done on a cnc by the way. I’m thinking hand tools here but am hesitant lol. More comfortable with a router but think that opens the door to many possibilities of making firewood. Guess I need to buy a set of good chisels and scrapers.


r/Luthier • • 5m ago

INFO Where to get Allen Head Bridge Saddle Intonation Screws?

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• Upvotes

Sorry if this is a dumb question but I’ve searched and can’t find the answer on my own.

I bought some stainless steel saddles to throw on my guitar. They have Philips head screws to adjust the intonation. The stock saddles that came with the guitar have Allen head intonation screws.

I’d like to keep using the Allen head screws, I always seem to strip Philips heads, but they seem to be just a tad bigger than the new saddles and don’t fit. Anyone know where to get screws like this?

Thanks in advance!


r/Luthier • • 14m ago

Looking for a tremolo

• Upvotes

Hello, I'm looking for a tremolo bridge that can still go up and down. I don't want anything that's hard to do a string change on, just something that will do its job. I don't want anything like a Floyd for a big ol bigsby.

I was looking at the Gotoh Wilkinson VS100N Tremolo and the WVS50 IIK Tremolo.


r/Luthier • • 8h ago

Finally built a steel string for Leona, can I get your thoughts?

4 Upvotes

* Body: 000, 14-fret

* Top: Bearclaw Engelmann Spruce (Picea engelmannii)

* Sides: Purpleheart (Peltogyne spp.)

* Back: Three-piece Purpleheart and Katalox (Swartzia cubensis)

* Binding: Flamed Maple (Acer rubrum)

* Rosette: Mother of Pearl and Cocobolo (Dalbergia retusa)

* Neck: Five-piece Mahogany (Swietenia macrophylla), Katalox, and Flamed Maple

* Fingerboard: Ebony (Diospyros crassiflora)

* Fingerboard Inlays: Hand-cut Mother of Pearl

* Bridge: Ebony, pyramid style

* Nut & Saddle: Bone

* Headstock: Purpleheart

* Headstock Inlay: Lizardite

* Tuners: Gotoh 15:1, nickel

* Scale Length: 25 21/32”

* Fingerboard Radius: 12”

* Finish: High-gloss nitrocellulose lacquer


r/Luthier • • 5h ago

Can I wire a split humbucker to give each coil its own 'on/off' switch?

2 Upvotes

I am planning a guitar build based around a Jaguar body and pickguard, I've tinkered a bit on guitars but custom wiring always trips me up.

I'd have a single coil neck and a humbucker at the bridge, the humbucker I'm looking at is built with two different coils with their own distinct sounds, and so I'd love to utilize the three on/off switches traditionally on the Jag control plate to be able to turn on each coil individually (neck, bridge top, bridge bottom). Is this doable, and would it have any effect on the humbucking ability of the pickup? Would one of the split coils and the neck single coil be out of phase with each other?

Additionally I intend to use the rhythm circuit switch as a bridge pickup override, switching the volume and tone controls to the roller pots on the side with different values, the neck would still go to the master volume and tone knobs.

Any input is appreciated! There's a good chance whenever I get all the parts I'll end up going to a pro, but I like to do things myself when I can.


r/Luthier • • 5h ago

Advice Request - Floyd Rose Replacement - Gotoh 1996t Tremolo / Schaller Lockmeister/Tremolo - Studs / Holes Size

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2 Upvotes

Hi Guys, I need some advice about replacing a guitar bridge. Lately, I wanted to resurrect an old guitar I had at home, a Dinky DK2 Jackson. I don't remember the code of the specific variant. It was made in Japan in the early 2000s and was bought for around 1000 euro at the time.

I still think that the construction quality of these instruments is top-notch, even compared to the much more expensive newer guitars I own.

Unfortunately, to keep the price lower than the made in USA line, Jackson saved money on the pickups, which are a poor Seymour Duncan design with no dynamics (good for trash metal only), and the electronics. Also The bridge is a JT-580LP, which is surprisingly good at staying in tune even when you abuse the bar, but it's not made of the best materials, and it's not really smooth either. It requires new springs, and the blades are probably not in the best shape either, as it's quite old and used.

In summary, I want to replace the pickup with a new DiMarzio, bridge, lock nuts and locking tuners with something far higher quality and revive this amazing instrument. If I do everything correctly with nice wiring and shielding, I think I will get a beast with a really small investment.

But my problem is the bridge.

I'm in love with the Gotoh-1997T, it's my favourite Floyd style Bridge after the Lo-pro / edge Pro by Ibanez. I like the whammy bar, the quality of the materials, etc. but it uses 11 mm studs. The bridge I currently have is attached to the guitar with 10 mm studs that are slightly shorter than the one on the Gotoh 1996t. This means that I would need to enlarge the holes in the wood in order to install the new Studs for the bridge. This could be fine too , but I think there is a high chance of damaging the finish of the guitar and do a shitty job because the current studs are very close to the edge of the bridge cavity. So i would need to do way too much work to install everything correctly.

So in summary my questions are these 3 :

  • - Can i use some Good quality Steel stud from a OFR or Schaller Lockmeister instead than the original one made by gotoh ? The bridge will work the same ? I risk to damage the blades and getting poor performance ?
  • - I also saw that Gotoh make smaller studs in steel for their Tremolo System 510TS in theory they should be compatible with the Gotoh-1997t . it's true or there is a error in the description and the comment i read online ?
  • - Do you think i should just give up on the Gotoh-1997t and buy the Schaller Tremolo or Lockmeister instead ? Even if a little more expensive I think they will be literally plug-and-play . The quality is pretty high on both but i know well the Gotoh and i have little experience on the Schaller honestly . I used old OFR tho that are made by Schaller as well i guess the quality is still pretty high in these one as well ? the whammy bar is smooth like in the gotoh 1997t ?

If you have any experience with these bridges, please could you give me some advice?

Thanks in advance!


r/Luthier • • 5h ago

HELP Questions about sealing an autograph

2 Upvotes

Howdy all, getting my guitar signed by my favorite band and i was planning on using a gold sharpie for them to use on the body. I don’t trust myself to not mess up putting on a clear coat as Iv never done anything like that to a guitar and it’s my pride and joy. Any brands that are good for an operation like this and I take it I should call around to guitar shops and see if they offer paint services? What would an average job like this cost?


r/Luthier • • 5h ago

Madrone Burl on Sapele

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2 Upvotes

No glue bleed through. First sealer coat wiped in last night. The stoke is very real. Flash/No flash/head on. Yea I know the center line isn't perfect. Madrone is a b*tch. I'm very happy with it


r/Luthier • • 18h ago

Can I make this fretless (but keep the markings for reference)?

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20 Upvotes

I have bass parts lying around and was wondering if I could remove the frets from the neck, fill up the places where the frets were so I can keep the markings and learn how to play fretless. Is that possible? I don't care how tedious the work would be, I have time


r/Luthier • • 2h ago

HELP How can I repair this finish damage?

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0 Upvotes

Hello, I dropped my Yamaha FG700S and this happened on the bottom left side of the top. It doesn’t appear that there is any structural damage, although part of the chip goes down to wood.

It seems like scraping it flat and using CA glue is the way to go for repair? If so, does the viscosity of the CA glue matter? Also, what kind of compound or polish or sandpaper is recommended for restoring the glossy finish once the repair is done?

Thanks in advance.


r/Luthier • • 11h ago

Saddles

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4 Upvotes

Recently picked up a G4M 30” baritone and noticed that not all of the saddles are facing the same way. Is it supposed to be like this? And if so, why?


r/Luthier • • 7h ago

HELP PRS top slope?

2 Upvotes

I'm starting a PRS SE style build, but can't find any resources on how deep the 'slope' is on the sides of the top. There also seems to be different depths for the sides/ bottom, vs the cutaway. Does anyone know the measurements?


r/Luthier • • 1d ago

ELECTRIC Finished my first semi-hollow! (Album in comments)

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54 Upvotes

r/Luthier • • 6h ago

Advice Needed for Pickup Matching

1 Upvotes

I am planning to create a partscaster with Fender Fat ‘50s in the neck and middle (RWRP), and Suhr Thornbucker in the bridge. Possibly doing push-pull or toggle coil split and adding the neck to any position mod for tone knob.

Any potential issues with this setup? Also interested to know if anyone has used it before. Thank you all


r/Luthier • • 11m ago

Graph Tech - Buyer Beware!

• Upvotes

I thought I would do the right thing and place an order for about $200 worth of Tusq nuts, string trees, and a set of tuning machines directly from Graph Tech through their webstore.

Unfortunately, the package got stolen out of the mailbox, for which I got all the documentation I possibly could. When I contacted Graph Tech about a remedy, customer service told me there was nothing they could do except for free FedEx shipping next time, a whopping $25 dollar value (that surely cost Graph Tech far less than that).

Perhaps I am wrong in asking Graph Tech to cover what I think is simply the cost of doing business. Nevertheless, caveat emptor.


r/Luthier • • 1d ago

I entered my custom guitar in a modified guitar contest.

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275 Upvotes

This is the guitar I shared here a while back, and I decided to enter it in a custom guitar contest!
I somehow made it through the first round and advanced to the final round.
They’re also holding a public vote as part of an exhibition, so if you like my guitar, I’d really appreciate it if you could vote for #27!

https://tcgakki.com/pages/modified-guitar-contest-2026-vote

There are lots of unique guitars in the contest, so you might find another one you like, too!
The website is in Japanese, but it has photos and descriptions of all the guitars, so feel free to check it out!

https://tcgakki.com/pages/magazine-modified-guitar-contest-2026-1st-round

My previous post about the guitar is here.
https://www.reddit.com/r/Luthier/s/9Z1P4DWncN


r/Luthier • • 8h ago

How to do a fretjob on technical wood fretboard?

0 Upvotes

I think I need to glue down (reseat) most frets on a technical wood fretboard. I'm worried that it will respond differently to wax and super glue and make it difficult to clean up. I'm also worried about scratches and if I'll be able to sand any away.

This is my ususal plan for reseating frets and I'd like to know if it's okay to do on technical wood:

  1. put some wax next to the frets so that super glue is easier to scrape off
  2. wick some super glue underneath the fret
  3. let the glue dry
  4. scrape it off with a razor blade or chisel
  5. (...fret related fretjob things)
  6. possibly use steel whool at one point to clean the board of stuff
  7. possibly sand away any tool marks
  8. oil the fretboard

Is there anything I should be doing differently or avoiding? Thanks!


r/Luthier • • 23h ago

Is this design absolutely shit in terms of practicality?

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12 Upvotes

I’m a massive Genesis fan and would love to make a double neck based on Mike Rutherfords signature 12 string guitar and 4 string bass double necks, I made this design a while ago but I wanted to consult experts first so let me know please!


r/Luthier • • 11h ago

ELECTRIC Sitar buzz issue from Tele saddle

0 Upvotes

Hi people

I've got a new Mex Tele with what I gather is a daily common sitar type buzz coming from the G saddle on a 6 saddle bridge. Its 100% coming from the string sitting in the saddle.

Is there a fix, or shall I just buy a new saddle, or upgraded set of saddles?


r/Luthier • • 1d ago

HELP Is this build idea possible?

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108 Upvotes

Ive been thinking about building a custom guitar that would combine my favorite elements from a Mustang and a Rickenbacker, would this build be possible to do? I am new to guitar making and am unsure.


r/Luthier • • 1d ago

HELP Is my guitar worth taking to repair?

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71 Upvotes

I’m not a luthier myself, but a full time guitarist and teacher. Today my guitar got knocked on its front and the shock has partially split the body. The split goes through where the neck meets the body so my initial thoughts are that there’s no chance of saving it. The inside of the guitar is all fine and the break is pretty clean, so after reflecting, I thought it would be worth an ask.

Luthiers, in your opinion: can this guitar be repaired and still gig/play, or have a completely ruined it?

Strings are already completely loosened and it’s an Eastman E10SS/V

Photos attached, I’m based in Devon, UK if anyone knows anyone I could take it to. Thanks in advance!