Thursday 29th January ’09

This has been one of those weeks, I seem to have got a lot done but it has been a real struggle getting there.. in fact I feel like I’ve spent more time in the car than anywhere else!!!

we begin with a trip to my local.. timber yard that is!  Yandles is where I get most of my exotics..

and also where I go to drool over the odd bit if kit!

we end up back at the workshop and start compiling the woods that will soon be used to realise two bespoke guitars for Nimrod..

More coats of wax are applied to Andrews guitar..

and polished up.. more are added daily over the next week or so..

on to the left-handed plagiarist for Dave, the inlay is looking a little.. shit really..

until the engraver comes out and everything is clarified..

followed by another hour or so of hard graft..

polishing one of these by hand takes some doing!

more inlay, an ebony ‘Crimson’ logo is cut out

marked out onto Thomas’ custom Robert Fripp signature guitar!

she has been carved and very roughly sanded.. there are still some gaps in the Elm cap

which are filled with a mixture of cyanoacrylate and wood dust..

after the inlay has cured the excess glue and ebony is removed with a very sharp chisel..

and the cap is sanded.. unfortunately about this time the sky’s grow dark and I can’t sand effectively in artificial light..

so I start on the Elm backplates.. they are marked out

cut to size on the bandsaw

and carefully filed to fit the recesses..

before carving them to match the comfort carves

the next morning is spent enduring the wonders of the NHS audiology department (my hearing loss is due to too many years in a loud band but is not too serious yet!!)

I then begin working on the wiring of Jason’s bespoke superstrat.. copper tape is used to create a Faraday cage.. and then I realise that my trusty old (horrible) soldering iron had given up the ghost!

neccesitating another bloody long drive to get a new Solder Station..

the hardware is installed..

while Rosy plays with one of her brood!

now wiring does not come very easily to me.. I’m more of a timber type of person.. but after a number of hours messing around with diagrams we end up with something that works a treat!

the last bit to go in is the battery box..

and the knobs..

another one bites the dust and the Moonshine is born!

All my best..

Ben

Crimson Bespoke Guitars UK