Official Luthiers Forum!

So.......
I've resisted building with a careful set of plans, because I never quite liked all the elements of the ones I've seen. I know, I know. Anyway, now I'm suffering for it.

Question one: what's wrong with my this picture? The plane of the trussrod (accessible through the soundhole) is passing right through the "popsicle stick brace, ( I think that's the technical term for the brace between the UTB and the neckblock). So that in order to assemble the neck I'll need to remove/file away/drill through the popsicle stick brace.

Question two: Assuming a robust UTB, how important is that popsicle stick brace on a 12 fret to the body 000 sized steel string, which I intend to string with light strings. (lightly scalloped braces).

Thanks.

I don't think it is strange to have to scallop the popsicle a bit for easier truss rod access. That popsicle brace is also one that many people leave out altogether, so I think I would not worry if I were you.

_________________
Burton
http://www.legeytinstruments.com
Brookline, MA.

Thanks, Burton, that's a relief.

One question I did have is, when routing for the truss rod, (still talking about access through the sound hole) do you route deep enough to require a fillet between the rod and the fretboard? (I'm using the LMI two way trussrod). I did, but a relatively narrow fillet. The rod is also parallel to the plane of the fretboard. One way to avoid interference of the truss rod and the popsicle brace would be to route on a slight incline, with the rod slanting lower at the neck block side. Hmm - that would probably cause problems with the UTB, though. Maybe the answer is to lose the popsicle brace altoghether, as you'd said.

Corky,

I do allow for a filler strip above the rod. Mine is very thin too. There is a little info part on Allied's site in the truss rod section that shows a basic install. The center gets pushed down slightly when gluing in the rod cap. Not enough to make it difficult to turn but just to get it snug in there. I have been gluing a thin CF strip underneath it also, but that may be overkill.

_________________
Burton
http://www.legeytinstruments.com
Brookline, MA.

corky,
i just did exactly what you're asking about. as burton has said, you need to 'scallop' the popsicle brace. i use the term 'scallop' loosely though. because i accomplish this by wrapping 80 grit sand paper around a 1" dowel. takes about a minute to get the job done. i sand nearly all the way through the brace, then glue it on to the sound board.