flying v guitar prep

Flying V guitar session No. 4. My kit is closer to being a guitar. Kevin, of New Vintage Custom Guitars, said the next step is to mock-up the guitar to make sure everything fits. Before that, the new pickguard needed to be cut. That was all Kev. He’s highly skilled around band and scroll saws. He traced it and expertly cut it out, plus other bits, from the tortoise shell material. It’s multi-ply plastic. No tortoise was harmed. We then mounted most of the parts and drilled holes where the strings will pass through the body. It all fits together. Perfect. It almost looks like the guitar it’s going to be, except for the colour. After a couple of weeks off, the painting will begin.  

sanding the v guitar

Body before and after sanding and scrap of painted mahogany.

Will the sanding ever end? Session No. 3 on the Flying V kit involved a palm sized power sander to flatten wood plugs on the body. Two holes remain for the bridge. Now you can’t feel the plugs. You can see them, but they’ll be hidden when the guitar is finished. Kevin, of TNV Custom Guitars, tells me the body came with grain sealer so the next step was to sand the body – 400, then 1200 grit sandpaper to make it smooth for painting. I pushed the paper all over the V to make it smooth. It will eventually be army green. We tested paint on a scrap of mahogany. Next session, we’ll spray clear coat on the scrap to make sure it’ll work and mock up the guitar before we paint the body.