Removing wood

[pingu]

Can I ask you luthiers for advice please ?

I want to mount a neck humbucker in my Tele
I'm gonna use a pre-made scratchplate
and a standard Gibson size humbucker ....

I need to remove some wood to make space for the humbucker
I don't have a router

I do have an electric drill and
A set of sharp chisles
am I crazy to attempt this job without a proper router ?

Could/should I use a standard router bit in my electric drill ?

Thanks folks

[Gilpy]

You need to use Forstner bits with your drill to make flat bottom holes. Then remove the remaining wood with those sharp chisels. Start by drilling out the corners with a small radius bit. Then do the rest.
I have an attachment for my drill that stops the bit at a preset depth. Kind of like a drill press. Lacking that, you’ll need to be patient and meticulous, but could get acceptable results, since the cavity will be covered by the pickguard.

[sgosnell]

A drill won't turn even close to fast enough to do routing. And if it did, holding it wouldn't be possible. Gilpy is right, although if there isn't that much to remove just chisels might work. Take just a little at a time, starting at the bottom, then the sides, and it's possible. With the proper sizes of Forstner bits you can make things a little easier, with less chiseling. If you don't want to pay for the bits, and they aren't cheap, good sharp chisels are very effective.

[Jimmy Smith]

Unless you get a router, the right bit, the right jig, and plan effectively to do a clean job, there's no reason not to just do an ok job with what you have since the pickguard will cover it.

[Jimmy blue note]

What they said. Not a problem if you're patient. Not exactly the same thing but when removing wood for an archtop from a bookmatched billet, a similar process (drill bit to gauge rough depth, chisel and gouge to remove wood) is used.
I'd just note that it'd be good to use a drill press, work to a certain depth, and remove with chisel or gouge to that depth. Make sure your tools are sharp, be patient and report back and ask questions as you proceed. You can do it. Good luck!
Don't tell me, Ed Bikert, right? Ed's playing inspired me to do the same thing. I did a similar thing except I went with the pickup ring on mine. I love my plank and I'm so proud of my work on the project.

[nevershouldhavesoldit]

Rotary tools work very well for routing solid body pickup cavities. Dremel and others have available routing bases, bits and guides that make it easy, and the cost is very low. Use a rigid routing template for best results. Here’s an example - I opened the neck cavity on my old Epi LP for an EMG years ago with a hand held Dremel with no guide.



The edge of the cheap and thin veneer on the treble side was irregular under the original HB mounting ring, and it split off when I thinned it. This is unlikely to happen on a Tele body, especially with a fresh, sharp bit and a proper guide.

[pingu]

yes Ed Bickert !

longer story
I wasn’t getting that much hum , but
when I tried the tele
with my small group I was constantly
adjusting the Volume pot to try and
get the correct balance between chords and single note lines etc , especially on the top E and B strings
which came out too weak
(this is with my normal TI flats)

with these strings on my laminate
archtop with humbuckers I don’t get
this problem ….

so I’m hoping with a humbucker I
can adjust the slant and pole heights
to give me a good balance
(like i get on my arch top)

worth a try I think

ps If it gives me a warmer thunkier
sound then all the better ….

Thanks for the advice everyone

[Freeman Keller]

Where are you located? If you were close to me I would route the cavity for you using the correct template and the correct bit. If you are not close (I assume you are not) then I would suggest finding a builder in your area who can help. There are some other forums with more active builder discussions where you might have better luck.

Doing it right only takes a few minutes.

[pingu]

1279925[/URL]]Where are you located? If you were close to me I would route the cavity for you using the correct template and the correct bit. If you are not close (I assume you are not) then I would suggest finding a builder in your area who can help. There are some other forums with more active builder discussions where you might have better luck.

Doing it right only takes a few minutes.

That's very kind Freeman but I'm going to have a go
at this myself .
I think I'm up to it .... I'm going to take it real slow
and it will be covered by the pickguard

I'll let y'all know how it goes ....