Resophonic ASAT Special Pg. 1

 

What I wanted to do is buy a Resolectric guitar from National Resophonic Guitars.  But, at that price, I figured I could take some bits & pieces that I have, add a few Resophonic parts from StewMac, and a new tool or two, and I could make my own.


This is the story of that adventure.

My goal is to turn this.....


(Starting date of June 13, 2014)

Into something like this...

(Image stolen from Elderly,.com)

The guitar that I am starting with is an ASAT Special that I have used & cannibalized for other projects.


To do the routing, I got a circle cutter jig from Jasper Tools.  I also got a plunge base for my Porter-Cable 690 router.


So I stripped the body and started routing.


This part of the project is of a slow & steady nature.  The jig works in a 1/4” width cut.  Not my strong point, but I haven’t screwed it up it yet :)


By the time it’s all done, I think that the route will be about the same depth as the control route.


I will post more pix as I go.

The order for routing is:


  1. 1)Circle cutter, to a depth of 3/4” or a bit more.

  2. 2)Route out the center of the cavity.

  3. 3)Route the edge again using a bit with a flush bearing.


I used a couple pieces of wood to create a platform to route the center of the cavity.


I am still not sure of the required depth I need to achieve.  It’s time to put the neck back on and see how things fit.


One of the woodworking errors is from where I put in a middle pickup.  The other one, just above the control route, is a router error.


A few things that I have not figured out:

  1. 1)Where to put the controls.  I am thinking the upper bout has enough room.

  2. 2)How do I run the wires?  I am thinking I can cut a small channel under the edge of the cone, and run under the cone.


The joys of jumping in before thinking it all thru. :)

Next Page

I put the neck on, with a clamp, and ran a piece of string to check my string height.  Still too high.  But I am getting close.


Maybe another 1/16” or so to route out.  Then I will do some height adjustment with a file as I need to cut the string grooves in the bridge.