Filling Wood

[CharvelRocker]

What is the best way to fill large amounts of wood? I need to know as I plan on redoing my Tele project and need to fill out 2 humbucker routes and a control route. Also, whats the best way to get it flat and smooth?

[fett]

Well, there is Bondo. But if I were me, I would use blocks of the same wood the body is made of and align (sp) the grain. Then I would make the blocks a wee tad smaller so the glue can set. But the height of the blocks must be higher than the body. Then, I would glue the blocks in and let it cure for I don't know how long. The new and old wood have to get along.:ROTF: That's what I wood do. \\rain

[CharvelRocker]

Well, there is Bondo. But if I were me, I would use blocks of the same wood the body is made of and align (sp) the grain. Then I would make the blocks a wee tad smaller so the glue can set. But the height of the blocks must be higher than the body. Then, I would glue the blocks in and let it cure for I don't know how long. The new and old wood have to get along.:ROTF: That's what I wood do. \\rain

I was thinking that. There is a shop just up the road that sells all sorts of hardwoods. If I didn't think I would screw it up, I would buy a top from them (FYI, they supply PRS, Gibson, and supposedly FMIC with figured tops.)

[Racerx2k]

I'm feeling wood, right now.......................oh...................... ...nevermind.....

[dg]

If you really want it to look good and not have the filled routes show back up, there are a couple ways to go. One is the traditional wood fill, followed by a wood veneer. The other is to use Bondo, then do a thin layer of 2-part polyester glazing putty (Evercoat) over the top, then sand, prime & paint. This is the method Mark (mm2002) uses, and the results he gets are awesome, like Budman's pink Model 6 & the crazy Rhoads project he did in the famous "Fun with Bondo" thread. Unfortunately, none of the pics are working in any of the old threads I checked.

[CharvelRocker]

If you really want it to look good and not have the filled routes show back up, there are a couple ways to go. One is the traditional wood fill, followed by a wood veneer. The other is to use Bondo, then do a thin layer of 2-part polyester glazing putty (Evercoat) over the top, then sand, prime & paint. This is the method Mark (mm2002) uses, and the results he gets are awesome, like Budman's pink Model 6 & the crazy Rhoads project he did in the famous "Fun with Bondo" thread. Unfortunately, none of the pics are working in any of the old threads I checked.

Thanks. while I guess he'll have to answer, did he do this on the metallic pink Ibanez 7 string he did a little while ago? I think it came out NICE! (I'm doing a red metal flake myself)

[CharvelRocker]

I need to bump this for something extremely important:

When I go to route the controls, I think I may have to route a bit of the filler in cavity. I am very nervous that the wood filler won't hold once 90% of whats behind it is taken out, and thus it falls out. Is there anyway to be sure that I won't run into this, besides routing my controls around it?

[wibble]

hand full of nails and a big hammer should do the trick :P

[rjohnstone]

I need to bump this for something extremely important:

When I go to route the controls, I think I may have to route a bit of the filler in cavity. I am very nervous that the wood filler won't hold once 90% of whats behind it is taken out, and thus it falls out. Is there anyway to be sure that I won't run into this, besides routing my controls around it?

If you're going to be routing in a previously filled area, you should glue in a wood filler piece.
Bondo is great as long as it has something to hold onto, but if you're taking away 90% of it's adhesion area, it will fall out.

A glued in wood piece will bond better with the sides of the filled pocket.

[RobRR]

While were on this topic... any good methods to make the wood "plug" match the cavity youre filling? Any tips or tricks?

[CharvelRocker]

If you're going to be routing in a previously filled area, you should glue in a wood filler piece.
Bondo is great as long as it has something to hold onto, but if you're taking away 90% of it's adhesion area, it will fall out.

A glued in wood piece will bond better with the sides of the filled pocket.

Thanks. Glad I only filled that route 2/3rds of the way just in case.

[delt]

Bondo as in the fiberglass resin? Yeah, that works great. If you're a tone purist, you might do like fett said and glue a piece of wood about the same shape, maybe a bit smaller, then fill up the rest with fiberglass resin. Though i've done mods/repairs on several guitars using only fiberglass and they sounded fine.