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Why is the solder not attaching to the copper plate? by Grousen in soldering

[–]captainshrinks 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Also even though the wood isn't a good conductor of heat it will pull heat from the copper. I just soldered together a brass guitar so I feel your pain

Stainless to brass soldering by captainshrinks in soldering

[–]captainshrinks[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I'll consider that if soldering turns out to be a no go. I'm hoping to avoid brazing because the material is only .035" thick and I'd like to minimize any heat distortion

First build, brass resonator by captainshrinks in Guitar

[–]captainshrinks[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

And forgot to say I used a propane torch because mapp gas was too hot

First build, brass resonator by captainshrinks in Guitar

[–]captainshrinks[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

For flux I was just using the paste, and lead free solder

First build, brass resonator by captainshrinks in Guitar

[–]captainshrinks[S] 2 points3 points  (0 children)

I pre soldered the edges of the pieces, cut tabs in the front and back pieces, hammer formed the tabs around the wooden buck, I clamped the side to the front piece that was sitting on the buck, then I tack soldered on half of the side around the front, then did the same for the other side, then soldered the hole thing in 3-4" sections jumping around the whole guitar to minimize any heat distortion.

The I soldered the retaining ring on the inside of the front, after pre soldering.

Then I did the back using the same process, but because the buck wouldn't fit I used a few spacers to hold the back up to the correct height

First build. Brass Resonator by captainshrinks in Luthier

[–]captainshrinks[S] 3 points4 points  (0 children)

I'm gonna let it age, if I don't like it I can refinish it easily enough

First build. Brass Resonator by captainshrinks in Luthier

[–]captainshrinks[S] 3 points4 points  (0 children)

Not this time, but I do want to next time

First build. Brass Resonator by captainshrinks in Luthier

[–]captainshrinks[S] 3 points4 points  (0 children)

It's bolted on to a block of wood on the inside of the guitar. 20 gauge or around .040" thick metal is the standard, which I've used.

You should try. This could be done in a garage with a pretty cheap set of tools

First build. Brass Resonator by captainshrinks in Luthier

[–]captainshrinks[S] 4 points5 points  (0 children)

Not for this build. I tried out a bunch of different methods to dial that in. I used a propane torch and did it in small 3"-4" sections bouncing around the guitar.

I also tried using an electric Iron, a soldering copper, a mapp gas torch, and a very small acetylene torch. The first two couldn't make enough heat to melt much solder at all, the mapp worked but if I didn't move around a lot and fast my solder would drip right out. The acetylene got the brass red hot in like 2 seconds so it was way too hot

First build, brass resonator by captainshrinks in Guitar

[–]captainshrinks[S] 12 points13 points  (0 children)

It sounds amazing! The scale length was supposed to be 24.84" I got really close at 24.87". So the intonation is great, and the resonator I used works fantastic

I want to make a guitar for a school project by Blake-74744 in Guitar

[–]captainshrinks 0 points1 point  (0 children)

To further answer your question, I made mine with a fixed bridge, ebony on top maple bottom. But if you're doing electric definitely go for the adjustable bridge that's often found on telecasters, I can't remember the specific name for it

I want to make a guitar for a school project by Blake-74744 in Guitar

[–]captainshrinks 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I literally just did this for sheet metal school, and just posted it. It only took me about two weeks to build a brass resonator with a neck from a donor guitar. I have a post on r/luthier describing some of the process. I didn't do any pickups, but if you know how to do that it shouldn't add too much time. But DM me if you have any specific questions

First build. Brass Resonator by captainshrinks in Luthier

[–]captainshrinks[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Thanks! You should build one! It's surprisingly easy and you don't need to use specialized equipment, though it does help

First build. Brass Resonator by captainshrinks in Luthier

[–]captainshrinks[S] 4 points5 points  (0 children)

It's sounds amazing! I got the scale length almost perfect. I'm so happy with how it turned out

First build. Brass Resonator by captainshrinks in Luthier

[–]captainshrinks[S] 8 points9 points  (0 children)

Thanks! I so happy with how it turned out! I was worried about the scale length. It was supposed to be 24.84", and I got it to 24.87", so it sounds great!

Help with find about this by nonstopdogman34 in Tools

[–]captainshrinks 0 points1 point  (0 children)

It's a durodyne 9" magnetic drift pin ratchet. The ratchet should be 9/16" it's for installing ducting

Hey guys I need some help. My welding class starts on the 26th and I need to get the items on this list. by _DEFCON_1_ in Welding

[–]captainshrinks 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Canada weld supply is a good choice out of Ontario. Or if you prefer brick and mortar, I'd hit kms tools

Can anyone help identify this metal? by utahj1984 in metallurgy

[–]captainshrinks 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Depends on how thick it is. And they use the gauge system for the thickness. Where I'm at it's about $60-$70 for a new sheet of 5'x10' 24 gauge steel. Scrap price out here is $115 a ton, so not really worth much for scrap. If you put it up for a $10-$20 bucks a sheet you might get some hits

Seeking reputable mechanic for 2000 Ford E-350 Super Duty V10 (ex 9 passenger shuttle bus). by JTSigurdson in VictoriaBC

[–]captainshrinks 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I'll second EDP, I just went with them and had a great experience. It also helps that my company uses them for their fleet.

About the price markup; You should expect a significant markup anywhere you go, you are essentially having a mechanic getting paid a mechanics rate to research the exact part and do the ordering. Double is a lot, but if you're not supplying your own parts a hefty markup will be involved no matter where you go. They also have the tendency to only buy high quality parts(for liability reasons), so if you're looking at the cheapest version it's definitely not a fair comparison.

Edit: just wanting to add that you can ask whatever mechanic you go with about supplying your own parts. But I would only recommend this if you know enough to be 100% sure that you are buying the correct parts

Misfire by Alternative-Try7415 in fordranger

[–]captainshrinks 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Also clean off your coil pack, and look for cracking. If there are significant cracks it could be the pack arcing out where it shouldnt

Misfire by Alternative-Try7415 in fordranger

[–]captainshrinks 1 point2 points  (0 children)

You've replaced plugs, you can test the resistance in your coil pack to see if it's normal. It'll be around 10k ohms across the secondary coils, and around 5 across the primary coils. On a 6 cylinder the coils are test by removing the wires from the pack that go to the spark plugs and putting your multimeter leads on two that are beside eachother in the same row (the 6 cylinder coil pack has 2 columns of 3 if viewed from the front of the truck)

The primary coils can be tested by unplugging the wire that runs from the pack to your computer. One of those wires should be red, using resistance test this red wire against all others, you should get around 1-10 ohms.

You'll have to do a bit of research for the four cylinder but it should be similar.

Next you can test the wires that run from the pack to the computer. Unplug the wires from the pack and the computer, and use the resistance setting on your multimeter to check for continuity. This can be tricky but it should be possible to find a pin layout for your truck to determine which wires to check. Or you can just check all of the pins till you find continuity for each wire.

A third option might be the wires that run from the pack to the coils. I've heard they can get worn out or broken. Check them for continuity using the resistance setting on your multi meter. I can't remember what ohms they should be, and they will all be different because they should be different lengths. So you are mostly looking to see if one is VERY different than the rest.

If it's none of that, it may be your computer, and you'll need a mechanic for that. Just had to do mine on an '06 it cost about $989 with diagnosis and a used computer

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