7 Web Sites for the Electric Guitar Builder

1. Warmoth.com
OK, I have put together a couple of electric guitars, but I'll confess that my skills are wanting. I started with parts, from Warmoth. If you have never built an electric guitar from scratch, you ought to just get yourself a neck and a body from Warmoth, and you can do the rest yourself. There's a variety of body styles, and wonderful options for neck woods, back contours, frets, and headstock styles.

2. The Musical Instrument Makers Forum
Very nice content, and several different forums for different types of instruments. You can join in the conversations after registration, and there is a very nice library of discussions. One thing I don't like about the forum however is their photo policy(completed projects only), and the restrictions on posting prices found at Allparts, Ebay and others. The forum is sponsored by...

3. Stewart-McDonald (Stew-Mac) , the single biggest supplier of luthier supplies on the Internet. I've purchased a number of items there, and for the most part I've been happy with my purchases. Sometimes they're the only supplier of certain jigs and tools, but sometimes you're better off making your own jigs and templates, as their stuff can be a little pricey. My advice - by their neck pocket, pickup and trem templates and make copies - never use the originals.

4. Ronny Trigo's Guitar Building Templates. If you feel safe working with a router, here is heaven for the beginner to accomplished guitar builder. He offers a package where you can get 4 templates kits for the price of 3. Laser cut on masonite, once again, work from copies of the originals, and keep these masters tucked away. A nice variety of standard axe templates (Gibsons, Fenders) to some more exotic designs (Ibanez Iceman, BC Rich Warlocks and Mockingbirds).

5. Jamie Unden's Guitar Plans Unlimited .If you're comfortable making your own templates from a plan, this is the option for you. Jamie has a real nice collection of plans, and I've used these as well. If you have a crazy idea for a guitar, Jamie can adapt the neck pocket and pickup locations to match your idea - all you have to is go and pickup a good neck and bolt 'er on.

6. Project Guitar . A feel good site for the starter, and a source of support and inspiration for the seasoned crafters. Nice photos, decent tips, and a pretty good library of practical tips and tricks for the guitar builder at any level.

7. Ebay.com . Numerous ebay sellers have everything from tuners, pickups, controls, trems, woods, etc. I have a couple of favorites on here for book matched maples out of Canada, as well as decent sources for inexpensive tremolos and tools. Also, check out the Guitar Fetish pickups!

Hope this helps somebody out there...but the main thing to remember is that you can't play it until you finish!