Does anyone know a reliable place to obtain Gibson SG build plans?


Thanks

I don't recall seeing a decent SG plan anywhere.

But don't let that stop you. There are only two ways to get plans. Either the manufacturer or someone who has carefully measured a guitar and made a plan.

It's d@mned near impossible to get your hands on Gibson plans. But there are an awful lot of SG's out there. Get your hands on one, take it apart, and make accurate tracings and take accurate measurements and make your own drawings.

Get a roll of cheap lining wallpaper, a decent flat surface to work on, some decent straight edges and rulers, a thickness caliper, and a decent set square to start with.

Shapes can be traced, angles can be measured direct or calculated with basic maths, scale lengths are easily found online, you can buy templates for fret locations, find tables online, or calculate them from 1st principles with a simple spreadsheet.

And before you say that it's too much work or the tools are too expensive. All the tools you need to make a drawing will be useful or essential in building, and the knowledge you gain from making your own drawing will save you hours when you start making your SG. It's not unreasonable to suggest that a good drawing is like making a prototype without have to spend the hours woodworking and buying the woods and hardware. And if a drawing goes wrong it's a lot cheaper to tear it up and start again.

Making a drawing requires the same skills as marking out your wood for cutting. If you can't draw it, you can't make it; because ultimately you will have to mark out and measure that accurately to build it anyway. If you get the drawing right first time, great. But if you are really lucky you'll need 3 or 4 attempts to get it right, and in the process you'll have a much better understanding when you start building.

Where a plan might be most helpful is in working out the neck join, but there's no reason why you can't get a Les Paul plan like this from LMI.

And a final word of caution. Whether you buy, make, or adapt, a plan; be prepared to adapt it to accommodate the hardware you choose.

Andy

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When the going gets weird, the Weird turn Pro.

Thanks Andy,

This is really useful advice and very much appreciated!