The 2x4 Telecaster

Creative lessons from building a Telecaster-style under creative constraints.

Hey, friends! Today’s newsletter features a full build log for my latest guitar project. I also share some creative takeaways from building under constraints.

Getting Started

Last month, I learned about a build challenge in a Facebook group I’m a member of. I wrote about it briefly here, explaining that the challenge was to build an instrument from a 2x4. I previously shared the gallery below to showcase the early progress in what I planned would be a fretless, three-string, Telecaster-style, dog bowl resonator slide guitar:

The challenge didn’t explicitly state how many 2x4s you could use, but I decided to limit myself to just one and picked up a single “premium” white pine 2x4 from Home Depot and got to work.

In picture three, you can see that I cut the 8-foot section into the following lengths:

• 1: 24-inch piece for the neck

• 2: 14-inch pieces for the back and sound board

• 2: 13.5-inch pieces for the body “frame”

• 2: 4.5-inch pieces also for the body “frame”

• 1: 8-inch piece (technically smaller because of the kerf of the blade) for the saddle and extra

To get enough material from one 2x4, I had to rip the neck piece down to 1.5 inches in width and glue up the excess to accommodate the headstock shape.

The back and soundboard pieces were resawn into four thinner pieces (approximately 0.28 inches thick) that I later glued together into two wider boards.

The body pieces were then glued into a rectangular frame that I routed a neck pocket into and cut a Telecaster body shape out of, as seen in the next gallery below:

Coming Together

I’d previously purchased a dog bowl that I intended to use as a resonator on a future project. I decided this was as good a project as any, and laser cut a big hole to receive it after cutting matching Telecaster shapes into the soundboard and back that I glued to the “frame.”

One challenge I discovered at this point was that white pine is incredibly soft. You can see the bearing mark in the wood in the second-to-last image above, from the pattern tracing router bit I used to cut the top and bottom flush. Fortunately, I’d designed this guitar with enough tolerance that I could sand it away.

During this phase of the project, I dry fit the neck and felt like things were really coming together.

Finishing

I’ll be honest. White pine is a really boring-looking wood, at least compared to hardwoods like maple, cherry, or walnut. Its grain is pretty straight, which is good structurally, but it has almost no color. Pine also doesn’t typically take stain well, so I had to get creative with its finish.

I debated painting it, but I felt like that might hide the material it was made of too much, so I went with a finishing technique I’d read about but had never really used—iron acetate. Iron acetate is a mixture of steel wool and vinegar. When combined for three days or so and then applied to raw lumber, the mixture responds chemically with the tannins in the wood, changing its color.

Upon application, it turned chocolatey brown. After topping the iron acetate with boiled linseed oil, though, it shifted color into what I can only describe as a poor man’s walnut.

In the gallery below, you’ll see the guitar in its mostly finished state. I added the following components I’d purchased online or 3D printed:

• Chrome tuners

• 6-inch dog bowl

• Three-string tailpiece

• 3D printed: strap button, pickguard, and nut

• Wood saddle made from that 8-inch scrap piece

• 46, 36, and 26 gauge wound guitar strings tuned: GDg

Last Bits

In the gallery above, the guitar was strictly acoustic, but since it didn’t project much volume, I decided to add a piezo pickup to the bottom of the resonator, directly beneath the saddle, and route the output jack through the back side of the guitar to electrify it.

This was probably the most nerve-racking part of the build, as the project was pretty much done at this point, but one slip of my drill bit could have ruined the whole thing. The final image gallery below features a photo of that harrowing moment as well as a photo of the piezo pickup being embedded in hot glue.

I’ve also included a GIF of my logo being laser-engraved into the headstock, which is always fun.

Sound Sample

I mentioned that this was part of a build challenge, so I’ve included my official video submission that features additional angles of the guitar and me playing a swampy riff through a Fender Mustang LT 25 amp.

Takeaways

Building a guitar with the constraint of using only a single 2x4 of a bland wood was a big challenge. It required lots of planning and meticulous craftsmanship in the shop. I couldn’t afford even one wrong cut.

This forced me to plan ahead more than I ever do, employ building techniques I normally omit, and experiment with new finishing techniques. Most notably, though, I learned to build more slowly and with greater intention.

Ultimately, I was really happy with how this guitar turned out. This experience reinforced a lesson I’ve written about previously: sometimes the best way to push yourself creatively is by introducing constraints that force you to do more with less.

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One More Thing

One of my goals is to foster a greater sense of community with this newsletter. As such, I’d love to know what creative things you are up to and to feature them here.

Drop me a line via email or in the comments below to let me know what you have cooking. Can’t wait to hear about it.

Until next time,

—Mike