Making a Guitar Mold - Eric Schaefer Guitars - Online Guitar Building School

Lesson Transcript: For this course, we are going to use an outside guitar mold. The mold is used during the side bending process and the soundbox assembly process. It also helps you mark out important dimensions in the early stages of the build. First, we will make a template. Then we will trace the template onto 3/4" MDF, plywood, or particle board and cut 6 sections. each section is then atteched to the original template for refinement on the router table. The 6 sections are glued together to create 2 pieces. Hardware is installed to hold the two pieces together and a wooden dowel is installed at the joints to keep the pieces properly aligned. For my template I am using half of a spare OM mold that I had in my shop, but you will have to create your own template from scratch, using your plans as a guide. To do this, trace half of your guitar&outline onto tracing paper. Stick the tracing paper to 3/4" particle board, MDF, or plywood with spray contact adhesive. Cut on the line with a bandsaw. I use a 1/4" blade or smaller so that it can handle the curves. Take your time and strive for consistent curves. All major inconsistencies can be smoothed out with 80 grit sandpaper wrapped around a wooden dowel. Minor inconsistencies can be ignored. As far as precision goes, the inside cut is what really counts. The outside cut can be rough cut to any shape as long as it is about 3 to 5 inches from the inside cut. Finally, drill 3 holes for use in mounting the template. Now this is...