Damn that looks nice! 

flame looks great.
neck dimensions look a bit..... thick.
 
put some 6100's on it.
 
!!!
 
 

Thanks guys...it really is a wonderful piece of wood. I wish it had been perfectly clear but the grain is wonderfully straight and nice flame.
 
Bat I think most would consider the neck "chunky". It's for me and I do like a thick neck.
 
The measurements of early Fender necks is all over the place but I think saying that from .830 (1st) - .960 (12th) is pretty safe in relation to "chunky". Taper was all over the place too. I like a taper.  Then complicate it all with profile and measurements and trying to explain verbally seems like a waste of time. Feel tells the story I guess since there are so many variations.
You like Warmoth so my neck is like the '59 Roundback.
 
Now the cool thing, I mentioned earlier, if I think it needs to be trimmed down later on, I can. Can't put the wood back though. I really doubt it will need it...it's been carved for my feel...as was my first neck-thru and I wouldn't change a thing about it. (it's size is like Warmoths listed SRV)
 
I have the fretwire and decided to use it. I'll be using what I recommended to you some time back- but if I remember correctly it was Evo gold - I'll be using nickel/silver FW47104 listed at LMI. It's like Gibson jumbo- a little taller.
Using Dunlop numbers I'd have to go with 6150's...a little smaller width and crown height than the 6100.
 
 
 
Here are some of the templates I said I'd post about.
You can see in the close-up that the plywood is sure worth the extra cash.
These will probably out-last me.
 
 
 

 
 
 
 
 

that ply form looks awesome.
 
makes for a more precision cut, especially if you are not using a CNC
 
 
 
 
yep, i have 6150's on my custom strat..
 
and it is a USACG.
 
i much prefer them over warmoth, after a lengthy investigation and experimentation.
 
my neck:
hardrock maple neck, with a pau ferro fingerboard. 6150 frets, 1-5/8" nut width. small fender-style headstock.
--Gibson scale length neck, 22 frets, fingerboard radius, of 12". the shape of the neck is a thin "C" shape, with a .78" neck thickness at the 1st fret, up to .85 at the 13th, mother of pearl dot inlays.
vintage truss with access at face of headstock.

oh  yea, the coolest part of the neck, i always forget:
the headstock, 
tiltback design, 13 degrees
 
it's not a scarf, but a continuous piece.
they've quit making them that way now.
if i want another one ordered, i'd probably go to warmoth, but the usacg necks are superlative to the warmoth necks i sampled.
 
 
 
 

My mistake Bat- I knew you preferred the USACG necks.
 
It's not the photo- it is thick. I think most call it "chunky".
It's within a couple of thousands of the Clapton and SRV necks at Warmoth.
I carved to feel and don't care about numbers while I'm doing that...just the feel. Contour
is a major player that effects those numbers and there are just to many variations to have words try to
explain "feel". Well at least I can't do it.
 
I'll be using some wire I have- FW47104- like Gibson jumbo and not as wide or tall as the 6100 Dunlop.
 
 
Your neck sounds like the one that Steve wanted on his Strat style. It's a one piece tilt.
The best part of the tilted head IMO is that it is easier to add a headplate than the Fender style...although
I have bent and shaped Wenge for a Tele style. The effort was worth it...made it beautiful.
He also wanted the Gibson short scale which I think is what you like too. ?
 
Well I've had this very light piece of body wood in my shop for a few years and decided to use it. It's been a very straight one piece for a long time so I think it's good to go.  I will be experimenting with the inlay pickguard....man, I hope I don't ruin it. It's a great piece of wood...but I enjoy the pressure lol.
 
The new template worked great so thought I'd add some pics to this mess.
Also first thick run with a new spiral bit-shown in photo.
 
 
Bandsawed and sanded close to line to take some work off the router:

Taped for the template. Don't know if it takes this much but I don't want
to find out with the router running.
Tape is used a lot and I've found out it's good to roll it off- doesn't pull on the
wood fiber as bad as getting a corner of it and pulling.

After that router bit did it's thing. Spiral bit- only way to go.

Not bad. Very little burn on the end grain, ready to sand the edges.
(something that should be done before roundover bit on edges)
Next I'll start milling out for the goods and neck. Will be my first
shot at routering for a trem too. Lot's of first times with this build.

This is fun Spacey, love these threads. I have always had pretty good luck with using double face tape on my router templates as well. At work, the CNC Routers are pretty cool these days, the beds are vacuum suction, which holds the pieces to the bed. I can't use them for personal projects however.

I have always wanted to try a Strat build, so I am always very interested in watching how you approach things. I found out last week while traveling and talking with a colleague, that one of our Carpenters in the shop builds electric guitars. I am going to have to swing by his bench next Wednesday when I go back to work and talk a little shop. :-)

That is great to hear Mike. Fun is a major part of it all. Knowing that some enjoy the posts make it worth it.
 
I have nothing against the use of CNC used in guitar making. I understand the benefits for manufacturers but I'll pass on that tool. It can get kind of fuzzy when one thinks about "handmade" because of tools but a builder can make a choice about what he feels is right and I just can't see me programming a machine to carve a neck or body...just no interest there for me.
I started checking out vacuum  because I was thinking about making covers for the pickups I make. Really about the only use for vacuum that I can see... may or may not happen down the road. Sounds like it would be fun trying.
 
I envy you. I wish I knew others around me that were building.
Hope you get a chance to post about your visit. I'd love to hear about it.
 

We have, on average, 80-90 Carpenters hired in our shop to build trade show exhibits. This guy has been a regular since I have been with the company, so I am surprised that I had not heard about his guitar building up until now. I just went on the road to install a large trade show in Vegas for 19 days and this year I decided that I was going to pack an old beater acoustic to go with me. We had 15 trailers of freight that came out of my building alone, so I simply slipped it into a crate bound for the show floor. We get there before anyone else does, while it is still bare concrete. I guess when I pulled it out of the crate to bring it back to the hotel is when some of the Carpenters traveling with us mentioned that I need to talk with this guy.

I know that one of these days I am going to try this, but I also know that I am going to have a lot of guitar making specialty tools to pick up when I do. I know I better first work on some of the projects my wife has asked me to do, like refinishing the dining room table, or it's going to be a sore spot around my house. :-)

I can assure you it will be expensive Mike. I'm sure glad I wasn't planning on getting my investment back making them to sell.
It's cool though having the tools- I've built many things other than guitars...and kept the wife happy too LOL.
 
Well I decided rather than sanding I would make sure the neck and body would fit. First time with templates and took a guess making them- mentioned that earlier.
Luck has it that it turned out as planned. It took very little sanding on the neck and the fit is how it should be. And the center-line is balls on. (from nut to tail)  Whew...kinda nerve racking but sure feel good about it now.
 

 
Now my head is spinning...my plan is to inlay a pickguard. By that I mean no screws and it will never come off.
So that means the control cavity will have to be in the back...back to the drawing board.