Solid Body Electric Guitar Kits

Building a solid body electric guitar is a slow but rewarding process. Several types of tools and a high level of skill is needed in order to turn a unfinished block of wood into a pristine sounding visually stimulating instrument. There however is an viable alternative to making a guitar from scratch, electric guitar kits.

There are several advantages to buying an electric guitar kit. If you are a new builder apprehensive about your luthier skills, a guitar kit solves the most difficult aspects of the build. Or maybe you are an experienced builder but do not have all of the tools essential to make a guitar.

An electric guitar kit comes with all the required parts already prefabricated ready for assembly. They come in many of the popular body styles and woods used in factory made instruments. Some of the solid body electric guitar kits offer figured maple tops and ebony fret boards and the pick guards come completly wired so there is little or no soldering. You will have to provide a finish for the body of the guitar as it comes unfinished. While there are several high-end guitar kits available on the market, I would suggest the beginner luthier purchase a kit that will not cost a whole lot and still yield a good sounding instrument.

Saga Musical Instruments have a nice selection of low end electric guitar kits. Each of these kits come ready to assemble. The bodies are made from select bass wood with the arch-top models sporting a nice looking flame or curly maple. The hard maple necks come with a fretted rosewood fret board and the head stock blank so you can add your own custom head stock design. All the hardware is pre-wired so there is no soldering involved. Plus a full set of instructions is provided to aid in assembly. If planned out well, the hardest part of building these guitar kits would be getting a professional looking finish. 

Grizzly is a well known manufacturer of wood working power tools. The owner however is a huge guitar enthusiast and an accomplished luthier. The musical instrument kits they offer are of good quality and will make a very nice guitar upon completion of the project.

The Telecaster style model has a solid alder body and maple neck with a fretted walnut fret board. All the hardware is provided to complete the build. This would be a great model to for a beginner to complete his/her first build as the whole kit is quite inexpensive.

They also offer a Tele style kit that has a curly maple top. The other components are pretty much the same. The main difference is the exotic look the body will have after the bouild is completed.

For fans of the Strat style bodies, Grizzly offers the H8069. With a solid alder body and a curly maple veneer top, maple neck with fretted rosewood fingerboard, and high quality components you can make a wonderful sounding and visually pleasing instrument.

Yet another option for you to complete a outstanding musical instrument is to purchase the components separately. Going this route will be more expensive but you will have more control over the quality of the parts used in assembly. This would be a good way for the truly ambitious beginner to make there first guitar, or for the seasoned individual who has completed a few builds and really know what they want in a guitar. While you can purchase all the components pre-made the one thing this style of kit will lack is the instruction manual. Prior to purchasing all of the parts it would be a good idea to perform some research to insure you buy exactly what you want. Some of the things you will want to look at is the different characteristics the wood itself has on tone. Check out this tonewood guide to help you in the decision making process.

Prior to assembly it is crucial to insure you have all the parts necessary to complete the build. Although some packages may vary, every kit should come with these basic parts.

• Neck
• Body
• Pickups
• Pickguard and screws
• Bridge and screws
• Control pots and knobs
• Switches (type will vary depending on model chosen)
• Output jack and cover plate
• Wires for electronics (May be pre-wired)
• Strap buttons
• Neck plate and screws

Most kits come pre-wired so you may not have to worry about soldering the parts together.

Other than a whole lot of patience, the tools you need to assemble the instrument should be minimal. However, here are some tools you may need.

• Screw drivers
• Variety of different grit sand paper
• Small coping saw, jig saw or band saw
• Soldering iron and solder (optional)

After all the parts have passed inspection. It would be a good idea to mock up the kit (put together prior to the painting process) to make sure everything fits properly. Install the neck to the body. Check to make sure the screw holes line up from the body to the neck. This is some times found when buying guitar kits. The same goes for any component that is screwed to the body or neck. If the holes do not line up you may have to drill new ones.

Install all the hardware. Screw the tuning machines to the head stock blank. Attach the bridge, strap buttons and the output jack with cover on the body. Finally, screw the pickguard loaded with pickups and control knobs to the body.

At this point you should have a complete guitar (without the finish) Check to make sure all the parts fit look satisfactory. Address any issues you notice at this time.

If everything looks good dismantle the guitar and prepare to shape the blank headstock. Make a template of the shape you want to cut the headstock out of poster board or card board. Transfer the shape onto the blank headstock, insuring the new shape will not interfere with the tuning machines. Carefully cut the shape out and sand the cut area. Start using rough sand paper working your way to finer grits until the desired smoothness is reached.

Next it is time to apply the finish to the guitar kit. For a detailed explanation check out diy electric guitar finishing.

After the finish is applied reassemble all the parts and string it up. If everything was done right you should be very satisfied with you electric guitar kit build.