Build a guitar that plays in tune
Tonewood selection, neck and fretwork, body and bracing, setup and finishing — the whole bench, documented tool by tool.
Every fret in the right place
Fret spacing is a ratio, not a measurement. Place them on screen, read the intonation error in cents, then cut the slots from one datum.
Set the relief, then the action
Relief, action and intonation interact. Change one and the other two move, which is why the order matters more than the speed.
Independent
No shop, no sponsored tools, no brand endorsements.
Nothing for sale
Every page is reference material. We sell nothing.
Free 3D tools
Four interactive teaching models, no account needed.
Workshop safety
Tool, dust, adhesive and string-tension warnings where they matter.
CATEGORIES
Five categories, twenty-eight tools
Every tool page documents what a piece of kit is for, what it is made of, what it works with, and what it will do to you if you handle it carelessly.
Tonewoods & Materials
Top, back, side, neck and fretboard stock — what each species does to the sound, how it moves with humidity, and how it behaves under a chisel.
Neck & Fretwork
Fret wire, slotting, pressing, leveling, crowning, nut files and the truss rod — the work that decides whether the guitar plays in tune up the neck.
Body & Bracing
Bracing chisels, spokeshaves, radius dishes, go-bar decks, binding cutters and body molds — the jigs and edge tools that shape the box.
Setup & Adjustment
Action gauges, feeler gauges, notched straightedges, string winders and capos — the measuring kit that turns a guitar from playable into good.
Finishing & Assembly
Lacquer, French polish, sanding sealer, glue and clamps — sealing the wood and holding the instrument together.
THE PROCESS
From board to first chord
The order matters more than the speed. Each step assumes the one before it is finished.
STEP 1Select the wood
Choose the top, the back and the fretboard, and get the moisture content down before you cut anything.
STEP 2Shape & brace
Thickness the soundboard, brace the top, and bend the sides to the form.
STEP 3Fret & set up
Slot and seat the frets, level and crown them, then set relief, action and intonation in that order.
STEP 4Finish & string
Seal, fill, build the film, then string it up and let it settle before you call it finished.
3D STUDIO
Lay a fretboard out on screen first
Four interactive models: place every fret and read the intonation error, work a neck through relief and action, change a bracing pattern and watch the stiffness move, and walk a whole setup from relief to intonation.
Static reference
The 3D preview could not start, so the illustration is the static version. Every 3D tool opens as its static reference, which carries the same figures.
Drag to rotate the neck, then click a fret to read the note it gives. Every model here is a teaching simulation — check your own instrument and follow the manufacturer’s specifications when you work on a real guitar.
MOST USED
Popular tools
Spruce top
The default soundboard: stiff along the grain, light, and loud.
Cedar top
Opens fast, plays warm, and marks if you look at it wrong.
Mahogany back & sides
Dry, focused and punchy — the working musician’s back wood.
Rosewood back & sides
Deep bass, long sustain, and a wall of overtones.
Maple neck
Stiff, stable, bright — the electric default.
Ebony fretboard
Hard, slick and black — the fretboard that stays put.
Fret wire
Nickel silver or stainless, and the crown shape decides the feel.
Fret slotting saw
One saw, one kerf, no second chances.
CALCULATORS
Three figures worth checking twice
All three run in your browser. Nothing you type is sent anywhere.
Fret Spacing Calculator
Work out where every fret goes, and how far off it would be in cents.
Neck Relief Calculator
Find the relief, action and truss rod adjustment for a given string set.
Scale Length & Tuning Calculator
Total string tension for any scale length, gauge and tuning.
FROM THE BLOG
Start here if you are new
How to Start Guitar Building: A Beginner’s Guide
The honest first-project guide: what to build, what to buy, what to skip, and why your first guitar should probably not be the guitar you actually wanted.
Choosing Tonewoods: Spruce, Cedar, Mahogany, Rosewood
What each of the four common tonewoods actually contributes, and how much of the sound is decided by the top versus the back and sides.
Understanding Fret Placement and Intonation
Why the twelfth fret is always half the scale length, how temperament changes the numbers, and what actually makes a guitar play in tune.
Neck Relief and Action: Setup Fundamentals
Relief and action are two different adjustments that interact. Get the order right and a setup takes twenty minutes; get it wrong and it takes all afternoon.
Not sure which tonewood to start with?
The tonewood and specification database puts density, tone, origin, price and the guitar types each wood suits side by side, and compares up to three entries at once.