Norbertocaster, part 11: assembly and drilling
norbertocaster (build 1)
Started: July 15, 2025 • Ended: September 13, 2025
Connecting the body and the neck
This is probably the most crucial part of the whole build. Everything must be aligned perfectly if you want a playable instrument. There are, of course, a number of ways to do this - using dedicated, often expensive tools, clamps, rulers, and so on. I decided to go my own way and use what I already had - a self-leveling laser level. I placed it on the guitar body to project a laser along the center line, and then aligned the center line of the fretboard with it.
It’s also important to maintain the correct guitar scale. The distance from the nut to the 12th fret and from the 12th fret to the bridge saddles must be exactly the same. At this point, I realized I probably should have waited to make the cavities until now, but fortunately, the neck size was perfect and everything matched.
Once the neck is in the right position, clamp it to the body and use a pencil to mark its placement. Then, use your tools to create the neck pocket. I started with forstner bits to remove the bulk of the wood, then refined the pocket with chisels for precision. Once it was done, I was able to fit the neck into the pocket.
Check out this photo - it finally starts to look like the instrument it’s supposed to be! Of course, at this stage, it’s not fully connected yet.
This is the part where you really need some extra hands. Big thanks to my fiancée (and maybe my wife if you’re reading this from the second half of 2026 or later) for helping me out with this ❤️
The crazy weekend 6–7.09.2025
Oh man, what a weekend that was. We spent countless hours together trying to push the guitar project forward as much as possible in just two days. After attaching the neck to the body, it was finally time to place the pickguard, bridge, and other plates on the body, mark the spots, and start drilling the holes.
I noticed a mistake I’d made earlier in the build when I reached this stage. Luckily, it didn’t cause any real problems since all the dimensions still matched. But in a few spots on the guitar body, the control plate could have easily been just 1 mm off — and that would’ve left a hole visible right next to it. A small piece of advice for both you and my future self: don’t drill the cavities until the neck is attached to the body. It makes this stage much easier — especially for keeping the guitar scale accurate.
The biggest challenge here was drilling perfectly straight holes through the body. I don’t think it’s really possible to do this by hand alone — a drill press would have been a huge help. Since I didn’t have one, the holes weren’t perfect. But that’s okay — this whole project has been a lesson in patience and a great exercise in letting go of perfectionism. In the end, the goal is to make something useful and functional — not perfect down to every millimeter.