Acoustic Guitar Construction

Good for you Tim -- I believe that's a very prudent procedure.

thanks so much for the advice i have worked on the neck angle and it seems close but not good yet and as it should the neck is fitting deeper into the mortise so it is getting difficult to measure the height at the bridge since the neck is now sitting slightly below the sound board i will work on the centerline tonight for a bit having a little difficulty with the flossing thing but i am sure i will get it in a moment it seems that the fret board may not fit tightly to the sound board when done but as i read earlier a thin shim is acceptable shimming the mortise and tenon will be done last to raise the neck in the mortise to the correct height i hope i have understood correctly thank you Beau

assuming perfect center is the goal is there an acceptable amount of tolerance

the neck is fitting deeper into the mortise so it is getting difficult to measure the height at the bridge ???

Your goal right now should be getting the neck plane and the finger board extension area to form a straight line

Clamp the level to the neck or use a piece of flat MDF Do this one step at a time --- basic problem solving. The height projection to the bridge, is something to deal with later.

Yes centering is important if your neck is wider than the fingerboard there is room for adjustment by shifting the FB angle a tad. Of course Martin factory kits will have FB registration pins in the neck and not allow for any adjustment.

DO NOT shift between steps as that will throw you off again. Add some very thin shims to the side of the mortise to raise the neck out of the mortise and continue to get the angle right (you are really close), once the angle is on get the center, then drop it down remember ACE (Angle, Center line, Elevation) in that order. Shifting forward and back will throw you off again,

You can use a business card cut into thin strips for temporary shims.

ok so i almost have the angle coorect the neck is almost perfectly level with the sound board it is my undersanding that when i lay the straight edge down the neck and sound board there should be a 1/16th gap between the sound board and the straight edge is this true i have just slightly less than that

One more time --- Get the straight line, cheek cosmetic fit, and centers perfect at this point. Close is good when you play "horse shoes." For the moment go back and read what Tim and I posted, your measuring at the bridge matters not until you complete this first step.