Stewart MacDonald 5295, Assembly Instructions Manual

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Be sure that the gluing surfaces of the neck joint and
fretboard extension are free from dirt, finish and buffing
residue .
If your neck has a dovetail, press it, with the shim on the cor-
rect side, into the body . The joint will be a bit tight due to the
thickness of the lacquer . If the neck and its shim go all the
way down into the neck block, you can ignore the lacquer
on the sides around the dovetail opening and glue the neck
right over the finish . If they’re too tight, file a tiny amount of
wood off the shim until the neck seats correctly .
You’ll need a 5° tapered and padded wedge to protect the
back of the body and to provide a clamping surface, and
the shoulder brace caul you made earlier (in “Bridge and
shoulder brace clamping cauls” section) . Place it inside the
guitar between the tall shoulder brace and the flat shoulder
brace as a surface for clamping through the soundhole . You’ll
also need a clamping caul for the fretboard extension; we
made one from a 16"-radius wooden sanding block, and
notched to fit over the frets . Clamp the neck into the body
(pictured)
, and use a sharp razor knife to cut through the
finish around the fretboard extension . Don’t cut into the
soundboard!
Remove the neck . The lacquer finish on the soundboard in-
side the scribed line must be removed with a chemical paint
stripper . You MUST be careful when applying and removing
the stripper — don’t get it outside the scribed line!
Mask the soundboard to protect the lacquer finish from
Final assembly and setup
Prepare for neck installation
For the bolt-on neck, glue is needed only under the fretboard
extension . LIGHTLY clamp the neck and the fretboard ex-
tension down onto the body, and then tighten both neck
mounting bolts firmly through the soundhole . Now apply full
clamping pressure, using clamps and shoulder brace cauls as
you did when “dry-clamping” before stripping the lacquer .
Wipe off the excess glue for about five to ten minutes as it
squeezes out, using a clean damp cloth .
Remove the clamps after the glue has dried .
For the dovetail neck, apply Titebond glue to the underside
of the fretboard extension, the two sides of the dovetail,
and if you wish, add a small amount on the interior walls of
the neck block dovetail mortise . Be sure glue contacts both
sides of the shim, too .
Slide the dovetail neck and the shim in place and apply
your clamps and cauls as you did when “dry-clamping”
before stripping the lacquer . Wipe off the excess glue for
about five to ten minutes as it squeezes out, using a clean
damp cloth .
Install the neck
accidental splashing . Use low-tack drafting tape to fasten
clean paper on the soundboard around the area . Keep the
tape away from the line by 1/16" so the stripper won’t touch
or overlap the tape . Stripper will soften the solvent in the
tape’s adhesive, which will cause a permanent wrinkle in
the new finish .
Apply stripper with a small artist’s brush . Allow sufficient
time for the stripper to loosen the finish, and then slowly
remove small bits of the finish with a 1/2" chisel used as a
vertical scraper . Always pull the stripper inward from the
edge of the line to the center of the area to be stripped . After
each pull, wipe the residue from the chisel with a scrap of
paper towel, which should be carefully lifted away from the
area for disposal . When all the old finish is removed, wipe
the exposed wood carefully with a damp cloth to neutralize
the remaining stripper, and let the surface dry .
the bridge) to this distance and mark this position as well .
This is the necessary “compensation” added to the actual
scale length that will provide accurate string intonation at
the saddle .
Staying on the fretboard’s centerline, move the end of the
The bridge was positioned earlier when fitting the neck,
and the process will now be repeated . Place an accurate
24" straightedge on the centerline of the fretboard, butted
against the nut . Mark on the straightedge the position of
the center of the 12th fret . Add an additional 7/64" (toward
Prepare for bridge installation
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