This morning I was in the garage working on this current neck build and enjoying a Casdagli Cigars Villa Casdagli Corona Gorda. The Villa blend really works well in the Corona Gorda, and the line is growing on me more and more as I smoke them.
So this neck build has been going on for a while now - a few months actually. So, for clarity, I do own Featherfoot Cigars, but at this stage, that is more of just me owning the name than an actual business. I just don’t have the time to dedicate to it to try to do the content I would like to or build as many instruments as I would like to. I have accepted that - actually, the rebranding I did was a big step in allowing myself to accept that.
With everything I have going on, I really only work on guitar building for about 30 minutes (4:50 AM - 5:20 AM) Monday-Friday. The only exceptions have been when it's too cold in the garage for me to feel motivated or when I’ve been sick. I made this schedule last year because previously, if I wanted to work on my guitars through the week, it would come at the sacrifice of time with my wife and/or daughter. Then my free time (AKA daughter’s nap time) on the weekends would be my garage time, but then that would take away from wife time and/or chore time.
At any rate, I have found that in most aspects of my guitar builds, the 30 minute sessions, 5 days a week, actually sees me accomplish more per week than when I worked longer sessions that accumulated to more total hours per week. I also build these guitars using hand tools, so I don’t waste time setting up equipment or jigs, and can work quietly while everyone is sleeping. However, currently I am one of those tasks that has proven to be better done in a long session as opposed to several short ones: profiling the neck.
It seems to just be dragging on this week (actually I think I started at the end of last week). I think the reason is because it takes a little bit of time to get back in the rhythm of carving, filing, and scraping. Then once I find that rhythm, I have about 15 minutes to make the most of it, which is not enough. I am hoping I can knock it out tomorrow morning. At least the rough shape. Then I will likely have to clean everything up on Monday morning.
It has certainly been a test of patience. However, I am far more patient since accepting that, while technically a part of my business, it is really just a hobby that allows me a creative outlet and some time to myself.
Take care,
-Trevor