For many creators and music enthusiasts, the idea of designing and 3D printing an electric guitar has been a captivating dream. However, this ambition often comes with a wave of daunting questions. Can a 3D printed body withstand string tension? Will it warp over time? Is specialized hardware necessary? And crucially, will a plastic guitar body produce a sound that lives up to traditional wooden instruments? Finding comprehensive answers to these questions can be surprisingly challenging.
While the concept of 3D printed guitars isn’t entirely new, with various online resources and designs available, many existing projects fall short in practicality. Some 3D printed guitars are simply not very playable, while other visually appealing designs lack accessible 3D models, clear instructions, or are overly intricate and expensive to replicate.
This is where the journey of designing a 3D printable electric guitar from the ground up begins. The goal is to create a design that is not only innovative and visually striking but also practical and accessible for the 3D printing community.
Design Priorities for a 3D Printed Guitar
To ensure the 3D printed guitar design is both successful and widely adoptable, a clear set of priorities was established from the outset, keeping the 3D printing community firmly in mind. The aim was to empower others to easily replicate this build and craft their own impressive instrument. The core design priorities were defined as follows:
- Simplicity: The design must be straightforward, avoiding complex assemblies with numerous parts. Ease of assembly is paramount.
- Affordability: Keeping costs down is crucial. The project should be an economical alternative to purchasing a high-end guitar.
- Hardware Accessibility: All necessary hardware components should be readily available with worldwide shipping, ensuring global accessibility for builders.
- Printability on Common 3D Printers: Crucially, all parts must fit within the build volume of a popular printer like the Original Prusa i3 MK3S+ (25×21×21 cm). This constraint ensures the design is printable by a wide range of hobbyists.
- Playability and Tuning Stability: The finished guitar must be a functional musical instrument, capable of playing in tune across its entire range, not just a novelty item.
- Aesthetics: The guitar should have a visually appealing and unique design, leveraging the creative freedom offered by 3D printing.
Simplifying the Design: Key Decisions
One of the primary concerns when designing a 3D printed guitar is managing the immense force exerted by the strings on the body and neck. Sources vary slightly, but the general consensus is that string tension can reach approximately 50 kg (around 110 lbs), depending on the string gauge. This force attempts to bend the guitar in half, pull the bridge away from the body, and severely distort the neck.
Addressing the neck issue led to a straightforward decision: incorporating a real wooden neck. While some might argue against a “fully 3D printed” designation, the neck is a critical component where precision and reliability are paramount. Attempting to 3D print a neck, while technically possible, could compromise the instrument’s playability and tuning stability. Wooden necks offer inherent smoothness, straightness, durable metal frets, and an adjustable truss rod for neck relief.
The bridge presented a more complex challenge. The bridge is the metal component that anchors the strings to the guitar body. Examining common guitar designs, one bridge type stands out as particularly well-suited for a 3D printed guitar: the Telecaster bridge.
Image alt text: Telecaster guitar bridge, a robust and large metal plate ideal for distributing string tension on a 3D printed guitar body.
Unlike many guitar designs with smaller bridges often secured by only two screws, the Telecaster bridge is a substantial metal plate. It not only holds the strings but also integrates the bridge pickup and features up to five mounting holes with widely spaced screws. This design effectively distributes the leverage of the strings across the entire metal plate and the underlying 3D printed material.
Furthermore, the Telecaster configuration typically includes only one additional neck pickup, simplifying the wiring and overall design. Finally, the volume and tone knobs, along with the pickup selector switch, are mounted on a separate metal control plate, attached to the body with just two screws. This further streamlines the project by avoiding the need to individually integrate multiple knobs and switches into the 3D printed body.
Building upon previous explorations of 3D printed guitar accessories, including surprisingly effective guitar picks and various accessories like capos and strap locks, the Telecaster hardware choice aligns with a practical and community-focused approach.
Image alt text: A selection of 3D printed guitar accessories, showcasing the versatility of 3D printing for musical instrument components.
Hardware Sourcing: Cost-Effective Solutions
With the decision to utilize Telecaster-style hardware, the next step is sourcing the necessary components. There are generally three avenues to acquire these parts:
- Dismantling a Budget Telecaster Guitar: Purchasing a cheap, functional Telecaster solely for parts might seem wasteful. However, it can be a viable option if you find a heavily damaged guitar with intact hardware and neck.
- Purchasing Individual Components: Buying each part separately is certainly feasible. This would include the neck with tuners, a standalone neck pickup, the bridge with integrated bridge pickup, Telecaster control plate with switch and knobs, and the output jack.
- Utilizing a Telecaster Hardware Kit: Hardware kits offer a convenient and often more economical approach.
However, buying components individually can quickly become expensive, potentially costing several hundred dollars even for budget-friendly options.
This leads to a highly cost-effective solution: the Harley Benton Electric Guitar Kit T-Style. Remarkably priced at just $79, this kit contains all the required hardware, pre-wired with simple snap-together connectors. Sold by Musikhaus Thomann, a major global music retailer based in Germany, the kit also fulfills the requirement of worldwide shipping.
The affordability and convenience of this kit made it an irresistible choice, transforming the project into a straightforward process of ordering the kit and 3D printing the guitar body parts. While the Harley Benton kit includes a basic, unpainted wooden body, opting for a custom 3D printed body allows for greater design freedom and personalization.
Basic Body Design with Fusion 360
Fusion 360 was employed to design the 3D printed guitar body. The crucial initial step was accurately capturing the positions of all screw holes, the neck mounting interface, and the electronics cavities.
The included wooden body from the Harley Benton kit proved invaluable in this process. By photographing the body alongside a ruler from a distance, minimizing perspective distortion, and utilizing Fusion 360’s “Calibrate” tool, a precise template could be created. Calibrating against the 50cm ruler in the image ensured accurate scaling.
Image alt text: Measuring the wooden guitar body template with digital calipers to ensure accurate dimensions for the 3D model design in Fusion 360.
Using this calibrated image as a reference, the positions of all holes were traced in a 2D sketch. Digital calipers were used to measure distances between features, verifying accuracy against the drawing. Particular attention was paid to the bridge position, ensuring precise alignment with the neck for proper string centering and intonation. The distance from the neck to the bridge is critical for accurate tuning and intonation, where the 12th fret should be exactly at the string’s midpoint. While the Telecaster bridge offers intonation adjustment, accurate initial placement is essential.
With mounting hole positions established, the design process shifted to creative shaping. While adhering to Telecaster hardware, the aim was to move beyond a direct Telecaster body replica. 3D printing allows for boundless shapes, presenting an opportunity for design innovation.
Inspired by the Fender Jazzmaster and Mustang guitar shapes, the Spline tool in Fusion 360 was used to create a unique body contour.
Image alt text: Initial 2D sketch of the guitar body shape in Fusion 360, inspired by Jazzmaster and Mustang guitar designs.
The standard guitar body thickness of 45mm was used for extrusion. Holes and cavities for electronics were then extruded based on the previously created template. To facilitate wiring, “tunnels” were subtracted to connect the cavities. The pickup cavities were designed slightly larger than strictly necessary, as they would be covered by the bridge and pickguard. A larger hole connected the control plate cavity to the output jack location. With these steps, the basic guitar body model was complete.
Image alt text: Extruded 3D model of the basic guitar body shape in Fusion 360, showing the initial form and cavity placements.
However, the resulting model was too large for most desktop 3D printers, including even the Original Prusa XL. Therefore, dividing the model into smaller, printable sections became necessary.
Beyond size limitations, the initial design lacked a distinctive visual element. Embracing the design freedom of 3D printing, various cutouts were explored. The chosen design element: hexagons. This choice was not purely aesthetic; hexagons offered practical advantages for splitting the model into parts. The hexagonal pattern creates numerous edges, providing natural seams for dividing the model into multiple printable sections, making the seams appear as intentional design features. A large chamfer was also added along the top edge for playing comfort and armrest ergonomics.
Image alt text: Guitar body design incorporating hexagon cutouts, adding a unique aesthetic and providing natural splitting lines for 3D printing.
Dividing the Design for 3D Printing
Recalling the significant string tension (50 kg) placed a critical constraint on the part splitting strategy. Ideally, the section of the guitar body between the neck and the bridge should be printed as a single piece. Creating a robust joint in this high-stress area would introduce unnecessary complexity.
Fortunately, with strategic planning, this was achievable. The top edge defined by the hexagon pattern, combined with a cut below the bridge mounting holes, allowed for a part short enough to fit within the printer’s build volume. A clever cut on the bottom left further optimized orientation, aligning the longest dimension diagonally within the print area. This central piece could even be printed without supports, although Organic supports in PrusaSlicer were used for enhanced surface finish on overhangs.
Image alt text: 3D model section positioned to maximize printability on the Original Prusa i3 MK3 printer bed, demonstrating efficient use of print volume.
The remaining body sections were split more straightforwardly. The bottom piece, lacking hexagons, was divided into two parts, and the top section into three, ensuring all pieces fit within the 25×21 cm print area.
The final major component is the pickguard, which also serves as the mounting point for the neck pickup. Its shape is defined by the surrounding body edges, inset by 3mm for a clean fit.
Splitting the body into multiple parts also introduces an opportunity for color customization. The chosen color scheme for this project utilized Prusa Research’s signature black and orange, accented with a complementary teal blue. Coloring the small bottom-right piece in teal blue added a vibrant touch to the design.
Image alt text: Finalized 3D printed guitar body design, showcasing the split parts and planned color scheme of black, orange, and teal.
With the Prusacaster model design finalized, the next stage is printing and assembly.
Printing and Assembly: Step-by-Step Guide
Material Choice for the Center Piece
The central body piece bears the brunt of the mechanical load from string tension. While materials like PETG might seem appealing for their perceived “strength,” high stiffness (bending modulus) is paramount in this application. Surprisingly, PLA proves to be an excellent choice for stiffness and aligns with the project’s goal of simplicity and affordability.
However, PLA’s lower temperature resistance is a consideration. While the substantial center piece can withstand direct sunlight for reasonable durations, leaving the guitar in a hot car on a summer day could pose a problem. For higher temperature resistance, materials like Prusament PC Blend Carbon Fiber or Prusament PA11 Carbon Fiber offer enhanced thermal performance, albeit with increased printing complexity and cost. Given Prague’s moderate climate, PLA was chosen for this build, and after a year of use, the PLA center piece has held up reliably.
To verify fitment, a test print of the center piece using default PrusaSlicer settings was performed. Upon successful fitment, the neck and bridge were attached, and strings were added to create a functional, albeit minimalist, guitar.
Image alt text: Minimalist 3D printed guitar prototype with only the center piece printed, demonstrating basic functionality and playability before full assembly.
Material Cold Flow (Creep)
Material creep, the slow deformation of a solid under persistent stress, was another potential concern. This concern proved valid. After a month under string tension, the initial center piece exhibited mild bending. This was attributed to the default PrusaSlicer profile’s 2 perimeters, sufficient for most applications but insufficient for this load. Reprinting the center piece with 7 perimeters and 25% cubic infill completely resolved the creep issue.
String Gauge Selection
Guitar strings are available in various gauges (thicknesses). Lighter gauge strings are easier to play and bend but are more prone to breakage and produce slightly less volume. Heavier gauge strings offer more volume and sustain but require greater finger pressure and, importantly, exert more tension on the guitar neck. Opting for lighter gauge strings, such as 9 gauge, can reduce stress on the 3D printed center piece.
Printing Other Parts
The remaining guitar body parts are not subjected to significant stress, primarily serving to hold the guitar on a strap or support the cable. Material choice for these parts is less critical. The top hexagon parts were printed in Prusament PETG Prusa Orange, the bottom switch-holding piece in Prusament PLA Galaxy Black, and the small bottom piece in Prusament PLA Azure Blue, all using default PrusaSlicer profiles.
Image alt text: All 3D printed parts of the guitar body, showcasing the different colors and ready for assembly.
Assembling the Guitar
The 3D printed parts feature large contact areas with the center piece. A generous application of superglue is recommended for assembly. M3 screw holes in the hexagon pieces offer additional reinforcement, particularly for strap security, though their use is optional due to accessibility.
Wiring the Electronics: Simple Connections
The Harley Benton T-style kit’s pre-wired electronics with JST connectors simplify the wiring process. Ensure the neck pickup cables connect to the corresponding selector switch cables to avoid reversed switch functionality.
Image alt text: Pre-wired electronics from the Harley Benton guitar kit with JST connectors, simplifying the guitar assembly process.
A single black wire in the kit serves as a string ground. Route this wire through the channel in the center piece beneath the bridge, strip some insulation, slightly loosen the bridge, insert the wire, and crimp it by retightening the bridge. This grounding is crucial for mitigating unwanted buzzing.
Image alt text: Diagram showing the grounding wire being routed under the guitar bridge for noise reduction.
Final Setup: Guitar Intonation
After assembly and stringing, tune the guitar and adjust the intonation for accurate tuning across the fretboard. Compare the open string note to the note at the 12th fret. If the 12th fret note is out of tune, adjust the bridge saddle. For a flat fretted note, move the saddle towards the neck. For a sharp fretted note, loosen the string slightly first and then move the saddle towards the bridge. Telecaster bridges have shared saddles for string pairs, requiring a compromise for optimal intonation of both strings.
Image alt text: Adjusting the intonation of the 3D printed guitar using the Telecaster bridge saddles for accurate tuning across the fretboard.
The Playable 3D Printed Guitar
Image alt text: Showcase of the fully assembled and playable 3D printed Prusacaster electric guitar in black, orange, and teal.
The resulting 3D printed guitar is surprisingly playable. Blindfolded, it would be difficult to distinguish it from a traditionally manufactured instrument. Tuning stability and intonation are excellent. While not expected to surpass high-end Telecasters in performance due to budget components, the Prusacaster delivers remarkable results for its cost.
Download and Build Your Own 3D Printed Guitar
Overall, the 3D printed guitar project is a resounding success. To build your own Prusacaster, download the 3D model from Printables.com. STEP files and a DXF drawing of hole positions are also included.
Download the model from Printables.com
The model is available as a free download. Embark on your own Prusacaster build and experience the satisfaction of creating a playable electric guitar through the power of 3D printing.
