One thing I did not see, that I would like to see from you is a discussion of the differences in tone inherent to different woods. I've seen guitars made out of basswood,mahogony, mahogony/maple, etc...

What difference does the wood of the neck make to the sound? And the fretboard? (Rosewood, Maple, Ebony...)

>> I've left out detail on woods, because I'm really not all that knowledgeable here. I do know that heavier and denser woods giver a brighter, crisper and punchier sound. The neck and body are the prime contributors to overall sound, with fretboard material making a smaller contribution. But here's my stab at it (with the help of some info from the Fender Frontline catalogue).

• Maple is bright (being dense & heavy), and is commonly used for Les Paul body caps, and strat necks Maple can be highly decorative with "flame" and "quilted" grain patterns, also making it a popluar body cap for clear finish or sunburst guitars
  
• Mahogany varies in weight and density. Heavy weight mahogony has a full and dark sound, common for Les Paul-style bodies & neck
  
• Poplar and Basswood are light weight, giving a warm and punchy sound, often used for "super strats"
  
• Alder is medium weight, with sweet and mellow tone that is also clear and precise
  
• Ash varies in weight and density. A hard wood giving "an airy smooth tone favoured by Telecaster enthusiasts"
  
• Spruce has a sweet sound, used for acoustic tops
  
• Cedar has a softer sound than spruce, also used for acoustic tops
  
• Rosewood is a darker sounding wood used mainly for strat fretboards
  
• Ebony is also darker sounding, and used for Les Paul-style fretboards
  

Of course, woods dry out over many years, and most people think this improves tone with age.