Fret Work

Not my or many luthiers favourite thing to do, I just don't do it often enough to be that good at it. After watching Charles Fox do it and taking notes I figured I would have a better chance of getting it right.

I decided to try semi-hemispherical fret ends, the result was not the best semi-hemispherical fret end but probably the best I have done for fret work. So I'll take that.

Looking more and more like a guitar...

Looking Like a Guitar

Finish is done.. Whew always a bit of a pain, especially if you sand through while polishing... crap!

Oh well all fixed up now.. Finish is a polished Royal Lac hardened shellac..

Ready to fret and attach the neck.

Starting the Finishing Process

Working on the Archtop, the pore fill is done and now the finish coats can be applied.. Royal Lac hardened shellac. Not sure how many coats I'll apply will stop when it looks good.

The beauty of Royal ac is it is more durable than regular shellac and you can actually wet sand it to level the coats...

Making Some Progress

I'm making progress with the archtop, I did get the dovetail cut, thanks for the help Meredith. and now the neck is carved and just need final sanding a fitting.

One of my favourite parts of guitar building is carving the neck, always nice to as they say, see everything that does not look like a neck disappear.


Next I have to sort out a tailpiece, maybe a cast one or I might make an ebony one the jury is still out. I also have to make a bridge.

Neck roughed out with the fingerboard extension

The carved neck, just needs some more sanding

Profile view :-)

Archtop and Other Stuff

If you read this regularly you might remember I started and archtop build with the help of a Vancouver Island luthier Joe Egan but getting back to it with him has proved challenging so local luthier Meredith Coloma (http://www.meredithcoloma.com/) agreed to give me a hand with the last real tricky part, cutting the dovetail neck joint. Hopefully I can get that done this weekend.

Since I had to get the neck for the archtop in shape for this I also glued up the necks for the two parlour guitars I'm currently working on.

So i have a fully roughed out 3 piece Spanish Cedar & Walnut neck for the archtop and a 3 piece Spanish Cedar & Walnut neck for one parlour and a 5 piece Narra, Walnut & Maple neck for the Pacific Parlour. In case you're wondering Narra is also called New Guinea Rosewood (Pterocarpus indicus) so it meets the Pacific criterial. Interestingly Narra is the tree that produced the Amboyna Burl, although the regular wood looks nothing like the burl..

I also finished a few more head plates that I will use on the regular parlour guitar and the archtop.

Tenor Archtop neck with it's headplate

Necks for the two parlours...

Closing the Box & Binding

Everything went well closing the box and after a few modifications to the binding cutter to handle the steep curve of the top the binding channels got cut.

I used CA glue this time for the bindings which worked well for these.. The binding scheme is pretty straight forward and the end wedge is sort of the style I seem to be doing on most these days.. Sort of a picture frame look.

Next is carving the recurve in the top and back.

Clamps, clamps clamps

Three pieces now one

Framed end wedge

All binding done

Getting Ready to Close Things Up!

I'm getting ready to close up the archtop tenor.. the sides have kerfing installed and some side braces. They have also been sanded flat on the top & bottom to receive the top & bottom..

I've also done some work on  the neck so it is all glued together..

Sides (or rims as some say) all ready

Test fitting, some excess to trim 

3 piece neck glued up

Archtop Progress

So the top and back are carved to the point where they can be glued to the rims and have the re-curve carved then. The top has also had the braces shaped & glued on and it has been voiced to the best of my ability..

Today I planed the sides down to 2mm ready for bending.

Looks about right I think

And with the braces on the top

Sides ready to be bent

Wood Shavings

OK working on the back of the arch top is making a pile of shavings.. Going well but time to clean up.

Rough work done on the outside back

Preparing the inside, yes I'm doing it the easy way

And more shavings

OK OK I need to vacuum

Carving Archtop Plates

My weekend working with Joe Egan of Egan Custom Guitars turned out great lots of good tips and progress carving the top and back for the Archtop Tenor Guitar I have in mind. Joe estimates a novice takes up to 40 hours for the top and similar times for the back. I've got about 15 hours into the top and maybe a 2 into the back so lots left to do but the top is looking like  it should, just really a bit more graduation to do and then once it is glued to the sides the recurve can be finalized.

The back has a long way to go and is certainly harder to carve than the top, or at least the wood is harder, the top has more tricky parts & graduations wile the back is pretty much a constant thickness

It's been fun even if it has caused a good number of blisters..

After about 4 hours, shape is roughed out

After about 15 hours the shape is finalized and my version of "f" holes are cut

A small start on the back

See What I can Make with These?

I'm spending the weekend with Vancouver Island Luthier Joe Egan, hopefully ha can pass on some of hi skill in archtop building..

Egan Guitars

Egan Guitars on Facebook

A nice piece of Englemann Spruce & Black Walnut

Summer Projects

So the humidity is not the best for building guitars right now but I am still plugging away at pore filling the parlour guitar and it is almost done... whew.. I'm going to be trying a new shellac formula on it for french polish from Shellac Finishes called Royal Lac it sounds very promising..

http://www.shellacfinishes.com/

I'm using the time to sort out a few more jigs or update some, this seems a never ending task I've got a few new ones I want to make and I am also almost done updating my neck tenon jig to make it more users friendly.. I'll post those when done

Also I'm working on fixing up the first non-dulcimer instrument I ever made a Mandocello.. I seriously screwed up on the design and now I'll be replacing the original flat top with a carved arch.. I just jointed the top (some decent Yellow Cedar) tonight..