Carving Necks

I spent the last day or two carving the necks for the 3 L-0 style guitars, all came out pretty good, still need final sanding but I can get started on finishing next week.

Always fun carving necks one of the more enjoyable parts of building a guitar.

Off to the La Conner Guitar festival this weekend.

Body for this one is off at the finishers, back in a couple of weeks I hope...

Neck #2 Carved

The neck for the second Parlour Guitar is carved.. Time to install some frets..

One Neck Down One to Go

One of my favourite parts of building a guitar is carving the neck. It was pretty intimidating for the first time but really not that hard to get the hang of. I get a lot of satisfaction removing everything that does not look like a neck and seeing what comes out..

I really don't have a standard neck shape, I guess I really should but I like just seeing where it goes. This one on the Pacific parlour is what you might call a pointed D shape not really a V shape like some old Parlours but a bit of a pointy D if that makes any sense.

Anyway one more to go, then the bing sanding job and on to finishing...

Bridge is just sitting there it is the very last thing to get attached

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 :-)

Carving a Mandolin Top

I'm making progress on carving the top for this Sobell/Kay style mandolin..

I confess I used all the tricks to speed up the process like a drill press to set the curve and a safty planer to rough out the shape but still of course finishing it with finger planes...

Figuring out the arch

Lots of wood chips

After a bit of sanding

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

Arm Bevel & Neck

So this thing is looking more and more like a Tenor Guitar.. I  finished the arm bevel. The base is a piece of Bass Wood and it is topped with flamed maple, all the binding miters were fun to do (oh and yes the bindings are done..)..

Rough carving the base for the bevel

Gluing it all together, a bit fun to unravel

The result

Next it was time to carve the neck, I always like doing this, it's actually kind of relaxing..

Everything that was not a neck

Front view

Side view

Back view

Back to Work on the Tenor Guitar

Now that the holidays are over i can get back to doing some work on the tenor guitar.

I've glued down the braces on the top and back and carved them to shape and the top is more or less voiced, I just need to think a bit about it and decide if I want to try and push things a bit farther and carve the braces down a bit more.

A "quick" video of rough carving the back braces, actual time about 18 minutes
http://youtu.be/pNuLS7FQ8tQ

The rough braces before carving

Top after carving

Back after carving

Tenor Guitar Neck

So been doing lots. the finger board is glued on and the neck is mostly carved.. I always enjoy carving the neck of an instrument.. for some reason t's relaxing.

Just some finish work to do on the neck then time to start on the bridge..

Gluing on the fingerboard

carving the neck

Still have the volute to carve

all done except for some sanding

Tenor & Parlour Work

I'm trying to get the Parlour guitar caught up to the Tenor... Almost there..

The Bindings are on the tenor and they turned out very nice..

Top View

Only the top has the back purfling line to separate the binding & top

And from the side, simple & nice

Simple end wedge

Now for the parlour the end blocks are on, the kerfing is done the top & back are braced and the back has the braces carved and is ready to go on the top.. Just need to carve the top braces and get it voiced and  then I can radius the sides and get the box closed hopefully in the next day or two..

Then on with the necks..

Rough back bracing

Bridge patch last of the top bracing

More clamps

Braces shaped & back label on 

Voicing the Top

So voicing the top to me means carving the braces down until I get some sort of tap tone on the top that is musical and has a ring and sustain to it.. Pretty subjective really, there are other means that are more mechanical and use various scientific equipment but I really don't have the interest in learning those or buying yet more equipment.. The method I use has been used for a very long time and can be very successful.

                                         

Top with rough bracing

Carved and scanded braces

Back braces also sanded

Top and rest of body ready to be closed up.

Arm Bevel Time

So after a break while I was out of the country, it's back to finishing this MandoCello..

I carved out the arm bevel today, actually looks pretty good in the contrasting woods but it will eventually be covered in Rosewood to match the binding scheme. The carving of it actually went pretty quickly and easily. Hopefully the binding of the bevel does as well :-)