Mahogany 000

This 000 is one of my favorite shapes.  The mahogany in this box is quite curly which limited the severity of the cutaway section.  I cannot bend really curly mahogany into acute angles without fracturing it.  This guitar has my new favored lining method.  Laminated cedar, in this case red cedar or aromatic cedar, the same stuff cedar chests are made from.  I am hoping to eliminate the rather serious moth infestations that have been plaguing my guitars.  (just kidding).  The side reinforcements are already inlet and glued to the side and the back is glued in place.

I have gone back to a more traditional bracing pattern after having made several guitars with double x's

A few projects in February

Lyndsay's neck with a few coats of lacquer

This made from a very nice piece of Australian Blackwood which

will match the koa body



Here is the start of a Zircote OM that I am making for Bob

Here you see the side braces being glued onto the sides with hide glue

In this view prior to gluing the braces are inlet into the laminated side reinforcement

Here the rim just rests on the back to get a feeling for how it all goes together

The linings are red cedar.  The braces are red spruce

A visit with two excellent luthiers, brother Steve and his friend Ryan

This is a guitar shop..  It's located in the piney woods of East Texas and belongs to Steve Kinnaird.  The shop is upstairs.  The downstairs could house cars but in this case it holds lots of cool wood and a few big power tools.  The cars sit outside, which works since it almost never rains.

Steve is a world class builder of guitars.  I like the idea that world class guitars come from small out-of-the-way shops like this.  I think it's a form of reverse snobbery

Steve is on the right holding a guitar neck.  Ryan is on the left.  Ryan works in the shop and does the math.  Both are excellent luthiers and it is a lot of fun talking shop with these two guys.

I love busy functional places like this.  I want to start a series of jigsaw puzzles called "shops"

Imagine this image cut into 1000 pieces.

Steve adjusting the set of the neck

Ryan inlaying a rosette

another puzzle shot.

Rick's guitar ready to rock

Here are some shots of the finished guitar

The shot below had a pickguard.  Rick take a look and let me know if you want a pickguard or not.  The color of the guard certainly matches the themes of the instrument so its really a matter of how you play, etc.



back from the finishers

a gentle burst

Good contrast between cocobolo and boxwood binding

The butt joint

Back from the Carribean and back to work. Neck photos

I spent the last week scuba diving in Bonaire and did not get anything done on the guitars I am building. Had to escape the snow.  But things are back to full speed.  Here is a tree of Lebanon inlayed in a peghead that goes with  Rick's 000 guitar

I veneer the back of the pegheads and I wish I could tell you what kind of exotic wood this is, but I really do not know.  It was lurking in my exotic veneer drawer and has been there for some time. Heel cap is boxwood which will match the binding.  There is a cocobolo center section.  The side dots are sterling silver.

a look at the boxwood binding around the peghead



Lyndsay's guitar body ready for the finishers

european spruce top, imbuya rosette 

purfling is brazilian rosewood with maple and bloodwood purfling lines

nice figure on back and sides