Week One!

I finally arrived and have been without an internet connection. We are having a day off today and I will post the week's comments on our work below. I will add pictures later which will help explain what had been happening.


Sunday – Information Overload!

The first day of class. Wow! Beautiful place, wonderful people. George and Pippa had the group for dinner the evening before and we were all fed way too much! The berry cobbler was a hit. We awoke in great shape Sunday morning ready to go.
George introduced us to the theory behind the acoustic guitar – that in an acoustic guitar, the wood is the tone control, unlike an electric which can be dialed in. We learned about the cellular structure of wood (this shop teacher kind of learned that 35 years ago, but wasn't paying that close attention in class at that time). We learned that by quarter sawing wood, wood was produced that provided a more efficient transmission of sound and was also stiffer – important stuff when dealing with the thin material that makes up a guitar body.
We got some great information on the whole makeup of the guitar, the wood used for the top, sides, and bottom, how the bracing provides both strength and transmission of sound, and how the neck relates to the completed instrument.
After lunch we picked out pieces for our top, learned how to select the pieces by both looks and tone quality, and glued them together.

This old guy was taught a few new tricks to get the cleanest edge for gluing. Great beginning!






Monday – Necks and Backs!

We made some patterns out of poster board in the morning – a pattern for the back and top, and a pattern for the neck. More great information – I am prepared to modify my design on my second guitar, custom made for my friend Loren. His fingers are a little shorter than mine, and by adjusting the frets on the scale and making a slightly smaller neck he will be ripping out the tunes on his new axe!

We cut and glued the neck to provide the proper angle for the head joint. Then we picked out our back wood – I chose a beautiful set of maple. We then did basically the same process of gluing that we did for the top.

Tomorrow we will cut out the soundhole and install the rosette – should be fun!
Tuesday – Rosettes and Routers
In order to prepare for the rosette, we needed to determine the location of our soundhole. This is based on how many frets we decided to use on our necks. I chose a 14 fret neck, which is common for a larger acoustic, and a total of 20 frets to the soundhole. We then needed to calculate the width of the rosettes, so we could determine the proper location of the router and guide which would cut out the channel for the rosette. Victor and I chose a design which would require 3 separate passes with the router.
Once that was done, we needed to prepare the wood for the top. This required planing and scraping. Once again I learned new ways to sharpen tools and was reminded of the incredible power of a simple scraper blade to provide a smooth top. We used a really neat plane – an Asian design, and a tool which I will purchase when I get home. Once the top was smooth it was time for power tools and fear of destroying two days of work.
Victor and I worked together on our layout, since we had the exact same design. It was good to have another brain working, as mine was a little slow at times. We used a router with a special adjustable fixture attached which allowed us to make a perfect circle.

We cut our circles, and then it was time to fit in the rosettes. Which didn't fit. George showed us a great trick to bevel the lower edges, and we pushed them into place with a veneer roller. Perfect fit!



Wednesday - I've got blisters on my fingers!
No, it wasn't because I was playing the drums like Ringo lamented. Although my buddy Mike would be a happy camper staying here in the dorm, as there is a full drum set just sitting and waiting for a little Wipe Out action. This morning was planing and scraping. Three hours. An appreciation for the craft, and the use of hand tools to provide a balanced top, which will provide a beautiful tone. We scraped our rosettes clean, and then flipped the top over. The top was approximately 200/thousands of an inch, and we needed to take it down to .125 inch. Time. Patience. And constant checking with the neat caliper that George designed.

Another tool to make when I arrive home. Each plane stroke removed about .002 inch, so, quite a few were needed. Plus constant checking to make sure one area did not get overworked. All done with human power. And great tools.

Once the top was planed and sanded to thickness, we could cut out our shape.

Thursday Catch up Day!
The morning was a time for everyone to get caught up. We also started to design our the headstock of the guitar – everyone was encouraged to to their own design. I looked at several, and picked out a pretty traditional idea, drew it out, and transferred it to poster board.
We selected an ebony piece for the peghead – hard wood that can accept the tuners and stay in good shape. We chose contrasting veneers to be glued under this piece, and glued and clamped the sandwich to the headstock.

Jack routed a channel for a decorative insert on his guitar – I will wait until another time for that challenge. George's experience once again came through as he told us to always use epoxy resin when gluing a structural member such as this.

Using a fixture set at 15 degrees, (the headstock is 15 degrees lower than the neck), George showed us how to produce a straight 90 degree cut, so the plastic nut can sit accurately. Another example of precision work made easy by learning from a master of his craft!
We routed a channel in our neck stock to accept a special metal truss rod which will relieve the tension on the neck caused by tightening the steel strings.

We also cut a slot (mortise) in a block of mahogany which will accept the tenon (also cut today) on the neck. This will be bolted on to the body later. We cut our sides to prepare them for bending on Monday.
Friday – Cool Looking Headstock!
We transferred our headstock design to the actual neck piece.

We were encouraged to check for clearance for the strings. We then cut the shape out on the band saw – another place to make a major mistake – everyone came through without error.


George showed us an awesome method to bring out the beauty of the veneer under the peghead using files and rasps to bevel the edge.

We then drilled the 6 holes for the tuners – another place to mess up the whole thing – and we all survived undamaged.
In preparation for bending the sides we “kerfed” 4 basswood strips which will be glued to the edges of the bent sides. This will add considerable strength to the very thin side pieces.
The rest of the day was spent working with spruce brace wood and designing our bracing pattern for the top (soundboard) of the guitar. The pattern is designed to provide both strength and tone quality. Strength is especially needed where the bridge is placed. Each luthier has their own design – all intended to provide strength and quality sound.
George then demonstrated a most awesome clamping technique using bamboo rods and a special table which is used to glue the irregular shaped brace pieces to the top and back.
Saturday – Day 7!
I love my walk to the shop in the morning!

This morning we beveled the top brace with a special sanding block. Then we glued the top brace of the soundboard using the beveled table side of the special clamping fixture. After an hour of clamping time we then flipped the table to the flat side and glued the rest of the braces.

I worked on my binding material – this is the material which will match up the top and bottom with the sides. I chose maple with an ebony veneer edge. George showed me how to easily glue and quickly clamp the strips together. This will make a truly beautiful transition piece on the finished guitar.

We also worked on the back bracing – a little simpler pattern, but the back has the addition of a spine brace down the center of the back. This piece required beveling, clamping, and planing.
Tomorrow is our day off! We are going to find some lumber and make some of the jigs and fixtures that George uses.