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#46
11-30-2005, 07:46 AM
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Steve:
I used to use the "Tent" or T-Pee" method to join tops but found that it did not apply enough force and that was when I went to bar clamps. As you probably know, when you clamp thin wood with bar clamps the force will try to bow the wood so I made this fixture to apply downward pressure at the glue joint. This keeps the joint nice and flat while the pipe clamp adds the required force to clamp the joint. The spring idea sounds good and it would be nice to know exactly how much force is being applied. However, I have never had a top or back seam fail yet using this fixture so it must be working fine 
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#47
11-30-2005, 10:15 AM
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i love the rosette
 Cant wait to see how this guitar turns out!
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#49
11-30-2005, 11:48 AM
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Tim,
You mentioned the high figure bubinga in an earlier post. I have a nice set. I'll be building with it sometime next year, unless you want to buy it from me.  Is this stuff harder to deal with than the less figured sets? Do you have any special advice for working with it, or would you just say don't? It sure is stunning. I'm guessing that bending it will be touchy. I was able to bend this set pretty easily. Will thickness sanding be even harder?
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#50
11-30-2005, 12:35 PM
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Steve: Well, my last figured Bubinga guitar cost me 3 complete sets of sides until I got one set that did not break! Sometimes Murphy is on your side and sometimes he is not.
I suggest bending it very slowly and use a heating blanket on BOTH sides of the wood. You can wrap the wood in Kraft paper, after spritzing with water, to maintain the moisture. Sometimes this is helpful on figured woods. Did I mention that I have a reeeeely figured set of Bubinga that I will sell if YOU are feeling lucky
Last edited by Tim McKnight; 11-30-2005 at 12:41 PM. |
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#51
11-30-2005, 12:46 PM
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Tim,
Yes you mentioned the set for sale. Is it like the one I have pictured? You make it sound like it is more figured. I"ll get back to you after I try bending and sanding this set. I'm thinking perhaps this set will be my first dread - that OM waist is a bit scary right now. Are you sure you don't want to buy this nice set from me? I'm not sure how to use heating blankets on my bender. 
Last edited by SteveS; 12-01-2005 at 12:31 AM. |
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#52
11-30-2005, 08:02 PM
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Looking good Steve. I'm really enjoying your exchanges with Tim. You guys may actually cut my learning curve when I build my first guitar . . . thanks!
__________________
jonesbrass 610e, 914CE-L1, 354-CE LTD (Maple!), baby, Taylor Classic Electric Guitar, Vox AC30CC2, Fender J-Bass, Carvin AD100D, Takamine Classical, Cerveny CFB-653-5IMX F tuba, Conn 2J CC tuba Gone but not forgotten: 810e, AB-1, 414-CE, Epi Les Paul Custom Flametop, Miraphone 188 |
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#53
11-30-2005, 09:06 PM
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"I'm not sure how to use heating blankets on my bender. "
Ooops, I thought you were using a Fox style bender. Yes, the blankets will be a bit difficult to handle on your iron Are you using a back up strip of metal on your hot pipe? I assume you are and you are just showing the nice flamed walnut in the picture above?I dug out my last set of Bubinga and joined the back tonight. Watching yours gave me the bug to finally get rid of this set... arrrrgh, I'm dreading it already. THANKS A LOT pal for the subliminal encouragement
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#54
12-01-2005, 12:38 AM
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Quote:
I was wondering when the part that a rank amateur was making it work would finally get to you. I am quite taken by the beauty of this wood. I hope it sounds as good as it looks. After hearing about your trouble bending bubinga, I decided against the cutaway. Good luck with yours. May I suggest hand bending? |
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#56
12-01-2005, 11:43 AM
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Time to make some braces. After cutting to the right length I put the appropriate curve on the bottom of the brace. I mark the radius in pencil, 15' for the back and 28' for the top, and use the block plane and the shooting board to carve the radius. [IMG]
  Next I cut the scallops on the braces. I draw the curves on by tracing from a pattern.  Then I cut them out on my band saw. 
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#57
12-01-2005, 12:16 PM
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Steve:
May I humbly suggest that on your next set of top braces (main X, finger braces and lower tone bars) that you just glue the braces on the top and then hand carve them by hand with a chisel. That is probably my favorite part of the building process. There is no better feeling than to carve a set of braces with a razor sharp chisel. Carve a little, tap a little, flex a bit, carve a little,... You can really tune your top more accurately this way and hear the top come to life. If you pre-carve or shape them there is no easy way to put wood back on if it is required. Depending upon the tone you are after you may also want to leave a bit more stock on the trebble side of the X and scallop the X deeper and longer on ther bass side. This keeps the bass nice and loose while the trebble is a bit firmer. Or if you desire a more purcussive sound you can carve a set of tapered parabolic lower X legs. Or you can combine the two options mentioned previously to favor one side or the other of the spectrum. Lots of options to choose from depending on what type of output you want from your top. Your style of scalopping will give you good balance and freedom for top movement. Keep in mind that an efficient bracing pattern must take into account the specific and unique properties of each indivdual top. Some tops are nice and stiff so you can brace these a lot lighter while some tops are very floppy and will need firmer braces. Consider the weight of the top. If it is stiff and heavy use light weight bracing, if it is stiff and light (better yet) you can use stiff and light bracing for a quick and responsive top or heavier bracing to slow the top's impedance down. Then consider if and how you are going to taper or graduate the top. Do you want to thin it way down and get lots of volume? If so, you will loose sweetness and tone. If you leave it think the tone will return but it can be bright and tight. The compromise is to leave it thick in the center and then graduate the thickness out towards the lower bout perimeter. Using this method will give you nice sweet tone but also ample volume. Enough rambling, go make some wood chips my friend
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#58
12-01-2005, 04:44 PM
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Thank you Tim. I appreciate your input. Bracing/shaving/voicing is one area that is a real mystery to me. I'll have to figure out how to customize the tone to bring the bass and treble and sustain qualities I'm looking for. I don't have much of a clue about that yet. I do know that the other 2 guitars I have made sound very good, in my opinion and others that have played them, but I'm not sure why other than I use top grade materials, build using well established techniques, and follow a proven plan.
Shaping the braces on the band saw saves a bunch of time. But you are right, I do enjoy hand carving them with a chisel. I'll do that on my next one and leave the center thick and the outside thin on my next one. |
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#59
12-01-2005, 09:01 PM
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Steve:
Another area of influence is the amount of arch in the top. The more arch = higher pitch and more sustain and conversly the flatter the top = lower pitch and faster decay. Take a top plate and hold it, with both hands, at each end. Now tap on the topwith one finger and gently start arching the shape of the top. Listen to the pitch rise as you put more and more arch in the top. Keep tapping and listen to the pitch go lower as you relax and allow the top to flatten out. It's kind of like a Timpani drum effect. Don't get too hung up on the intracacies of the vast array of tuning options. You are doing the right thing by using tried and proven design principles. Just keep building and take a LOT of notes. When something works refer back to your notes and when something flops do the same. |
