Ervin Somogyi Apprenticeship – Silverman Guitars OM Build

[Jeff Silverman]

Hey all, hope everyone is doing well.

I've published another blog post with some photos from the past month, and a bit of info on what I've been up to. I learned how Ervin thicknesses his tops, and some other things too. Link below.



https://www.silvermanguitars.com/my-...esign-and-more

[Treenewt]

Great post! And nice rope-a-dope with the details! Thanks again for sharing this with us Jeff. I’m enjoying following your journey!

[Jeff Silverman]

Hey everyone, last few weeks have been busy as seems to be the routine around here. Working on Ervin’s guitars, working on my guitars, and learning a few things along the way. Below are some photos from when I’ve managed to remember to take them.

Also, I’ve been doing a blog about my time here at the Somogyi shop, and it would be a big help to get some feedback and ideas from you guys about what kind of posts you’d be interested in seeing on there in the future.

https://www.silvermanguitars.com



Bracing up this top for Ervin, it will go with Osage back and sides. After it’s glued to the rim, it will go on to Ervin for the voicing.



Cutting the taper on a fretboard, this one is for my own build.



Rim assembly in progress for Ervin.



Here’s a few shots of one of Ervin’s necks in progress. Glueing on the top veneer.



Sanding the headstock to thickness and creating the curve of the volute at the same time.



Bending the ebony for the back of headstock veneer.



Glueing on the back of headstock veneer.



Cutting the tennon cheeks on the table saw.



Drilling the tuner holes. That’s as far as I’ve gotten on that neck so far.



Ervin’s bending machine, the heat comes from a bunch of lightbulbs inside. If I remember correctly, in this photo the laminates for my solid linings are in there.



Double sides and solid linings bent and laminated for my build.



Linings have to be cut to match the arch and taper of the back, as they are now too stiff to bend.

Thanks

Jeff

[KevinH]

Thanks for posting these Jeff. It's fun to get a peek inside the shop.

[mhw48]

Originally Posted by Jeff Silverman

Also, I’ve been doing a blog about my time here at the Somogyi shop, and it would be a big help to get some feedback and ideas from you guys about what kind of posts you’d be interested in seeing on there in the future.

I know it's probably not very helpful-- but I want to hear about EVERYTHING! Your thread here and your blog are fascinating, so just keep 'em coming (when you have the time), and thanks!

[OnTheFidele]

Originally Posted by mhw48

I know it's probably not very helpful-- but I want to hear about EVERYTHING! Your thread here and your blog are fascinating, so just keep 'em coming (when you have the time), and thanks!

I agree.

If you're having trouble coming up with content, maybe use the blog as a place to write down some of the stuff you're learning day-to-day or week-to-week. It might help you in many ways.

Another idea might be to intersperse basic lessons. As someone with zero knowledge of luthiery, I'd be fascinated by any little tidbit of knowledge you could share, even things you might consider banal.

[CoryKeW]

Originally Posted by Jeff Silverman

Hey all, hope everyone is doing well.

I've published another blog post with some photos from the past month, and a bit of info on what I've been up to. I learned how Ervin thicknesses his tops, and some other things too. Link below.



https://www.silvermanguitars.com/my-...esign-and-more

Your post is awesome, Jeff. Thank you very much for sharing this with us!

By the way, you mentioned that you did some brainstorming exercises such as “Design a guitar that’s been commissioned by a client who wants a big guitar, with lots of bass, lots of volume but with short sustain, and also sweetness rather than sharpness of sound.” and “Design a Jumbo sized guitar with projection, power, a short sustain/rise-decay curve, more treble than bass, and a sharp, focused sound with overtones.”

What was the outcome? What did you come up with, and what were Ervin’s answers to those design requirements? Thank you.

[Jeff Silverman]

Originally Posted by CoryKeW

Your post is awesome, Jeff. Thank you very much for sharing this with us!

By the way, you mentioned that you did some brainstorming exercises such as “Design a guitar that’s been commissioned by a client who wants a big guitar, with lots of bass, lots of volume but with short sustain, and also sweetness rather than sharpness of sound.” and “Design a Jumbo sized guitar with projection, power, a short sustain/rise-decay curve, more treble than bass, and a sharp, focused sound with overtones.”

What was the outcome? What did you come up with, and what were Ervin’s answers to those design requirements? Thank you.

Some things we discussed to shift the sound in a desired direction were

- Designing the bracing to help the top move in a certain way, to emphasise different modes of vibration, and use the strings energy efficiently to make sound.
- Ways to loosen or tighten things up, which would emphasise bass/treble, for example coupling/decoupling, doming, bracing layout/height/connectedness, top thickness, saddle height, scale length etc.
- Function of the back
- Neck mass, bridge mass, mass in general
- Soundhole size, volume of air
- Wood selection
- 12/14 frets

There's not really a correct answer to those exercises, it's just trying to gain some more understanding on how different design choices will affect things.

[Jeff Silverman]

Originally Posted by OnTheFidele

I agree.

If you're having trouble coming up with content, maybe use the blog as a place to write down some of the stuff you're learning day-to-day or week-to-week. It might help you in many ways.

Another idea might be to intersperse basic lessons. As someone with zero knowledge of luthiery, I'd be fascinated by any little tidbit of knowledge you could share, even things you might consider banal.

Those are some good ideas, thanks for that!

[Jeff Silverman]

Originally Posted by mhw48

I know it's probably not very helpful-- but I want to hear about EVERYTHING! Your thread here and your blog are fascinating, so just keep 'em coming (when you have the time), and thanks!

Ok, will do! Thanks for the feedback.

[CoryKeW]

Originally Posted by Jeff Silverman

Some things we discussed to shift the sound in a desired direction were

- Designing the bracing to help the top move in a certain way, to emphasise different modes of vibration, and use the strings energy efficiently to make sound.
- Ways to loosen or tighten things up, which would emphasise bass/treble, for example coupling/decoupling, doming, bracing layout/height/connectedness, top thickness, saddle height, scale length etc.
- Function of the back
- Neck mass, bridge mass, mass in general
- Soundhole size, volume of air
- Wood selection
- 12/14 frets

There's not really a correct answer to those exercises, it's just trying to gain some more understanding on how different design choices will affect things.

Thank you so much!

[Pizzanetor]

Hi Jeff,
seeing your photos is heartbreaking and that rosette is killer.
Waiting to be your customer, when you will have the time to work on your projects.
Regards from Italy.

[Jeff Silverman]

Hey, here's some photos from the past few weeks here at the Somogyi workshop. They are from a blog post published today, with many more photos, which you can see here if you're interested:

https://www.silvermanguitars.com/my-...mogyi-workshop













Thanks!

[OnTheFidele]

Great pictures. Thank you for the new post!

[KevinH]

Enjoying reading along in your blog Jeff!