Sunday, March 27, 2011

Hand Tools: Out With the Old, In With the New

I've known for a long time that guitar building will be an activity I'll pursue until failing eyesight, a wayward bus or the grim reaper himself finally put an end to my efforts. Despite that certainty, I've always had great difficulty parting with my hard-earned cash to build a collection of high quality hand tools - second-hand shops and flea markets have been the source of many of them until recently.


I've justified my tight-fisted attitude by reasoning that spending five times as much on a decent hand plane, for example, would be unlikely to result in a corresponding five-fold improvement in the standard of my instruments. While there's still truth in that argument at a superficial level, thinking a little more deeply on the subject leads me to conclude that there are other more subtle benefits to owning quality tools beyond their ability to perform their intended function so much more effectively than the poor substitutes I've made do with in the past. 

In fact, finally clicking the "Buy Now" button on a set of LMI's chisels and a couple of Veritas hand planes - a low-angle jack plane and a #4 smoother - has been beneficial on many levels.  The simple fact that my chisels and planes are now of a much higher quality has instilled a sense of pride in their ownership - a new and pleasurable experience!  That in turn has added to my enjoyment of the job at hand which in itself can only have a positive effect on the standard of my work.  I might also add that acquiring quality tools and experiencing the warm glow their ownership brings has provided the incentive to develop a much more disciplined approach where sharpening is concerned - I've been pretty lazy in the past on that score.

When I'm about to undertake a task demanding the utmost care and attention to detail, I find that clearing my workbench of its usual accumulation of tools and firing up the shop vacuum seems to unclutter my mind as well as my immediate work area; I seem better able to concentrate and my chances of success with whatever task I'm about to begin seem vastly improved as a result.  I'm finding that the joy of using a well-tuned, good quality plane or a sharp, finely made chisel is having a similarly positive effect on my attitude and ability to focus.  Any doubts I might have had brought about by the not-insignificant cost - including the predictably horrendous shipping charges from the U.S. and Canada - are fading rapidly.  Besides (I tell myself!) my amateur status shouldn't stand in the way of my pursuit of professional results.

If there's a downside to all this - other than the hit my wallet has taken of late - it's that I can no longer blame poor quality tools for any work I judge to be less than perfect!

Cheers
Pete

Friday, March 4, 2011

Claro Walnut - a Musical Thud

After joining and thicknessing this walnut back set it was difficult to muster enthusiasm when assessing its resonant qualities, however, the attachment of braces has elevated the response when tapped to a more pleasing musical thud!

Unlike the much-prized rosewood species, claro walnut isn't known for its ringing glassy tap-tone, but with this guitar destined for a fingerstyle player, that's not necessarily a desirable trait anyway. When discussing fingerstyle guitars, popular opinion seems to be that each note should do its thing then get out of the way relatively quickly to make way for those to follow. With a relatively high damping factor, claro walnut supposedly satisfies that requirement well by limiting sustain - or at least not contributing further to it. It's also said to impart little of its own sonic flavour to the completed instrument leaving the top to produce it's signature sound unhindered.

Paired with the tonal warmth and richness characteristic of a redwood top, I'm hopeful that the guitar this back is destined for will be as successful as my previous claro walnut/Engelmann spruce instruments.

Cheers
Pete

Sunday, February 20, 2011

Slow and Steady Wins the Race!

I often rue the fact that I have insufficient time to spend on my hobbies, but the picture below suggests otherwise.  The secret seems to be in looking ahead, determining as best as I can what spare time I might have on my hands and planning in advance how best to make use of it.
   

The back and soundboard halves were joined and thicknessed on separate days some weeks ago, while the braces, bridge patch, cross-grain back reinforcement and headblock have been laying around in readiness having been prepared in short bursts of activity over the past few months.

With higher humidity on several days over the last two weeks, the dehumidifier in the spare room has been running continuously and I've been able to maintain a relative humidity of around 45% - ideal for gluing braces to the soundboard and back.  The temperature in my workshop has been bearable too, and the neck I began yesterday reached its current state of completion this afternoon.  I'm on a roll!

Cheers
Pete

Sunday, February 13, 2011

Voicing the Top - Intuition and Technology

Shaving the soundboard braces to bring out the guitar's tonal potential is one of the more intuitive and mysterious aspects of guitar construction.  For me, it's also one of the more tactile and enjoyable stages when the use of hand tools is mandatory and the senses come strongly into play.  A cycle of tapping, flexing and brace shaving is involved, with a somewhat nebulous goal in mind despite having read everything I can on the subject!


Unfortunately, my hobby builder status dictates that it's often many months after voicing a top then going on to complete and evaluate the instrument before I'm able to repeat the exercise - hardly an ideal situation in terms of being able to build any sort of muscle memory or draw meaningful conclusions. The pertinent questions whose answers seem elusive in terms of being able to adequately articulate them are:
  • What did the top feel like as I flexed it, i.e., how much resistance was there when bending it across the grain and with the grain?
  • How did the top ring as I tapped it and how was the response influenced by the way the top was held or suspended and where it was tapped?
  • What was the correlation between those very subjective assessments and the success of the completed instrument from a tonal perspective?  
  • To what extent did the materials, density and stiffness of the guitar's other components combine with those of the top and contribute to the outcome?
As I review that list of questions, it strikes me that the challenges they pose seem almost insurmountable.  It's obvious that relying on my memory from one instrument to the next isn't a satisfactory approach given the subjective nature of the assessments involved and how infrequently I'm able to repeat this part of the process.

Perhaps the use of technology offers a way forward and can lend a degree of objectivity to what would otherwise be limited to some vague, transient sensory experience. Measuring top deflection both parallel to and across the grain prior to gluing the braces, photographing the top bracing and noting brace heights, recording tap tones with a decent microphone (or perhaps one of the hand-held Zoom recorders) or even videoing myself as I hold the top and tap it seem likely candidates as I seek to minimise the guesswork involved in the voicing process and develop a baseline for subsequent instruments.  Or perhaps I should learn to trust my senses and develop a greater appreciation for the delightful uncertainties inherent in wooden instrument construction!

Cheers
Pete

Friday, February 11, 2011

Glue Clean Up

With the advent of the soundport, the standard of workmanship inside the guitar body is more easily scrutinized and there's perhaps an even greater incentive to clean up surplus glue as the various component parts are assembled - not that I've neglected this previously. If some vintage instruments can be taken as a guide, it seems this wasn't always a priority, even for well-respected manufacturers. Times change though, and as I inspected a new Martin in a local music shop not long ago, I must say I was impressed by the meticulous attention to detail within the guitar body including the fact that all traces of excess glue had been carefully removed from the intersection of the back plate with the linings and back braces. I vowed then and there to emulate this in my own instruments to the best of my ability in recognition of the fact that it's often the little things that make a big impression.


There are several approaches to cleaning up excess glue once clamping pressure is applied to a freshly-glued joint. Regardless of the method used, I always try to plan ahead and give some thought to the arrangement of clamps to ensure unhindered access to glue squeeze-out after they're in place. I'm also careful not to apply an excessive amount of glue in the first place. A 1-inch foam roller is helpful in that regard, with the added advantage that an even coverage of glue is more quickly and easily achieved.

I know that the preferred approach for many builders, whichever glue is used, is to leave glue squeeze-out undisturbed, letting it partially set or gel before attempting to remove the excess. I use Titebond for the majority of gluing tasks, and find that a flattened plastic drinking straw with the end cut at something like a 45 degree angle is a good first step towards removing unwanted glue as soon as clamps are in place. This approach works particularly well when gluing braces to the soundboard or back. The straw is pushed cut-end-first along the freshly-glued joint and much of the surplus glue finds its way inside the straw which is then discarded. It helps of course to have several pre-prepared sections of drinking straw on hand.  Chisel-shaped slivers of spruce or cedar, moistened Q-Tips (cotton buds or ear buds) or a moistened sponge can also be useful as a follow-up and, using a combination of these methods, it's usually possible to remove every last vestige of excess glue without compromising the joint itself.


When gluing braces to the back and soundboard, I exercise patience and generally glue one - or perhaps two - braces at a time. Not only does this slow and steady approach give me ample time to clean up after myself, but I have the luxury of a clear view and unobstructed access to squeeze-out.

Another strategy which contributes to a clean look inside the guitar body is to attach the rim assembly to the back first, rather than to the top. I find it helpful to have a second chance to tidy things up before the top is attached and while the various nooks and crannies which will remain visible after final assembly are still easily accessible.

Cheers
Pete

Tuesday, February 1, 2011

Two Rosettes

The finished rosettes:


I'm pretty happy with them both, and they provide an attractive alternative to my more usual abalone rosettes.

Click on the image for a better view.

Cheers
Pete

Monday, January 24, 2011

A New Rosette

This rosette is a departure from the abalone versions I've recently installed. It's a simple radial design in Macassar ebony which I hope will work well in the visual sense; the final verdict will have to wait until I can marry it with the guitar's other decorative elements and see it as part of an overall design.


Dimensions marked on 1/8" MDF


Sliced and diced: ready for tapering


Tapering the wedges on the disk sander


Wedges tapered and glued


Routed to size - a spiral down-cut router bit keeps things tidy


Ready for installation in a redwood top

I have two of these rosettes ready to install along with their edge purflings. I'll post pictures when they're done.

Cheers
Pete

What's In a Name?

The back and sides of this guitar are of narra, which is an alternative name for a wood that's most often marketed here in Australia as ...