Australian/New Zealand Luthiers Forum

I have done small and fairly thin pieces of spatled wood (e.g. for rosettes) with CA glue and been happy with the result. In researching that I came across methods using resins applied under vacuum to extract all the air that is trapped in the wood and get the resin to fully infiltrate. Seems like h...

Lovely work Allen. I also like the fret markers as a nice change from the usual.

Sorry to hear about the arm and ankle. Skateboarding injury?

You could make a new pinless bridge for steel strings (like, lowden, breedlove, ovation)

Peter G - those are really beautifully presented guitars. You should show us some more of your work please, and some details on the timbers, finish etc.
Nice work!
Mark

She is really great.
And Jerry Douglas is playing a Cole Clark lap steel - WTF!

A flash orchestra. Cool!

Nice job Eric. Bending sides on the chimney pipe of the fireplace - that is very resourceful!
The end product is a great looking instrument with a nice individual style
cheers
Mark

Hi Scuffle I think that is going to have a pretty cool and distinctive look by the time it is under some finish and has all of the hardware on. I like how the stripes run through the body, neck and headstock. Volute is interesting too - a bit different from the Gibson but should feel good in the han...

Yep, 3mm thickness will be a struggle with a lot of woods, and you will be amazed how much easier it is at 2.5mm. For tight bits, like a cutaway, you can thin that part a bit more than the rest. Supersoft helps also.

Jeremy I built one from the OLF-SJ plans, and I have the plans in front of me now. I am not saying what is right or wrong, but here is the specs: Upper bout width 290mm, lower bout 390mm. Body length 500mm The X-brace angle is 93 degrees, which has it more upright, and less splayed than your plan. T...

I am glad you like it. They are not in the Craig Lawrence school of luthier jig artistry - but cheap, simple and effective. You are right Markus - it could get messy with the heat gun. If anyone is going to make some, I suggest that you try a few different thicknesses when you slice off the first fe...

So you are gluing a soundboard or back to the rims - what is the best way to clamp it? I know some like spool clamps. I have previously used the go-bar deck, but that is a bit fiddly to get around it on all sides and chase the glue squeeze-out. I recently saw a post to a video on one of the forums (...

Hi Matthew, and welcome. That is a very beautiful Tele. Those other ones hanging on the wall will probably get played a lot less now you have your own build to pick up. And your playing time will be less if you have really caught the lutherie disease and start work on that acoustic! May God bless yo...

They both look great to me. I love the rustic amp with Blackie, and the woodstack backdrop.
cheers
Mark

I'm with Jim and Martin in voting for Danish Oil for necks. I have done my last 3 builds that way. Those guitars get daily use and one is now 5 years old. It is holding up really well and it has a much better feel than the nitro finish on one of my factory-built guitars.
Mark

Hi Stag, and welcome to ANZLF That idea that oil finishes somehow dampen sound? - smells stongly of bullshit. It is a relatively lighter form of finishing than many alternatives, so it is hard to see why that would be the case. Compared with the effect of different timbers, bracing and construction ...

Hi Dave
It is a nice looking size and shape. How do the dimensions compare with the standard OM?
Is it your own design or are you building off an available plan?

cheers
Mark

Wow, Jeffrey, I'm speechless. It looks like you could have painted it on - it is amazing to think that it is the natural colour of the timber. The inlay complememts it perfectly. You have gotta show us some more pictures of it under finish when it is done. The half-slotted, half-solid headstock look...

Hi Mike
Very nicely crafted guitar. It has a great understated classy look. Sounds very well balanced - and loud for a small body. I like the satin finish. What did you use for that?
cheers
Mark

Nick If your new dehumidifier is any good it should easily manage a space that size. I have a relatively cheap Delonghi in a 6x3m unlined (but sealed) garage and it keeps me around 50% pretty well. It should be possible to hook up a drainage hose and run it outside. It will a lot easier than emptyin...

+ 1 for what Kim said.
You do great work Robbie, always good education, clever tips, and no BS. Have you told us everything you know yet? If not - keep 'em coming.
Mark

Hi Mark. Nice tip. Looks like it would give a nice clear mark for the router to follow. But let me just check if I am understanding this right. You put a slab of the white stuff on the ebony fingerboard and then you place the inlay piece on top and scribe around it to cut the white shape to match th...

Kerry's recent post of his pair of tenor guitars led me to these plans at Elderly Music. There are 39 plans for acoustic guitars and various other instruments. http://www.elderly.com/books/cat_or_pgc_page?step=20&cat_or_pgc=611&special_links=&sort_on=cat_or_pgc,artist,title&page=1&query_start=1&reve...

Hi Kerry, and welcome to the ANZLF. It is great when a "read-only" forum user jumps in and posts - especially 3 bits of their own work at once! The tenors look great. I am really interested in them because I am building one for a friend at the moment (although interrupted by temporary loss of my wor...

+1 for the Grellier L-00 plan. It works.