Australian/New Zealand Luthiers Forum

Well the Cuatro is all finished, nothing like the original of course.
certainly sounds good. I'm gonna hunt down some aquila baritone red series strings for it.
The proud new owner is gigging with it this Sunday.

Cheers,

Christian.

Thanks Markus,

Well the owner isn't Venezuelan, but hes a very strum happy Italian, so a bit of clear acetate might be in order .
Cheers,

Christian.

Hi Wayne,

We have all been there dinging and sand throughs!!
The guitar looks fantastic!!! great choice of woods and well crafted indeed.
Thanks for sharing,

Christian.

Hi Miguel,

Thanks for the kind words. The neck can't really come loose as it locks down into the key. It is a firm fit but not so tight that you can't lightly tap it to remove the neck.

Cheers,

Christian

Hi, So I made a start last week on this cuatro, now called the Cuatro Kauri. I essentially down sized one of my guitar shapes until I got the dimensions close to the original. I went with a 21" scale body neck join is the 14th fret. The neck body join is essentially a keyhole style set up. The neck ...

Looks like the event was a hit!! So many great guitars on offer, thanks for posting chaps!! I would love to exhibit...maybe next year!! Re The Ancient Kauri Laurie uses, yes it is the whitebait grade. If it was the "Williams" whitebait, it is simply amazing under high gloss, it came from one freakis...

WOW what a beauty Shane!!! hats off to you my friend. Great subtle details and nice workmanship. I bet the new owner is stoked!! I'm Glad you enjoyed using the Puriri and the Rimu and Rewarewa they are amazing tone woods, we have so many here in NZ. I noticed you are using Bond it on! my glue of cho...

Hi Markus, Thanks for the link I'll definetely be checking out the Torres plan. Glad to know the shape is not normal, I'm probably going to end up seriously bastardizing the traditional cuatro but I just want it to sound and look good. Cheers, Christian. That sounds like a very interesting project, ...

Yeah Markus that 14th fret placement is a cracker, actually I'm not sure any of the frets intervals are where they should be because it is bloody impossible to tune. Still, like I said it sounds awesome. A few design requirements from the customer are that the neck needs to be easily taken off for e...

Hi Col,

It is similar to a Baritone I guess at 350mm long, 255mm Lower bout. The sides are really deep at 97mm and the scale length is 21.5"

Cheers,

Christian.

This is an old Cuatro instrument from Venezuela, which my friend brought about 20 years ago in a local market. Although crudely made, It has the most amazing tone. My mission is to uncover and replicate its magic, but with my own signature aesthetic. The depth of this instrument is more like a guita...

Hi Shane,

Rewarewa on Rimu looks great, I eagerly look forward to seeing the finished guitar.

cheers,

Christian.

Good stuff Shane hope it all goes well!! if it is by chance rewa rewa make sure it is quartersawn!!! amazing grain, and tonally fantastic. Can be tricky to dry though.

Cheers,

Christian.

Hi Shane, I'm with Nick, I have only ever seen pencil thin lancewood, that's not to say they don't grow big but it seems unlikely. I'm racking my brain as to think what else it could be.....perhaps a Rewarewa? they can get big enough for uke's and Guitars. A saw cut and pic will reveal all. Cheers, ...

Can't keep a good thing down!!!

Thanks Bob!!!


Christian.

Thanks guys,

Glad you enjoyed the build. On closer analysis the video actually captures the sparkle this guitar has quite well.
Cheers,

Christian.

thanks for the comments !! I was down in Aucks on the weekend showcasing some of my guitars, and a couple of guys organised an impromptu recording of this Koru. It is a bit rough, but I thought posting It would complete the build. The guitar is off to Paris this week. here's the link. http://www.you...

I can't help a great deal either as I only have an old 14" promark with a few mods. It struggles to cut through much more than 150mm of anything. I just take my wood down to the local sawmill and have them re saw it to my specs. Whatever you buy is likely to get a hard time re sawing, so good after ...

It's finished!!!!
I've uploaded quite a few photos to finish the build. The Koru has a really bright punchy and loud tone.
Cheers,

Christian.

And the last few steps cutting the soundport, sanding in the armrest and aligning the bridge
Finally at the the fun part finishing!!

Cheers,

Christian.

You are a bit hard on yourself Col !! that is a cracker instrument.
wood combos are great!! well crafted indeed. bring on the next one!!

Cheers,

Christian.

Hi Steve Yip the head veneer is aligned by the 4 holes(tuner placement) made when I routed the head shape, it's just tacked enough to stop it slipping around. Cheers, Christian. Hey Christian, looking good, and thanks for posting. Especially interested in your neck process. Notice you shape the head...

Hi Kevin, Thanks for the praise!! I can assure you there are no smoke and mirrors here. Perfect templates make it reasonably straight forward, the mitre bit simply follows it. Making sure that waist curve is marked and bent it in the right place is kinda crucial, but it is for a normal build anyway....

Cheers, Alan It's interesting how we all go about building, the threads are great for sharing our processes. I'm always learning new things. Hi Adam, Thanks for your comments,the braces start off pre shaped for the vacuum gluing, but they do get shaved down a little once I glue the top to the sides....

The next few pics are the shortened sequence of the Rimu neck construction and fitting.

Cheers,

Christian.