OM Guitar #8

[peter.coombe]

This is my latest guitar. It has taken around 18 months to get to this stage because of being waylaid by mandolins, but the wait has been worth it. 18 months of lying awake at night thinking of things I can do to improve has paid off. This is by far the best sounding guitar I have made. I thought the last 3 guitars slounded pretty good, but this one is on another level, a real high end guitar. Warm, rich full tone, evenly balanced and rings like a bell. And it is LOUD. Beautiful clear notes right up the neck. Very pleasing. My friend Ray played it for 1/2hr, then went silent for a while. Next thing he said was "beautiful guitar, can't fault it, I am just trying to think of what I can sell so I can buy it!". Can't get a better compliment than that, so I must be doing something right.

Woods are - Engelmann Spruce top, Blackwood back and sides, African Mahogany neck, Qld Maple rosette with paua ring, Indian Rosewood bindings, Ebony fingerboard, BRW bridge, Schertler tuners. This one has a varnish finish which turned out surprisingly well. I ran out of lacquer and ran out of time, so thought I would try the varnish.

I will have it at the National Folk Festival for those coming to Canberra. Hopefully it is tempting enough for someone to buy it.

[woodrat]

Lovely Work Peter.....Great Blackwood too....

Hope you have a great National Folk Festival....

Cheers

John

[soulman]

Nice clean looking guitar. Great work.

Ross

[Jeremy D]

Shes a beauty Peter.

I love engleman. Responsive and loud. It look great too.

[colburge]

Looks great Pete & that varnish finish looks the goods.

Col

[peter.coombe]

Looks great Pete & that varnish finish looks the goods.

Yes the varnish came out nicely, and it ages nicely. This time I used West Systems to pore fill, then shellac and then the varnish. No French polish over the varnish. With time it will turn a light amber colour which gives the instrument a nice warm glow. What I like is there is no stink, no protective gear and no spray gear necessary. The workshop doesn't reek of lacquer for weeks after I spray a guitar. You can see the brush strokes, but only if you get the light right and look really hard. Brush technique is critical and it takes some practice to get it right. There is an alkyd oil varnish just newly available here in Australia that is imported from the USA that I am going to try out next. None of the local manufacturers make anything like it. Is a heck of a lot cheaper and easier to go to the local paint shop than importing from the US. The specs (and reviews) look good, but remains to be seen how it works and how I need to change my technique. The Bega paint shop has it on back order. The postage cost for the varnish I have been using for many years is now around 5 times the cost of the varnish! No wonder we can't sell into the US any more.

[colburge]

Looks great Pete & that varnish finish looks the goods.

Yes the varnish came out nicely, and it ages nicely. This time I used West Systems to pore fill, then shellac and then the varnish. No French polish over the varnish. With time it will turn a light amber colour which gives the instrument a nice warm glow. What I like is there is no stink, no protective gear and no spray gear necessary. The workshop doesn't reek of lacquer for weeks after I spray a guitar. You can see the brush strokes, but only if you get the light right and look really hard. Brush technique is critical and it takes some practice to get it right. There is an alkyd oil varnish just newly available here in Australia that is imported from the USA that I am going to try out next. None of the local manufacturers make anything like it. Is a heck of a lot cheaper and easier to go to the local paint shop than importing from the US. The specs (and reviews) look good, but remains to be seen how it works and how I need to change my technique. The Bega paint shop has it on back order. The postage cost for the varnish I have been using for many years is now around 5 times the cost of the varnish! No wonder we can't sell into the US any more.

What kind of paint brush do you use to apply the finish? it must be very fine bristled, I would never have guessed that it was applied with a brush.

Col

[peter.coombe]

What kind of paint brush do you use to apply the finish?

It is a high quality artist brush. Ray thought it was lacquer until I pointed out it was varnish.

Peter

[Mark McLean]

Looks flawless Peter. And you are obviously very pleased with the sound. What do you think was the secret of getting the perfect outcome this time? Did you change anything in the design or construction? And if you don't mind sharing - what is the name of that varnish product that you used?

Cheers
Mark

[H3ytm@n]

Very nice looking guitar Peter. Those Schertlers look great as well.

[peter.coombe]

Looks flawless Peter. And you are obviously very pleased with the sound. What do you think was the secret of getting the perfect outcome this time? Did you change anything in the design or construction? And if you don't mind sharing - what is the name of that varnish product that you used?

Well it ain't flawless, but the average person would not notice. I think is a combination of factors. I have always liked the sound I get from Engelmann and Blackwood in mandolins, the bracing has been tweeked a bit, and I made the back a bit stiffer relative to the top. Varnish also seems to give a "looser" sound and feel than lacquer when brand new.

Peter

[peter.coombe]

Oops, I forgot to mention the varnish. It is Target Coatings EM2000. I believe that Stew Mac's Colortone water based brushing vanish is the same thing with a different label.

Peter