Carbon fiber braces

[Joe Mendel]

I've been building some flat top (15' Radius) octave mandolins and have been thinking of trying either #spruce/CF/spruce, or all CF braces. If any of you have tried something like this, please tell me about your experiences. Any information will be helpful. What affect on tone and volume does CF tend to have? What would you use to glue CF to wood? I know that is can be difficult to work with and dulls tools quickly.
Thanks,

[evanreilly]

Rolfe Gerhardt (Phoenix Mandolins) has been using a laminate with a thin CF strip in the middle for bracing for years. He comes up with very thin, stiff top braces for the tone bars.

[Jonathan Peck]

You could contact Mario Proulx. I believe that he has been using CF braces in his guitars. AFAIK, they have been well received.

http://www.proulxguitars.com/index.htm

[sgarrity]

Mario's guitar's are amazing!! I've owned two of them and can't believe what an idiot I was to sell them. His mandolins are equally as good!!

[Desert Rose]

You can buy the thin carbon and the correct glue from Luthiers Mercantile

www.lmii.com

I started using carbon in necks, and bracing on acoustic guitars back in the seventys with fantastic results learned it from Dave Young and Lloyd Baggs the guitar builders

You can make very delicate braces that do the job of supporting the top and transfering the sound with much less mass which is a very good thing

Scott

[Joe Mendel]

Thank you, guys. I'll get in touch with Mario, and probably be ordering from LMI very soon. I really like the idea of stronger, lighter braces. I really appreciate your input.

[Mario Proulx]

Me ears' ringing....

CF won't make for a lighter brace, in itself. CF weighs more than any wood, even ebony or ligum vitae weighs less. What CF allows is a smaller, more flexible brace, because it has 100% structural 'memory' and won't take a 'set' like an all-wood brace will if it's too flexible/weak.

It's a interesting material in this use, but it is VERY easy to over-do it, structurally, and end up with a tight sounding instrument that won't open up much further. Only way to find that line is to work with it, take good notes, and try a lot of combinations. It took me a solid 3-4 years to get consistent with it in guitars. Never did like what it does in my mandolins, and currently don't use any in them, but I have a few more ideas to try, someday.

Good luck!