I just finished this guitar;back, sides, and neck are Honduran mahogany from a huge door built around 1980. I got enough wood from it to build 5 guitars. The top is Adirondack spruce. It sounds great, I've heard red spruce sounds better with age. Thanks to everyone on this forum for all the great advice. Danny Gray
Just launched my new vintage replacement mandolin pickguard line. Have 4 different designs to fit all Gibson mandolins from 1910 to the 1930s. http://www.fox-guitars.com/Mandolin_Pickguards.html
From left to right: c1910-1917 A & F pickguard, c1917-1923 A & F, c1923-1936 A & F, and 1923 or after F-5
Visit www.fox-guitars.com - cool Gibson & Epiphone history and more. Vintage replacement mandolin pickguards
Well this breaks the mold a bit but since we're asking about what's on our bench, this is what's on mine. Having recently finished and selling my 2nd mandolin I had to catch up on a couple of 'Honey do's" so I bought $100 worth of cherry and am building a pedestal table. One or two other projects then I will start mandolin number 3.
-Newtonamic
An unfortunate side effect of the US moving to a first-to-file system is that I can't show what's on my bench. It's a shame. I have prototype three of a bridge designed to be more adjustable as a filter (for each mandolin) than the traditional, but still able to be adjusted for action. Prototype 1 showed that the distribution of energy up the spectrum on each course, balance of courses, and overall noise were able to be adjusted. Version 2 worked as well, but was adjustable, and once built was really ugly. This version is looking much better, and I think it will work as well. There are some production difficulties possibly, so version 4 will be attempting to get the production steps ironed out.
Once I get a provisional patent in, I'll post and explain. It's a fun thing to work with.
Stephen Perry
"Blowing Wheat" fret board design. For a Bluegrass guitar no doubt.
Here's a couple from the bench just completed and one in-progress...
A Kelischek Workshop Hurdy-Gurdy in for a glued down tail piece that came loose and some top cracks.
This is a nice Mahogany Silvertone baritone ukulele. It was pretty needy; neck set, refret, broken/ loose braces, cracks, tuner, nut/ saddle work and a good cleaning. This instrument had sentimental value to it's owner as it belonged to her father. She wanted it restored to good playability for her son. It turned out pretty well, good playability, tone and volume.
This one is a cool looking 50's Herrnsdorf, German made archtop. This one also has strong sentimental ties to it's owner and is very needy.
The instruments builders where more concerned with "Bling" than quality construction. It has a bolt on neck with a single bolt through the neck heel and neck block, threading into a T-nut type arrangement. The neck block was made from Spruce and over time, tightening the neck bold slowly compressed and split the neck block. No repair could save the existing neck block and the guitar would be a wall hanger unless this could be repaired.
This is what it looked like when I took the neck off. (??!?!???!!!)
I had to clean that mess off to see what I had under the helpful Henry fix.
I extracted the damaged Spruce block and made a Maple replacement. The new block is Maple.
This is as far as I have gotten so far with the project. It will need the cosmetic work done around the neck pocket, some binding repairs, a re-fret, a new zero nut, set up and some structural work where the ribs meet at the tail block. The top and back have shrunken and the lower bout ribs have popped out. I'll have to release them from the tail block, shorten them a bit and glue it all back together.
Sucker for a hard luck case
I'm jealous, I've never had a Hurdy-Gurdy in the shop.
I just bought a house (that needs a bit of work) and have been turning work away from time constraints but I couldn't pass up the Hurdy-Gurdy! This was a first for me. Fortunately the maker, George Kelischek is still in business and I was able to contact him about the few things that I was unsure about. It's a three string Diatonic Hurdy-Gurdy and sounds just like a bagpipe when play it. Drove my wife crazy though, she was glad when the owner picked it up.
Sucker for a hard luck case
Can't get Hurdy Gurdy Man out of my head now, thanks! lol!
Old Hometown, Cabin Fever String Band
Fall sun through the blinds onto a back in progress. This could have also been posted to "who works in a messy shop".
John Hamlett
www.hamlettinstruments.com
Nope, the Ky. shop is still almost dust free. I don't think it will get as bad as the Va. shop. (Hopefully, that's not wishful thinking.)
John Hamlett
www.hamlettinstruments.com
Making an octave mandolin using a stash of cherry that a previous owner thoughtfully left in the attic of the house when I bought it, and using Graham McDonald's book as a guide. And yeah, it's being built on a Spanish style adjustable guitar mold from back in the day. I was able to press it into service, and it saved me from having to make something new.
Vintage 20" scale Regal tenor guitar needed a few upgrades.
All of you that have posted in here are truly talented and an inspiration to me. Just wanted you all to know this, I honestly appreciate the dedication and love of craft you bring to the wood. Carry on.
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Apollonio Acousto-electric bouzouki (in shop)
Mixter 10 string mandola (still waiting 2+ yrs)
Unknown brand Mandocaster (on the way!)
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"Doubt begins only at the last frontiers of what is possible." -- Ambrose Bierce
A nylon string terz guitar, 20" scale length, no decoration whatsoever, no binding, back is untrimmed at this point, and mostly unsanded. Not actually on my bench; my workshop is an unheated garage, and even in Florida sometimes it gets too cold for Titebond to dry properly, so I brought it in tonight. Western Red Cedar top, cherry fingerboard and bridge, tulipwood back and sides, three piece tulipwood and WRC neck, fan braced, built in my own peculiar fashion. The last one turned out so well I had to build another one. This one is very lightweight, only 621 grams without tuners (another ~115 grams).
Wow, great to see everyone's work. I am working on my first one....a lot of lessons learned. I will want to do another more advanced kit for a second one. I am miles and miles from doing one from scratch. After the second, I would like to do some restorations....
Made some mistakes of course....but learning and enjoying the experience.
Scott
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