Trying something new!

[derbex]

Another interesting design -looks good.

[fox]

A bit more done...

[fox]

The arch back in progress...

[derbex]

Looks better than good now, I am not sure if it's an instrument or art, probably both.

[fox]

Thanks mate, I am just making it up as I go along but it has taken me well over 150 hours so far.
I made a V neck profile and I don't like it so it feels like I need to make mother one now!

[Tim N]

That looks amazing! You've got to call it "the tortoise" now. It'll be interesting to see how it sounds, compared to a traditional build - but it's certainly art, and no doubt, very you .

[derbex]

Thanks mate, I am just making it up as I go along but it has taken me well over 150 hours so far.
I made a V neck profile and I don't like it so it feels like I need to make mother one now!

Neck profiles are funny things, my instruments vary from quite a deep V on the bowlback and tenor banjo -neither of which have a truss rod- to a shallow U on the Buchanan OM. The profile doesn't bother me that much, I quite like the old Vega tenor banjo neck it's quite narrow , and I can get away with mandolin fingering, the Buchanan is the same scale length but wider and I use more guitar style or a hybrid fingering and I enjoy playing that too.

[fox]

Yeah it might be OK but it looks a bit strange as I have tapered the V from the face of the fretboard to the underneath of the neck.
I have never even seen a V neck but I think my version might be a bit to radical.
I am also reluctant to glue the back on due to all the rain we have had and working in my outdoor shed, I think I need to bring all the components inside the house for a week or so.

[derbex]

It sounds like one of the bowl back mandolins I have, and I have played an F5 with a neck like that too. For me the main issue with a V neck is when you want to move the thumb around the back of the neck to play chords -especially barres, it's not very comfortable. My Matsakis bowl back OM has more of a deep U section (still no truss rod) which works reasonably well, and my banjo is probably more of a rounded V.

I'm no wood worker, but it sounds like a good idea to bring the bits inside to stabilise for a while, it's been very humid here the last few days.

[colorado_al]

Updates? Looks super cool!

[fox]

Thanks al, unfortunately we have had a very wet spell and my shed has become very humid, damp even!
I don't like to work in those conditions, the multi piece back would be very susceptible to moister at this stage due to all the different grains absorbing moister at different levels and possibly swelling up causing the joins to become uneven.
I have brought the components inside the house for now.
I can't make my mind up about the fretboard, Roswood or Ebony are standard but a little ordinary, I would prefer to use a figured piece of mahogany, I am wondering if I can heat up a piece to open the pours and then paint it with warm epoxy so I get maximum penetration and a long lasting hard finish...
I also wonder about coating the inside of the back with carbon fibre weave, that would completely stabilise the wood but might effect the tone in a negative way... impossible to know without experimenting!
The last six string guitar I built had a fibreglass body, just a spruce top, it sounded really good and very loud but perhaps a bit sharp or crisp for my mellow taste.

[derbex]

Hi Fox, Are you intending this one to by nylon or steel strung?

[fox]

Both! I have a plan using one of my bridge designs that should allow efficient use of both string tensions.
I will use a zero nut, so string gauge wont be an issue, the steel strings will go over and under a bridge & be anchored at a tail piece. Nylon strings will fix directly to the bridge.
There is actually not so much difference in string tension as some folk might think, around 78lb for steel & 58 for nylon.

[derbex]

Very cunning.

[fox]

Black Adder!

[fox]

I found time to apply a single layer of carbon fibre to the inside of the back.
I love the fingerboard wood.....



Sorry I can only get one pic to show..

[fox]

Almost ready to fix the back on, just a top coat of epoxy on the underside of the back & a bit of cleaning up.
I am sticking to the rigid bridge loose edge design as this has worked very well for me in the past but I am always nervous at this stage as once the back is on it will be very differcult to adjust or add anything to the bracing..

[derbex]

Fascinating! (Star Trek quote, this time)

[fox]

The needs of the many outweigh the needs of the few..... I think he was a musician?

[OneChordTrick]

The needs of the many outweigh the needs of the few..... I think he was a musician?

You may be right

[fox]

So I fitted a light set of GDAE strings and tried her out for the first time, a bit of titavation required but sounding ok!
Next up .. take off the strings and pegs, give it a good scrub and a few coats of oil.....

[fox]

I need to test a few string sets & fine tune a few things, I find it a bit brash & hollow at the moment, a bit banjo sounding but with very long sustain.
Certainly different to anything else I own.
The bridge is also acting as a structural member to hold a curved shape too the top, the under soundboard bracing is very light.
The tail piece is fixed to an adjustable height steel pin that goes down into the carbon 'square tube' that runs right up the neck.
This means I can adjust the pressure over the bridge & experiment with the effect.
The most interesting thing is that the whole instrument is resident & you can feel vibrations all the way up the neck.
Not as loud as I would of liked, I have not tried it plugged in as yet, similar volume to a Bueridge .
It might take a few weeks to work out what works best & then my friend Jonny can have another go to see if we can improve the sound.

[derbex]

That looks stunning. On my computer it sounded guitar like when strummed, but did have a bit of banjo or resonator twang when picked -which gave it a some character. Good effort

[fox]

Thank you Jeremy, I appreciate your support.
I tried out many configurations & decided it was far more suited to CGDA. I thought a light set of 09 13 20 30 sounded best, for my ears anyway.
So now I need to get it nice and shiny, I had already sealed it with some clear lacquer from a spray can, just a very light single coat.
I will use truoil on this one.
I also plan a few accessories, arm rest & pick guard.

[fox]

Well I just couldn’t cope with the look of the structural bridge and I thought the overall sound could be improved on so...
off came the top and a new arch top caved and crossed braced.