Posted on August 11, 2021March 6, 2024 by Dale Phillips Frets and Fingerboard Care Frets and Fingerboard Care by Randy Stockwell Originally published in Guild of American Luthiers Quarterly Volume 7, #2, 1979 and Lutherie Woods and Steel String Guitars, 1998 Neck Shapes. I credit Leo Bidne for his perceptions of the relationship between the fingerboard bow and the string’s motion. I use heat treatment to obtain these results when the problems are severe enough. But I find that most instruments, while needing some neck curve help, are not in serious enough trouble to merit the use of heat. Most can be put in the proper curvature through careful and diligent fret dressing and tension rod adjustment (granted sufficient fret height to begin with). When the frets are too low or the curve too great, refretting is usually called for anyway. The fingerboard itself can then be reshaped to the suitable curves. Of course, if the fault is bad enough to call for a major removal of wood, I definitely resort to heat, neck resets, major neck rebuilding, and so on. Even after heat treatment, I find it necessary to finish with fingerboard and/or fret-dressing procedures. Become A Member to Continue Reading This Article This article is part of our premium web content offered to Guild members. To view this and other web articles, join the Guild of American Luthiers. Members also receive 4 annual issues of American Lutherie and get discounts on products. For details, visit the membership page. If you are already a member, login for access or contact us to setup your account.
Posted on August 11, 2021March 6, 2024 by Dale Phillips Sealing Wood with Glair Sealing Wood with Glair by Dick Cartwright Originally published in Guild of American Luthiers Data Sheet #154, 1980 and Big Red Book of American Lutherie Volume One, 2000 Procedure: ▶ Beat an egg white stiff and let it stand for a few hours. The clear liquid that settles out is called glair. ▶ Put 5G gum arabic (cheap from any art store) into 20CC water and let stand for a few hours, shaking occasionally. ▶ Add 10CC glair and 1/2G honey to the gum arabic. This solution paints on easily, dries quickly, and is an effective sealer. I suggest two coats. It’s also used by some as a sealer/isolation layer on the outside wood between stain and varnish. Become A Member to Continue Reading This Article This article is part of our premium web content offered to Guild members. To view this and other web articles, join the Guild of American Luthiers. Members also receive 4 annual issues of American Lutherie and get discounts on products. For details, visit the membership page. If you are already a member, login for access or contact us to setup your account.
Posted on August 11, 2021March 6, 2024 by Dale Phillips Bass Crate Bass Crate by Frederick C. Lyman, Jr. Originally published in Guild of American Luthiers Data Sheet #273, 1984 and Big Red Book of American Lutherie Volume One, 2000 Shipping a bass is always a problem because of the size and fragility of the instrument. I’ve had to do this several times and have built crates which did the job in every instance. It’s not my favorite task; I would rather build basses. Sometimes it would probably be best to buy or rent one of the bass trunks that several firms advertise. If you transport your bass a lot, this would be a good (if substantial) investment. But noooo... you’re going to build one yourself. My methods are not the only possible ones and I can’t guarantee that they are the best for you; only that, for me, they worked and the bass came through unharmed. Use plywood framed with strips of solid wood. If the framing is on the outside, the crate will be easier to grab. The plywood should be free of skips or voids in the inner plies which you can spot by looking at the edge. Imported lauan plywood (the stuff that looks like mahogany) is pretty good in this respect. You could use 1/4 " or thicker. For greatest economy, you could find some wall paneling that is scuffed or chipped, for a couple of dollars a sheet. You don’t want this box to be too heavy to handle, but if it is going by air freight (I have found United to be helpful and considerate) you will be paying more for the cubic volume than for the weight. In this instance you would not necessarily save by using thinner materials. For framing, I suggest what is known as 5/4 "×3 ", which actually measures about 1 "×2 1/2 ". Pick out straight pieces with few knots. (Yes, it’s OK if there aren’t any knots at all.) Become A Member to Continue Reading This Article This article is part of our premium web content offered to Guild members. To view this and other web articles, join the Guild of American Luthiers. Members also receive 4 annual issues of American Lutherie and get discounts on products. For details, visit the membership page. If you are already a member, login for access or contact us to setup your account.
Posted on August 11, 2021March 6, 2024 by Dale Phillips Violin Ribs/Latent Tension Violin Ribs/Latent Tension by John Meng Originally published in Guild of American Luthiers Data Sheet #287, 1984 and Big Red Book of American Lutherie Volume One, 2000 Bending Ribs When wood is bent, the length of the outer surface increases or the length of the inner surface decreases; or most likely some combination of the two occurs. In soft woods, the fibers stretch and compress more easily than they do in hard woods, so soft woods can successfully be bent to smaller radii than can hard woods before the wood fractures. Thin maple strips used to form violin ribs must be bent to small radii at the corners. Maple being a hard wood, there is a tendency for fibers along the inner surface to strongly resist compression. Become A Member to Continue Reading This Article This article is part of our premium web content offered to Guild members. To view this and other web articles, join the Guild of American Luthiers. Members also receive 4 annual issues of American Lutherie and get discounts on products. For details, visit the membership page. If you are already a member, login for access or contact us to setup your account.
Posted on August 11, 2021March 6, 2024 by Dale Phillips The Cimbalom The Cimbalom by Alexander I. Eppler Originally published in American Lutherie #5, 1986 and Big Red Book of American Lutherie Volume One, 2000 The cimbalom is by far the most sophisticated and highly-developed instrument of the hammered dulcimer world. It enjoys the status not only from the point of view of musical performance, standards, and practice, but also from that of actual construction and design. The appearance of the instrument is rather grand. Its beautiful carved case stands on four turned legs with a graceful, lyre-shaped pedal. Other than its elegant and compact tuning system (see illustration), what sets the cimbalom apart from all other dulcimers is that it is fitted with a full set of dampers and pedal. The legs and pedal are removable for easy transport, and the instrument also has a lockable cover to protect the strings and dampers when the instrument is not in use. Become A Member to Continue Reading This Article This article is part of our premium web content offered to Guild members. To view this and other web articles, join the Guild of American Luthiers. Members also receive 4 annual issues of American Lutherie and get discounts on products. For details, visit the membership page. If you are already a member, login for access or contact us to setup your account.
