Posted on March 3, 2024March 6, 2024 by Dale Phillips Mask for Belt Sanding Mask for Belt Sanding by John Calkin Published online by Guild of American Luthiers, March 2024 My 6×48 belt sander is my favorite and most used machines, though getting the most out of it didn’t come easy. It takes a knack to use one accurately, and that took years to develop. Perhaps most importantly, I learned to join plates and sculpt necks, saving myself scads of time over the years. This tip is about sanding parts on nearly completed instruments. It can be dangerous because the plates are already as thin as desired. In this case I needed to take down the end blocks of a dulcimer to the level of the plates. I had already shaped the sides of the blocks using a disk sander and sanding blocks. I used a scrap of poster board to mask the plates as I took down blocks to meet the plates. The end blocks weren’t that much oversize. A hand plane might have done this job as fast as my belt sander, But I never use handtools if a machine will do the job. Whew! I cut it close on this one, but it’s OK. The back of this dulcimer was already thinner than I liked. The block on the bridge end has to be larger to make room for some sort of string fixtures. There are also blocks inside the dulcimer to support the end blocks. The mask doesn’t have to be fancy or cover the entire plate. Sanding the block is done in quick steps with visual checking at every step. No sweat this time. All of the hand pressure on the sanding belt is applied to the block. I usually keep 80 grit belts on my sander. Sixty-grit would last longer and cut faster but the scratches require more work to remove. The abrasive barely touched the mahogany on this end. Most belt sanders of this size come with a 9" disk sander attached, but right from the factory mine wobbled badly. It was also frequently in the way, so I dismantled it. I considered returning the machine to Woodworker’s Supply, but repacking it would have been a lot of work. They still sell this machine. If they haven’t improved I wouldn’t buy it again. Standing the belt 90 degrees to the supplied work table turned out not to be a big deal, so I didn’t miss the disk sander very much. ◆
Posted on March 3, 2024March 7, 2024 by Dale Phillips Marvels among the Reeds Marvels among the Reeds by Susan Norris Originally published in American Lutherie #11, 1987 and Big Red Book of American Lutherie Volume One, 2000 Maybe it was my fantastic upbringing with parents who were (and are) scientists, lovers of nature and animals; people who loved to have fun and who nurtured the inquisitive mind in all of us, their children. I grew up sleeping with a bobcat curled up around my head, swimming with dolphins in warm lagoons, and tramping around in pursuit of lizards in the desert. When I think of where my inspiration comes from, these marvelous communications with animals and people from all over the world come swimming colorfully into my vision. When I walk out in the woods near our shop, the trees and mountains sing inspiration to me, and I can’t help but create in ways that speak their soul and mine combined. A number of years ago, soon after I moved to Vermont from Oregon, where I had been studying violin making with Paul Schuback, I met Fred Carlson and Ken Riportella at a Guild convention in Boston, which I had miraculously stumbled upon. Their approach to instrument making excited me and rang true with my own feeling that instrument making is an evolving process, and perhaps it’s been getting a bit too stuck. There is absolutely no reason why it can’t continue to grow and flower along with the rest of us! 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 March 3, 2024March 6, 2024 by Dale Phillips An Interview with Guitarist Roger McGuinn An Interview with Guitarist Roger McGuinn by Rachael Brent Originally published in Guild of American Luthiers Quarterly, Volume 9, #3, 1981 Anyone that has ever seen Roger McGuinn perform knows without a doubt that, unlike many other musicians, McGuinn will never disappoint an audience. His singing, playing, selection of songs, and rapport with his audience convinces all that he is one of the most talented, thoroughly professional musicians in the business. Beginning his career as Jim McGuinn, (later changing over to Roger) he was renowned as a fine banjo player and guitarist in the early 60s. He found a place as a accompanist, writer, and /or arranger for such artists as the Chad Mitchell Trio, the Limelighters, Bobby Darin, Tom and Jerry (later renames Simon and Garfunkel), Judy Collins, and the Brothers Gibb (the Bee Gees). 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 March 3, 2024March 6, 2024 by Dale Phillips An Interview with Guitarist David Tanenbaum An Interview with Guitarist David Tanenbaum by David Fisher Originally published in Guild of American Luthiers Quarterly, Volume 8, #3, 1980 With this issue is begun a series of interviews with important and eminent Classic Guitarists on the subject of their tools and their relationships to lutherie. Twenty-four year old virtuoso, David Tanenbaum of Oakland, California, a graduate of the San Francisco Conservatory of Music, is already a veteran of New York City solo recitals, innumerable other solo concerts as well as having served with the Joffrey Ballet on several domestic and international tours including a tour to Russia. He began piano study at the age of four, cello at eight, folk guitar at nine or ten and classic guitar at eleven. David plays a redwood top guitar by José Oribe from 1975. What qualities do you feel you need in an instrument? Fundamentally projection, because the guitar is a small voiced instrument. 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 March 3, 2024March 6, 2024 by Dale Phillips Humbucking Pickup Wiring Humbucking Pickup Wiring by Daniel P. Coyle Originally published as Guild of American Luthiers Data Sheet #203, 1982 The use of dual-coil or “Humbucking” pickups enables a wide range of samples of string sounds, along with a heightened complexity of switching problems. A flexible switching installation for either 6-string electric guitars or electric basses has the ability to arrange the coils of the two separate pickups in the following configurations: a) Pickups in either series or parallel configuration. b) Coils within the pickups in either series or parallel configuration. c) Coils within the pickups arranged as “single-coil” or “Humbucking”. d) Ability to select either pickup individually or both pickups at once. e) Phase reversal between pickups. f) Tone control defeat. g) The regular volume control and high-cut tone control. 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.
