Posted on June 19, 2025September 12, 2025 by Dale Phillips Working with Water-based Finish Working with Water-based Finish by John Kitakis Originally published in American Lutherie #68, 2001 and Big Red Book of American Lutherie Volume Six, 2013 The protective and decorative coating of stringed instruments we call finish work seems to be a never-ending struggle. The battle to produce a beautiful finish and the mental anguish it induces, along with trying to stay healthy while complying with environmental laws makes finish work a challenge, to say the least. Some of us live in areas with strict industrial emissions codes, whereas others live where no one cares. But even in these “country” settings, the fact remains that certain finishing materials are hazardous, both to our bodies and the environment. And since most luthiers love wood, trees, clean air, music, food, children — you know, all of the good things in life — then we should strive to build and finish in a conscientious manner. In the 1970s I began building and restoring furniture, and then eventually stringed instruments. During those years I experimented with oils, varnish, French polishing shellacs, and synthetic lacquers, and still have pieces of furniture in my house twenty-five years later that have beautiful, hand-rubbed finishes. But to be productive (read “to make a profitable living”) I chose nitrocellulose lacquer. And through those years I must have sprayed enough lacquer and polyurethanes (toluene, benzene, xylene, and more) to probably kill all of the laboratory rats in the world. I’m probably alive thanks to my exhaust fan (who knows what happened to the neighbors?), but each night I would have headaches and a crusty irritation in my nose and lungs, along with having to clear my throat every few seconds. My wife could actually smell the fumes exuding from me as we slept. So those who use these nasty chemicals — with or without the benefit of fans and masks — besides dying young, become grumpy, irritable, and perhaps even unwilling sponsors of the drug companies. Become A Member to Continue Reading This Article This article is part of the Articles Online featured on our website for Guild members. To view this and other web articles, join the Guild of American Luthiers. For details, visit the membership page. MEMBERS: login for access or contact us to setup your account.
Posted on June 19, 2025September 12, 2025 by Dale Phillips Product Review: Colorado Soft Cases Product Review: Colorado Soft Cases by R.M. Mottola Originally published in American Lutherie #75, 2003 and Big Red Book of American Lutherie Volume Seven, 2015 The item reviewed in the following paragraphs was purchased by the author at full price through normal sales channels. A draft of this review was sent to the manufacturer/seller prior to publication so that any factual errors could be corrected. Colorado Soft Cases High-quality soft instrument cases (gig bags) and case covers are readily available for most standard-size instruments. There are dozens of manufacturers of these off-the-shelf items, and it is pretty easy to find bags for your instruments in a wide range of price and quality. Since the inside dimensions of soft cases are, well, softer than those of hard cases, it is even likely that you can make an off-the-shelf case fit a nonstandard instrument, at least if the instrument is not too nonstandard. But if you’ve got something way out of the ordinary, you’ll need a custom-made bag for it. It is probably safe to say that any bag manufacturer will make cases to your specs if you order enough of them. If you make one-of-a-kind instruments and need just one though, the number of manufacturers that are willing to accommodate your needs drops precipitously. Colorado Case of Fort Collins, Colorado, (coloradocase.com) is one case company that does make custom cases in any quantity, and their cases are the subject of this review. First, a word or two about soft cases. Why would you want to use a soft case in the first place, when a hard case offers considerably better protection? Probably the most compelling reason is that your customers want the option. In my experience this is particularly the case if the instrument in question is either a solidbody instrument or is particularly large, like an upright bass. Solidbody instruments are pretty robust to begin with and so protection from scratches and abrasions may be all the user wants out of a case. Really large acoustic instruments are no less delicate than their smaller counterparts, but the weight of a large hard case can sometimes compel a user to trade off some amount of protection for some reduction in weight. Become A Member to Continue Reading This Article This article is part of the Articles Online featured on our website for Guild members. To view this and other web articles, join the Guild of American Luthiers. For details, visit the membership page. MEMBERS: login for access or contact us to setup your account.
Posted on June 3, 2025June 20, 2025 by Dale Phillips An Introduction to Metal Engraving An Introduction to Metal Engraving by David Giulietti from his 2001 GAL Convention workshop Originally published in American Lutherie #68, 2001 and Big Red Book of American Lutherie Volume Six, 2013 Design is always the most important element in engraving. I like a clear, simple design that has a central theme. I like it to have a structure and a pattern that is easily read from across the room, but still looks nice when you get up close. If you don’t have a good plan to start with, any job becomes more difficult. Once you make a mark, it’s there and it is very hard to take it out, so it’s always good to know exactly where you are going to go before you start. It is helpful when starting a design to first look at the big picture before you fill in any of the details. Start with the general shape of the design. You’ve got a box, or a circle, or some kind of shape; no matter what it is, you always want to consider what the biggest lines are, and put them in first. I always draw my largest elements first, clean them up, and then add other smaller elements to the design, and work down from there. In drawing scrolls or people, or any design, it is always the same — start with the biggest elements and work down to fine details. When you work in this way, all of your design aspects come together as a unified whole. Everything flows together. Become A Member to Continue Reading This Article This article is part of the Articles Online featured on our website for Guild members. To view this and other web articles, join the Guild of American Luthiers. For details, visit the membership page. MEMBERS: login for access or contact us to setup your account.
Posted on June 3, 2025August 1, 2025 by Dale Phillips Meet the Maker: Ted Davis Meet the Maker: Ted Davis by James Condino Originally published in American Lutherie #96, 2008 I was introduced to Ted Davis over twenty years ago. We never talked. We never shared a trade show booth. We never had a musical transaction. Ted was one of those early folks who was so on top of it that he was writing GAL articles and making blueprints of famous instruments. When I was honing my craft in my teens and early twenties I was studying all of the instrument-making articles and drawings I could find. Ted Davis. That name kept popping up. Twenty years later I found myself sitting in Lynn Dudenbostel’s shop, talking away, and he drops, “Ted Davis lives just down the way a bit. You know, Ted Davis from the GAL,” as though there could be none other. After a minute I realize... that Ted Davis? The Ted Davis? Lynn chimed back in, “And he still sells a bit of red spruce. You should go visit him.” Become A Member to Continue Reading This Article This article is part of the Articles Online featured on our website for Guild members. To view this and other web articles, join the Guild of American Luthiers. For details, visit the membership page. MEMBERS: login for access or contact us to setup your account.
Posted on June 3, 2025June 20, 2025 by Dale Phillips Resurrecting the Family Banjo Resurrecting the Family Banjo by John Calkin Originally published in American Lutherie #84, 2005 and Big Red Book of American Lutherie Volume Seven, 2015 Though the title says banjo, this could as easily be about any stringed instrument. We’ve all seen them, the family “heirloom” that some relative has decided deserves to be played again, perhaps because they think it will be cheaper than buying a comparable new one, but more likely for some sentimental reason. The number of such beaters you actually get to work on may vary with your locality. Sentimentality didn’t count for much in New Jersey, and I had a collection of junky guitars that had been abandoned once the concerned relative learned what the cost of resurrection would be. Virginians, on the other hand, seem to put more stock in sentimentality and I’ve had the chance to rebuild several instruments that probably weren’t worth the fee I charged. Though this is about restoring an instrument to playability, please understand that we’re not talking about restoration as a vintage specialist would understand it. That sort of restoration often requires specialized knowledge and may demand a lot of research as well as the exchange of hefty sums of cash. It’s not much fun, either, unless you suffer a certain type of personality. In fact, some of what you and your customer may decide to do may interfere with future restoration, so it pays to have some idea of what’s collectable and what’s not. Become A Member to Continue Reading This Article This article is part of the Articles Online featured on our website for Guild members. To view this and other web articles, join the Guild of American Luthiers. For details, visit the membership page. MEMBERS: login for access or contact us to setup your account.
