Posted on June 6, 2024May 23, 2025 by Dale Phillips Questions: Nontropical Fingerboard Materials Questions: Nontropical Fingerboard Materials by Tom Theil Originally published in American Lutherie #96, 2008 See also, Questions: North American Wood by Mark French, Ned Steinberger, and Alan Carruth Tom Theil from Northwind Tonewood in Upper Sandwich, New Hampshire responds to Larry L.’s question in AL#94 about nontropical materials for fingerboards: As high quality exotic woods are becoming more precious, domestic alternatives become more viable. Fingerboard/bridge material must be hard, abrasion resistant, stable, and of similar pore structure, density, and (usually) color to traditional materials. Since every element of the instrument imparts its sonic signature, and the fingerboard and bridge are close to the vibrating string, their structural and resonance characteristics are quite important. These characteristics are measurable, but very subtle and include stiffness in all three grain directions, mass, and damping factor, plus stability and machinability for frets and inlay. You can select materials which mimic ebony, rosewood, or maple, the traditional woods of preference. Tests might include weight, feel under sandpaper, and the sound when knuckled, scratched, and bounced on its endgrain. Although only marginally scientific, these tests are amazingly accurate due to the ear-brain system’s ability to differentiate subtle information contained in the early onset transient of the sound. If it rings cleanly, it is clean. If it knocks like papier mâché, it’s dead. These characteristics become part of the instrument’s tone. 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 June 6, 2024May 29, 2025 by Dale Phillips Questions: Les Paul Flametop Plans Questions: Les Paul Flametop Plans by Saul Koll Originally published in American Lutherie #70, 2002 David E. Johnson from cyberspace asks: Is it possible to get plans for a 1959–1960 Les Paul Flametop or 1957 Les Paul Custom Black Beauty? Saul Koll of Portland, OR responds: I am aware of plans for a late ’50s Les Paul Custom drawn by Don MacRostie from Stewart MacDonald, part #857 (800-848-2273; www.stewmac.com). I would recommend this to anyone interested in making electric guitars, even for someone who wasn’t particularly interested in making Les Pauls. There are many internal dimensions and construction details that are quite useful. Good luck! ◆
Posted on June 6, 2024May 23, 2025 by Dale Phillips Questions: Ossification of Guitar Soundboards Questions: Ossification of Guitar Soundboards by Benz Tschannen Originally published in American Lutherie #93, 2008 see also, Questions: Ossifying Wood by Rick Rubin Benz Tschannen from the Internet asks: Reading the “Secrets of Stradivari” by Sacconi, I wonder if anyone has experimented with using the “ossification” process described in the varnish chapter on a guitar top and with what results. Benz Tschannen from Fallon, NV provides an update to a question he asked in AL#89 about “ossification” of guitar soundboards: I did some experimenting: Two pieces of spruce and two pieces of cedar, ≈2"×4"×.10", washed one each with a solution of sodium silicate, the other with water. Let dry, then coated with two coats of shellac each. After a year the result is inconclusive. Sometimes the silicate pieces seem higher pitched, sometimes the water washed ones do. The big change is in color: the silicate turns the spruce yellow and the cedar a darker brown. I don’t want to find out what it does to the colors of the rosette, so I am abandoning this quest for now. ◆
Posted on June 6, 2024May 28, 2025 by Dale Phillips Letter: Zimmerman Company Made Old 7-String Guitars Letter to the Editor: Zimmerman Company Made Old 7-String Guitars by Gerhard J. Oldiges Originally published in American Lutherie #78, 2004 Tim, I enjoyed reading Fred Casey’s article about the 7-string “Russian Guitar” and would like to add some information about “Jul. Heinr. Zimmermann, RIGA.” Zimmermann is originally a German wholesale company from Leipzig specializing in dealing with Russia and Eastern Europe. A reprint of a pre-1900 catalog (published 1984) mentions offices in St. Petersburg, Moscow, Riga, and London, and shows all kinds of instruments, including harps from Lyon & Healy, orchestra instruments, lots of plucked instruments, and “7-string guitars, Russian tuning” (p. 34). The guitar shown in this chapter is quite exactly the instrument Fred Casey is writing about. I am not sure if Zimmermann had their own production in Leipzig. Paul de Wit’s World Directory of the Musical Instrument Industry from 1925/26 lists Jul. Heinr. Zimmermann as wholesaler and exporter in Leipzig and a Zimmerman factory in Markneukirchen/Saxony (founded 1919). Although the catalog also shows two photographs of a violin workshop and a brass workshop it also might be possible that Zimmermann bought other instruments like guitars from the makers in Saxony. Anyway, I think that Fred Casey’s guitar was not made in Russia. After reading the Zimmermann catalog and knowing the style of guitars made in Saxony around the turn of the century, it seems obvious to me that this guitar was also, like the other 7-string guitar (with a Zimmermann label), made somewhere in Germany (Leipzig or Markneukirchen) and brought to Russia by Jul. Heinr. Zimmermann. ◆
Posted on June 6, 2024May 23, 2025 by Dale Phillips Questions: Morales Guitar Questions: Morales Guitar by Tatsuo Miyachi Originally published in American Lutherie #93, 2008 Mark Botten from the Internet asks: I have a 12 string acoustic guitar with the brand name Morales. It has a lovely tone and I am trying to find out more about the guitar's heritage. It was made in Japan. The inside marking does not clearly indicate manufacturer. Can you tell me where I can find more info about this guitar? Tatsuo Miyachi from Tokyo, Japan responds: Morales is a brand of Zen-On Music Company Ltd., a large sheet-music publishing company in Japan which also sells a wide range of musical instruments. They still sell steel string guitars under the Morales brand, but I have no idea whether they still manufacture those inexpensive guitars themselves. They also sell Morales guitar strings and picks. 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.
