Posted on July 7, 2024July 9, 2024 by Dale Phillips Questions: Gluing in India Questions: Gluing in India by Dale Zimmerman Originally published in American Lutherie #103, 2010 George Mathai from Kerala, India asks: My friend is a luthier based in the southern state of India, Kerala. For gluing the various parts and braces for his guitars and violins he uses Franklin Titebond glue and Behlen ground hide glue. However, in one of his custom-made flamenco guitars, a rattling sound brought the guitar back to the shop. One of the right fan braces had come off a bit and this was causing the rattling. For that guitar he had used the hide glue to glue the braces on. Kerala is well within the humid equatorial tropics and perhaps the humidity affected the gluing. What is the best glue that can be used to withstand high humidity? Dale Zimmerman from Franklin International in Columbus, Ohio responds: Hide glues such as our ready-to-use Titebond Liquid Hide Glue and most hot-pot hide glues are, and remain, quite sensitive to moisture. That affinity for moisture means that they tend to absorb water when exposed to high humidity or damp conditions, and that increase in moisture causes them to swell and weaken. Bonds that are not subject to stress may show little effect, as the glue loses that moisture and regains its strength as it returns to its original dry state. Where the bond is under stress, however, that stress is likely to cause some opening of the joint while the glue is softened. Ultimately then, the amount of change in a bond over time will be influenced by the concentration and duration of the moisture to which it is exposed and the stress, both inherent in the bond and that created as the wood involved changes in dimension in response to those changes in moisture content. That means that hide glues are generally considered a poor choice for bonds that are likely to be exposed to particularly humid conditions, especially those that are expected to be under meaningful stress. For such situations, yellow glues, which show little effect from dampness or elevated humidity are a decidedly better choice. ◆
Posted on July 7, 2024July 9, 2024 by Dale Phillips Questions: Nut Width Questions: Nut Width by Bob Pittman Originally published in American Lutherie #102, 2010 Rand Nooteboom from Haiku, Hawaii asks: Nut width varies from one instrument to the next and so does placement of the outside strings. What is the most reliable method of evenly spacing the remaining strings? Not just marking placement, but also accurately cutting the slots. Bob Pittman from Brookline, Massachusetts responds: For marking the spacing, I use the Stew Mac string spacing ruler (www.stewmac.com/shop/Tools/Measuring_tools/String_Spacing_Rule.html) and a .7MM pencil. The pencil is very fine and fits in the spacing ruler slots. The ruler does proportional spacing and I’ve never had a single customer complaint. I start with a nut cut square on all sides and sanded to 400 grit. I cut it to width and fit it into the nut slot. The outside strings are marked, then the nut is put in my nut vise, a Parrot vise with panels cut to 45° on the top edges so I can get at the nut. I mark the remaining slots with the string-spacing ruler and the pencil. With a 3" machinist’s square, I butt the edge up to the back of the nut next to a string mark. I use an X-acto saw and mark the top of the nut on top of the string line. (I think a Japanese-style saw would be perfect for this since it cuts on the back stroke, but I haven’t gotten around to buying one small enough.) I make sure the saw is perpendicular to the nut and flush against the square. With very light pressure, the slots are cut about 1mm deep. I put the nut back in the guitar, and nut files are used to finish off the slots. After that, I remove the nut, shape it on my sander, polish it with Micro-mesh up to 12,000, put it back on the guitar, and the guitar is ready to string up. ◆
Posted on July 7, 2024October 1, 2024 by Dale Phillips It Worked for Me: Low Cost Emergency Lathe It Worked for Me: Low Cost Emergency Lathe by Gerhart Schmeltekopf Originally published in American Lutherie #29, 1992 and Big Red Book of American Lutherie Volume Three, 2004 Most luthiers probably don’t have wood lathes, so I submit this low-cost, emergency lathe setup for the times you might want to make a music stand, washtub bass, or baseball bat for the local luthiers’ picnic. I bought commercial turnings to make a student harpsichord stand. They were “sanded and ready to finish,” so I knew that they would need to be sanded before finishing. They are too long for my lathe, so I rigged this temporary reciprocating or “pole” lathe to spin them and sand them. 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. Members also receive 3 annual issues of American Lutherie and get discounts on products. For details, visit the membership page. MEMBERS: login for access or contact us to setup your account.
Posted on July 7, 2024October 2, 2024 by Dale Phillips Questions: Unified Repair Pricing Questions: Unified Repair Pricing Originally published in American Lutherie #25, 1991 John Kitakis from Hendersonville, NC writes: I’ve enjoyed toying with the idea of unified repair pricing throughout North America. To me, it seems unprofessional to have a wide variety of charges for the same repair. I suppose everyone has different needs and wants, and overheads vary, so this “discrepancy” may never be resolved. The repairman down the road (who says he doesn’t need much) will continue to charge $100 for a fret job, and $20 to reglue the bridge. I continue to have plenty of business, so I’ll continue to charge more. Below is a list of a few prices. My complete list is available upon request. 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. Members also receive 3 annual issues of American Lutherie and get discounts on products. For details, visit the membership page. MEMBERS: login for access or contact us to setup your account.
Posted on July 7, 2024October 2, 2024 by Dale Phillips Letter: Making a Living as a Luthier Letter: Making a Living as a Luthier by Bob Benedetto Originally published in American Lutherie #3, 1985 and Big Red Book of American Lutherie, Volume One, 2000 Dear GAL Staff and Members, I have been a Guild member for about ten years and always felt it to be a very worthwhile organization. No doubt, it is the single most important thing that has ever happened to our fine craft. Guild members have, by means of the Quarterly, supplied me with invaluable information and continue to do so. I would like to touch upon a point that concerns us all: making a living as a luthier. It’s a subject we all like to discuss at times and, of course, must concern ourselves with. I have had the pleasure of meeting many makers, repairpeople, and restorers over the years. Some make money and some don’t. Why do some of us succeed while others fail? The reasons I have found to be both consistent and predictable. 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. Members also receive 3 annual issues of American Lutherie and get discounts on products. For details, visit the membership page. MEMBERS: login for access or contact us to setup your account.
