Posted on January 12, 2010May 29, 2025 by Dale Phillips Review: The Art of Violin Making by Chris Johnson and Roy Courtnall Review: The Art of Violin Making by Chris Johnson and Roy Courtnall Reviewed by Michael Darnton Originally published in American Lutherie #64, 2000 and Big Red Book of American Lutherie Volume Six, 2013 The Art of Violin Making Chris Johnson and Roy Courtnall Robert Hale, 1999 ISBN 978-0709058762 When I first received my copy of the Johnson and Courtnall book Art of Violin Making I found it relatively complete, but for some reason irritating. I put it away and didn’t look at again for months. Now, going back much later for this review, its strengths and weaknesses are much more apparent to me. As a publishing effort, it’s first rate, and by far the best-written and most copiously illustrated violin-making book ever. Each section is well illustrated with many drawings and easy-to-read photographs. Considering the information it contains, the price is low for a violin book of any sort. 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 January 12, 2010May 30, 2025 by Dale Phillips Review: The Player’s Guide to Guitar Maintenance by Dave Burrluck Review: The Player's Guide to Guitar Maintenance by Dave Burrluck Reviewed by Dave Zogg Originally published in American Lutherie #61, 2000 and Big Red Book of American Lutherie Volume Six, 2013 The Player’s Guide to Guitar Maintenance Dave Burrluck Miller Freeman Books, 1998 ISBN 978-0879305499 The Player’s Guide to Guitar Maintenance, by Dave Burrluck, is 84 slick, glossy pages of color photos and useful information and tips on electric guitar maintenance and setup. This hardcover book format has almost a coffee-table style and quality, especially the photographs of the instruments. The style and layout are somewhat similar to other published books of guitar collections, but integrated with useful technical and repair information. The press release boasts there are more than 200 (color) photographs in this book, and I don’t doubt it. Though the information contained in this book specifically focuses on the Fender Strat and the Gibson Les Paul, much of the information contained is generic and can be applied to other instruments as well. The author often takes the time to explain the “why” as well as the “what” of repairs and adjustments. The photos, drawings, and explanations are clear and helpful. 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 January 12, 2010May 29, 2025 by Dale Phillips Review: Archtop Guitar Master Class Series Part 1: Focusing on Bridges and Tailpieces by Bob Benedetto Review: Archtop Guitar Master Class Series Part 1: Focusing on Bridges and Tailpieces by Bob Benedetto Reviewed by John Calkin Originally published in American Lutherie #64, 2000 and Big Red Book of American Lutherie Volume Six, 2013 Video: Archtop Guitar Master Class Series Part 1: Focusing on Bridges and Tailpieces Bob Benedetto, 1999 As a hard-core advocate of video learning, I wish I could give this tape the hearty recommendation I gave to Benedetto’s multi-tape series about archtop construction. I’d like to confess that I’m not a builder of archtops, nor do I intend to become one, so it’s likely that I’m not the best judge of advanced information about the subject. It seems to me, however, that there just isn’t $40 worth of information here. There’s an unwritten rule that a reviewer should never divulge so much that the reader feels justified in not making a purchase, but just for one time I’m going to violate that rule. Here’s the gist of this video: First, the break angle of the strings as they pass over the bridge has nothing to do with the tension of the playing length of the string, nor does the length of the string between the bridge and the tailpiece. Second, the standard Gibson-style adjustable bridge is the appropriate one for the archtop guitar, and any change to its footprint or the adjustment mechanism is bound to have an adverse effect upon the tone and/or volume of the guitar. Third, metal tailpieces by their very nature damage the tone of archtop guitars. Why are these things true? They just are, that’s all. The video isn’t much more specific than that. 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 January 12, 2010May 29, 2025 by Dale Phillips Review: Northumbria Tuning Gears Review: Northumbria Tuning Gears Reviewed by Gary Southwell Originally published in American Lutherie #63, 2000 and Big Red Book of American Lutherie Volume Six, 2013 Northumbria Tuning Gears Doug Blake and Alan Robson www.robsontuners.com For most of us guitar makers, the only items on our instruments we do not make ourselves are the tuners. So it is an important choice for us to find something that complements our own work both in performance and aesthetics, and all at a price with which we or our clients feel comfortable. Whilst there is a plethora of cheaper massed-produced tuners, for many years there has been very little choice in the high-quality handmade range, Rodgers being regarded by many as setting the standard. So I was interested when about a year ago, Doug Blake and Alan Robson (who are Northumbria Tuning Machines) visited me with a prototype tuner they had been working on. With Doug being an experienced precision engineer and Alan a serious guitar enthusiast and amateur guitar maker, they promised to make a good team. The prototype itself had excellent styling, closely based on the Landstorfer model. It had simple, elegant plates with sharp detailed outlines, and (like the originals) no engraving, complemented by simple waisted shafts fitted with beautifully hand-turned ebony buttons that felt wonderful. I was less impressed with the inconsistent feel of the mechanism over the six strings. Also they generally felt too loose and sloppy, and not quite smooth enough. To their credit Doug and Alan took these criticisms away (with other people’s comments no doubt), and, over the span of a year, improved the feel and consistency to a point that today I consider them to be amongst the best tuners available. 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 January 12, 2010May 29, 2025 by Dale Phillips Review: Custom Knifemaking by Tim McCreight Review: Custom Knifemaking by Tim McCreight Reviewed by John Calkin Originally published in American Lutherie #66, 2001 and Big Red Book of American Lutherie Volume Six, 2013 Custom Knifemaking Tim McCreight Stackpole Books, 1985 ISBN 978-0811721752 “So what’s this book doing in AL?” I hear you ask. Well, books directly pertaining to lutherie don’t come along every day, so I’ve been scouting the terrain for volumes that overlap our favorite subject. Toolmaking is a tantalizing excuse to delay any of the less-appetizing aspects of instrument building, and knives certainly qualify as tools. What’s more, once you can make a knife, you are prepared to make specialty plane irons, spokeshave blades, and perhaps small flat chisels. The steel-shaping and tempering processes described in this book will work for any project involving flat stock. There are two basic methods of making a knife: forging, and stock removal. Forging involves heating the steel chunk of your choice to red hot and beating it into the shape of your desire. Stock removal begins with flat steel the thickness of the finished blade. The blade is cut to shape with a torch or saw and then ground to a knife edge. If this sounds like work beyond the scope of your ambitions, please hang in there. McCreight will make this work for you. 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.
