Glen-L.com

Couple more shots from todays work. I am gluing up some top woods for the next guitar, redwood and mahogany combo, took a shot of the laquered inside before gluing on the top. Hope it will make it sound good. Soon will find out.

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Dreams are free, Reality cost money.

Man, Jimmy, you are a speed demon! If I could build half as fast as the progress you are making, I'd be a much happier guy! Looking good, keep it up!

The hole on the side is a sound port, a more recent trend in boutique guitars. As a player, you don't get to hear what the audience hears as the guitar projects the sound outwards, away from you. Try playing facing a wall from 2-3 feet away, and you'll understand what I mean. The soundport allows the player to hear a little more of what the audience hears, and it also opens the guitar up a bit. They have done some tests recording the gutiar from different distances, and not seen much difference, but anyone who has added a port has noticed a huge one. Many listeners who have heard the instrument prior also notice a marked difference, and there is a lot of debate as to why.

My opinion, as the guitar vibrates, it creates alternating pressures. The soundboard moves in and out with the frequency of the strings vibrating, this is what you actually hear, not the strings. So in a single vibration, the top compresses, compressing the air in a sound box. Overcoming this pressure robs the top of some of its energy. As the top reverses and moves outwards on the other half of the vibration, it creates a vacuum in the box, which also robs the top of energy. The soundhole can only alleviate that so much. The Sound port allows more free movement of air in and out, allowing the top to convert more energy to sound than to overcoming pressure. You get to hear more of what the guitar actually sounds like, not necessarily louder, but more of the energy sensitive tones. This is partially why my more custom designs have no sound hole in the front, to allow more sound board to contribute the sound, but have two sound holes in the sides, like this:



This soundport really only effects the sound of the guitar out to about 20-30 feet, as research has shown, but its great for the player and the more intimate and unplugged settings. Again, mostly my opinion. Plus, I think they're cool, which means more to me than the debate.

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Ken Hundley
http://www.nocturnalguitars.com

So, my big brother was playing guitar and I figured I'd try it too.
- Stevie Ray Vaughan

I figured that was proably what that was but you are the first person that I have heard making any comments about the sound holes. I have a hard time hearing anyway as my right ear is shot and all I hear in it is rumble noises and more than likely miss a lot of the music. Now if I have my buddy play for me and he is facing me then I can hear the output of the guitar and see how it is projecting. The classic guitar I just built does not have the projection like I want and that maybe from opening the hole to 4" instead of the 3.5" or 3.625... So apparently the hole size really throws the tone down a notch. I have built some classic that really punched and with good clarity but this one is more or less a dud in my opinion. I was thinking of making a insert to reduce the hole size and glue that in place and see what happens. If that would not work then cut the top off and make a new one. I think I used a Bouchette type bracing for the top but I have used other types and had good results. Anyway I need to drag some wood out for the back and sides and see what I got left of the pile and anything half decent to try and use. Another thing I am going to try is making a plywood back and sides guitar but put in a good top as that really is what makes the guitar viberate good.
Another thing is I am retired so I have the time to work on things like this without worrying about going to work someplace else and that feels good for sure.
Jimmy

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Dreams are free, Reality cost money.

Someone once told me that, contrary to popular belief, if you want a louder or more bassy guitar, make the soundhole smaller. That's what started me thinking about no sound hole on the front at all. As far as modifying yours, how about:

http://www.triplecwoodworking.com/index.cfm?view=display&itemCategory=Custom%20Soundhole%20Covers%20and%20Insets

These are more ornate than I would prefer, but you get the idea....how about an insert that is a half-moon...leaves half the sound hole open? Just a thought. If you make it out of spruce, it would be light enough that it wouldn't harm the acoustics from the added mass? One way you can try and see if this woudl work is if you covered part of the sound hole with tape, stretched tight, and see if anythign changes.

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Ken Hundley
http://www.nocturnalguitars.com

So, my big brother was playing guitar and I figured I'd try it too.
- Stevie Ray Vaughan

Got the Zebra wood D Model completed today and strung up. Fixed the action some and it sounds GREAT. I think with the interior epoxied and then given a couple light coats of laquer it really is brilliant sounding. Course I have some dings here and there but the guitar sounds great to me. I only put 3 light coats of the water based laquer finish on it. I used the old 1939 bracing scheme from a D18 Martin and the bracing is somewhat scalloped and I think just enough for it to ring good. This neck has a 1/4x3/8 brass rod embeded in epoxie for truss rod. The neck is a bolt on one that I made myself and the only part that is glued on is the section of the fingerboard over the body. Hope that is all it needs...

Being I had some 3mm boat wood left over I am building a guitar out of that now. So far the body is really light and I think it will be a ringer too. I am going to put a redwood top on it and getting that fixed up so that I can glue that on. So here are some shots.
Now I got to figure out what to do next...I want to build a 2 string bass that is full size but collapseable for bluegrass pickers. Got to put the thinking bucket on for that one.
Jimmy

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Dreams are free, Reality cost money.

WOW!! That is amazing how you craft those magnificent instruments.

Roberta

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Roberta
Built Zip "Oliver IV" and Super Spartan "Jimmy 70"

Man you are fast! Looks great, glad it sounds good too! Funny, you kind of get an idea what its going to sound like as you tune it up, but then you strum that first G.....I still get goosebumps. Best part of the build!

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Ken Hundley
http://www.nocturnalguitars.com

So, my big brother was playing guitar and I figured I'd try it too.
- Stevie Ray Vaughan

Hi All
I got the redwood top gluing up right now so now got to carve me a neck for it too. That is one time consuming job and I always end up with it to thick and then have to do some more scraping down. I just clear coated the inside with on heavy coat of laquer in the ply box and top inside hoping that will help out some. The box seems much lighter than a ordinary box and I suppose due to the wood density and the ply is 3mm all around. It will interesting to see how they will sound. My supply of spruce tops is going bye bye so will have to order some before long if I keep up this pace. I also have some super tight fir that I cut 30 years ago for tops so am going to try those also.
It sure is fun to hear those first few chords come out of the box and you know right then if it is a keeper. Oh my daughter out in Calif might have me a prospective buyer so hoping for the best on that, she wants a classical. So will see what happens and if they got any money which is usually the problem.
Jimmy

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Dreams are free, Reality cost money.

Got some more stuff going right now. I am getting down to the finish part of the Redwood Topped guitar with the marine plywood back and sides. Nothing fancy with that one but just as much work it seems.
I am also building a 2 string Bass box to see how it will sound and play. If no good then it will get trashed I am sure. I have a couple more ideas for the design of the box so this was my first one.

_________________
Dreams are free, Reality cost money.

Okay Mr. Timex, time for any and all updates on you and your projects too.............

The last guitar built will knock your socks off for sound coming out of it. It is LOUD AND CLEAR. I had my young friend who is a pretty good picker and he was blown away with the volume of the guitar. So that got me excited so am now making two more of them.

In the mean time I was making a 2 point mandolin and the top was to weak and caved in so I cut the top off and and then got me some vertical grain red oak and carved a archtop for it and that even turned out great. I had to look at ever damn board Lowes had to find a decent vertical grain on the end but finally got me a 4' piece and cut two pieces and glued them up and the rest is history. So now I am in the process of making another F5 style mandolin. I got the maple for the sides and back and some nice wedge cut spruce for the top. I got the back and top cut out and now need to start the grinding away of the material to get the arches on both of them...The two pointer was made from, Walnut frame and sides, Zebra wood back,
Maple neck, Rosewood fingerboard and points from ebony. The Morphodite if there is one???

In the mean time I bought me two professional molds from LMI for the dreadnaught guitar and one for the Herman Hauser type classic guitar. Laser cut units so they are perfect...

My health is going down hill so the doctor says more than likely I will be on dialysis next year some time so they want to prep my left arm and pull out a artery and vein so I can jab the needles in for the machine. I can use a home unit for the dialysis but has to be used every damn day for 2-3 hours so need to get me and my wife up to speed on the unit before to long. I sure as hell am not looking for that part of my life but guess if I don't want to suffer then I will have to go thru the cleanings.
So with all of that here are some photos.

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Dreams are free, Reality cost money.

Thanks for the update. If you need some help or just want to take a walkabout, we can also go fishing too. The in home dialysis machine is a wonderfull invention and beats going to a regular office. You can do it on your own time without being rushed which seems to be the most stressfull and tiring issue for folks. There are always plus sides to everything and we will be thinking about you. But you are continuing to do exempletory work on the string instruments.

Jimmy, that mandolin is awesome!!!!! You are an amazing Luthier!!!! Maybe we could work something out and you could make one for me.

Roberta

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Roberta
Built Zip "Oliver IV" and Super Spartan "Jimmy 70"

Hi Oyster
Well I am sure hoping the machines are as good as they sound. From reading on the internet about peoples use of the dialysis centers it does not sound like a thing I wanted to do. The treatments 4-5 hours long and then some people saying they had to hang around another hour or two so they could just walk out plus doing that 3 times a week. Why even stay alive if you are nothing but a hose connected to a damn machine.

The dialysis center called me yesterday to set an appointment for the end of July to show me the machine and talk to some users using the machines. Maybe that will get me in a better frame of mind about it all and then can have a few more usefull years of life. Just not my idea of checking out of this world....

So yesterday I started working on the F5 model mandolin which has a carved top and back. I got the top pretty well done and now have to start scooping out the inside of the back. The back is maple so I am sure it will take some extra grinding to get it down to the correct thickness of about .250 in the center and .125 for the outer edges. I also need to start bending the maple sides which are a pain as it likes to crack pretty easy but I will take my time and see if I can do a good job. I will take some photos of the handy work as I move along.
Yesterday was so damn hot I had to quit as my knees were melting off and would not hold me up. I got up early this morn, 5am and got my coffee down and headed for the shop while it is cool enough to enjoy working a bit. Amazing, a person who is retired seems to work more than I did when I was working full time....
Jimmy

_________________
Dreams are free, Reality cost money.

Roberta
I am working on a F5 style right now so think about it....only takes money to get one...
Jimmy

_________________
Dreams are free, Reality cost money.