View Poll Results: 1st Build Floater Suggestions
- Voters
- 25. You may not vote on this poll
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KA Handwound 12-pole PAF humbucker
15 60.00% -
Zoller AZ-48
5 20.00% -
Biltoft Dual Blade Humbucker
5 20.00%
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I am blown away by this series of photos. Thank you for sharing your progress with us!
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03-04-2020 10:06 PM
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Originally Posted by rlrhett
Last edited by Matt Cushman; 03-05-2020 at 02:25 PM.
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I bought the first edition of Robert Benedetto's "Build an Archtop Guitar"; it sat on the shelf; I bought the 2nd edition and the DVD set and started in earnest October 2019.
I found your posts about your build process invaluable and am grateful for your generosity in sharing.
I am considering starting a similar series. Any advice for another First-timer Archtop builder?
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Originally Posted by tomlamson
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Originally Posted by tomlamson
Thanks for dropping a line.
1. I'd say that taking each little stage as it's own woodworking project helps as mental stepping stones, because this whole thing has a LOT of steps. I'm pretty impatient, so maybe it's just me, but that helped.
2. I also realized that there are lots of ways of doing things.. each builder has her or his own preference.. whether it be order of operations, way of doing something, etc., so think out each step on how (by hand vs. machine, drill press vs. hand drill, saw vs. table saw, jig vs. no jig, etc) it'll be best for you and your skills to tackle it.
3. It's beneficial (although it takes longer) to do a practice piece or 2 during the steps you find necessary as to not screw up the actual piece.
4. Be flexible with mistakes - it's not if - it's when, unfortunately. It's really all learning- no expectations except trying to make it come together at the end.
5. Have fun with it - it's easy to get stressed if you take it too seriously. It's just a wood project. I mean, take it seriously, but not TOO seriously. Can't imagine being a full-time luthier! Scary. Even if it falls apart or breaks, it can make some cool wall art!
Hope those generalities help.
And definitely start the blog!
Oh, and the right tools definitely make a difference.Last edited by sbeishline; 03-28-2020 at 03:02 PM.
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Hey all - finally got to the end of the French polishing process and figured I'd post some pix of my guitar's current state (pre-pickguard/pickup electrification).
I did Tom Bill's The Art of French Polishing course on his Luthier's Edge website for the process, which went along these lines:
Shellac-only seal coats x 2
Shellac/alcohol with pumice coats x 3
Shellac/alcohol with EVOO x 1
Shellac+walnut oil/alcohol with EVOO x 10
Level sand with 1000 grit (dry)
Shellac+walnut oil/alcohol with EVOO x 8
Smooth sand with 3600 grit micromesh (with EVOO/mineral spirits)
Shellac+walnut oil/alcohol with EVOO x 3
I had planned to do a buff coat using Novus #2, but I'm happy with the smoothness/shine as it is now, and I think I may skip this part.
Here she be:
Next step will be to stringing it up and see how she sounds acoustically.
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Oh my that baby is turning out to be quite lovely!
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That looks really nice ! The finish has so much depth, amazing ... tell me please : how does the "fiddle edge" of the top and back plates feel on your thigh and on your playing arm ?
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Originally Posted by gitman
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Well, it's been a bit since I've dropped a line in here, but last night I completed the last step in my archtop build journey and finished the electronics (KA floating 12-pole PAF/Schatten thumbwheel controls) and got the guitar cleaned up and restrung. Almost 2 full years (with baby in the middle causing long periods of work intermission).
I played with the guitar acoustically for a while and noticed some buzzing. I also note that some of the frets weren't seated well (after the humidity changes, maybe?) and decided I needed to re-glue them. I did that a few weeks back and then re-leveled and crowned all the frets, which fixed the buzz issues.
When I restrung, I forgot to place the tailpiece cord around the endpin jack itself and leave the end jack available for a strap. Although, I haven't drilled the hole for the strap on the body yet, so I guess I'll plan to sit while playing for a while until I'm gonna restring again.
Making a wooden pick guard is easy. Making mounting block is pretty straight forward, too. Epoxying it in an appropriate place.. eh, little annoying, but not too bad. Getting the pickup aligned and in the right place on the neck and under the strings... NOT EASY!! Takes patience and a lot of tedious adjusting and refitting, etc. In the end, I'm happy with it's location and glad that's over. Haha
Got to experiment with soldering and electronics, which was fun to do and learn. I did a sloppy job on the endpin jack (glob of solder on the pin (hot) dripped and was touching the ground causing a short). If you don't have a solder sucker/wick, it's a pain in the tush to fix.
The sound acoustically is fairly full and loud, and projects well. Sometimes too loud for a sleeping baby, from what my wife says. I haven't really experimented too much plugged in and different volumes, but it sounds like I hoped it would from the beginning. Certainly doesn't make me think "boxy" or dead or flat. I'll have to record something some time and addendum it in the thread.
At any rate, here's the final showing:
Oh geez - I almost forgot to mention during the "acoustic period" my first tailpiece had a crack from the stress of the string tension where I had one of the holes drilled for the tailpiece cord. The temperature must have dropped one night and it cracked. I found the guitar with the tailpiece/bridge on the floor and the strings hanging off. I took me 4 attempts to make a new one because the ebony pieces kept cracking when I was drilling the holes for the strings. 4th try is a charm. That is all.
Thanks!
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That is one gorgeous git! Even if it sounded like crap I'd be proud to have made it!
Looking forward to getting to hear it soon.
Sent from my SM-G960U using Tapatalk
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Oh my goodness that thing is just stunning! Thank you for sharing it with us!
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Nice build! Congratulations, and play it in good health!
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Beautiful instrument. Congrats! Here's the one that I built using the Robert Benedetto "Archtop Guitar Design and Construction" Book and DVD set.
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Originally Posted by tomlamson
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Originally Posted by tomlamson
S
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Hey, you built an arch top! Give yourself a huge pat on the back!
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Thank! I have to say that I referred to your, and countless other, internet posts of descriptions of trials and tribulations that helped me along!
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Originally Posted by tomlamson
HeadRush?
Today, 11:54 AM in Guitar, Amps & Gizmos