What, next one already?

[nnickusa]

Even tho I'm not done with my first....I've had a bit of waiting as I needed to order a new bridge blank, given that I can't modify the one I "sculpted", and still have enough meat in it to do what I need....

I have been assigned a rather small space by the missus, and have bought a humidity metre, and a dehumidifier. It's only 3x4 metres, but it'll have to do..

Anyway, I glued up the back and top, and today received the plans for a dreadnaught. Back and sides are blackwood, lightly figured, but quite cheap, along with a rather highly figured neck blank, and the top is cedar(reclaimed). I've never had a cedar top guitar, and am sure that MANY questions will follow in the course of this build....

Here are the blanks, rough sanded and doused with metho...Opinions?

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[woodrat]

Looks like nice Blackwood and Cedar. You said the cedar was reclaimed...where did it get reclaimed (recycled) from? Well done on your first build. If you have already bought a dehumidifier and a hygrometer you have got a serious case of Lutherie addiction. There is no known cure but you will enjoy it

John

[nnickusa]

Thanks John,

yeah Mate, I reckon I'll be trying this for a while. As much as I love vintage guitars, and have been battling GAS for some years now, I also have been seeking a creative outlet that simply restoring old gits doesn't give me. To have a pile of wood, and end up with a guitar.....well, that would do it...The first one, well, that's been a bit of an obsession. Now I'm reaching the end stages, I want to slow down and make it as good as I can..the cedar looks a bit like old furniture, but has a nice tight grain in the centre...eBay'd it--same for the blackwood...

I guess I'd like to try a number of different shapes and sizes, and carving and , well, you know..

I really think the grain on the blackwod suits the shape of a dread, given the waist isn't as narrow as an OM....

Why is it that everyone seems to start with OM's?

Now for a well earned

[Tod Gilding]

Yep as John said, No Known Cure, Your Gone Mate

I thought in the first photo's that it was Western red cedar but with the metho it is obviously Aust Red, Yes ? Could be my monitor

But looking good mate now the fun begins

[Paul B]

That Blackwood looks pretty nice.

Looks like you're hooked too.

[Kim]

Sweet bookmatch and nice rich contrast in that blackwood Nick. I have some beautiful blackwood that is quite similar which was sent to me by our great mate Bob Connor and I am sure it will make a wonderful guitar. Vintage resto is rewarding stuff, but having a blank canvas offers something just as special. I personally see them as two completely different facets of the craft, but both are equally rewarding as they allow you to express your skill in the craft in completely different ways.

Looking forward to seeing what you do with this combo.

Cheers

Kim

[nnickusa]

I agree. I've always enjoyed returning old axes to near as possible original. One day, I'm going to finish this one...I've got all the bits I need, mostly original, in gold to get her back to the way she looked in the beginning....Just need to find a big sheet of pickguard material, as the one on it was badly cut.....

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[Pappy Green]

love blackwood. Hey what dehumidifier did you get. I am in Townsville and humidity is a killer

[nnickusa]

Hey Pappy, I actually bought a Mistral 9000BTU Air Conditioner, which has a dehumidifier function as well....That way I can keep both elements constant.....I am currently working in what will become our ensuite eventually....about 3mx4m.....I'm going to have to re-arrange things as the AC is bigger than I thought....

$175 off eBay. About $600 new....

I've got some time, as I'm at the finishing stage for the first one, and that will involve a degree of waiting at times....

Now, I have some questions for you guys, and as always, thanks in advance for the replies...

I want to make this one out of all Aussie timbers--just because

What I have is the back and sides in blackwood, and the top in Aus cedar(I think), also a blackwood neck blank with high figure. I have a piece of tassie oak, that I'd like to use to make a laminated neck...likely, blackwood, tas oak, blackwood(thin), tas oak, blackwood....

Question one: Any reason Not to use the oak?
Question two: What neck block would you use for this combination? I have Tas Oak on hand, and would that do?
Three: What bracing would you use tor the back and sides? I have some cedar that I can turn into bracing for the top, if that is recommended.

I am looking at options for bindings, fingerboard and bridge.

I have searched around, and thought that lacewood for the bindings and fingerboard would complement nicely. And have read that Mulga looks similar to blackwood, and am considering that for the bridge...

I plan on using black and white purfling, incorporating a herringbone on the front, black and white purfling to complement a "zipper" back strip for the back, and just the binding on the sides. I'm also planning to use a 3-piece herringbone rosette.

I've found sources for all the bits, and including gold tuners and frets(just cause I think gold would work well with the blackwood, I'd be in for around $250, on top of the top, B&S and neck. I'll likely save a good deal onpostage by ordering everything at once , unlike last time

I also touched base with a joinery that I used when I was building, and they have a 900mm Belt sander/thickness sander that for about $30 I can have the top, back and sides thicknessed.

Oh, and this one will be a dreadnaught. Got StewMac plans, which look alot more accurate than the one's I got in Kinkade's book.

Thanks,
Nick

[woodrat]

Hi Nick, Its good to have a nice relationship with the local joinery if they have a wide belt sander. I have a good r'ship with the local one here.
For your bridge....think mass....the mulga would be too heavy....some blackwood at the lower end of its density range would do the trick...

John

[nnickusa]

Thanks John,

What about the top bracing? Should it be cedar, or a stronger timber like pine or spruce?

It seems that rates of expansion and contraction would be closer with cedar, but is it strong enough?

Nick

[jeffhigh]

IMHO cedar is not stiff enough and marginal in strength as bracing for an X braced guitar.
You do not need to worry about matching expansion rates because you are gluing crossgrain anyway and the longitudinal and crossgrain rates are nowhere near each other regardless.
Use Spruce (not Pine)

[woodrat]

IMHO cedar is not stiff enough and marginal in strength as bracing for an X braced guitar.
You do not need to worry about matching expansion rates because you are gluing crossgrain anyway and the longitudinal and crossgrain rates are nowhere near each other regardless.
Use Spruce (not Pine)

I agree with Jeff here I would not use cedar...I presume you are referring to WRC not Australian Red Cedar (which is not a cedar...but neither is WRC for that matter)
Yes use spruce or douglas fir (oregon pine) the old groth stuff that used to come in to the country more than 40 years ago is also good. I tested some recently and it was 9.7 GPa which is about the same as most spruce although it is probably 10 - 15 % heavier maybe. I have used it for bracing on almost all of my guitars....but it definitely has to be the old growth stuff...not the NZ plantation oregon.

John