Double basses are either roundback (using no bracing) or flatback (using traditional "ladder" bracing or "X" bracing or variants thereof. But neither of these systems appealed to me, I'm not sure why. You can see some traces of the previous traditional lateral bracing system on the back.
So I had a chat to Trevor to bounce some ideas around, and after some thought, this is what I came up with.
I call it the boomerang bracing system and the design concept is "no crossgrain gluing over 45 degrees". Hence the cutaway at the apex of the lower boomerang. The idea is that the back wood (tassie blackwood) should be able to move as it needs in humid or dry conditions without popping a brace due to differential shrinkage, and if there is anything that needs to "give" it will be a side seam which is glued with a weaker hide glue as per usual practice for the top. The centre panel is to support the pressure of the soundpost and distribute this between the braced areas.
The bass is back together and sounding even better than before. Bass response improved noticeably.
Reminds me of the old gag "What do you call a boomerang that doesn't come back?...A stick!"
