Official Luthiers Forum!

Nice treatment of the cutaway, Dennis.

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Howard Klepper
http://www.klepperguitars.com

When all else fails, clean the shop.

Stunning.

I've ponderd (and cracked a few scrap sides) how precisely to bend this sort of cutaway, which is the only kind that looks 'right' to me on guitars with tapered heels (which I find look nicer). Any tips? Simple hand bending, trial and error?

Thanks, Howard. A compliment from you is a big compliment to me, as I have been a fan of your awesome work for quite a while. (I also enjoy your wit!) The end binding on that compound cutaway was a necessity, as that is an adjustable neck. Credit Grant Goltz for providing the design/engineering example.

And thanks, Mattia. That compound cutaway was bent as a simple cutaway, and was then bamboozled, buffaloed, and bullied into submission in the compound shape. For me, the tricky part was to carve (bandsaw, rasp, sand) the correct corresponding compound curve into the neck block. The rims were glued to the neck block inside a female form, and I "inserted" (pounded) softwood wedges between the form and rim to coax the rim to the neck block's compound shape. (My main mentor) Grant Goltz uses a compound curved male bending form for compound cutaways that is made with two pieces of plywood (one made to the top shape; one made to the back shape) with blocks between and metal flashing spanning the width. That is probably a more reasonable approach than what I did.

Dennis

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Dennis Leahy
Duluth, MN, USA
7th Sense Multimedia

Impressive work!!!
I'll be changing my mantra to: "specializing in factory seconds"

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Greg
http://garibaldiinstruments.com/

Been over three years since an update on this. C'mon, guys, any takers? This was gonna be a library for binding ideas.

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Wes McMillian
Santo, TX
http://www.wesmcmillian.com

And all I wanted to do was a tortoise binding with some extras... No sure anymore that it will be enough to keep you guys happy ;D

I'll keep it going Wes,

Tasmanian blackwood on Cuban Mahogany



Macasser Ebony on Imbuia (sorry for the big picture)



BRW on Tasmanian blackwood

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My Facebook Guitar Page

"There's really no wrong way, as long as the results are what's desired." Charles Fox

"We have to constantly remind ourselves what we're doing....No Luthier is putting a man on the moon!" Harry Fleishman

"Generosity is always different in the eye of the person who didn't receive anything, but who wanted some." Waddy Thomson

A few more recent examples:

African Blackwood and Pink Ivory:



African blackwood binding. Cedar/wenge guitar:



More African blackwood on Honduran rosewood:



African Blackwood on Mahogany/redwood. With mosaic inlay:



Brazilian rosewood on Mahogany:



Curly Mahogany purfling. Brazilian binding on a european spruce top. With matching rosette.

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John Mayes
http://www.mayesluthier.com

This is a great thread. I like dark binding so I can hide the joints. Here's IR on Mahogany.

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It's not what you don't know that hurts you, it's what you do know that's wrong.

Really some beautiful stuff here everyone. Here are a few of mine.

Chris.

Black walnut/curly maple



Quilted mahogany/EIR



Honduras Rosewood/ebony



Honduras Mahogany/maple

Mild curl maple on koa.



Chechen on BRW.




Pat

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formerly known around here as burbank
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http://www.patfosterguitars.com

Here are a couple of mine.

One is macassar ebony binding with maple and black purfling on oak and the other is ebony binding with gonçalo alves and black purfling on tiger myrtle.

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Ken Franklin
clumsy yet persistent
https://www.kenfranklinukulele.com

I can add a few since my first in 2008.

#2 - Lacewood on EIR


#3 - Bloodwood on Bubinga


#4 Bubinga on EIR


#7 EIR on EIR


#8 Another EIR on Spruce and Mad Rose



#9 Bocote on Jacaranda Para.

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Waddy

Photobucket Build Album Library

Sound Clips of most of my guitars

Cellulose, Abalam and Gold.

Chris, did I miss the pic of the Pau Fero and African Mahogany? I would like to see this as I'm considering Pau Fero with Cuban Mahogany.

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Formerly known as Adaboy.......

The world famous..
EIR with curly maple bindings :

So many of you folks exhibit such exquisite craftsmanship that I am forced to choose between two options:
1. Quit, and be depressed (because I really am a fine artist and a designer with a considerable reputation....just not a fine luthier). or.... 2: Be inspired and press on, no matter what.

I choose option #2. I doubt I can ever measure myself against what some of you builders can do, but I am inspired by you. While I wouldn't have personally chosen a few of these combinations for my own instruments, that doesn't matter. I cannot deny the quality of the craftsmanship I am seeing here! Few can.

I'm looking forward to many more posts of achingly beautiful wood combinations and craftsmanly excellence.

My best to all,
Patrick

Howard,
Would you please post more pictures of your incredible guitars!

I too am a big fan of curly koa, but as we have several pictures of koa bound guitars, I'll serve up a couple that are different. First is bookmatched canarywood on spalted mango with bloodwood purfling. The other is lacewood on EIR.

Ken

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http://www.casperguitar.com