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I posted a message on MIMF but I'm going to post here as well since I'm so impatient. I was getting ready to bind the top and noticed that the notches or slots I cut into the sides to accept the brace ends of the top were not going to be completely covered by the binding. So, I used my random orbital sander to thin the outer perimeter since I'd left the top a little on the thick side anyway. Everything was going fine until all of the sudden there appears a tiny little pitch pocket in the upper bout, next to the soundhole. In hindsight, I should have let it be. The guy I'm building it for probably wouldn't have minded it at all. But the top was such a pretty piece of bearclaw spruce, it bothered me to leave it. I took an inspection mirror and checked the inside of the guitar and the pitch pocket or pin knot didn't run all the way through, so I set about sanding it out. Needless to say, it took a lot more sanding than I expected and I now have a spot in the upper bout between the upper part of the x brace and the finger braces which runs anywhere from .07" to .08" - maybe even thinner. So my question is, did I totally ruin the top? Fortunately, it is in the upper bout and not around the bridge and everything seems to be braced pretty well, but did I structurally compromise the top? Should I go in and place a couple more finger braces in the area or just leave it be? Thanks for your help.

It should be fine. Some of my tops run that thin.

Let me know if you post this question on any other forum so I can answer it there too. Ha!

I would have considered changing the size of the binding/purfling to cover the problem.

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"Building guitars looks hard, but it's actually much harder than it looks." Tom Buck

I agree, but hindsight is 20/20. I had no idea that a pitch pocket was a mere 1/100th of an inch under the surface.

I wouldn't worry about the top, in the area you're describing. Hindsight is 20/20. You can usually see a pitch pocket(or pin knot) pre build by holding the top up to a bright light and looking through it. If I can't get the bad spot in the soundhole, under the fingerboard, or out of the pattern I'll use another top.

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I didn't mean to say it, but I meant what I said.
http://www.brackettinstruments.com/

Time for some custom inlay methinks!

Dave F.

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Cambrian Guitars

"There goes Mister Tic-Tac out the back with some bric-brac from the knick-knack rack"

I make my notch with a Dremel through only the lining, not through the sides to avoid this. I know this only helps you with your next build. Sorry this happened to you.
Michael