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I have been asked to build "an acoustic guitar that looks like a Gibson ES-175". Specifically, the same size and shape as the Gibson with Florentine cutaway, f-holes, trapeze tailpiece and archtop bridge. As you probably know, the ES-175 is a pressed laminated "arched" top with a fairly heavy ladder brace that is intended to support the pickups. My guitar will not have pickups and I've come up with the following idea for a top.



It is Lutz spruce, thinned to 0.110 and domed in my 15 foot radius dish. The braces are 5/16 and were radiused at 15 ft - the main idea is have a fairly high arch supported by the X. The small bridge patch is also radiused. Even tho he does not intend to plug in, I'm going to install a K&K soundboard transducer on the bridge patch while the box is open.

The two little braces above the crossing of the X are not glued in - we are going to play the guitar in the white and if it sounds truly terrible I can route a cavity for a neck P90 and install those braces thru the pickup hole for the mounting screws.

So, before I go too much further - does anyone have any comments on this. I've told my customer that it is a complete crap shoot and might sound truly terrible - he is willing to go ahead. I'd just like to hear if anyone has any suggestions at this time. One thought is that I might put some little spruce cleats on the center seam below the bridge patch as prevention against splitting.

Go for it. I am ALL IN for experimentation.

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"Act your age, not your shoe size" - Prince

Your work looks good, I would omit the bridge plate if it were mine. But make sure the bridge feet are over the x.

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Ken

Some discrepency as to whether there will be pickups or not. I think the two small braces (if installed) should be carved down where they meet the x-braces to prevent them from deadening the x-brace.

I am also questioning the need for the upper transverse brace. I don't think it will be needed unless you do cut a hole for a humbucker. You do know that there are floating pickups that don't require a hole, don't you?

Is this going to be a thin-line guitar?

This is an interesting concept. I'm glad you're doing it and I sure hope you will document the entire building process on this one. I agree with Ken McKay about placing the bridge feet over the x-brace members. I built a couple of mandolins with induced arch just like this. On those I arranged the braces so that the bridge adjustment screws were directly over the brace members. Not sure that's necessary--it's just what I chose to do. Your brace looks a little wide for that, but your bridge foot will probably span across. I would use a solid bridge foot. If this were mine, I think I'd install an elevated fingerboard with extension and I'd try to install a suspended pickup on the extension with a tailpin output jack.

I don't think your guitar is going to sound "terrible" at all. I think it'll sound a bit like a hybrid and it'll take a while to reveal its true voice to you and your client. My first induced arch mando is loud, clear and sweet, with a surprising amount of sustain. Of course it's a tiny little body compared to your guitar, but the arching is the same and bracing is very similar. I think you'll be pleasantly surprised with your outcome.