Official Luthiers Forum!

Re-installing bracing:


Back on track.


I say all that to say this to the newer builders out there. If you’re on the fence about HHG, don’t be like me and wait 5-6 years to get on the right side of the fence. There’s a bit of a learning curve, some extra stuff to have around the shop etc but when mishaps like these happen HHG saves an awful lot of time on the repair. Had I used Titebond for the bracing I’d probably still be shaping replacement braces right now.


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Need to do a veneer for a sound port and then close up this box:)



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This week has been a treat here in the mountains of Virginia. Yesterday when I went out for lunch I needed to wear a sweater! Last week we hit 90deg on two days.

How are you dealing with the humidity in your shop? I got a mini-split system for my shop and I'll tell ya the thing works absolutely fantastic. There are only a few winter days when it gets close to zero degrees a year that I need to add a heater in the shop but the AC so far has handled any hot days that we've had.

Nice looking guitar, I sure WISH I was in the mountains hahaha. Right now I am running a dehumidifier with a tube that drains under the garage door into the driveway. I'm looking at getting a split unit as well as soon as I have some extra cash. The trouble is that I need more power and I'm not sure how much Southside Electric is going to want to charge to run an underground line to a new meter. In the meantime I've been acclimating to working in an 85 degree shop- not an easy task for a Yankee that moved here from Alaska! It is funny how much better 85 feels at 40% humidity compared to when I walk outside into 85 degrees and 80% humidity. It also helps to work in the middle of the night when it cools off outside. My garage is not well insulated or at least it doesn't seem to be to me. One of these days I need to buy some land and build myself a proper shop.

Winter doesn't bother me at all. I wear shorts in the shop when it's 50 degrees out there. I try not to let it get much colder than that. It does seem to hold heat in better than it holds the cool in. When it does get too cold I use a kerosene heater which quickly gets the temp back up to 70. I also have a couple electric radiant heater units but they cost a fortune to run. A split unit will certainly give me some peace of mind.

Where in VA are you? It would be nice to get together with some other local builders. I've only briefly met a couple of builders mainly to buy tools from.

I'm up in Blacksburg VA. There are a few builders around here too but I've only ever met one. I believe there is a local luthiers group out of Roanoke though.

I got this DIY mini split from Friedrich right before they discontinued it. I have no idea why they stopped making these because they were incredibly slick in design. It's all self contained and all you had to do was install it. It has a special connection fitting for the pre compressed lines that just snaps right to the compressor and off you go. I had a company give me a cost estimate of about $5k for the mini splits, the Friedrich was $1400 and took only a few hours to install and it plugs right into a regular 110 outlet.

There are other options too like those room AC units that just sit on the floor. It's not too hard to dig a line to your shop for more power too. 50 amps covers my needs pretty well.

My panel is right in my shop (garage) I just have enough juice to run everything without tripping half the panel. I have a 100 AMP sub-panel that's running on a 100 amp breaker, which works for now as long as the oven/dryer/etc is not running at the same time as the A/C, Dust collector, Air compressor etc is running off of. Once I get back from deep sea Hatteras in mid July the summer fun is pretty much done and I'll be pouring money back into the shop again.

I've looked at the Lowe's A/C floor units but I don't have a lot of faith that it's actually going to work. Most have so so reviews and my garage is 440 square feet with 12' ceilings.

This is one of the units I've been looking at:
https://www.heatandcool.com/12-000-btu-klimaire-16-seer-ductless-mini-split-inverter-air-conditioner-heat-pump-wifi-enabled-system-with-15-ft-installation-kit-230-volt-7424.html

So, just out of curiosity, what is the humidity in your shop, Joey?

between 40-45% most days. When it rains it gets up to 50% if rain gets in under the door (need to cut a channel in the concrete) and thats when I try to clean/organize i stead of working. The dehumidifier does a good job, its just pricey to run all day everyday.


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Bent my first set of practice sides. Nothing fancy, just mahogany.
Bent the Sapele sides for my first build after.
Went well. Now I'm im trouble.

_________________
Mike

The only thing nescessary for evil to thrive is for good men to do nothing.