Australian/New Zealand Luthiers Forum

Hi Matt, welcome to the forum. Like yourself I took many years of playing before I made the jump to building my own guitars. I've now built 13, (mostly electrics) and #14 will be started soon, an archtop this time. I also found the Kinkead book to be the most useful of the many guitar build books I ...

Thanks Paul, I'll give them a visit. I'm over that way now and then at Beyond Tools.
Cheers.

Hi Paul, Are you buying the Miratone from a Perth supplier? Who would that be? I was using Hichem on my solid electrics, previously available from Carbatec. The Hichem was available in 100% or 60% gloss and I mixed to personal taste. They don't stock it anymore but in any event I'd prefer to follow ...

There was a TV program many years ago on Australian violin makers, on ABC or SBS, and I seem to recall Harry Vatillioso hanging either the top or back plates on his washing line. I think the program was called "The Box That Sings", about 15 years go. I think? I don't recall the purpose of the hangin...

Thanks Rod,
Its a sad attitude, but that's probably what sends me to StewMac most of the time.
BTW, its your builds that have inspired me to attempt an archtop.

Thanks Francis,
That's who supplied my plans. So you've built an offset jazzbox?
Like I said, if I can't get accurate ones, I can just use half their plans and mirror that half.
Sadly, my draughting skills are better than my guitar building skills.
Cheers.

Does anyone know where I can purchase accurate Gibson ES 175 plans? I got some plans (L 5, ES 335 and ES 175) from a Queensland supplier for Christmas but the 175 dimensions seem to be fairly arbitrary, eg, flipping a traced drawing over shows the neck off centre and the 2 halves have completely dif...

Its interesting to note that we all expect our wives to outlive us !!!

Great repair job, thanks for sharing. I learn a lot from visual tips.

WOW! It looks like Mark McLean has been using your linisher Steve.

I recently visited a luthier who used hard shellac on a guitar he made ten years ago...the finish is crazed badly-something going on with the finish or the way it was applied. Has anyone had experience with this issue? I had the very same problem on my first few guitars. I only sanded and re-finish...

I think the fretboard finish is really down to personal taste. I still haven't worn through the finish on my 38 year old Strat! I've lacquered a couple of fretboards, Jarrah and Sheoak on electrics, just because I prefer the look. I've also oiled the same woods on other builds. I had a 'show-and-tel...

The coobah is brittle stuff to work with but I managed to pull it off in the end.

Why did you pull it off? I thought it looked great.

Send me Perry!

I've only built one bass, the "Telecision Bass", my take on Fender's slab body '51 Precision/Telecaster reissue but with PJ pickups & electrics. The body is Cape Lilac with a Fiddlewood neck and Sheoak fretboard, all grown locally to Perth. I love the sound of this bass. It's exactly what I wanted b...

Kamusur wrote:Stuff the Hare n Forbes i want the piece of Blackwood

Steve

Nah, buy the machine; you feed celery top pine into it and out comes the beautiful figured blackwood!

I'm with Steve on the Carbatec experience. If they don't have it in store I go elsewhere. Shame really, as I like the guys who run the place.

That is just beautiful.......I love it! Great work.

kiwigeo wrote:Don't muck around....get to work with one of these babies. Its an 12-1/4" PDC bit....cuts through rock like it's butter

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I saw one of them on the back of a truck yesterday; looks like someone's doing some fine inlay work up in the Pilbara!

Thanks for the very helpful photos, I'll try to knock up some type of holding tool. I did try to jamb a screwdriver (that's what they're for isn't it?) and also a small clamp in at various times with limited success.
Cheers.

Thanks for all the helpful replies. I did go out and put on another strip and that held long enough to get the job done. Although I couldn't have had it tight enough because it slipped and overlapped so I had to re-tension it. I cut that last strip about an inch longer and that seemed to help. But t...

I bought a new Carbatec 400 mm drum sander a couple of years ago which is the cause of much frustration! It seems to be a single use machine which at around $900 is a bit pricey: when the paper's done you buy a new machine! The problem is changing the sandpaper; its a total pig of a job. I don't use...

I made the top of this "Harlequaster", Tele Thinline from off-cuts of Flame maple (from LP tops), Burl Sheoak (from LP Junior top, which was from off-cuts from a dining table) and American Cherry (from a Resonator build).

'Artist' it is then; many thanks for the help.

I know there are a few members who built an OM sized acoustic using the Jonathon Kinkeade book, so can anyone tell me where I can get a reasonable priced hard case to accommodate my guitar?
Thanks.