Australian/New Zealand Luthiers Forum

A week to get stuff from the US to Australia.....while good old Aussie Post takes a couple of weeks to get stuff across the country. Re Australia post: I just sent a hand made wooden spoon to my daughter: $8.50! Plus one jar of marmalaide (I shouldn't have mentioned to her that I had made some, as ...

Have a look at posts by Craig Bumgarner re the Selmer builds-there is some data there... Also, the neck angle is critical for tone, the recommended bridge height is 18mm. I re curved braces no1 and no2 in order to get the neck angle and a smooth lengthways soundboard curve past the soundhole to the ...

As an aside I can tell you that I faced a very similar problem recently. I made a falcate braced 7-string multiscale fan-fret thing. The placement of the braces and the bridge was tricky. I thought I had worked it all out perfectly, got the bridge and saddle in the right locations, and fitted the p...

Hi Frank..I can only speak of my own motivation. As the Indian Sufi poet Kabir wrote "If you haven't lived it, it isn't real". So there is a difference between living and thinking, and a huge difference between thinking and knowing. Knowing is experiential. Whereas, imagining is dreaming, conceptual...

When camping in the hot Queensland sun a few years ago, I erected a tarpaulin over my tent with about a one foot air gap between the tarp and the tent roof. The temperature with the tarp had dropped around 20 degrees at mid day when compared to the day before with no shade from the tarp. So containe...

Are you letting the lattice ends into the sides? Are you letting the X braces into the sides?
-Ross

Trevor, that was a great phone conversation! Very informative for a start. Thank you for your generosity! I haven't called you back to report as I have been unwell. I was initially spooked by a Gibson, which retails for around $6000. I couldn't understand the taps I was getting on VA but suffice to ...

I met Flamenco master Paco Pena in Melbourne years ago. His fingernails were all reinforced with layer upon later of hide glue! Needless to say that it wasn't a good look! I had a girlfriend who swore by soaking her fingernails each night for half an hour in Apple Cider Vinegar...well, we didn't las...

Excellent! All the best-Ross

Has anyone tried spraying the old hard nitro with nitro lacquer thinners in order to soften it up before scraping? I have a guitar that I sprayed a year ago and the lacquer on the sides has aged to the point of having fine cracks in it. I'm thinking of trying a pure lacquer spray to see if it "melts...

Thinking outside the box, that idea could have been done with a single backing plate with two holes in it, a loop of string and a tapered wooden wedge on the soundboard-or perhaps some kind of take on a windlass with a hollowed block of wood on the outside, or even a tapered violin style or flamenco...

What is your bridge and fingerboard timber? It looks like ringed Gidgee. I relate to having an enforced break from building, in my case due to a combination of rats in my dehumidifier and my personal health issues. It has been hard for me to get myself back into the "zone" when building, after such ...

I wish I had access to a commercial paint booth! Particularly at this time of year, winter in NE Victorian mountains. I can see the snow on the mountains from my house! Spraying is best done at a higher temperature than 20 degrees Celsius, at low relative humidity with the instrument directly out of...

You Tube lost wax casting methods. Cheers! Ross

Mike Thomas wrote: Ross, have you had any issues with nail polish shrinking/sinking over time as the solvents evaporate? I was wary of using it for that reason, but my concern may have been unfounded. Didn't shrink Mike, but my method is to give several light coats of polish with about a week to off...

These guys might help also:https://www.luthierdecals.com/index.php/album/album-2, depending on what you have in mind...there are lots of companies in the US doing all sorts of work...cheers!Ross

Mike Thomas, I found the el cheapo nail polish gave a better result than the pigment which I tried first.The gold nail polish is shinier! Cheaper too! Cheers! Ross

Personally I prefer shell because it catches the light on stage and looks really nice. I have also had success with having a trophy engraver who uses a laser cut to engrave the headstock veneer prior to gluing the veneer in place. I have used el cheapo chemist warehouse gold nitrocellulose nailpolis...

I hope your apres ski was playing the guitar!!!!-Ross

I never thought of researching this film but have at last done so and ordered a copy for myself..a must see for Aus and NZ luthiers. I first viewed it at the Luthiers convention where it was shown at the Abbotsford convent in Melbourne...buy the film and support all those people who had the vision t...

The Quantas model...an all Aussie invention! By an Irishman and some Career politicians....Next time I visit NZ I'll go there by Maori war canoe....probably cheaper and faster for a start! :mrgreen: Since I have your attention Martin, is there a possibility of an extra forum where luthiers can post ...

Well, if I had to test a post, it would depend on it's intended use, eg termite proof and would not rot in the ground as a gatepost...ha ha..I actually had tickets to see George Benson but Covid shut the concert down...so the promoters eventually had to legally return the money, but have made that a...

I'm not in Sydney but felt like posting this info for anyone who has a similar log to dry. The info was published in the book "Understanding Wood" by Bruce Hoadley. Basically, while one is searching for a resaw facility, the wood is drying somewhat anyway. So for those on this forum who don't know t...

Kiwgeo wrote: Sharp tools are better than sex! Err...At my age I can't even remember what a gig feels like, let alone sex...btw, what is that? On a serious note, here is something interesting, also interesting to note the idea/observation that the gut frets create open strings for every note as do m...

Just remember this: ENVIRONMENT INFLUENCES EVOLUTION...DO YOU GET BUSHFIRES THERE?
With kind regards, Ross