Australian/New Zealand Luthiers Forum

Following this thread, with all its drama and jeopardy, its emotion, its beauty! I am inspired to take on a falcate build as soon as possible! It's like building one my self now, following all this. Can't wait till it's strung up! The tension is killing me! It's a cliff hanger!!! Better than SBS lat...

A machine made in Taiwan would most likely source standard geared DC motors that were used by other manufacturers. DC motors are used for electronic speed control because they are more accurate and provide high torque. You need to work out the control voltage that is coming out of the control board,...

Does AR refer to aliphatic resin glue? Great that the thread has helped with the KB stiffness issue via Trevor's generous input as usual. A lesson there for all of us re testing. Did you use the methods in the book to test your soundboard first in order to find the optimum thickness? What soundboard...

Great comments! Great thread...I agree with all Craig's comments re the service that your posts and others have done to everyone's collective learning experience. I would add that redoing any aspect of a mistake also improves our repair and restoration skills. Also great thanks to Craig for his Selm...

I agree, I have the books...don't fully understand them yet as I haven't spent lots of time applying the ideas yet, but getting right into it, time permitting. I'll have to change my username,Martin, it's actually Ross, Alexander is my middle name....Don't mind either really.

"Standardising the X scale is easy enough but the Y scale will be an issue as SPL's are highly variable...even on seperate runs on the same guitar"
Maybe we need to standardise a hammer for the tapping!!!

I have no idea how to do the spreadsheet dance! It would be lovely to see a tutorial re the subject on this forum, if someone has the inclination. Including any ways to load the data from VA. One that covers open office spreadsheet would be handy too, not just Excel. I have open office, but couldn't...

"Modifying braces is not an option as top braces have CF on top of them. Adding side weights will drop main top resonance....I want to go the other way." -I was referring to your post where you said you were thinking of stiffening the back. Those braces are not CF...How about some brain surgery wher...

I have a suggestion, it might not be so important, but why don't we all use some kind of standard for the x and y axis with our frequency graphs when comparing the basic resonances? For example, I suggest 50Hz to 1000Hz for the x axis, and the y could also be set up in a standard way so that the pea...

Assuming from the photo that this is without the bridge and side mass? If so, I would be experimenting with double sided tape and mass added to the bridge area and sides before modifying braces...Then make a bridge of the weight that works, temporarily glue with weak hide glue or gelatin if I wanted...

Here is a summary of "ideal" resonances and the parameters that can be changed and which ones influence each other.
See Alan Lloyd's website for more:https://alanlloydguitars.wordpress.com/ ... acoustics/

Wade, you can buy large sheets of high quality sandpaper from floor sanding suppliers, in all sorts of sizes.

I use a piece of cardboard, folded down the middle so I can slip it into the hole easily then unfold.First, I stuff one of the blocks of foam rubber that I use to sit the guitar on for tea leaf reading! Santa might be malting, but my spare mattress keeps shrinking!

Are you worried that the 175 might be a little low? Should sound nice for a four string!

Another thought I have regarding the use of the nail polish. I think a good look might be achieved by painting a large laser or dremel cut area with the nail polish, filling with casting resin , sanding flush then applying lacquer in the usual way over the lot.There would be a depth to the "inlay" i...

Here is an interesting article for the electric builders who haven't come across it. Please post any other info/links that you feel will add to this resource! http://www.buildyourguitar.com/resources/lemme/ Here is another article in .pdf format https://www.google.com.au/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&sou...

Roscoe here...Alexander is my middle name...

Just thinking back to what I did on that Claro headstock, scraping is better, the nail polish has something in it to stop it from being brittle, the scraper worked better, the down side is the drying time to get it to where the sanding or scraping works best. Sanding leave gold "dust" in any voids t...

routout wrote:Thank's I'v used some weird stuff but the polish is a great idea.

-You must be a child of the late sixties, early seventies- we all used weird stuff back then!!!

Yes. The process was on a headstock of Claro Walnut. I grain filled around the inlay as best I could without filling the engraving, which was quite deep, and applied nitro sanding sealer,cleaned the engraving up with a needle then applied the nail polish. It needs to fully harden, takes a day or two...

It's the simplest and best I have found. Didn't tell the whole story of the other things I have tried, but it's the bees knees!

Mike Thomas created this Selmeroid inlay using a laser cutter and artists mica based pigment/epoxy resin: http://www.anzlf.com/viewtopic.php?f=1&t=2746&p=33666&hilit=headstock#p33567 I tried this method. Firstly, I found that the mica based pigment was a hassle to get, then it cost me quite a lot fo...

Call it Star Burst bracing! Or maybe big bang bracing?

Yes that's the tape I use. Regarding the "Clean edge" I have found that to be the case with the clear pickguard material, and am working on ways to get the clean edge somehow. The other idea I have is to use a two pack epoxy, casting resin or two pack varnish of some sort.

To me that resonance sounds like G, but slightly sharp, a bit on the low side of sharp according to the Gore/Gilet philosophy of setting resonances between scale tones, ie it should in theory be place a little more between G and G#. Gypsy guitars are a little low on sustain when compared to other st...