Been back from the GFA for a few days now and I'm back to work on a new guitar for my old friend Wes! Gluing, carving, more gluing and getting ready for binding...
GFA Convention 2014
We finally got home from the 2014 GFA convention in Fullerton, CA. It was a long week, but lots of fun.
Caught up with some old friends, made some new ones and saw some amazing concerts. Got to see Paul O'dette, Tilman Hoppstock, Jorge Caballero and Ana Vidovic.
New Guitars and Stands for the GFA Convention
Been working hard to finish everything up for the GFA convention on Friday!
Torres Model:
Based off of the famous instrument owned by Francisco Tarrega. Engelmann spruce top, Indian rosewood back and sides, Spanish cedar neck, carbon fiber reinforcement, Rubner tuners with ebony buttons and French polish finish.
Standard Concert Model:
Engelmann spruce top, Indian rosewood back and sides, Spanish cedar neck, elevated fretboard, carbon fiber reinforcement, Rubner tuners with rosewood buttons and French polish finish.
New Folding Guitar Stand
Just finished designing and building this prototype. It looks and works great!
-Bookmatched black walnut
-Lightly French polished
-Black leather grips
-Brass hinge
New Guitars Ready To Be Finished!
Finished up a new Standard model with an elevated fret board and a new Torres model. Ready to be French polished and taken down to LA for the GFA show in June!
New Demo, Binding and Purfling
Spent the past couple of days working on binding and purfling. My hands kind of hurt, but everything turned out great!
I also recorded a quick piece to display the dynamic and timbral range of my newest Torres model guitar. It's very responsive, has an attractive tone and is surprisingly loud. Based on the famous 1888 instrument owned by Fransico Tarrega.
It's also still available!
Engelmann spruce top. Indian rosewood back and sides. Spanish cedar neck. Includes TKL double arched case! $3,000
New Jigs, Side Laminating and Guitars For GFA Convention
Started a new batch of guitars. Modified my side bender, started laminating sides and made a whole new set of molds from some new CNC'd templates!
New Guitars and NW Handmade Musical Instrument Exhibit
Just finished up two new guitars yesterday that I'm very happy with. One is an Antonio de Torres model and the other is my standard model. I'll be showing them at the NW Handmade Musical Instrument Exhibit in Portland this weekend. It's my first show, so wish me luck! It should be a fun time with lots of cool builders to check out.
Scarf Joints, Neck Joints, Neck Carving, Finish Sanding and French Polishing...
Lots of work to do!
Made up some neck blanks. Cut, trued and glued the scarf joints. Inlayed carbon fiber reinforcements. Fit necks and glued them up.
Glued fingerboards. Carved necks, heels and head stocks. Cleaned everything up and started French polishing! After many attempts to try out different pore fillers, I'm back to shellac and pumice. It's really the most pleasant compared to everything else.
Binding........................
Just finished up two solid days of binding. My fingers hurt, but everything turned out great. I've been working on a new process that makes it much less stressful and virtually idiot proof. Virtually...