MIMF

I've been working on this for a while now. It's a dreadnought. Top is Sitka. Back / sides are Lovoa. Mahog / maple neck. The top is about ready to attach to the sides (garland). Trying to attach photos...https://pin.it/6eiMdBs

Eric, I'm curious as to how much downweight you have on the router jig. I can't tell if you have the cable on a crank or a counterweight. I bought a jig that looks to be pretty good (patterned after the Stew Mac design, more or less) but as it is, the entire weight of the router (Bosch Colt) would p...

Many years ago, in the middle of a northeastern winter, I bought a used S. Yairi dreadnought with a hardshell case. Everything looked great. I brought it inside, let it warm up and was fooling around on it when I noticed there were fleas starting to land on my arm. The guitar had fleas. The case was...

Nice save!

I'm going through something similar with my sides, on my first build. They're about .065". So far they've bent and assembled into the garland well. I may glue muslin to the inside to guard a little against cracking, but I might not need to. https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=10229460198944...

Here's a radical idea. Remove the fretboard. Affix the neck face down to a straight (jointed, if possible) 1 x 4 or similar plank, precisely centered. I did this and used double sided carpet tape. Rip it exactly in half on a table saw. Add a slip in the center and glue back. You'll need to re-route ...

Check this book out. It might turn out to be a fantastic teaching aid. I've suggested that it be added to the MIMF Amazon list, but in the meantime -- https://www.amazon.com/Building-Steel-String-Acoustic-Guitar/dp/1734125616/ref=sr_1_1?crid=3VXOD9YUBN13D&keywords=r.m.+mottola&qid=1700864145...

Just as matter of interest, I have a '59 Gibson LG2 that had the original pickguard glued on to bare wood. The guitar was then finished. I'm thinking of how I'll be gluing a replacement on (the original shrunk and warped). At this point I'm considering smoothing the underside wood to a near-finish l...

I'm squeezing as much into a small space as I can. The latest is installing a small table saw into an existing inspection bench. The tops are flush; I can place a 2'x4' sheet of masonite over all and cover it with an area rug (with the rubbery backing) that will be gentle with instruments. It's an i...

IMG_20230317_094133797_HDR~2.jpg I have a micro-woodshop (11'x11') after vanquishing a bedroom in our apartment. I'm using shop vacs for collection, and a hot air furnace filter attached to a box fan for air circulation. The box fan seems surprisingly effective, at least by looking at the filter. T...

Detail.jpg Ready for the next phase.jpg I'm making my first guitar and am experimenting with maple side reinforcement strips. They are under the linings and run from rim to rim. The kerfed bits covering them are a bit awkward; I may redo them before committing to the top / back glue up. The neck bl...

I've been building a few benches for my "finally" workshop - After retiring, downsizing and selling our home of 33 years we've landed a nice single floor rental in White River Junction, Vermont. All my guitar stuff is coming out of hiding and I have ONE 11 x 11 foot bedroom in which to sho...

Tony Rice has passed. His longtime friend and collaborator Ricky Skaggs posted the following announcement on Facebook: Sometime during Christmas morning while making his coffee, our dear friend and guitar hero Tony Rice passed from this life and made his swift journey to his heavenly home. It’s stil...

Thanks Bob, I sorta follow what you are describing. What I have done it pretty simplistic - I roughly fit the neck while the back is still off, mark and drill the holes in the tenon using the holes in the neck block. I can only get my drill into the bottom hole, the top one I have to mark, take the...

I used tung oil when building some mountain dulcimers years ago and found it lent itself well to a kitchen table workshop, but took a long time to cure. I learned that it is actually a wiping varnish that contains tung oil. It cures by oxydation and not by evaporation. For this reason care must be t...

I'm new to this. I have a number of one piece mahogany neck blanks in rough bandsawed form that I'd like to use up before moving to a less wasteful laminated neck design. Most of them are pretty straight grain, but all share short grain/severe runout in the headstock, making them vulnerable to a &qu...

I'll be curious to see a close up after the repair. Was that a one piece neck / headstock? No scarf joint?