Official Luthiers Forum!

I get conflicting results out of the various resources, and I am sure this is one of those things where there is no ONE WAY.

But... do you glue down the top or the back to the rims first, and why? My main concern is for example if I glue the back first (as LMI recommends), how will I be able to clean glue squeeze out from the top once I put it on? And so on....

Thanks!
adam

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"Everyone wants to BE something, but nobody wants to BECOME something" - William Cumpiano

Some say do the back first so you can clean up the glue and make it look pretty as thats what you see through the sound hole. Other say do the top first as you can do additional tuning with the top glued on the sides. I glue on the back first because, well...thats just how I do it...as seen in my pic over <---. I put in sound ports, so you can see both glue joints, top and back. I brush on fish glue to get a nice even coat, so I rarely get much of any squeeze out. So thats a wash. I don't bother trying to tune the top after gluing it to the sides. My thoughts on that is that it may be a bit better than tuning the top alone, but its still going to change when you glue on the back and install the neck and...

You'll be fine either way.

Personally, I do both at the same time and am just very conscientious of how much glue I apply. As far as making even the remotest difference in regards to sound and overall stability, I couldn't imagine how it would.

I am mainly interested in the cleanup aspects of it, as I have looked with a mirror at the insides of my Martins and there is nary a speck of glue to be seen on either plate. So that's what I am striving for.

But still interested in everyone's input, as there may be other factors I haven't thought of that could lead me to choose one over the other.

thanks,
adam

_________________
"Everyone wants to BE something, but nobody wants to BECOME something" - William Cumpiano

Cleanup is one concern... so consider that underside of the Top is not visible thru the soundhole.... There are sections of the back linings that are visible through the soundhole.... so if you are interested only in Cleanup -- glue on the Back 1st.

Now, to throw my own opinion into the fray.......

If you glue on the Top 1st, you can continue voicing the soundboard fairly easily... Then, once you are content... glue on the back.

The sides add massive stiffness to the soundboard.... What may have sounded great as a free braced soundboard may now turn out to be much too tight... especially depending on how close to the rims your full height bracing goes.... This gives you that 1 last chance to whittle, think, and adjust a little more before the back goes on.

On my Esteban Retop project... I glued a top onto a completed body, then needed to do voicing more on the guitar. Some luthiers are Famous for this sort of work... Personally, I end up with bruised, cramped forearms and I still can't reach the ends of the X or Tone bars. Needless to say, on the Ditson... the top went on 1st.

Good luck with your build.

John

I glue the top on first. I do my final voicing after it's glued to the rims.

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I didn't mean to say it, but I meant what I said.
http://www.brackettinstruments.com/

To answer your direct question: I glue the top on first becasue that was how I was taught. Now it is valuable to me to tweek final tuning.

If you are that concerned about the squeeze out, then do your back first..as shown, people do it both ways. As you get more practice you can always switch if desired.

When I first learned to make guitars, I learned early on that I was using WAY too much glue. If you use too much glue, the squeeze out can run down the sides of the box regardless of which (top or back) is glued on last.

Joe

Thanks for all the good info! To clarify, squeeze out is not my ONLY concern, just the main one that is sticking in my throat as I try to decide which one to do first. So was just looking for other factors to help push me off the fence haha

Keep it comin!

adam

_________________
"Everyone wants to BE something, but nobody wants to BECOME something" - William Cumpiano

I do the back first with the back face down on the radius dish. that way the squeeze out doesn't run down the sides and clean up is easy. If you keep the glue towards the out side of the rim then most of the squeeze out will be to the outside. And it allows you to make sure the back is flat down on the radius dish and if not you can put a gobar on the center strip to establish the radius. Then you can let it sit for a while and work on the top and rosette and bracing. Then glue the top on with it face down too. For the same reasons of keeping any squeeze out from running down the sides. Especially if using HHG. Somogyi has molds that he clamps his tops to and uses the bench as the backs for tuning tops. I just glued my back on a couple of days ago. So now while I work on the top I'll be thinking about the appointments and binding and purfs.