Official Luthiers Forum!

....hola amigos....i'm currently constructing a guitar (my first)....i'm ready to brace the top and i'm working off an OM set of palns (Antes)....i'm going with a 24.9" scale and am wondering what if any modifications should be made to the standard OM bracing....i.e. should i shift the X brace forward to keep the saddle/bridgeplate in the same position relative to the X brace which is 1/2" forward.....this will of course put the X brace closer to the soundhole...i can't move the soundhole as it is already cut to the OM top specs....perhaps a compromise of half of the distance...1/4".....any help/links appreciated

the delta between 25.4 and 24.9 is 1/2 inch ... but the X and bridge dont move 1/2 inch, they only move about 1/4 - the other 1/4 inch scale delta occurs between the nut and 12th fret on the FB ... think about it.

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Tony Karol
www.karol-guitars.com
"let my passion .. fulfill yours"

if your soundhole is already cut, and you want the end of the fingerboard to fall right next to it like it does on a Martin, then you will need to plan that out, and adjust accordingly.

if you use an OM top with short scale it will look just like this:



don't ask how i know...

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"...you have to get over your strict adherence to your largely imagined notion of absolute perfection..."

What Martin and Tony said. The 14th fret doesn't need to move, so half the change happens at the nut end and the other half at the bridge end.

Also, the Antes plans are notorious for showing oversized braces, which will get you a pretty dead-sounding guitar. If you use his tuner hole layout you will run the risk of the two E string tuners interfering with the A and B strings. The e string tuners need to be moved outwards a bit. Have a look at the Martin web site and look closely at some headstock shots and you'll see what I mean.

Oh, welcome to the OLF.

Pat

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formerly known around here as burbank
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http://www.patfosterguitars.com

...thanks for the info...i understand the scale shrinking from both ends of the fretboard.......i do plan on adjusting the bracing to a lighter design as opposed to following the Antes specs...thanks a bunch also for the heads up on tuner placement....you'd think that after owning a hundred or so guitars i'd have noticed that....

The "wings" of the bridge has to be over the X brace. You need to move it forward 1/4" or leave it in the same position and close it a bit ( use a smaller angle).