Official Luthiers Forum!

okay, i just strung up another weiss build 3 days ago, sounds great.
been playing it a bit, and it's getting more balanced. big sound.
the one from a year ago is having a little contest with the new one.
older one built from lumber yard bearclaw spruce, fairly quartered,
back and sides lumber yard soft maple, all braces let into kerfs, dead flat top and back.
new one, really nice spruce top, complete with silking, slightly figured koa back and sides,
25' radius arc to the top and back, no braces let in to the sides.
new one sounds very similar to the old, a little brighter and bigger, louder.
next one i will leave all the braces away from the kerf except for the top of the x brace.
probably a safer way to go, with no tonal difference.
my theory is that the top of the x is pushing down there from string tension, and the lower part of the x is actually being pulled up there.
fun stuff being a tone monkey!!!!!
alan

What type of lumber yard did you get the spruce? I have looked in many lumber yards and either they don't sell spruce of it is flat sawn.

hey brian, hi.
i just got lucky i guess.
i got it from a place called mac beaths hardwoods, in berkeley.
had to dig through a big pile though.
my problem now is, i have enough for another 5 gits, but am reluctant to use it, because buyers want really high end git wood.
if i can't afford a nice top, i will use it in da future.

I live in Spokane and my lumber yard (windsor plywood) had huge boards of sitka. I guess it's used for sail boat mast quite frequently. It's about the only quartered wood they have there. I did use it but it's not the type of quality as top wood sets I've seen that are perfectly vertical grain and gorgeous. Although there's still quite a bit in my garage as well I already plan on NOT using it any time soon.

Macbeath's may not be a luthier's supply lumber yard, but that is one nice yard full of wood, or two yards, I used the SF location, they have great stuff. If you have not checked with Van Arsdale and Harris, they have a unique selection of softwoods, they used to have a great Spanish cedar stash and some spruce.
Rob

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Years ago Art Overholzer wrote a book about building classical guitars. In that book he showed a picture of himself and a Mr.Macbeath in Macbeath,s lumber yard with a stack of Brazilian Rosewood planks on a scale that Art was going to purchase.Not likely to be able to arrange the same type of pose today. Not sure of location other then it was California. Do you suppose they still have some tucked away in some dark hole...??
Tom

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i read at least some of art's book, and the thing i'll never forget is that he said " don't force wood when gluing a joint, get it to fit first", or something like that. and "always cut sandpaper with a knife, don't tear it".
i do still tear it sometimes....