Official Luthiers Forum!

Just saw Kasha mentioned in another thread and it reminded me that I haven't seen much about the style on this forum in the past 5 or so years that I've been a member.

What was his goal? What kind of tone was he after? How did it differ from the traditional X braced instrument?

James-
There were quite a few articles on Kasha/Schneider guitars in the GAL Quarterly , 'back in the day' - now reprinted in the 'BigRedBooks'.
You can search (Ctrl-F in your browser) abstracts at http://www.luth.org/al-content.htm

Hopefully you will get an unquenchable urge to hold an example in your hands, and make me an offer for my Kasha Gibson 'project guitar' that's been leaning in a corner for a few years!

Cheers
John

Something like this maybe?

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Jimmy Caldwell
http://www.caldwellguitars.com

I have built a Kasha-braced baritone ukulele and it sounds sweet.
Plans for a Kasha-schneider classical guitar are available at Allied. I hope to get at it next year.

Bob

James, Kasha's theory was to create a sound board that has better impedance matching between the strings and the sound board. Split bridge, various length tone bars, Sound hole in the upper treble bout, etc.. Thus producing a more responsive guitar.
Jimmy's pictures are his take on Kasha for steel string, Steve Klein Also builds in this style.

Richard Schneider was the collabortor on the building end of classicals for Dr. Michael Kasha.
This is a good reminder for me, one of last guitars Richard Scheider built is in my neighborhood, I've been meaning to get my hands on it to check it out.

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Jim Watts
http://jameswattsguitars.com

Jim, I'd love to hear back if you're able to!

Jay Hargreaves worked with Richard Schneider and consulted a lot with Kasha, so he's more or less in that lineage as well. His acoustic bass guitars are far and away the best I've ever heard. I interviewed Jay for American Lutherie a few years ago. It's in issue # 83, and there's a fair amount of discussion of Kasha's ideas and Jay's own direction with designs based in those ideas in the article.

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Todd Rose
Ithaca, NY

https://www.dreamingrosesecobnb.com/todds-art-music

https://www.facebook.com/ToddRoseGuitars/

Elderly has had this Richard Schneider - Kasha classical listed for quite some time now. It clearly shows the split bridge that Jim references.

http://elderly.com//vintage/items/28U-2139.htm

One of the issues is the scale length at 672. I can handle my Ramirez 664 but I think that a 672 would be quite a stretch for my left hand.

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Peter

Regardless of the design, you are still dealing with the inherent properties of the wood you are using.The Kasha system has a lot of components, and switching from a Martin X can leave one a bit bewildered as to what and where to tweak. Some felt that their initial results did not justify the amount of extra work involved, which is considerable.

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It's not the miles ahead, it's the stone in your shoe


In Markham,Virginia

It's a different beast for sure. I'm not considering a change, but I'm interested in knowing more about their goals. I'd love to hear one someday. I've already gotten a lot from this thread.

James,

If you want to try something a bit different you might consider a Kasha ukulele. Hana Lima ‘Ia sells plans and parts for modified Kasha ukuleles. The owner Mike Chock studied with Richard Schneider in a Kasha Master Design class and it has resulted in these plans. In addition, Mike has studied with Sergei de Jonge. I am planning on two Kasha ukulele builds this next year for myself. There have been several postings in different forums by builders of these ukuleles and they have posted some very positive results.

http://www.hanalima.com/

Philip

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aka konacat

If you think my playing is bad you should hear me sing!
Practice breeds confidence and confidence breeds competence. Unfortunately, I'm stuck in practice.

Boaz Elkayam (sp) builds a tenor ukulele in the Kasha style (at least that's what I recall from a previous article, he doesn't show his top bracing). You can try it out for the moderate price of 12k

http://www.claritanegra.com/workshop-pr ... kulele.htm

Beautiul, Filippo!

Here's a good read on Kasha's system.
http://www.cumpiano.com/Home/Newsletter ... tter6.html

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Bobby Masten

Thanks for the link dude. I totally enjoyed reading about these dudes. I have never heard a kasha guitar played but I find his story fascinating and I will now make a point of trying to find one to have a listen.

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Check out my site at: http://www.TrueAxeGuitars.ca

The Kasha Gibson Mark guitars have a hefty (6x13mm) brace running right across the top, directly under the saddle.
Perhaps a concession to the steel-string tension? I understand that the bracing patterns changed with time as well.

John

Filippo-
Sorry about that- I must have mis-read your post.

Cheers
John

The cross brace under the saddle is the 'TT bar'. It's supposed to facilitate the rocking motion of the bridge under tension change as the string vibrates. That was also one reason for the trumpet-shaped bridge: wider on the bass side where the wave lengths were longer.

I will revisit this topic in one year when I have a completed sample in my hand.

Bob

Times up! How is the Uke?

I've been building Kasha guitars for over ten years, certainly haven't moved the markers one way of another. Always sorta bothers me to refer to them as Kasha guitars, as I feel the real draw was Schneider's work.

On the basis that the criteria that mater are the non-rational ones, I will volunteer the fact that I had several non-rational motivations that drew me to this style. 1) I read about Schneider in FWW over the years, and just generally was aware he was doing pretty cool stuff, even if the truth may have been different; 2) A bias towards the idea that there are new and creative solutions possible (I like old stuff also). The idea as Cupiano said that Kasha might be rejected due to a change in the bridge shape... well it wouldn't put me off: 3) I like wood particularly in structural applications, and Schneider was to some extent the thread in modern classical guitar evolution that is most woody to me. This could be argued, but I like what one has to build more in a Kasha, than in the carbon booger mess that many a lattice becomes. I have my composite side, and for the most part don't mix it with lutherie: 4) The inside of classical guitars in particular is pretty disappointing, a case of "is that all there is". Now of course there is a huge story there if one cares to look, but the Kasha bracing is really impressive. Most intellectual arguments are just an attempt to justify what the heart has already decided to do.

"Apart from the merits of the system, one of the major factors that contributed to the decline in visibility of the system was the fact that in his later years, up to his death, Richard Schneider stopped using the system. So the main driving force behind the system's general acceptance pretty much died with him."

Surely this is wrong? On one of two possible counts. First, as far as I know, Schneider was pressing the system, virtually with his last breath. It could be argued he had somewhat rejected it because the later guitars were somewhat at odds with the theory. But even if that is the case, I don't believe he let on, or possibly realized it.

To some extent rejectionists are stuck on their own arguments. They claimed that science couldn't explain the guitar, or that Kasha doesn't. But the flip side to that is we now have Kasha guitars that work fine, and a theory that doesn't. So what, welcome to the mainstream. Maybe the theory doesn't fit, but most instruments don't have a single ordering theory either.

The question is to what extent the tradition will survive. The few prominent luthiers who studied with Richard, have either switched horses or have proven anemic at promoting the design. In theory there is a manuscript somewhere, but it seems unlikely to be published.

Does this system ask for a especially thick top between the "old hole" and the bridge? I really don't see much bracing support there so it might be prone to an early dish-in?

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Build log

Actually, if I'm not mistaken, I believe Boaz shows his top bracing HERE.

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Bill Hodge


One does not simply, own enough guitars!