Official Luthiers Forum!

Hi Everyone,
Been lurking for a while and am finally getting ready to try my 1st acoustic. I have built several electric solid and hollow body guitars, but never tried the acoustic route.
I am retired but work part time at a woodworking hobby store and have access to some real nice stuff. I was able to buy an East Indian Rosewood back/side set on a close out for real cheap. I recently picked up a nice AA Sitka top, and already have a supply of qtr sawn Hond Mahog and Sapele for the neck ( a job perk).
I would like to build something like a 000-28 but want to go easy to avoid frustration on my 1st attempt. Prior to my lurking here I never realized that a flat top actually had a radius. I'm trying not to let that stress me out. I knew there was side bending and brace making and kerfing, etc.
I also question about neck attachment, bolt on or traditional v-groove tenon? I've been told the only way is the traditional V-grove if you want to be a "real" guitar maker. My original thought were only bolt on.
How about some words of enlightenment/encouragement before chicken out and build another Strat.

nothing wrong with a bolt on. and nothing wrong with eir and sitka.
forge ahead man. full steam ahead!!
there will be many points of frustration along the way, but so it goes. when it's done you'll be glad you started.
like my wife says of her phd studies - "if it was easy, everyone would do it."

Doesn't need to be a dovetail at all. Butt joints are awesome. Doming the top is easy.
Everything else is hard....

Get Cumpiano's book and follow that, and refer to his website for his updated neck joint, which is a mortise and tenion with furniture hardware. A dovetail may be the "real" luthier neck connection, but it's much more difficult to construct and provides no real benifit, other than the satisfaction of doing it. Not a good reason to use it on your first acoustic.

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A man hears what he wants to hear, and disreguards the rest. Paul Simon

Thanks for the quick input guys. I do already have Cumpiano's book and am reading it before doing anything stupid. I decided that I would do a bolt on neck on this and see what happens. I also figured the EIR/Sitka would be a good starting point. Just wonder how it works in a smoker if I screw it up. I made my 1st electric neck out of maple with a spalted hickory fingerboard. If I screwed it up at least I could smoke a brisket with it .
Does anyone know what radius Martin does on the 000-28 top/back? I'm also going to try a waterborn lacquer on this. General Finishes gave me a Qt of their water based lacquer to try. Will see what happens.
I have 2 electrics to finish and then I'm going ahead with this acoustic.
More will follow.

Paul

Paul, if you wait a little longer, someone will chime in about bolt on necks with NO tenon at all.

Good luck.

Mike

Paul, the guitar we looked at the other day ( my challenge special) is a bolt-on with no tenon. I would probably do the neck extension a little differently then I am. Either glue the extension or use an extension of the neck inletted into the neck block. Based on your work I saw the other day you won't have any problems. Jump on in, the waters fine

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Steve Smith
"Music is what feelings sound like"