To start it off I'll offer slotted bridge pins. Clearly with the advent of cheap, molded plastics the slotted pin eliminated the need for extra labor to slot the bridge, top, and bridge plate. Just as clearly slotted pins permit string balls to bear on the edges of the bridge pin holes in the bridge plate causing wear in time. Not good. Unslotted pins prevent this excessive wear from happening.

17 degree Gibson Headstocks.

There are a lot of these, but it comes from a lack of understanding of "why", which is the plight of any beginner.

I wouldn't recommend hogging out a truss rod hole in a neck, but Gibson seems to think they don't have a reputation for breaking necks. If someone did a study I'm almost certain you could stare long enough at a Gibson neck and cause it to crack. 60 years and no one wants to fix it. I certainly wouldn't copy anything about a Gibson neck.

Simply mass production makers are not making single guitars, not selling single guitars, and not warrantying single guitars. It's a completely different problem than single or even small batch makers. The advent of the Internet has allowed many of us to see construction on a far broader scale, to ask questions on a far broader scale, and to understand why on a far deeper scale. Yet, there is no substitute for doing. Copying is one of the best forms of learning. As for innovation, most famous abstract artists have studied the classical great artists, and copied their works. Even Eddie Van Halen studied classical guitar.

There is a saying - there are as many ways to build a guitar as there are luthiers. To David's point, in the large strokes its pretty convergent. In the details ... and boy are there a lot of details ... there is plenty of variation.

Dovetail necks. An unnecessary complication but "traditional". Works great, but doesn't add to tone, doesn't improve repairability (there are two kinds of Martins - those with a neck reset, and those waiting to get one), doesn't reduce time to build. Wonderful on a neck reset when packed with Titebond. But there are buyers that actually think a guitar is worth more with a dovetail neck because that's how Martin does it. There are also makers that believe a dovetail joint represents their skill. If demonstrating skill, might I recommend not doing it with a shimmed dovetail that no one will see, and instead doing v-joint or blind v-joint head like Martin did at the turn of the century, cut by hand of course. In the classical guitar, same with spanish heel. Both dovetail and spanish heel are very sturdy construction techniques, but have fun slipping the heel on a classical next time you run into a neck problem.

Andy

Plastic binding........................wood forever...!!
Tom

There are a lot of these, but it comes from a lack of understanding of "why", which is the plight of any beginner.

I wouldn't recommend hogging out a truss rod hole in a neck, but Gibson seems to think they don't have a reputation for breaking necks. If someone did a study I'm almost certain you could stare long enough at a Gibson neck and cause it to crack. 60 years and no one wants to fix it. I certainly wouldn't copy anything about a Gibson neck.

Simply mass production makers are not making single guitars, not selling single guitars, and not warrantying single guitars. It's a completely different problem than single or even small batch makers. The advent of the Internet has allowed many of us to see construction on a far broader scale, to ask questions on a far broader scale, and to understand why on a far deeper scale. Yet, there is no substitute for doing. Copying is one of the best forms of learning. As for innovation, most famous abstract artists have studied the classical great artists, and copied their works. Even Eddie Van Halen studied classical guitar.

There is a saying - there are as many ways to build a guitar as there are luthiers. To David's point, in the large strokes its pretty convergent. In the details ... and boy are there a lot of details ... there is plenty of variation.

Dovetail necks. An unnecessary complication but "traditional". Works great, but doesn't add to tone, doesn't improve repairability (there are two kinds of Martins - those with a neck reset, and those waiting to get one), doesn't reduce time to build. Wonderful on a neck reset when packed with Titebond. But there are buyers that actually think a guitar is worth more with a dovetail neck because that's how Martin does it. There are also makers that believe a dovetail joint represents their skill. If demonstrating skill, might I recommend not doing it with a shimmed dovetail that no one will see, and instead doing v-joint or blind v-joint head like Martin did at the turn of the century, cut by hand of course. In the classical guitar, same with spanish heel. Both dovetail and spanish heel are very sturdy construction techniques, but have fun slipping the heel on a classical next time you run into a neck problem.

Andy

"Dots are bad? Unmarked is better? I always thought dots were for the people you play with."

.....made worse by using one piece necks.

Alex