Official Luthiers Forum!

First, I have zero experience.

About 10 years ago I started (barely) a project and then life turned and it has been frozen ever since. I have two peices of matched flamed maple joined. I have two pieces of matched spruce joined. I have a set of flamed maple sided from LMI. I also have an ebony finger board and some uncut fret wire. These were initially bought to make an archtop. I know what your thinking... first build an archtop? For some crazy reason that is how I tend to do things.



However, with a little more maturity and age on my side I am now wondering if I can turn the project into a flat top acoustic build to hopefully set myself up for great success on this first time around. I have attempted to upload some pictures of the top, back, and side woods.

Thanks so much for your input!!!

I personally would not turn an archtop set into a flat top .. go out and buy a $50 set of nice mahogany or plain walnut for the B&S, and a $35-40 top of your choice ... make that instead. The wood in a 000/OM-18 isnt worth that much ...

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

Congrats on getting back into the luthier field. I would suggest that you hang on to the archtop material and acquire standard material for a flat top.After doing a flat you can gauge if you are ready for the archtop. It seems to follow that if you do one guitar to a reasonable standard you will continue on doing further guitars. It's an awful disease....! See what some other suggest. Good luck and have fun no matter what you do.
Tom. Tony can think faster and type faster.... but I keep trying...!

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A person who has never made a mistake has never made anything!!!

Thanks guys.... that was not the answer I was hoping for but that is why I asked. I was hoping to switch as to not have to spend money on other wood and be able to push forward on the project. But, I do see what you guys are saying and it does make sense. It half-way makes me want to just go forward with the archtop

Thanks for the thoughts... so great to have a place to come to and get some wisdom.

Yes, I'm with you... I just now did some looking around at back, sides, and top prices and it was less than I thought.

Sell it and use the money to buy flat top wood.

Matt, in my opinion, go ahead with the archtop. I didn't complete a flattop before building my first archtop, and you already have some great materials. If you have Benedetto's book & videos (I only ever had the book) you're well on your way (although in hindsight, I would suggest getting the plans too.... the book drawings are basically just for reference.)

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Dave
Milton, ON

Thanks, Dave. Love that guitar in your avatar.

I'd just jump straight into the archtop if that is where your interest is, or save it until I was ready to use it for an archtop or sell it to buy the wood required for the flat-top..

And if you're thinking about going with maple for your flat-top build, maybe hold off on ordering a couple days.. There might be a sale of sorts coming through the OLF very shortly

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CVT Inc.
A tour of our shop (Somewhat outdated)
My Personal eBay profile. BCWoodBug

Yo burrito dude,

don't waist good wood going backwards on your dream.

sharpen up your chisels and start carving

in other words folow your heart and just do it.


blessings
the
Padma

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Audiences and dispensations on Thursdays ~ by appointment only.


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Jason & Padma - I have to say that I was hoping for that sort of feedback. But, just thought if I got an overwhelming response to run the other direction I would follow the wisdom.


Hmmmm... now just have to pick up a good plane to carve the top and back and get moving on it.

THANKS to everyone for sharing your thoughts!

Yo, Jason

me thinks we may have saved another one from the fire and brimstone of flat top hell. YAY!

"...to run the other direction I would follow the wisdom".... Sorry burrito dude...fear causes one to run, and wisdom is found in following the heart. You suck up all the technical info you can hold from the dudes on this site...but them...

follow your heart.

You carve that arch top boy...and don't look back.

Just imagine each chip of wood that falls to the floor as darkness leaving and see the light of that instrument being birthed in you hands. And don't be concerned about making mistakes ...perfection is an illusion.

You go for it burrito dude, try some enchiladas and beer too.... and remember ...

talk with all that pretty wood you got. It will listen..... Believe me, it will listen to the heart.


blessings
the
Padma

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Audiences and dispensations on Thursdays ~ by appointment only.


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Hey, thanks! My true desire is to build an archtop... that is where my interest is.... but I am just nervous about it. Specifically, nervous about the carving. But, I think between Dave, Padma, and Jason I have been given the green light to push through the anxiety and give it a go.

Matt, nervousness is normal on your first! If you're like me, you'll overthink each step to death & it'll take you a lot more time than your next one. A good idea to build confidence in the plate carving is to do a test plate first of clear pine (or better, basswood). Keep a drawing & note which carving directions "work" in each region (ref tearout) and finally, chuck a pencil in your drillpress & produce topograph "maps" as you carve/smooth (like on pg 25 of Benedettos book). You'll immediately see loss of symmetry, highs/lows etc. Helps 'till you get a feel for it.

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Dave
Milton, ON

Yo, rice and bean dude,

Ain't no difference between carving an arch topper or trimmin yer fingernails.
A blade is a blade. And size don't matter...least thats what Yoda taught us.

Besides, there be lots of us wood butchers to guide you through it. Besides...whats yer hurry? We all gonna die sooner or later so at least lay back and enjoy a simple carve. Believe me ...this is a simple carve. Takes yer mind of of the rest of the planets BS. Get some of them wood chips between yer teeth and some saw dust up yer nostrils.

Wood was probably the first natural element that us two leggeds tooled...its deep deep in our psyche ...so not be a worrying and babblein and start carving.

And don't let any of them hustlers try and con you out of that really nice wood you got.

blessings
the
Padma

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Audiences and dispensations on Thursdays ~ by appointment only.


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Thanks for the thoughts and encouragement... and everyone's desire to help. It is such a blessing because you can't just knock on a neighbor's door and ask them for their opinion on a guitar build or how to go about carving a top.

Arch tops aren't too rough to carve...just keep your tools VERY sharp and go slow! I've done a couple in different wood types (pine, cedar...hell, even poplar!) and found that the experience was almost fun and rather relaxing. And that is coming from a guy who doesn't sit still or do slow very well!

I agree with the idea of doing a trial run or two with a lesser wood (pine, basswood, etc) just to get your tools figured out and experience settled in a bit. At the same time...having that excellent set sitting in the corner would drive me nuts.

Whatever you end up doing, take your time...relax...and enjoy!

-Matthew

Lighten up dudes.

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Audiences and dispensations on Thursdays ~ by appointment only.


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I suffered a bit of paralysis by analysis on my first build. Then I saw a guitar at this yard sale thing by the local post office. I went over and checked it out. It was horrible. Definitely homemade (but not what I would refer to as "handmade") but the top was caving in, looked like next to no bracing, the finish was a mess...it was really that bad. But when you strummed it, it sounded pretty much like a guitar. I decided that anything I was going to do was going to be better than that, and yet that one still looked like a guitar, and sounded like a guitar. I stopped worrying about failing and decided that it was better to take my time and try than to never even start.

The first one turned out reasonable good for going at it with essentially no plans. The second one is looking better and is going along twice as fast.

So my advice is to proceed along the path that will get you to where you want to be in the end. If building archtops is what you want to do, then do it, and enjoy the process. Good luck.

Darrin