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Many thanks for all the tutes that helped get this done. The forum really helped me get this done.
GAL 20's Gibson L-O shape
Engleman top from Ebay .104
Port Orford braces 5/16 x 9/16 X brace, 91 degrees
Port Orford sides from the fencing supply yard, featuring the knot hole sound port
Port Orford back salvaged by me from the forest carved 1" dome to .20 thickness then recurved
Cherry headstock, FB binding, body binding and bridge.
Maple FB
Multiscale 24.25 -24.625 5th fret perpendicular to the centerline
Port Orford neck, 2 piece from the fence yard
Finish, Stew Mac caramel amber shellac, two coats sprayed then French polish.
This is maybe $40 in wood for this guitar.
Many things to do better next time, but it is a finished guitar and looks pretty nice in person, sound is pretty good, bass is low but wooshy, mids are strong and clear and the highs are nice. Volume is decent. Overall the tone is pretty mellow, not a harsh or bright guitar. The setup went well and it is quite playable.
Thanks for looking and thanks to all the help from the OLF.
Rob

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Excellent !

I like how you used the local woods ! I am trying to do the same with some maple and walnut -
excellent dome in the back !! this guitar has a great story and it looks great ! treasure it.

John

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It's this new idea from recent decades that everyone gets a participation award. - MUX

Sound clip, Little Martha
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VulO5-3jjX8

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"Sound clip removed by user"

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The name catgut is confusing. There are two explanations for the mix up.

Catgut is an abbreviation of the word cattle gut. Gut strings are made from sheep or goat intestines, in the past even from horse, mule or donkey intestines.

Otherwise it could be from the word kitgut or kitstring. Kit meant fiddle, not kitten.

Nicely done - very good work, especially for a first! I also really like using alternative tonewoods. It's so true that you don't need to spend hundreds on tropical woods to build a really fine guitar.

Sound clip second try, not sure what went wrong with the first.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bq9F560raXQ

Thanks Corky and John A. I know this is not the typical eye candy that many of the guitars shown here are, but it is a first guitar and to me inexpensive local wood helps get a first done, one can work with less trepidation. I hope if this guitar does anything past the happiness it has brought me (my wife likes it too), it can serve as encouragement for others to get their first guitars done. It is not a masterpiece, but a step in the direction towards making a masterpiece. The satisfaction and plain thrill of finishing this guitar is truly second only to when my daughter was born, but I can control when the guitar stops making noise.
Rob

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http://www.youtube.com/user/comfyfootgr ... ature=mhee
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Beautiful and inspiring!

Love the curve on the back.

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Formerly known as Adaboy.......

That's your first?? Looks freakin' great!

Nice work!
Lot's of creative ideas going on there, especially for a 1st guitar! (Elevated FB, arched back- and you got it all to work and sound good. )
Cheers
John

Thanks, but credit some elusive photography for the fact that it looks good, a better camera and some close ups would show a different story. Although this is a first guitar, not my first woodworking project, I have worked doing custom woodwork for almost 15 years, and this is the culmination of that experience, it seems that all the other projects were practice for this.

I really had to assess long and short term building goals to come up with this. Short term I wanted a guitar done and jigs made for future guitars that will be nicer. But long term goals as a builder I have some ideas that I would like to work on. So the elevated FB, arch back and multiscale were included. I also chose the 20's Gibson L-O plans as they do not have a modern bracing pattern, so I would need to educate myself on how to lay that out. I went as standard as possible for bracing, and I think a bit heavy as we do on the firsts. The POC braces have very tight grain and on the next I may try .25 x .5 X dimensions with the same brace material. I went a bit heavier as the top was down to .105 off of an 80 grit belt, so I was expecting to lose more in finish sanding, and was careful not to lose too much.
The bracing has one tone bar and I went with a MPTE brace, 1, my bridge patch was maybe a bit short for the multiscale bridge, 2, the top is slanted 3 degrees pulling on the top differently, so I figure it is a bit of a structural brace in this case. I did make the bridge 6.5" wide to engage the x brace fully, perhaps this is where some of my desired bass went. I will also like to get the neck a bit lower in angle so the bridge can be lower and lighter.
So this guitar is a good jump off point for the next, which will have the same basic features, multiscale, elevated FB, and arch back. Changes will be in the shape of the back arch, and some bracing changes, like a thicker top with thinner braces. I will use the same body shape and materials for now, perhaps I will find some harder maple for the FB and bridge patch.
Thanks for looking and the kind comments.
Rob

_________________
http://shastaguitar.com/
http://www.kalimbakit.com/
http://www.youtube.com/user/comfyfootgr ... ature=mhee
http://www.facebook.com/robert.renick.7

Very nice!

Now that you have the addiction you must keep making guitars !
Try some of the OLF sponcers for harder maple pieces.


Mike

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Mike Collins

Wow! Nice job. What a challenge for a first! Sounds great too!

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Waddy

Photobucket Build Album Library

Sound Clips of most of my guitars

Love the natural sound port!

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John Ressler

Good show there Robert,

I'm giving you a bunch of these for being brave with the arched back and elevated fingerboard.

Setve

Wow, very creative. The thing I like best is using a knot hole for a sound port. What a great idea.

Pat

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There are three kinds of people:

Those that make things happen,
those that watch things happen,
and those that wondered what happened.

Absolutely, not much could stop me.

Thanks for the love on the knot hole, or the Padma Port, as I have referred to it in my head, I figured he may be the only who would like it. Certainly for a particular taste, I have shown it to some who love it and some who have really looked curiously at me. Most, even guitarists, have never heard of this modern guitar improvement.

I look forward to continuing to use local and North American wood for guitars. We have some good stuff here, and I feel more comfortable that the forests are better managed. I think the plain wood as a "look" is more inviting to play then fancy stuff. I hope to make guitars that will be inviting to play.

Thanks again for the kind words, much appreciated, this "first" is a big one, I feel this is a life and a career turning point, and feels as though my life path will be straight and smooth for a time, a welcome change. I would like to be more of a guitar building facilitator, then straight up builder, my ultimate vision is to create a course for a parent and child work together on a project, as Filippo is doing with his son.
Thanks,
Rob

_________________
http://shastaguitar.com/
http://www.kalimbakit.com/
http://www.youtube.com/user/comfyfootgr ... ature=mhee
http://www.facebook.com/robert.renick.7