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Here's my 8th finished guitar. It's the second Dread I've made and WAY better than the first one. Not my favorite shape but it's what my friend wanted. Still needs a pickguard, which will be a clear one and will go on tomorrow or Tuesday. It's sounds pretty good and is pretty well balanced. Way better mid-range than either my Tacoma or Blueridge. I wish I knew how to take better pictures but me and cameras have never been great friends. I don't post a whole lot on this forum but I do read it almost every day and have gotten a lot of inspiration here, as well as some great ideas and guidance. Anyway, here's the details:

Top: Western Red Cedar (fairly cosmetically challenged but a very nice top, otherwise - it was given to me by a friend who got it from an auctioneer who'd had it for over 20 years)
Back & Sides: Black Walnut (RC Tonewoods)
Neck: Mahogany
Fingerboard & Bridge: West African Ebony
Headplate: African Blackwood (first time I've not matched it to the bridge but it's what my friend wanted)
Bindings, Fingerboard Dots & Heel Cap: Curly Maple
Finish: Behlen's Rock Hard Tabletop Varnish

Thanks for looking!

Matt

Nice looking guitar!!!!!!

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I didn't mean to say it, but I meant what I said.
http://www.brackettinstruments.com/

Good looking guitar. I like the black walnut, I have not used it before. I really like the idea of the maple fretboard dots.

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http://www.Harvestmoonguitars.com

I like it!

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http://www.CostaGuitars.com
PMoMC

Thanks, guys. The side dots are maple, too. I used a pencil sharpener to make them. Saw that on here. For the fingerboard, I used a 1/4" plug cutter to make the dots and glued them in with epoxy mixed with ebony dust. Easy and worked great and no pearl to worry about. It was about the only thing that went as planned on this one. Many, many dumb mistakes. Fortunately, I was able to fix them all but there are some cosmetic issues, for sure.

Matt

Lookin' good. Love the walnut set, the owner will be happy!

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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.

great looking walnut set... the side shot makes me think it may be thicker than 'standard' dread thickness..

Thanks, guys!



It's exactly the same body depth as both my Tacoma and Blueridge Dreads. Must just be the picture.

Matt

Wow! Great Guitar!
When you were sanding the maple fingerboard dots flush, how did you prevent ebony dust from grinding into the maple and making a big mess?

Nice looking Dread!

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Waddy

Photobucket Build Album Library

Sound Clips of most of my guitars

Nothing, really. I put them in after I've put the radius on the fingerboard, then sand them flush. Then I sand the fingerboard to 1200 and it seems to take the ebony dust right out of the dots. This was the first time I used maple dots but it was the same thing I've done when using MOP.

Matt

Very nice! And i like your choice of wood on it for a dread. Bet it sounds good too.

I made my first post about this guitar from my cell, so I was not able to really see the guitar. Now that I am looking on a big monitor, I do not see anything about that top that would make me call it "cosmetically challenged" as you say. Looks great to me!
Walnut and cedar are a great combination! Really well done!

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http://www.CostaGuitars.com
PMoMC

Thanks! It doesn't show in the picture but actually it's got some areas around the upper and lower bout edges that were like corrugated cardboard that fell inside the pattern of a Dread. I couldn't get them out on either side without going way too thin so I put the best side out. Despite this, my friend really wanted this top and it was the only cedar top I had. I explained that I probably wouldn't be able to get it all out and that was okay, I guess. It probably wouldn't have been in the pattern on an OM or 00, which was what I was planning on using it on. Otherwise, it's a really nice top.

Matt

Nice looking guitar!!
I don't understand why folks feel they have to apologize for building dreadnaughts; I expect it's just because it's associated with Martin guitars. There's a reason Martins are the most imitated guitars in the world; and a reason why the dread is probably the most popular model ever made.
There's certainly a place for all the other styles, shapes etc, but it seems petty to disparage either Martins or dreadnaughts...
regards
pvg