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Last week I had a Thomas Wray guitar in for some fretwork & buzz killing. While it was on the bench, I had a good look "under the hood".
Thomas incorporates a bent top armrest into many of his guitars. The top is bent down, towards the back on the lower bout. The X brace is carved to fit the bend & he eliminates the lower finger brace in the bent area.
The bend is made about 3" in from the edge of the lower bout.
After getting the work finished, I spent a good half hour playing the guitar & was amazed at how comfortable it was for my stubby right arm to reach around.
The tone was very nice, but it was not as loud as I expected it would be.
There was a distinct difference in tap tone between the bent bass bout & the same area on the treble side, the bent area being "duller", with a very quick decay.
I really liked the feel of this instrument & am planning to try out something similar.
Has anyone around here got any experience with this design?
My intuition tells me that there would be some sacrifice in loudness & bass response but if it can be mitigated, the comfort bonus might be worth the loss.

I'm building my 3rd using this bevel, however none are yet strung up. We did have a thread on this type of bevel not too long ago. Mike Doolin has an articles page where he has a tutorial on how to do it. It's not completely done but he did tell me it will be a matter of time until the full tut is gonna be there.

Thanks Maks;
I'll go check out Mike's site. I'd be interested in hearing how those guitars work out, when you get them done.

Anyone have a link to Mike's article? I looked but was unable to find it. Thanks.

Mike Doolin's articles are cunningly hidden at:

http://www.doolinguitars.com/articles/

It's here

http://www.doolinguitars.com/articles/armbevel/

Dave

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Thanks guys!

So, does anyone think this type of armrest might affect the tone of the guitar? It seems to me that bending the top there would make it stiffer in the same way that the tighter curves of the typical guitar's sides are stiffer than the relatively flat sections below the waist. Wouldn't that added stiffness affect the top's ability to vibrate? Or am I overthinking this?

When I talked to mike, he said he stops the brace just as it reaches the bend, he does not do what that other builder does. And the beveled part of the top is very rigid making it as if the side were there. Couldn't tell you on the tone, but it seems like the same principal as the Ryan style bevel without the extra lining

Thanks for posting the link, guys. I finally got a moment to go to Mike's page & check it out.
Mike's armrest is much smaller than the one on the Wray guitar I worked on last week.
Should have much less effect on the tone & loudness, as well as eliminating the need to continue the X brace into the rest area.
As usual, his work is inspiring! The next spec guitar I build will definitely have this type of armrest. A little rib rest too, I think...
Charlie; IMO, you're not overthinking... I would think the bent area of the top would be quite dead & would not contribute much to the sound of the guitar.

I emailed Mike a while back and he just let me know he has completed the bevel guitar and updated the information.
http://www.doolinguitars.com/articles/armbevel/

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Fred Tellier
http://www.fetellierguitars.com
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Hey Fred; Thanks for posting that link. Thomas Wray told me bends the curve into his bindings & says he has a bear of a time making them fit, without breaking. Mike's system looks way better!
I'm too busy with my summer work to start yet, but come this fall I'm going to give this arm rest a try.
Cheers! Dan

It's not difficult to do. I combine it with a Manzer Wedge body. It does add to the pre-loading of the top, so bracing is adapted (lightened) accordingly.
-C

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