Official Luthiers Forum!

All the comments I've read about these books are universally enthusiastic and positive. I'd love to have them. The authors sell them for $245.00 postpaid from Oz. I haven't determined whether that Australian or US dollars. Either way it's a bunch.

Does anyone know of a US source for these books or a US publisher? I'd love to have them but they are stupendously expensive.

Thanks very much

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Peter Havriluk

No, sorry.

I thought of them as college texts, which they essentially are. Do they still use books in college now?

The shipping has to cost him close to $50 because you get them in about 3 business days, or at least I did.

Hope this helps with your decision making.

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I'm not a luthier.
I'm just a guy who builds guitars in his basement.
It's better than playing golf.

Peter: These books are a bargain if you are serious about guitar building. You may find someone parting with theirs via the classifieds that may be a bit cheaper.
Tom

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

Well, I had to pay $350 for an accounting book for my daughter in college, so I consider these books a bargain!

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Jim Watts
http://jameswattsguitars.com

They're great books. Design gets most of the press, but Build is absolutely fantastic. The unsung hero IMO. They're both printed in full color on nice paper and hardbound. Quality all around.

A big chunk of the price is in the shipping. Post a WTB in the classifieds to see if someone's interested in selling theirs. You'll probably pay close to the price of the books new minus the shipping.

You may be lucky and get a set through the classifieds, but remember even at full price, four full size plans are also included - got to be worth $60 minimum.
Perhaps you should try comparing their value to quality tonewood, pound for pound.
I recently bought 3 AAA European spruce tops, 2 years cut, from one of the better suppliers.
Cost about the same, will end up about 1/4 the weight.
I've paid more for one set of Zircote.

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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.

What they all said. These are a great resource. Think what you would pay for a course at the local CC (any subject) together with the associated textbook. I think most of us would be comfortable telling you that these books exceed that level of content.

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Jim Kirby
kirby@udel.edu

Money well spent.

The Gore/Gilet books are in my future, and I'll be buying them from Trevor. It would be a small thank you for all the advice that he shares with us.

Alex

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"Indecision is the key to flexibility" .... Bumper sticker

Peter you can get the books here. http://www.goreguitars.com.au/main/page ... _book.html $245 including shipping, Aussie funds I think.
Worth every dollar and more.

Ken

Sounds like I have some use for some of my income tax refund.

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Peter Havriluk

For the much talked about Somogyi books, you'll part with USD 265 plus shipping. In my view, these don't come close to the organization, completeness and technical rigor of the Gore/Gillet pair. I would still recommend Cumpiano to a beginning guitar maker as their first reference, but for those continuing with craft and who like a precise technical approach, the G/G set should be the next thing on the shelf.

I don't own the books, at least not yet, but always find that Trevor patiently and happily answers any questions or enquiries asked of him.

Steve

In fact, I think $200+ is a bargain.
Those 2 volumes definitely worth more than what it cost.

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Sen CL Goh
http://senguitar.blogspot.com

I haven't read the Somogyi books, but I'll strongly agree about the Gore/Gillet and Cumpiano books.

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A man hears what he wants to hear, and disreguards the rest. Paul Simon

Just FYI... they have come down to $167 on Amazon.

I think often think about investing in these books. As a hobbyist, I'm not 100% sure they are for me.

Questions:

1) What type of additional equipment and tooling would I need to be able to make the measurements needed to follow the methods in these books?

2) I was not blessed with the talents related to higher math. Will I be able to follow the concepts without being a mathie?

3) I see a lot of reference to "falcate" bracing when I hear about these books. Do they also cover working with X and fan bracing?

I would like to use these books to better understand what/why I am doing as well as gain consistency and control over my future projects, I just wonder if they are beyond me. . .

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Bryan Bear PMoMC

Take care of your feet, and your feet will take care of you.

The chapter summaries are enough to get the concepts across. The math is there to do if you want to check his work, but you don't need to be able to do the math. As for equipment, depends how much of the stuff you want to use. I haven't made a signal generator yet, but I can't see it being that expensive. For the FFT analysis, I use iAnalyzer on my iPhone.

Worth the money for sure, and a better expense than many others IMO.

Brian, I'm not a math guy either, but I thought the Gore/Gilet books were great. Personally, I like Somogyi's first volume for theory, and G/G vol 2 for assembly, but as I said, I'm not a math guy.

Falcate bracing is only one part of the G/G books. They also cover x bracing and fan bracing, not to mention lattice bracing.

Both of my G/G and Somogyi sets are full of folded over corners, highlighted sections, and bristling with bookmarks. I think of them as tools, not books, and as such, I think they're as good an investment in your building as you can make.

Steve

I just searched Amazon....doesn't come up. Link?

The math in "Design" was 399 feet over my head, just under the legal limit before violating FAA regulations. I sold "Design," but I'd keep "Build" secure in a safe if I had one. It's fantastic, and the key equations are all still there.

"Build" takes you through building two styles of classical, a slope shoulder dread, and a falcate braced OM. There is a ton of information there that you wouldn't even expect, such as the frequencies some of the great instruments they've examined resonate when tapped.

As far as getting the frequencies needed for the equations, I use StroboSoft on my iPhone. I'd like to find an inexpensive external mic that will plug into it (the phone).

I think they are worth having. There is nothing else out in the marketplace that covers the science in a manner as practical as these books.

Some of the math will be over your head, but you don't have to understand the math to believe the conclusions. Considering how expensive this craft can be, the books are a great value. If you've only got $300 to spend on the hobby in the next year, buy wood and build a guitar. If you've got $550, buy the books, then the wood.

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A man hears what he wants to hear, and disreguards the rest. Paul Simon

That was well put. considering I have more wood than time to make guitars, I should bump these books up on my priorities list. I can be reading a little bit at a time when I'm not able to get in the shop.

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Bryan Bear PMoMC

Take care of your feet, and your feet will take care of you.

As I've quipped before, these books will help you get the tone out of your tonewood...