Official Luthiers Forum!

I haven't been posting much recently, much of my building has been concentrated on making that viola da gamba and, presently, a Baroque bow for it. It seems that now I need to make a case also.

What I have been doing for guitar work is to pursue an interest in a Lacote guitar. This project started out to be intentionally simple, just a quick little guitar to satisfy my interest in knowing what these guitars are like. Well, as the project progressed into something more involved, some of these decisions have come back to torment me. Basically, some things that I let slide as "good enough for what I am after" have ended up not being good enough for what I am working on now. But I have worked out a lot of issues and I will apply my learning to the next one!

Also, I am thoroughly not impressed by my working conditions. I have to share space in my shop with my day job, which is building and restoring traditional wooden canoes. So I build on my breaks and my space is not separate and secure. Also, there is no humidity control and I have to work when conditions permit. This leave periods of time when the guitar project sits idle and subject to the vagaries of the weather. All of this stresses me and the guitar. Argh.

At present, I have the body closed, the purfling and binding completed, the Maple back and sides stained the Lacote colour, two coats of varnish applied, and the neck made. The neck is presently being detailed and the fingerboard is ready for slotting.

More pictures to follow, I have to take some fresh ones with the body with some finish on it.

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Expectation is the source of all misery; comparison the thief of joy.
http://redrivercanoe.ca/

Lookin' good! I like that rosette, nice job.

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Bryan Bear PMoMC

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

Looks great, Douglas! You always seem to do really interesting builds!

Alex

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

I was curious about this guitar, nice to see you building this one. A little more involved than my idea of a quick and simple guitar. Sounds like project creep to me. Sign of an imaginative mind. Can't wait to see more.

I don't get to write that often on this forum, but Fred, you're always welcome to drop by and see for yourself!

As promised, here are a few photos of where I am at today.

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Expectation is the source of all misery; comparison the thief of joy.
http://redrivercanoe.ca/

Very nice!
Are you going to "ebonize" the neck?

Great work, Doug. Always like seeing your work on historic designs.

Not on this one, though I do like the ebonized look.

I'm following this one dating from 1836 as a source of inspiration.

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Expectation is the source of all misery; comparison the thief of joy.
http://redrivercanoe.ca/

Great stuff, Douglas! Thanks for sharing. Add me to the many who are constantly intrigued and impressed by your seemingly boundless creativity. Well done!

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George :-)

Where did you find tuners that bury into the headstock? Are the gears mounted between two plates, similar to the Stauffer slipper peghead style?

Beautiful work.

Bob

While they are available from Rodger's, I'm not using them due to high cost. Like $700! I'm going to use something simple and affordable. Maybe one day if I get an order to do a guitar like this at the top level...


http://rodgers-tuning-machines.com/TunerStyles/Lacote.html

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Expectation is the source of all misery; comparison the thief of joy.
http://redrivercanoe.ca/

Thanks to all of you who have expressed this sentiment. I never thought that I would hhave such a reputation! Actually, I am always surprised that I havve any reputation as I just go oout to the shop each day and toil away. Bills gotta get paid, etc.

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Expectation is the source of all misery; comparison the thief of joy.
http://redrivercanoe.ca/

Wow, That's looking really good Doug.

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Jim Watts
http://jameswattsguitars.com