Category Archives: tools

Build a Classical Guitar in a Week: Days One and Two

2024
AL#153 p.40               
Robbie O’Brien                                                                                           

▪ Here’s Part One of a three-part series, in which veteran lutherie teacher O’Brien follows the construction of an instrument in deep detail. Everything moves right along on an intense and carefully developed schedule; a student starts with a box of wood and strings up a nice classical guitar only six days later.

It Worked for Me: Parallel Tools

2024
AL#153 p.94               
Dan Alexander                                                                                           

▪ Dan says he does not like to measure stuff. These graduated tool-grade steel rectangles help him make things parallel without any measuring.

It Worked for Me: Octagonal Horse

2024
AL#153 p.95               
Steve Kennel                                                                                           

▪ Steve says it’s an oldy but a goody: You mount a piece of work, like a guitar neck for instance, to an octagonal beam. Now you can clamp it at an angle in a standard bech vise.

In Memoriam: Frank Ford

2024
AL#151 p.67               
Dan Erlewine                                                                                           

▪ Frank Ford was an icon of the instrument repair field and an overachiever when it came to sharing information with this fellow luthiers. He had legions of friends and fans. Erlewine brought Ford to the GAL Convention, and they became a team which was a fixture at the next several gatherings. Dan takes this moment to praise Frank’s name.

It Worked for Me: Nut Filing Guide

2024
AL#151 p.71               
Mike Doolin                                                                                           

▪ Using CAD, Mike designs these guides to fit the spacing of the strings and the width of the files. Then he cuts them from plastic using a laser cutter.

It Worked for Me: Soapstone is Better Than White Pencil

2024
AL#151 p.71               
Steve Kennel                                                                                           

▪ Welders use soapstone slips to mark on metal. They also work great on dark colored wood. Get them at welding supply places.

Electric Guitar Repair: Setups, Frets, and Inspiration

2024
AL#152 p.6               
Evan Gluck   Larry Fitzgerald                                                                                       

▪ Gluck is a beloved repeat presenter at GAL Conventions. This time, he brought along veteran New York repair guy Larry Fitzgerald. In addition to demonstrating fret-leveling techniques, they tell war stories of maneuvering their businesses to survive the recent global pandemic. Mentions Matt Brewster, Sam Ash, John Suhr, Rudy Pensa, Mandolin Brothers, Dan Erlewine, John Patitucci, Flip Scipio, LeRoy Aiello.

Meet the Maker: Mark Goodman

2024
AL#152 p.46               
Raymond Bryant                                                                                           

▪ Guitarist Bryant fell in love with an instrument that he tried at a local music store. When he learned to his surprise that it was individually handcrafted just a few miles from his home, he had to make the short pilgrimage. He takes us along to meet Mark Goodman, who has been working alone for decades in his simple and efficient home workshop.

Make a Fret Press or Two

2024
AL#152 p.56               
Steve Kennel                                                                                           

▪ The do-it-yourself mentality is at the root of the whole American Lutherie Boom. Kennel helps you mimic recent advances in commercially available tooling, but DIY it with that stuff they use for competition-level skateboard ramps.

Cheap and Easy String Testing

2024
AL#152 p.58               
John Huffman                                                                                           

▪ If you are a guitar maker, I’ll bet you know the thrill of adapting some cheap gizmo into a specialized tool for the lutherie trade. Huffman quickly jury-rigs an inexpensive fish scale into a useful jig for measuring individual string tension.

A Simplified Larrivée-Style Binding Jig

2024
AL#152 p.60               
Jon Sevy                                                                                           

▪ Unlike some of us, Jon Sevy paid attention in high school geometry class. He calls this method of setting up a router to cut a binding ledge “simplified” but it is really more like “optimised;” it is both simpler and better.

Simple Things: Marker, Scalpel, Straw and More

2023
AL#150 p.66               
Harry Fleishman                                                                                           

▪ Snip a drinking straw at an angle to make a great tool for clearing wet glue squeezeout. And there’s a “sharpee” that’s better than a Sharpee-brand sharpee. Plus more simple things. Like, get the good brand of pencils.

Letter: Swing Arm Binding Router

2024
AL#151 p.3               
January Williams                                                                                           

▪ A reader asks about the swing-arm binding router shown among Denny Stevens’ tools in AL#150. Author January Williams gives an informative answer. The tool’s design is a collaborative effort between Stevens and Harry Fleishman.

The Historic Solera of Santos Hernández: an Attempted Reconstruction

2024
AL#151 p.24               
Tobias Braun                                                                                           

▪ How do you explain that the glue squeeze-out in some fine old guitars by Spanish masters drips the wrong way? Seems like that could only happen if the top was glued last, face-up. The key to the mystery may be an unusual century-old workboard from the shop of Santos Hernández. Tune in for the rest of the story. Mentions Jose Romanillos, Marian Harris Winspear, Jeffrey Elliott, Richard Brune, Alberto Martínez, Domingo Esteso, Enrique Garcia, Francisco Simplicio, Miguel Simplicio, Marcelo Barbero, Marcelo Barbero (Hijo), Arcangel Fernández Léonard Plattner, Faustino Conde, Mariano Conde, Julio Conde, Felipe Conde, Felipe Conde Crespo, Modesto Borreguero, Hernández y Aguado, José Ramírez III, Julián Gómez Ramírez, Manuel Ramírez, Antonio Torres, Robert Bouchet.

A Kerfed Lining Fixture

2024
AL#151 p.60               
Lee Herron                                                                                           

▪ Author Herron tinkered together this bandsaw jig to cut the kerfs in lining strips. He explains the construction and capabilities of his time-tested design.

Electronic String Action Gauge

2024
AL#151 p.64               
Geoff Needham                                                                                           

▪ A cheap mail-order gizmo for measuring tire tread wear; a pair of nippers; a scrap of plexi; a bottle of superglue. Put them all together and you’ve got a sweet tool like the cool kids use. Mentions Chris Alsop.

Letter to the Editor: Hammond Glider Saw

2023
AL#150 p.4               
January Williams                                                                                           

▪ The Hammond Glider saw is a rare and wonderful thing. It was intended to cut type metal, but we get guidance on using it to cut wood. Mentions Ken Parker.

Let’s Catch Up With Richard Bruné and Marshall Bruné

2023
AL#150 p.16               
Mark French                                                                                           

▪ Richard “R.E.” Bruné was in the GAL’s very first cohort and was an author and convention presenter from the very beginning. We’ve visited him a couple of times over the decades. His son Marshall was born into the business, and into the Guild. Together they run a large workshop and epicenter of classical guitar making, scholarship restoration, appreciation, and dealing.

Denny’s Jigs, Part Two

2023
AL#150 p.32               
January Williams                                                                                           

▪ Author Williams bought the lutherie estate of the late Denny Stevens several years ago. He has taken an archeological approach to it, pondering over the nicely crafted gizmos he has discovered, and reporting them to us as he figures out the function of the various treasures.

The Two-Day Ukulele: Inducting Novice Luthiers

2023
AL#150 p.44               
William-T. Crocca                                                                                           

▪ A group of mature woodworkers set themselves the challenge of designing and presenting a two-day class in which kids and families can build a StewMac uke kit. It involved setting up twenty workstations. The class was a success, and everyone went home with a strung uke “in the white.”

Neck-Carving Jig

2023
AL#150 p.50               
Carl Hallman                                                                                           

▪ Author Carl Hallman likes to develop methods and jigs that let the various operations involved in making a fine guitar repeatable and accurate. This one is an evolution of an idea used for making bolt-on necks for solidbodies, adapted for an acoustic guitar neck with a full heel and angled peghead.

Fret-Buzz Detector

2023
AL#150 p.54               
John Kruse                                                                                           

▪ Like you might have heard, it is possible to locate a buzzing fret on a guitar that uses metal strings by exploiting the fact that an electical connection would be made when the string briefly touched the fret. It can be hard to see a flickering light or see a response on a VOM. This little project is optimized to make that contact visible and audible.

Self-Centering Sideport Jig

2023
AL#150 p.56               
Jeffrey-R. Elliott                                                                                           

▪ Whatever the task may be, million-year GAL member Jeff Elliott does it right. Here he turns his attention to a jig for accurately placing and cleanly cutting a side sound port in a classical guitar.

Making Solid Linings for Guitars

2023
AL#150 p.60               
Mike Doolin                                                                                           

▪ Doolin shows us how to make nice solid wood linings starting with veneer from the hardware store. They turn out great, and you have your choice of colors: light, or dark.

Meet the Maker: Ken Parker

2023
AL#149 p.4               
Mike Doolin   Ken Parker                                                                                       

▪ Can you believe we have never “met” this guy? He’s a giant of the American Lutherie Boom, he was at the Guild’s 1979 Convention, and he has been a GAL member for over twenty years. The world knows him as the maker of the Fly solidbody guitar, but now he has returned to his first love: the archtop guitar. Mentions Larry Fishman, John D’Angelico, Jimmy D’Aquisto, Scott Chinery, Orville Gibson, Lloyd Loar, Raphael Ciani, Nick Lucas, Michael Greenfield, Sam Zygmuntowicz.

Press Your Ukuleles

2023
AL#149 p.42               
John Calkin                                                                                           

▪ One operation at a time, Calkin is showing us how to make ukes in a direct and effective way. It’s all done by one worker with simple tools in a small space. Here he shows us how to get the back onto the ribs quickly and accurately, with no cleanup needed.

Little Thickness Sander

2023
AL#149 p.54               
Robert Hamm                                                                                           

▪ Sometimes you need a bicycle. That is, something between a skateboard and an automobile. This slick little shop-built unit lives in the space between a full-sized auto-feed belt sander and a Robo-sander drum chucked up in a drill press.

Quick-and-Dirty Magnetic Thickness Gauge

2023
AL#149 p.58               
Jon Sevy                                                                                           

▪ A couple of cheap gizmos from Harbor Freight can be cobbled together to let you measure the thickness of the sides or plates of an assembled guitar.

Bridge Sole Radius Shaping Jig

2023
AL#149 p.60               
Bob Gleason                                                                                           

▪ Sure, you can fit the sole of a bridge to its soundboard by putting sandpaper on the tender spruce or cedar and rubbing the bridge on it. But this jig is easier and safer.

An Easy Fretboard-Tapering Jig

2023
AL#149 p.62               
Mark French                                                                                           

▪ This super-simple table saw jig is a strip of plywood with two alignment pins in drilled holes. Easy to make and to use.

Simple Things: Heat Gun for Brown Tape

2023
AL#149 p.67               
Harry Fleishman                                                                                           

▪ Warm up that brown paper tape with a hair dryer before you pull it off. Softens it up and makes it less likely to tear out wood fibers. That’s a simple thing.

It Worked for Me: Tape Edges of Cut-Out Drawings

2023
AL#149 p.69               
Brent Benfield                                                                                           

▪ Ever snip out a piece from a plan drawing to use as a template? It will work so much better if you put clear tape on both faces of the edge.

It Worked for Me: Inflating Door Jack Clamp

2023
AL#149 p.71               
Dan’l Brazinski                                                                                           

▪ It’s like a little square bag on the end of a blood-pressure squeezie bulb. It’s made for helping you hang a door all by your lonesome. Also works as a lutherie clamp. Life is just one work-around after another.

It Worked for Me: Fretwire Roller and Guitar Hanger

2023
AL#149 p.71               
Steve Kennel                                                                                           

▪ Kennel is a sculptor. He sees a pile of scraps and misc hardware and builds a swanky-lookin’ fretwire roller. He’s on a roll. (Get it? Roll?) So he makes a guitar hanger that plugs into a workbench dog hole.

Let’s Catch Up with Steve Klein

2023
AL#148 p.16               
Paul Schmidt   Steve Klein                                                                                       

▪ Steve Klein started his lutherie endeavors fifty-five years ago as a teenager in his parents’ house. Today he’s collaborating with Steve Kauffman on dazzlingly decorative acoustic guitars, and continuing to make innovative ergonomic solidbodies in his own shop. Mentions Fibonacci, Carl Margolis, Frank Pollaro, Leonardo DaVinci Steve Kauffman, Larry Robinson, Bob Hergert, Joe Walsh.

Denny’s Jigs

2023
AL#148 p.39               
January Williams                                                                                           

▪ Williams purchased the lutherie estate of Denny Stevens. In a sort of archeological exercise, he digs through a pile of jigs and considers their possible functions.

Power Up Your Ukulele Dishes

2023
AL#148 p.54               
John Calkin                                                                                           

▪ Get serious about building ukes in spherically-radiused workboards. These dishes are easily built from lumberyard material and use a drill press for power.

It Worked for Me: Carving Table

2023
AL#148 p.69               
Peggy Stuart                                                                                           

▪ This gentle setup does not suck up the chips with a screaming vacuum, but lets them fall through a grating with a calming pitter-pat.

Making a Centerline Square

2022
AL#147 p.56               
John Calkin                                                                                           

▪ In lutherie work, you often need to make something accurately perpendicular to the instrument’s centerline. Squares designed for carpenters and machinists don’t do the job as well as these simple and inexpensive clear-plastic tools.

Vibrate Guitars with an Aquarium Air Pump

2022
AL#147 p.60               
Roger Haggstrom                                                                                           

▪ They say you can improve the sound of a new guitar by attaching a machine that will provide direct vibration to the instrument for a few days, simulating the breaking-in that might occur from months of playing. Not surprisingly, “they” will also sell you such a machine. But what else might work? Ask a luthier who also publishes a magazine for exotic fish fanciers, and he might suggest belting an aquarium air pump to the face of the guitar.

Sanding Guitar Plate Seams

2022
AL#147 p.62               
Brent Benfield                                                                                           

▪ There are several ways to make a nice tightly-closing seam for a back or top guitar plate. Here’s a low stress method that uses a granite slab, some sticky-back sandpaper, two little C clamps, and a plywood scrap.

Accurate Resawing

2022
AL#147 p.64               
Bob Gleason                                                                                           

▪ When doing a small resawing job in the shop, it may seem intuitive to set the fence of the bandsaw close to the blade. You never have to move the fence. But there are good reasons to do it the other way and move the fence after each cut. The clue is in the title.

Review: The Art of Mandolin Making by Alfred Woll

2022
AL#147 p.65               
James Condino                                                                                           

▪ Condino loves this lavish book about the history and construction of the Neapolitan (or tater bug) mandolin, which runs from classic to contemporary.

It Worked for Me: Special-Purpose Files

2022
AL#147 p.70               
Steve Kennel                                                                                           

▪ Specialty files intended for sharpening steel tools are unexpectedly perfect for specific lutherie tasks. In this case we are talking about files made for sharpening brace-and-bit augers, and files made for sharpening Japanese pull saws.

Foolproof Straight-Saddle Slotting Jig

2022
AL#147 p.18               
Beau Hannam                                                                                           

▪ In a former lutherie life, Hannam cut saddle slots with a big honkin’ milling machine. A change of situation led him to design this practical and straightforward router jig to do the job. He gives clear and detailed instructions for building and using it.

Basic Steel-String Guitar Action Setup

2022
AL#147 p.24               
Robbie O’Brien                                                                                           

▪ Lutherie uber-pedagog Robbie O’Brien has taught beaucoup guitar makers and repair techs to set the action of steel string flattops, so his thoughts on the matter are crystal clear. Here he steps us through the process in a relaxed, logical, and concise presentation. From his 2017 GAL Convention workshop.

Ironing Out a Warped Guitar Neck

2022
AL#147 p.52               
Michael Burton                                                                                           

▪ What do you do with a guitar that seems beyond repair? Repair it anyway. Why not? After decades of neglect and wildly improper storage, this sturdy Asian-built flattop had developed the mother of all neck warps. Burton ripped into it with clothes iron, heat blanket, router, and neck jig to replace the truss rod and fix earlier disastrous repair attempts. It turned out great.

It Worked for Me: Humidifier from Ball-Point Pen

2022
AL#146 p.70               
Mark French                                                                                           

▪ Make a quick and dirty guitar humidifier out of materials you may actually have in your pocket, like a ball point pen and some lint. Kidding about the lint.

Letter: Gortex Felt Paper for Restoration

2022
AL#146 p.2               
Jeffrey-R. Elliott                                                                                           

▪ Gives updated info on guitar restoration materials that were mentioned by Elliott in AL#145.

Letter: Galvanized Sheet Steel for Side Bending

2022
AL#146 p.2               
Rich Jaouen                                                                                           

▪ The zinc in galvanized sheet steel can be safely used for bending guitar sides, contrary to widly distributed opinions.

Remembering the Master’s Last Class

2022
AL#146 p.6               
Flip Scipio                                                                                           

▪ Ten years ago, Flip Scipio attended the last of the summer seminars given by José Romanillos at his base in Sigüenza, Spain. Now, after the recent passing of the Maestro, this review is both informative and poignant.

Meet the Maker: David Thormahlen

2022
AL#146 p.26               
John Calkin                                                                                           

▪ David Thormahlen started making many kinds of string instruments in the woodshop in college, and then made a strategic decision to focus his lutherie career on lever harps. It all worked out well, and he still makes guitars, mandolins, and bouzoukis in addition to the harps. He shows us some of his gluing fixtures which involve bicycle inner tubes; some stretched, some inflated.

An All-American 7-String Guitar

2022
AL#146 p.38               
Lee Herron                                                                                           

▪ Sometimes you get a customer who just wants you to run wild. Check out the design and build process of this 17.75-inch, 7-string, multiscale black-locust flattop guitar. Fun!

Universal Side Caul

2022
AL#146 p.58               
Beau Hannam                                                                                           

▪ These simple plywood squares with dowel halves glued to them can replace all the carefully shaped side cauls that thousands of luthiers have been using for decades. Sometimes one size really does fit all.

Strategies for Peghead Overlays and End Grafts

2022
AL#145 p.4               
Michael Bashkin                                                                                           

▪ Bashkin ornaments his pegheads and end grafts with marquetry combined with thin, free-flowing veneer lines. He shows us in detail how he accomplishes some of these effects, including scorching decorative pieces in hot sand.

Meet the Maker: Matt Brewster

2022
AL#145 p.25               
Evan Gluck                                                                                           

▪ Imagine you were a guitar repair guy, and there was another guitar repair guy in your same town. What would you do about it? If you were Evan Gluck, or any other enlightened, right-thinking luthier, you would march right over there and make him your best friend. These guys have a blast “competing” in the same market, sharing stories, customers, tools, and techniques. And yes, it does help if your hometown has over eight million people in it. Mentions Brian Moore, Dan Erlewine, Michael Bashkin, Ian Davlin, Jimmy Carbonetti.

Hand-Powered Radius Sanding Jig

2022
AL#145 p.38               
Roger Haggstrom                                                                                           

▪ Haggstromm uses a commercially-available radiused sanding block, a few scraps of wood, and a handful of parts from the hardware store to make this simple jig. It that lets him quickly and quietly produce a fretboard with the radius and the relief accurately sanded in.

Steel String Guitar Nut Slotting Using a Stick-On Template

2022
AL#145 p.48               
R.M. Mottola                                                                                           

▪ Mottola precisely describes his process for slotting a nut. All the spacing work is done on-screen, then printed out to make a template for the bench work.

Making Control-Cavity Jigs

2022
AL#145 p.52               
John Calkin                                                                                           

▪ Using simple, non-dedicated tooling, Calkin steps us through his straightforward, no-nonsense process of routing control cavities in solid guitar bodies.

Vertical Bending-Iron Table

2022
AL#145 p.58               
Phil Ingber                                                                                           

▪ Mounting an electric bending iron in such a way that it pokes up out of a work surface helps you avoid a twist in the bent side. Mentions Ted Harlan, R.M. Mottola.

“Restomodding” Wall-Hanger Guitars

2021
AL#144 p.6               
Roger Haggstrom                                                                                           

▪ A hundred and some years ago, Swedish folks sat around the house all of a dark winter and sang hymns together, accompanied by the strummings of cheap mass-produced guitars. Those days are gone, but a lot of the guitars are still hanging on the walls of old houses. Roger Häggström has made a business of restoring them to useful condition and modifying them to sound and play better than they ever could have. He restores and modifies. Restomods. Mentions the Levin guitar company.

Meet the Maker: Robert Anderson

2021
AL#144 p.36               
John Calkin   Robert Anderson                                                                                       

▪ Robert Anderson made banjos part-time for decades while he worked a respectable day job. But since he has “retired” into a full-time lutherie career, he is in demand for his beautifully carved, inlaid, and engraved instruments. We take a look into his converted tobacco barn and talk shop. Mentions Doug Unger, Stan Werbin, Kathy Anderson, Grateful Dead.

The Charles Fox Guitar-Building Method, Part Six

2021
AL#144 p.44               
Mark French   Charles Fox                                                                                       

▪ In this concluding episode of the series, the neck is fretted and the frets are filed and polished. Threaded inserts are installed in the heel and the neck is attached. Finally, the bridge is glued on, the nut is set in position, and the guitar is strung and set up.

Getting Good Inlay Results with Inexpensive CNC Routers

2021
AL#144 p.52               
Jon Sevy                                                                                           

▪ If you are cutting pearl inlays with a benchtop CNC router, then cutting the recesses for them with that same CNC, they ought to fit perfectly, right? Well yes, in the perfect world of math. And even out here in the messy real world of sawdust and bearing slop, you can get pretty close if you understand the forces at play and calculate their effects.

Guitar Making as a Teaching Tool

2021
AL#144 p.56               
Debbie French   Mark French                                                                                       

▪ There is a national movement to teach teachers how to teach STEM subjects (science, technology, engineering, and math) to high-school students; you have them make guitars. Turns out people think it’s fun to make guitars. Who knew?

Product Review: SuperMax 16-32 Drum Sander

2021
AL#144 p.60               
Ralf Grammel                                                                                           

▪ Thickness sanders have come a long way since the days when luthiers commonly made their own jury-rigged and cantankerous contraptions. Two experienced builders give the SuperMax 16-32 a thorough workout and pronounce it worthy and workable for an individual luthier’s shop.

Product Review: SuperMax 16-32 Drum Sander

2021
AL#144 p.61               
John Calkin                                                                                           

▪ Thickness sanders have come a long way since the days when luthiers commonly made their own jury-rigged and cantankerous contraptions. Two experienced builders give the SuperMax 16-32 a thorough workout and pronounce it worthy and workable for an individual luthier’s shop.

It Worked for Me: Mount Fret Erasers on a Handle

2021
AL#144 p.70               
Jason Hull                                                                                           

▪ Fret erasers are easier to use if you attach them to a handle, especially if you have carpal tunnel syndrome.

It Worked for Me: Flattening a Plank

2021
AL#144 p.71               
Steve Kennel                                                                                           

▪ How to take the warp, cup, and twist out of a plank. You attach scrap-wood rails that carry it through a planer in the proper orientation.

Review: The Master’s Bench by Paul Schmidt and Arian Sheets

2021
AL#143 p.63               
Mike Doolin                                                                                           

▪ This book is published by the National Music Museum (NMM, formerly Shrine to Music Museum) as a companion to their permanent exhibit of guitars and tools of John D’Angelico, James L. D’Aquisto, and Paul Gudelsky.

It Worked for Me: Magnetic Table Saw Jig for Narrow Ripping

2021
AL#143 p.69               
Bob Gleason                                                                                           

▪ Rare-earth magnets recessed into the back of a piece of plywood let it act as a quick-and-easy zero-throat jig for ripping narrow strips for kerfing and binding. Each edge is a different setup.

It Worked for Me: Junk Plane Makes Sanding Beam Handle

2021
AL#143 p.69               
Aaron Cash                                                                                           

▪ Off-brand hand planes with the iron and cap missing are rightfully cheap in junk stores. They can be affixed with carpet tape onto things like radiused sanding beams to give you a better grip.

It Worked for Me: Modified Zyliss Vise

2021
AL#143 p.70               
Steve Kennel                                                                                           

▪ Kennel modifies the often-seen but seldom-used Zyliss vise into a configuration that is specifically engineered for safely and securely holding guitar necks.

It Worked for Me: Magnets Hold Truss Rod Cover

2021
AL#143 p.71               
Jon Sevy                                                                                           

▪ Little rare-earth button magnets are cheap. Sevy cleverly recesses them into a peghead face to hold the truss rod cover in place with no screws. He figures the cover is less likely to be misplaced by the guitar’s owner if they don’t need to use a screw driver to put it back on.

Quickie Sander Fence

2021
               read this article
John Calkin                                                                                           

▪ Bang some hunks of particle board together to make the simple jigs you need, in this case a 90 degree fence for a horizontal belt sander. Remember to write on them what they are.

Letter: Charles Fox Neck Angle Sander

2021
AL#143 p.3               
Mark French                                                                                           

▪ Steve asks for more specific info on the device seen on the cover of AL#141. It is a sander which refines the plane of the top at the neck joint so that the angle of the neck will give the correct height of the bridge saddle. Mark answers and provides explanatory photos.

Letter: Sealer for MDF Jigs

2021
AL#143 p.5               
Mark French                                                                                           

▪ Leo asks what sealer Charles Fox uses on his MDF jigs, noting that they look great in the Guild’s Fox Method series and that Charles says he has been using some of them for twenty years. Author Mark French responds with info straight from Charles. He also comments on the use of MDF as wasteboards for vacuum hold-downs in CNC work.

Seeking the Holy Grail: Torres’ FE08

2021
AL#143 p.6               
Federico Sheppard                                                                                           

▪ It is a story of mystery, dedication, and destiny. The wide-eyed young novitiate is mentored by oracles, sorcerers, and craftsmen until he finds his great quest and pursues it against all odds. To put it more plainly, but no more truthfully, it is the story of Federico Sheppard constructing a copy of FE08, the astonishingly elaborate early opus of the master luthier Antonio Torres Jurado. Mentions Nick Kukich, Ray Jacobs, Shel Urlik, Jose Romanillos, Richard Brune, Robert Ruck, Robert Lundberg, Abel Garcia Lopez, Nicolo Alessi.

The Charles Fox Guitar-Building Method, Part Five

2021
AL#143 p.22               
Mark French   Charles Fox                                                                                       

▪ In this article the fretboard is slotted, crowned, and glued to the neck. The neck is then shaped.

Measuring Resonant Frequencies of an Acoustic Guitar

2021
AL#143 p.48               
Mark French                                                                                           

▪ Here’s how to quickly make a frequency-response curve of a guitar on your bench, using a handheld digital recorder and free software. Not cheap and easy enough for you? The author goes on to tell you how to do the whole thing on a smart phone. Mentions Spectroid, MATLAB, and Audacity.

Vise on a Stick

2021
AL#143 p.54               
Harry Fleishman                                                                                           

▪ Start with the cheap half of one of those little bench-top drill presses. Add a small piece of plywood with some holes drilled in it. Bolt on a vise. Now you have Vise on a Stick, which can clamp to any bench top and can swivel and tilt all over the place. It’s especially great for bringing a good solid vise up to eye level.

First Build: A Lumberyard Ukulele

2021
AL#143 p.56               
Steve Dickerson                                                                                           

▪ The author hit on an unusual program for building his first uke. He bought a kit, but then set aside the good wood for a later build. He went to the lumberyard to buy cheap wood, then proceeded with reduced anxiety. Makes sense when you think about it. The humble uke came out fine.

The Charles Fox Guitar-Building Method, Part Four

2021
AL#142 p.14               
Mark French   Charles Fox                                                                                       

▪ In this article the peg head is shaped and drilled, the neck shaft is slotted for the truss rod, the heel is formed, and the neck is fitted to the body.

Uncle Dan’s Favorite New Vise

2021
AL#142 p.28               
Dan Erlewine                                                                                           

▪ Good ol’ Dan Erlewine is known for finding and spreading efficient new tools and techniques for guitar makers and repairers, as well as for mentoring and promoting young talent in the lutherie field. He’s at it again in this article, as he loosely wrangles a team to consult on the design of a specialized new shop vise.

The $75 Guitar Challenge

2021
AL#142 p.40               
Doug Hunt   Mark French                                                                                       

▪ Two luthiers dare each other to make a useful guitar for a total investment of $75 each. One makes a flattop, the other a solid body. There are rules, and rules are meant to be broken.

Side Bender and Body Mold Cut from One Sheet of Plywood

2021
AL#142 p.52               
Terence Warbey                                                                                           

▪ Not only does Warbey make the entire bending form and the outside mold from a single sheet, but the form pops apart like a Swedish Christmas ornament and stores flat in a plastic bag. Mentions Charles Fox and Mark French.

Big Shop-Made Dovetail Clamp

2021
AL#142 p.58               
Bob Gleason                                                                                           

▪ A big honkin’ C clamp for pressing home a dovetail joint can be easily built from plywood, wood scrap, cork, and a commercially available press screw. It can just as well be pretty, because that’s fun. And if you don’t see what’s fun about it, maybe lutherie is not for you.

Lutherie Curmudgeon

2021
AL#142 p.60               
John Calkin                                                                                           

▪ Sometimes a bargain is no bargain, like when the work that a power tool accomplishes is less valuable than space it uses in your shop. If you don’t love something, set it free.

Auxiliary Workbenches and Tables

2020
AL#141 p.58               
John Calkin                                                                                           

▪ There’s no fancy-schmancy foolin’ around at Calkin’s shop. Your bench is covered in projects and tools? Make a little benchtop on legs and let it stand above the clutter. Wish your bench had a radiused top? Make a tiny one that does. Frustrated by cam clamps that don’t reach the middle of your workbench? You know what to do.

The Charles Fox Guitar-Building Method, Part Three

2020
AL#141 p.7               
Charles Fox   Mark French                                                                                       

▪ In this episode of the landmark series, the back and top plates are braced and glued to the rim to form the body of the guitar. The body is then bound and purfled using Fox’ distinctive method of fitting everything dry, taping it in place, and running superglue into the seams.

Romantic Guitars in Norway

2020
AL#141 p.26               
Leonardo Michelin-Salomon                                                                                           

▪ A Uruguayan luthier enrolls in a craft school in Norway to study Romantic-era guitars built by Italian, German, and French makers two hundred years ago. He writes an article about his techniques and discoveries that is published in an American journal with readers in over forty countries. Yes, it’s a big beautiful lutherie world. We are all just leaves on one wide-spreading, figured-maple branch.

Ukulele Scale Intonation

2020
AL#141 p.34               
Peter Hurney                                                                                           

▪ Here’s a direct and accurate real-world method for calculating the exact position of a uke bridge. The jig does all the work and considers all the variables. No math required!

The Seven-Year Itch

2020
AL#141 p.41               
Erik Wolters                                                                                           

▪ Wolters started his first instrument-making project later in life than some. But with an excellent mentor and years of patient determination, he completed a doozy of a first guitar. Dreams can come true. At least lutherie dreams.

Stiffer Guitar Linings

2020
AL#141 p.47               
F.A. Jaen                                                                                           

▪ These linings are something like reverse kerfing, but they are built up in place, starting with an ingeniously aligned set of individual blocks. There’s always a new way to do it.

Guitar Making with an X-Carve CNC Router

2020
AL#141 p.50               
Mark French                                                                                           

▪ Here come the robots. Although CNC routers are not yet at the Jetsons stage, we are far beyond the days when computer-driven tools were only in luthiers’ dreams, not their workshops. Mark French brings us up to date as he selects and installs an inexpensive machine in his home shop.

If You Want to Build Guitars, Build Guitars

2020
AL#139 p.56               
Harry Fleishman                                                                                           

▪ Harry has been a lot of places and made a lot of instruments in a lot of shops. Now, after fifty years as a luthier, a lutherie teacher, and a hired-gun designer, he’s right back where many folks started: in a spare bedroom. He encourages us (and himself) not to let a humble shop space be an excuse for inaction. Just do it (registered trademark)!

Review: McDonald’s The Ukulele: An Illustrated Workshop Manual and Weissenrieder and Greenbaum’s The Uke Book Illustrated

2020
AL#139 p.63               
Pat Megowan                                                                                           

▪ Our reviewer compares, contrasts, and waxes eloquent about The Ukulele: An Illustrated Workshop Manual by Graham McDonald and The Uke Book Illustrated by John Weissenrieder and Sarah Greenbaum. In addition to a lot of thoughful and practical analysis, he uses the metaphore of different ice-cream eating experiences to explain their complex relationship.

Chalk-Fitting Guitar Braces

2020
AL#140 p.2               
Stephen Marchione                                                                                           

▪ The braces in an archtop guitar are very similar to the bars in fiddles, and Marchione fits them with the same traditional techniques. The mating surface of the brace is roughed out with a chisel, then refined with a small plane, and perfected with files and scrapers. Chalk shows the whole truth of the fit. Believe the chalk.

The Charles Fox Guitar-Building Method, Part Two

2020
AL#140 p.20               
Mark French   Charles Fox                                                                                       

▪ Building a Charles Fox guitar reveals the beautifully developed interdependence between the design and the process. In this episode we rough out the neck, work with the unusual neck block and the distinctive two-part lining, and then brace the top and back plates.

Little Lutherie Class on the Prairie: Teaching Guitar Making in a Saskatchewan High School

2020
AL#140 p.52               
Glen Friesen                                                                                           

▪ Some public servants take on challenging tasks that many of us would fear to attempt. I’m not talking about fire fighters or the people who change light bulbs on the tops of suspension bridges. I’m talking about high school shop teachers. And here’s a guy who has been teaching guitar making in public school for twenty years. Hats off to you, sir! And respect to the students. These guitars look pretty good.

Making Notched Straightedges

2020
AL#140 p.58               
Bob Gleason                                                                                           

▪ Straightedges that are notched to fit over frets have become popular tools for judging the straightness of fretboards, and for projecting the surface of the board for setting neck angles. You can make your own, with the advantage that you can use any fret scale. Here’s how.

It Worked for Me: Cheap Kerfing Clamps

2019
AL#138 p.63               
Gregg Miller                                                                                           

▪ A throw-away garment clamp from the dry-cleaning place happens to be a fine thing for clamping kerfed lining into a guitar.

It Worked for Me: Clamp for Stubborn Binding

2019
AL#138 p.65               
Ralf Grammel                                                                                           

▪ Sometimes the bent binding needs a little more convincing to lie down at the waist than just a piece of tape. This easily-made set of jaws for a pistol-grip clamp gets teh job done.

The Charles Fox Guitar-Building Method, Part One

2020
AL#139 p.26               
Mark French   Charles Fox                                                                                       

▪ If, some day, there is a Mt. Rushmore for the American Lutherie Boom, the ruggedly handsome face of Charles Fox will be boldly chisled in a place of honor. For over half a century he has led the way as developer and teacher of guitar-making methods and tooling. He is also a thoughtful and articulate philosopher of the craft, whose words will inspire luthiers yet unborn. Here’s the first in a series of four articles which will cover his process, and his thinking behind it, in detail.

Less Than a Thousand Guitar Repair Tips

2020
AL#139 p.42               
Erick Coleman   Evan Gluck                                                                                       

▪ Erick and Evan (the two Es) are back with more helpful hints for the guitar repair shop. Some of the things they show are nicely developed professional tools, like for leveling frets while the guitar is still under string tension. Then there’s a diagnostic tool that is just a stick, a guitar string, and a salvaged tuning machine. If you think that’s gronk, how about the tool that Evan calls “my string.” It’s just a string. Not even a guitar string. Mentions gluing frets, DeoxIT, WD40, tri-Flow, slotting bridge pins, regluing bridges, fret nipper, notching fret tang, Matt Brewster, fret leveler bar, StewMac, Stewart-MacDonald, bridge removal, shark skin, fret rocker, fret leveler. From their workshop at the 2017 GAL Convention.

Letter to the Editor: Doolin-Style Magnetic Thickness Gauge

2019
AL#138 p.2               
David Laupmanis                                                                                           

▪ The author built a springless magnetic thickness gauge from Mike Doolin’s article in AL109. It works fine. He presents a photo. It should be noted that Doolin’s model was inspired by the work of Alaine Bieber, writing in AL96.

Letter to the Editor: Americans Should Use Metric System

2019
AL#138 p.2               
Rolf Hagglund                                                                                           

▪ The author says we Americans should just go ahead and join the rest of the civilized world in using the metric system.

Flamenco on the Front Range

2019
AL#138 p.20               
Mark French                                                                                           

▪ Author Mark French is walking the lutherie path in the reverse direction of many makers. As a physics prof trained in the crazy magic of CNC and industrial robot processes, he had made a lot of guitars before he did much in the way of traditional low-tech hand-tool work. As part of an intensive effort to fill in those gaps, he attended an eight-day course at Robbie O’Brien’s shop in Colorado to make a flamenco guitar with Spanish luthier and licensed bloodless toreador Paco Chorobo. O’Brien went to Spain and visited Paco’s shop in 2015. Read all about it in AL124.

Simple Neck-to-Body Sanding Jig

2019
AL#138 p.60               
Terence Warbey                                                                                           

▪ If you will attach a neck to a body with bolts rather than a dovetail, you will first want the two pieces to fit tightly at the correct angle. This can be done by a process which is sometimes called flossing; sandpaper is pulled between them while they are pushed together. The author presents a simple jig to facilitate this process.

Questions: Glue Joint Clamping Pressure

2019
AL#136 p.69               
James Blilie                                                                                           

▪ How much clamping force do different types of clamps exert? Blilie shows us how to calculate the force for some kinds of clamps, and comments about how much force is enough.

CNC Routers for Luthiers

2019
AL#137 p.16               
Mark French                                                                                           

▪ CNC Routers are kinda like computers. Once they were huge and cost more than a house. Therefore they were mostly in the domain of large corporations. Now they are far smaller, and the price tag is closer to a few months’ rent. Therefore they will be ubiquitous. This article lets you know what it would take to get on the bus. Mentions Easel; VCarve; BobCAD; Draftsight; AutoCAD; SketchUp; Fusion 360; Rhino3D.

Dovetailed Neck Reset

2019
AL#137 p.44               
Todd Mylet                                                                                           

▪ As a repairman in a busy guitar shop, Todd Mylet has a lot of Martin-style neck resets under his belt. There is a lot involved in doing it right. Todd presents a detailed account of his well-considered and time-tested method.

The Totnes School of Guitar Making

2019
AL#137 p.52               
J.A.T. Stanfield                                                                                           

▪ There are many settings in which one might receive lutherie instruction these days. Looking for a change of scene? This article describes a 12-week course held in a 300-year-old building near the Devonshire coast of southeast England. It has a 40-year history and roots in the legendary London College of Furniture program. Mentions Norman Reed and Phil Messer. Also describes a systematic method of planing a board flat. Discusses doming a flat soundboard with shaped cauls and a go-bar deck.

Trevor Gore Teaches Modal Tuning

2019
AL#137 p.62               
Greg Maxwell                                                                                           

▪ Australian luthier Trevor Gore is the co-author of the two-volume book Contemporary Acoustic Guitar, Design and Build. Gore teaches a three-day seminar in which he demonstates his very specific and number-based method of measuring and controlling the resonant frequecies of guitars. Maxwell attended one such seminar, held at Robbie O’Brien’s shop, and gives a brief overview.

Bob Ruck as I Knew Him

2019
AL#136 p.4               
Federico Sheppard                                                                                           

▪ Robert Ruck was one of the young self-starters who founded the American Lutherie Boom, and he remained a leading light in the movement until the end of his life. Federico Sheppard was an aquaintence and admirer who became closer to Ruck when they spent time together at Federico’s place on the Camino de Santiago in Spain one summer. In this article, Federico presents a photo tour of Ruck’s shop in Eugene Oregon and explains some of the tools and techniques we see. Mentions French polising with hardware-store shellac. Mentions Richard Brune.

A Smashed Top and a Shattered Headstock

2019
AL#136 p.12               
Kerry Char                                                                                           

▪ A cool old Gibson-era Epiphone guitar got well and truly smashed in an incident involving large and excited dogs. Better call Char! Kerry Char, that is. He jumps right in to remove the top, take off the braces, and then put the whole thing back together and polish it up nice before you can say “Kalamazoo!” From his 2017 GAL Convention slide show.

Measuring Scale Length of Fretted Instruments

2019
AL#136 p.48               
R.M. Mottola                                                                                           

▪ What’s the scale length? Isn’t it just twice the distance from the nut to the 12th fret? Yeah, kinda, but there can be a lot of complicating factors when working on old instruments. Like maybe the nut position was compensated, or just cut wrong. Or maybe the 12th fret was a little off. The fret positions might have been calculated using the old rule of 18. Here’s how to find out what’s really going on.

Delrin Frets

2019
AL#136 p.52               
Harry Fleishman                                                                                           

▪ Many years ago, innovative classical guitar maker Richard Schneider made instruments with frets made of rod stock set in wide saw kerfs. Fleishman updates the idea by having round-bottomed slots cut by CNC and laying in Delrin rod.

A Guitar Is Born: Attending Charles Fox’s Hands-On Guitar Making Course

2019
AL#136 p.54               
Mark French   Charles Fox                                                                                       

▪ Author Mark French has made a lot of guitars over the years, but when he wanted to up his game he attended an intensive two-week course by the dean of all American lutherie teachers, Charles Fox. Four students each built a guitar in the white from scratch and strung it up.

It Worked for Me: String Clips for Neck Work

2018
AL#134 p.66               
Lee Herron                                                                                           

▪ Quickly make a set of spreaders that will keep slackened strings out of your way and off the lacquer while you file a set of frets.

Questions: How Hide Glue is Tested for Gram Strength

2018
AL#134 p.69               
Eugene Thordahl                                                                                           

▪ How do they test for hide glue gram strength? It’s actually kinda technical and involves expensive lab gear. But Thordahl tells us how to get a good estimate the easy way.

Setting a Violin Neck Like a Professional

2018
AL#135 p.4               
Charles Rufino                                                                                           

▪ Here’s a close look at the process of setting a violin neck. No innovative tools or new miracle adhesives here; just good old-fashioned methodical, careful work with traditional toos and designs. From his workshop at the 2017 GAL Convention.

Training the Next Generation

2018
AL#135 p.16               
Dan Erlewine   Erick Coleman   Chelsea Clark                                                                                   

▪ “Uncle Dan” Erlewine has been a constant presence in the American Lutherie Boom era, because he personifies the can-do ethos that underlies the whole dang movement: figure something out, and tell everybody about it. As a young man hoping to move from rocker to luthier, he found a generous mentor in Herb David of Ann Arbor, Michigan. Dan has paid that forward many times as he has brought young people into his shop and given them a place to grow. Mentions Herb David, Mark Erlewine, Jerry Garcia, Albert King, John O’Boyle, David Surovel, Bryan Galloup, Charlie Longstreth, Tom Erlewine, Gary Brawer, Joe Glaser, Steve Olson, Albert Garcia, Elliot John-Conry, Adam Fox, Exodus Almasude, Johan Powell, Max Feldman, Paul Lampley, Aaron Smiley, Rodrgo Gomez, Chelsea Clark. From his lecture at the 2017 GAL Convention.

Removing Top and Back Guitar Plates

2018
AL#135 p.30               
Kerry Char                                                                                           

▪ Kerry Char sawed the top off an old Gibson flattop in front of a group of several dozen luthiers at the 2017 GAL Convention. And within the same hour he pried the back off a Knutsen harp guitar. Step by step photos.

Meet the Maker: Rafael Mardones Sr. and Jr.

2018
AL#135 p.38               
Federico Sheppard                                                                                           

▪ In his youth, before Federico Sheppard found his calling as a luthier, he was a mere physician working for the Olympic Games. One day he heard a classical guitar being played on the radio of his car. It shook him to “his inner core being” as Lord Buckley would say, and changed the course of his life. And now he has finally made the pilrimage to Chile to visit the shop of the man who made that guitar, Rafael Mardones, and his son, Rafa Jr.

The Convolution of a Guitar Note

2018
AL#135 p.45               
Juan-Oscar Azaret                                                                                           

▪ Tap on a guitar. Or listen to just the first fraction of a second as you pluck a note. Those tiny samples contain a wealth of information. Our brains already form an impression of the guitar’s sound, long before the first second has elapsed. Computers can reveal the math behind the music and help us understand and visualize what is happening. Good basic info about the FFT, that is, the Fast Fourier Transform, and how the information in a guitar tap can be viewed in the time domain or the frequency domain.

A DRO Fret Slotter

2018
AL#135 p.58               
Mark French                                                                                           

▪ Want a robot lutherie apprentice? It is here today and it is cheap. But it doesn’t look like something from the Jetsons. It looks like this; a digital readout connected to a lead screw. With a friendly whirr, it will move the saw guide right up to the next fret position for you. But get your own dang coffee.

It Worked for Me: Tiny Chisel from X-acto Blade

2018
AL#135 p.64               
Stephen Mangold                                                                                           

▪ Make a tiny chisle from an X-acto blade. It will be 0.020 inches wide, good for getting into fret slots.

It Worked for Me: Post-it Notes Improve Brace Gluing

2018
AL#135 p.65               
Brent Benfield                                                                                           

▪ Use Post-it notes to accurately position braces for gluing, and simplify the removal of squeezed-out glue.

Questions: Steel for Paracho Knife Blades

2018
AL#135 p.67               
Ron Hock                                                                                           

▪ What’s the right kind of steel for a Paracho knife blade? The real ones that they make in Mexico appear to be made form Sawz-all blades. Is high-speed steel the right thing?

Warmoth Guitar Products in the 21st Century

2018
AL#134 p.16               
Tim Olsen                                                                                           

▪ Ken Warmoth is one of the pioneers of the Strat-compatible guitar parts scene, starting small in the 1970s and working up to the sophisticated operation he runs today. He’s a born engineer, constantly refining and rethinking each operation for better accuracy and efficiency. Of course these days that involves CNC machines, and he’s got them. But you may be surprised to see which operations use them and which don’t. Our last visit with Ken was in 1991, so there is some catching up to do.

Seeking Quality and Consistency in Classical Guitar Sound

2018
AL#134 p.34               
Greg Byers                                                                                           

▪ So you made a classical guitar, and it sounds good. You want your next one to sound good, too. You want your output to be consistently good. How do you do that? After decades of lutherie experience, Byers has developed a method of recording the frequency responses of the soundboard at each major stage of construction. Does the tap-tone of the raw top set tell the whole story? No, but it can help you steer the project to a successful conclusion.

Talking about Tone

2018
AL#134 p.52               
Chris Herrod                                                                                           

▪ You’ll often read article in American Lutherie where scientists explain the sound of guitars in terms of resonant frequencies and onset transients. On the other hand, longtime wood merchant Chris Herrod is here to give the metaphoric pendulum a big old shove back to the right-brain tradition of using evocative adjectives like “dry,” “creamy,” and “poignant.” He also discusses psychoacoustics research and how confident we should be about our “ears.”

Making Long-Radius Curve Templates

2018
AL#134 p.60               
Mark French   David Zachman                                                                                       

▪ There are times when a luthier may want to draw a good long-radius arch. If jury-rigging a 25-foot compass seems like a hassle, you may have been tempted to just bend a straight stick a little and call it good. Turns out that’s a better solution than you may have thought. This article evaluates several techniques and gives the math that undergirds them.

Meet the Maker: Mark French

2018
AL#133 p.22               
R.M. Mottola   Mark French                                                                                       

▪ Mark French was a kid who took guitar lessons and paid the guy at the music store to change his strings. He went on to be an aerospace engineer, but with all that book learning he still did not know how guitars worked. Now he teaches college courses on guitar making and hangs out with captains of industry at Fender and Taylor.

Some Thoughts on CAD and 3D Printing for Luthiers

2018
AL#133 p.54               
Edmond Rampen                                                                                           

▪ OK, we are probably some distance yet from pushing a button and 3D-printing a functioning guitar. And if you think that something about that sounds kinda crepy and disappointing, you just might be a luthier. But what we are talking about in this article is entirely different: Using surprisingly inexpensive printers to make templates, tools, and parts for guitars. The future is here, people. Get into this while you wait for your hover car.

The Pretty Good Setup Tailpiece

2018
AL#133 p.60               
Jay Anderson                                                                                           

▪ Here’s a simple device that lets you string, play, and set up a flattop guitar before you glue the bridge on.

Tiny Files for Fret Work

2017
AL#131 p.65               
Harry Fleishman                                                                                           

▪ Harry loves to learn, and then to teach. Although he has been leveling frets for half a century, he’s always rethinking it and keeping his eyes open for better ways to do it. Here he shows us his latest tools and tips for doing more by doing less.

It Worked for Me: Simple Binding Rabbet Sander

2017
AL#132 p.65               
Doug Berch                                                                                           

▪ A scrap of kerfed lining with a bit of sticky sandpaper can quickly and accurately clean up a binding ledge. And if it is quick and accurate, we like it.

Meet the Maker: Peter Tsiorba

2017
AL#131 p.20               
January Williams   Peter Tsiorba                                                                                       

▪ Peter Tsiorba began his working life as a teenager making garments in a semi-legit Soviet cooperative. Today he’s a family man and a maker of classical guitars in the lutherie Mecca of Portland, Oregon.

The Soundpost Cannon Incident

2017
AL#131 p.50               
James Condino                                                                                           

▪ Pop goes the soundpost! Can this affordable old Kay bull fiddle be saved? Plywood-doghouse bass specialist James Condino shows us how.

Meet the Maker: Jason Lollar

2017
AL#130 p.6               
Tim Olsen   Jason Lollar                                                                                       

▪ Jason Lollar attended the Roberto-Venn School of Luthiery way back when founders John Roberts and Bob Venn were still instructors. Jason went on to do a lot of guitar repair and some guitar making, but his early interest in winding pickups eventually grew into a twenty-person shop specializing in reproducing vintage models.

Techniques for Guitar Repair Efficiency

2017
AL#130 p.28               
Erick Coleman   Evan Gluck   Eron Harding                                                                                   

▪ Erick, Evan, and Eron called this workshop “Making Bread with Bread-and-Butter Repairs.” Their emphasis was on tools and techniques to help you get a lot of the usual repair jobs done in a short time and at a high level of quality. from their 2014 GAL Convention workshop.

Meet the Maker: Jason Harshbarger

2017
AL#130 p.42               
Paul Schmidt   Jason Harshbarger                                                                                       

▪ A lot of the makers that we meet in the pages of American Lutherie are grizzled veterans of the early days. Not this one. Harshbarger is a young single father who went to lutherie school in the late 1990s, then survived on cabinet work until he could build a lutherie shop in his basement. His steel-string design work uses Steve Klein’s work as a point of departure, and moves forward boldly from there.

In Memoriam: Ray Tunquist

2017
AL#130 p.60               read this article
Tom Bednark                                                                                           

▪ Tunquist ran the huge circular saw on which most of the wood for Martin guitars was cut in the 1940s, ’50s, ’60s, and ’70s. He is remembered by Tom Bednark, an early GAL member.

Voicing the Modern Mandolin

2017
AL#129 p.24               
James Condino                                                                                           

▪ Condino has developed a clever process by which he can string and play a new mandolin very early in the building process. This makes voicing much more accurate,a nd it reduces the risk of experimental materials and bracing patterns considerably. Must see to believe. Mentions the work of Lloyd Loar at the Gibson company in the 1920s.

Meet the Maker: Dave Collins

2017
AL#129 p.38               
Steve Denvir   Dave Collins                                                                                       

▪ Dave Collins is a rising star on the guitar repair scene. Take a look at a couple of nice jigs he has developed; one for slotting saddles, one for regluing broken headstocks. Interestingly, he is in the same Ann Arbor third-storey shop previously tenanted by Herb David. Dave counts Dan Erlewine and Bryan Galloup among his mentors.

Considerations in Replicating Vintage Guitars

2016
AL#128 p.8               
Alan Perlman                                                                                           

▪ Perlman runs though a restoration job on a Torres guitar, replacing a side and copying fancy purflings. Then he builds a replica of a Stahl Style 6 flattop. So when you are copying a century-old American guitar, how far do you go in the name of authenticity? Do you match the faded tones of the purfling, or use the nice bright colors that the Larson Brothers liked? Do you let the glue blobs roam free like they did, or get all tidy like a nervous modern maker? From his 2014 convention lecture.

Meet the Maker: Jeff Manthos

2016
AL#128 p.22               
Pat Megowan   Jeff-Lee Manthos                                                                                       

▪ People come to lutherie on many different paths. Some of us were nerdy model-making kids, or spoiled lefty college dropouts. Or maybe the garage band was our gateway into the opium den of guitar making. On the other hand, Jeff Manthos was a helicopter aircrewman and rescue swimmer in the Vietnam era. Then, unexpectedly, he went to the Violinmaking School of America in Salt Lake City. He has made a career of it, first in other shops and now on his own.

CNC in Small Shop Mandolin Making

2016
AL#128 p.32               
Andrew Mowry                                                                                           

▪ Andrew Mowry was a one-man mandolin-making shop known for precise high-quality work. When he made the jump and brought a small but capable CNC mill into the mix, he was not trying to flood the market, but rather to further improve his work. All the tools and methods he shows here are well within reach; you don’t need to be a factory to afford it, and it won’t turn you into a factory if you try it. Mowry still runs a one-man shop known for precise high-quality work. From his 2014 convention workshop.

Meet the Maker: Gabriel Fleta

2016
AL#128 p.48               
Cyndy Burton   Jeffrey-R. Elliott   Gabriel Fleta                                                                                   

▪ His grandfather Ignacio Fleta was a violin maker who started making guitars after repairing instruments by Torres, and his father Gabriel Sr. made guitars for decades as one of the legendary “hijos” of Ignacio who made guitars for Segovia, John Williams, and many others. Gabriel Fleta Jr. has been making guitars since the 1970s and has now inherited the family business. We visit his shop in Barcelona.

A Large New Set of Stiffness Data for Lutherie Woods and a Proposed Standard Test Method

2016
AL#128 p.58               
James Blilie                                                                                           

▪ We all have ideas about the stiffness of brace wood, probably based on a combination of intuition, hearsay, and informal flexing. Blilie aims to accumulate more quantitave data. Here he reports on his latest tests. He also describes his methodology and the reasoning behind it. This is Blilie’s second article on this topic. The earlier one is in AL128. A third article appears in AL133.

Toothed Planes and Scraper Planes

2016
AL#126 p.58               
Rick Rubin                                                                                           

▪ The same thing that makes crazy grain figure beautiful can make it hard to work with a plane. So use a sander, right? Well, not everyone finds that to be a helpful or welcome suggestion. For them, toothed planes and scraper planes can be the solution. Rubin argues that excellent antique tools are available at reasonable prices and will do the job well.

A New Concept in Circle Cutting Jigs

2015
AL#123 p.62               
Greg Nelson                                                                                           

▪ Controlling the distance between the pin and the bit is the whole game when cutting circles with a router. Here’s a new way to do it that offers very fine control and no threads. Elegant!.

How I build Forty Eight Guitars a Year- With Almost No Tooling- Part 1

2014
AL#117 p.6      ALA4 p.66         
John Greven                                                                                           

▪ John Greven discusses the application of his 3 tiered system (rough assembly, finesse, finish) throughout his 50 year career, which involves building 6 to 8 guitars at a time. From his 2011 convention workshop. The second and final part of this series is in AL#118.

Letter to the Editor: Wood Files

2013
AL#116 p.4               
Earl Bushey                                                                                           

▪ Praise for Todd Brotherton’s product review: 10″ Cabinetmaker’s rasp in AL#115 and exposure to similar tools in a Tokyo repair shop and other scenarios.

Making a Truly Flat Sanding Bar

2013
AL#113 p.62               
Mark French                                                                                           

▪ Precisely flat sanding bars are critical to the development of both science and manufacturing; thus the process of ‘lapping’ in necessary, as described by French.

Production Techniques For the Custom Luthier

2012
AL#110 p.5               
Charles Fox                                                                                           

▪ America’s number one lutherie teacher discusses a series of processes to make guitar building relatively easy, efficient, accurate, and consistent in a production situation.

Product Reviews: Klumpar Neck Angle Jig and JSimpson Self Adjusting Neck Jig

2011
AL#108 p.58      ALA2 p.72         
Roger-Alan Skipper                                                                                           

▪ The plywood Simpson neck angle jig: simple, versatile and inexpensive, and the aluminum Klumper self adjusting neck jig: accurate, more complex, costly, and allowing for centerline adjustment. Both result in perfectly matched joints.

Cheap Machines: Drill Press

2011
AL#107 p.56      ALA2 p.66         
John Calkin                                                                                           

▪ The drill press is an indispensable tool in the lutherie shop, despite the advent of dedicated machines which have replaced some of it’s chores.

This article has been nominated as one of the Guild’s fifty best articles published before 2010.

The Binding Frame

2011
AL#106 p.54      ALA2 p.62         
R.M. Mottola                                                                                           

▪ A new method for clamping the binding of a guitar into its recess while the glue dries, involving an MDF frame and rubber wedges.

Total Flame Out, Retopping a Harp Guitar

2009
AL#100 p.38               read this article
Harry Fleishman                                                                                           

▪ Replacing the top on a complicated instrument with as little refinishing and other stress as possible.

Make a Dished Workboard, Freehand

2009
AL#99 p.52               
Ryan Schultz                                                                                           

▪ There’s just enough math here to make our brains cloud over, so most folks should get along fine. It’s still not as easy to build as a spoke-built dish, but if you’re cheap and must have a one-piece dish it should work just fine. With 4 photos, a depth chart, and one drawing.

Dulcimer 101

2009
AL#98 p.48               read this article
John Calkin                                                                                           

▪ Calkin was inspired to write this by pleas from readers for more entry level stories. Dulcimers are needlessly maligned and in need of advocates, and the author is a strong one. Tools and jiggery are kept to a minimum to make construction as accessible as possible without hurting the integrity of the finished instrument. Beginning luthiers should stop complaining and get to work! With 31 photos.

Product Reviews: Witherby Gouge

2009
AL#98 p.65               
Andrew Mowry                                                                                           

▪ The author reviews the spoon plane and finds that it is more efficient at removing large quantities of wood when carving mandolin plates than the gouges he used to use, and it’s also easier on the carver, a not insignificant benefit. With 2 photos of the tool.

Spherical Workboard Update

2009
AL#97 p.62      ALA2 p.36         
Brent Benfield                                                                                           

▪ the author has been working with spherical workboards for a while now. He shares his latest thoughts.

This article has been nominated as one of the Guild’s fifty best articles published before 2010.

Electric Guitar Setup

2009
AL#98 p.28               read this article
Erick Coleman   Elliot John-Conry                                                                                       

▪ Two disciples of Dan Erlewine explain the latest techniques of setting up the electric guitar. All the details and specs are there, as well as a bit of philosophy. OK, not too much philosophy, but this is a chunk of fun taken from their 2006 GAL convention presentation and they function well in front of a crowd. AL doesn’t get a lot of electric input, which makes this piece more important. With 10 photos.

Fretboard Slotting with a CNC Router

2009
AL#98 p.46               
John Svizzero   R.M. Mottola                                                                                       

▪ Both authors made their own CNC machines, which impresses the heck out of us. The coolest thing about CNC fret slotting, aside from the dead certain accuracy, is the ability to cut slots with blind ends. Unbound fretboards can look bound. All the machine specs you’ll need to duplicate their efforts are included, and even us dummies can grasp what they’re about. With 4 photos.

A Homemade Magnetic Thickness Gauge

2008
AL#96 p.49               
Alain Bieber                                                                                           

▪ You, too, can make a gauge for measuring the plate thickness of finished instrument, and Bieber’s tool comes in at 1/30th the cost of a commercial tool. With 2 photos and a drawing.

This article has been nominated as one of the Guild’s fifty best articles published before 2010.

Uke Making for Guitar Makers

2008
AL#96 p.50               
Bob Gleason                                                                                           

▪ A low key (not to mention fun) description of how uke making varies from guitar making. Gleason also describes some of the varieties Hawaiian wood he likes to work with, a slick method for removing lacquer from the bridge foot print, and some of the construction tricks he has come up with. Owning a shop in Hawaii must surely take the lutherie life to another level. With 15 photos.

Peg Shapers That You Can Adjust

2008
AL#96 p.58               
David Golber                                                                                           

▪ The author got tired of hard-to-use commercial peg shapers, so he made a better one of his own. He describes it as a tool for actual human beings. With 6 photos and a drawing.

Inlaid Splices

2008
AL#96 p.60               
John Thayer                                                                                           

▪ Don’t put a repair patch on top of the wood, put it in the wood! Probably for carved tops only, but a fine idea (and pretty, for you folks who like to peek inside of instruments. With 11 photos.

Product Reviews: Plasti-Dip and the Stewart-MacDonald Binding Laminator

2008
AL#95 p.62               
John Calkin                                                                                           

▪ The reviewer gives a thumbs up to Plasti-Dip, a thick liquid used to apply a plastic coating to tools, and to the Stew-Mac Binding Laminator, used to lay up various combinations of plastic or celluloid bindings and purflings. With 4 photos.

It Worked for Me: Surface Plates

2008
AL#95 p.68      ALA2 p.39         
Veronica Merryfield                                                                                           

▪ Wired plate glass, typesetter’s tables, granite kitchen countertops, and gravestone engraver tables as cheaper alternatives to commercial surface plates.

Meet the Maker: Dan Fobert

2008
AL#95 p.50               
Andy Avera   Daniel Fobert                                                                                       

▪ Fobert is a Texas builder of archtop guitars who is unusually obsessed with making as many of the parts for his guitar as possible, not including (yet!) the tuners. There are luthiers who worship old guitars and work to reproduce them, and luthiers who can’t be bothered with something that’s already been done. Fobert is one of the latter. With 6 photos.

Product Reviews: Mandolin tuners

2008
AL#93 p.60               
James Condino                                                                                           

▪ Condino rates all the commonly available mandolin tuners and explains why spending $500 for the best set available might make good economic sense. He also likes the Stew-Mac mandolin peghead drill jig. With 12 photos.

Letter to the Editor: Inches and Spanish pulgadas

2008
AL#94 p.7      ALA5 p.82         
Gerhard Oldiges                                                                                           

▪ Spanish guitar scale lengths before Torres. Pulgadas, Imperial inches, centimeters. It all gets pretty complicated.

The MacRostie Mandolin Deflection Jig

2008
AL#94 p.50               read this article
Don MacRostie                                                                                           

▪ MacRostie’s clever jig measures the top deflection of a carved mandolin under string load at any stage of its construction. It is a valuable tool within the reach of any luthier.

Questions: Thickness Measuring Tool

2007
AL#92 p.67               read this article
Tom Nelligan   R.M. Mottola                                                                                       

▪ Highly specialized low frequency ultrasonic instruments can be used to measure the thickness of the skin of the top on a fully assembled instrument without damaging the top.

Geometric Design of the Stradivari Model G Violin, Part One: Mold and Template

2008
AL#93 p.46               read this article
Robert-J. Spear                                                                                           

▪ The author’s goal is to demonstrate that the Cremonese fiddle makers used geometry based on the Golden Mean to design their instruments. This installment concerns the body outline. With 2 photos and 9 graphs/drawings.

This article has been nominated as one of the Guild’s best articles published before 2010.

Building with the Spanish Solera

2007
AL#92 p.8      ALA5 p.30         
Eugene Clark                                                                                           

▪ An American master of the classical guitar explains how he builds using the solera, a workboard with a radius scraped into the body area to provide a slightly arched top.Clark places a strong emphasis on proper layout and hand tools. With 25 photos.

This article has been nominated as one of the Guild’s fifty best articles published before 2010.

Meet the Maker: Scott Baxendale

2007
AL#92 p.20      ALA4 p.36         
Steve Wiencrot   Scott Baxendale                                                                                       

▪ Baxendale has lived a hyperactive life as a repairman and builder in several parts of America, including a stint working for Stuart Mossman and then as owner of the Mossman company, and repairman for the Hard Rock Cafe chain and Gruhn Guitars, before opening his own shops in Denver. Few luthiers live as hard or cover as much territory. With 14 photos.

Letter to the Editor: Shop-Made Palm Plane

2007
AL#91 p.3               
Ric McCurdy                                                                                           

▪ Ric read about D’Aquisto’s plam planes in AL#37 and wanted one. Then he read about making brass planes in AL#89. So he just went ahead and made a snazzy little plane. See that? The GAL creates your desires, then fulfills them.

Grading on the Curves

2007
AL#91 p.24               read this article
Steve Andersen                                                                                           

▪ This is a very detailed look at how a notable builder of archtop guitars fits tone bars and bridges to his instruments. With 22 photos.

Resawing Lutherie Wood

2007
AL#91 p.40               read this article
Bruce Creps                                                                                           

▪ Just about everything you’ll need to know about setting up a bandsaw for resawing and getting the most yield from your lumber. The emphasis is on the Hitachi CB75F resaw, but much of the info will translate to other bandsaws. Included is a good side bar on resharpening bandsaw blades. With 10 photos and 6 drawings.

This article has been nominated as one of the Guild’s best articles published before 2010.

Sharpening the Stellite Teeth on the 3″ Hitachi Blade

2007
AL#91 p.43               read this article
Bruce Creps                                                                                           

▪ With a shop made jig you can sharpen your blade in place in less time than it takes to remove and reinstall it.

Mechanical Compliance for Soundboard Optimization

2007
AL#90 p.8               read this article
David Hurd                                                                                           

▪ Hurd believes that the fastest way to great instruments is science, and it’s hard to argue with such a rational man. His jigs measure the deflection of top plates while under tension, and once he carves the top and braces to the numbers he wants he’s done. Period. Sort of makes intuition obsolete. This could also be math heavy if he didn’t offer an Internet spread sheet to ease the pain. With 7 photos and 7 figures/charts.

This article has been nominated as one of the Guild’s best articles published before 2010.

Build Variation in a Group of Acoustic Guitars

2007
AL#90 p.28      ALA1 p.78         
Mark French   Kendall Brubaker                                                                                       

▪ The authors measured frequency response of dozens of similar Taylor guitars using a hammer and a noncontacting laser displacement sensor. The big surprise was that guitars made of various woods didn’t differ very much. Well, some people were surprised. With 4 photos and 7 graphs.

Construction of the Colombian Tiple

2007
AL#90 p.40               read this article
Anamaria Paredes-Garcia   R.M. Mottola                                                                                       

▪ Cross a 12-string flattop with a classical guitar and you get the Colombian tiple, only the tiple has four courses of three steel strings. Inside, though, it’s a classical. Follow the construction of the instrument in the shop of Alberto Paredes in this photo tour. With 41 photos. Sr. Paredes authored GAL Plan #51, Colombian Tiple. See AL #82.

Partial Refrets

2007
AL#90 p.58               
John Calkin                                                                                           

▪ Sometimes only a few frets need to be replaced. Here’s how and why to do it and an idea of how to charge for it. Another lesson from Instrument Repair 101. With 11 photos.

Making a Brass Plane

2007
AL#89 p.22      ALA2 p.26         
Ken Altman                                                                                           

▪ Watch Altman construct a 3″ plane from brass stock and steel for the blade — a very cool and elegant tool for lutherie that’s not too hard to make and requires few tools to construct. With 25 photos.

Optimizing Playing Surface Geometry

2007
AL#89 p.56               
R.M. Mottola                                                                                           

▪ Most repair people know that on a fretboard with a tight radius the upper frets have to be milled flatter than the first frets if the player wants to bend strings without “fret-out.” Most just file several times until the get the results they are after. What they are really doing is trying to turn the playing surface into a conical section. Mottola’s method is more precise. Consider it the thinking man’s way to dress frets for the most optimum action. With 7 figures, 6 photos, and a chart.

The Chanlynn Deflection Machine

2007
AL#89 p.62      ALA1 p.26         
John Calkin                                                                                           

▪ Gunsmith Mark Chanlynn built Calkin a machine to precisely measure the deflection of a guitar top under a constant weight. There are no plans here, but it’s pretty obvious how it works, and just as obvious how it might help you make better guitars. With 3 photos.

This article has been nominated as one of the Guild’s best articles published before 2010.

Product Reviews: Luthiertool Binding Cutting Base

2007
AL#89 p.64      ALA2 p.22         
Alan Perlman   John Mello                                                                                       

▪ Both reviewers test fly the Luthiertool Binding Cutter Base, an attachment for a small router or laminate trimmer. Perlman is enthusiastic about the tool. Mello is a little less so but admits he’s glad he bought it. With 1 photo.

This article has been nominated as one of the Guild’s best articles published before 2010.

The Universal Vacuum Island

2006
AL#88 p.24      ALA2 p.14         
Charles Fox                                                                                           

▪ Vacuum clamping has come to the small shop in a big way, at least in Fox’s shop.Suddenly, all other ways of working seem backward. Vacuum has dozens of uses in the guitar shop and the universal vacuum island makes them compact and within the financial reach of all of us. Fox is still the guru. If you ain’t got vacuum you ain’t got nothin’! With 21 photos.

Product Review: edge vise, combination slot head fixture, and rosette cutter by Luthiertool Co.

2006
AL#88 p.58      ALA2 p.10         
John Mello                                                                                           

▪ The reviewer (who bought these tools, by the way) finds that they were a good investment that saves him time and increases the accuracy of his work. With 7 photos.

Low-Tech Prototyping Jigs and Methods

2007
AL#89 p.6      ALA1 p.10         
Tim Shaw                                                                                           

▪ Shaw has worked for large guitar companies for decades. Currently with Fender, he runs an independent shop that makes prototype instruments for all the factories that fall under the Fender banner. He also does repairs on discontinued models where the factory equipment has been dismantled. Accomplishing one-off projects or small runs of parts is no different for a big company than for an independent luthier, they just have the luxury of big-budget equipment. Shaw’s methods of jigging up for parts manufacture incorporating speed and safety can be used by many one-off shops to hustle production and instrument development. Good stuff from one of the aces in the business. With 34 photos.

Sixty Seconds or Less

2006
AL#87 p.52      ALA2 p.8         
Daniel Fobert                                                                                           

▪ The author’s special workboard and clamps permit him to clamp a plate onto the rib assembly in a minute or less. With 6 photos.

It Worked for Me: Blackshear Bridge Shaping Jig

2006
AL#87 p.69      ALA2 p.13         
Ben Tortorici                                                                                           

▪ A prototype using the router sander from a Luthiers Mercantile purfling jig, based on Tom Blackshear’s fixture for making bridges.

Product Review: SawStop Table Saws

2006
AL#86 p.62      ALA2 p.4         
James Condino                                                                                           

▪ Saw stop table saws are meant to screech to a halt before they can cut your skin. The reviewer finds that they really work. What are your fingers worth to you, anyway? With 8 photos.

Product Review: Stewart-MacDonald Fret Scale Rules

2006
AL#85 p.59               
Harry Fleishman                                                                                           

▪ Fleishman is at his humorous best here, hunting the past for how frets used to be laid out, why they were often wrong, and why the new Stew-Mac rules are tools worth having. Did you know there are at least three ways to calculate fret spacing? Did you know they vary in their results? Can musicians hear the difference? With 1 photo and a chart.

Rib Depth of Guitars with Spherically Domed Plates

2005
AL#84 p.22   BRB7 p.386            
R.M. Mottola                                                                                           

▪ Instruments with domed plates must have the rib assembly altered to accept the topography of the plates. This can be done after assembly or before bending. The author offers an overview of how either can be accomplished.

It Worked for Me: Glue Syringes

2005
AL#82 p.69   BRB7 p.499            
Barry Irvin                                                                                           

▪ Filling oral-dosing syringes with leftover glue, using the supplied caps and putting them in the freezer for small doses in future jobs.

Measuring Archtop Musical Instruments

2005
AL#83 p.6               
Chris Burt                                                                                           

▪ Do you own or have access to archtop instruments that you’d like to duplicate? Ever wonder why they sound so good, or why they don’t? Use this article to map out the plate thicknesses, arch heights, and neck angles. Measure everything you can get your hands on. Become an expert. Tell your friends how they’re going wrong. Be the hero of your lutherie group.With 6 photos.

Restoring Tarrega’s 1888 Torres

2005
AL#83 p.18   BRB7 p.364            
Jeffrey-R. Elliott                                                                                           

▪ Restoring famous instruments is a tricky business. If they are also old, well-played, and abused by poor storage facilities the work becomes a cross between knowledge, craft, and art. Elliott goes where few of us would care to travel, explaining every step of restoration as he goes. Perhaps as important is what he doesn’t do. The ethics of restoration is a foundation of the story. With 42 photos as well as a 2-page spread of GAL full-size plan #52.

This article has been nominated as one of the Guild’s fifty best articles published before 2010.

It Worked for Me: Peghead Protectors

2005
AL#81 p.65   BRB7 p.498            
Ervin Somogyi                                                                                           

▪ You know how you see new cars being shipped to the dealer’s lot with big sheets of protective film on them so the bug spalts will peel off? Similar thought here. Paper protectors are made for polished pegheads.

Teaching the Dream to Sing

2005
AL#82 p.6   BRB7 p.320            
Fred Carlson                                                                                           

▪ Carlson makes some of the world’s coolest, most graceful, and weirdest stringed instruments. Focusing on a harp guitar he calls the Flying Dream he discusses at length how he designs and builds his creations. There is lots of detailed info here that will help you build the instruments you see in your mind, as opposed to the ones for which you can already buy a blueprint. Truly inspirational. With 42 photos and 10 drawings.

This article has been nominated as one of the Guild’s fifty best articles published before 2010.

Fitting Flamenco Pegs

2005
AL#82 p.44   BRB7 p.350            
Aaron Green                                                                                           

▪ As far as looks go, guitars with wooden tuning pegs are the cat’s patoot. Regarding long-term functioning, though… well, maybe you better read Green’s article. His method of installing hidden maple bushings in the headstock should put you way ahead of the game. With 21 photographs.

It Worked for Me: Tubing To Inject Glue

2004
AL#80 p.65   BRB7 p.496            
Dale Randall                                                                                           

▪ With this arrangement, fresh glue can be injected straight from the bottle through plastic tubing which terminates in a brass ink holder from a ballpoint pen which serves as an injection needle.

Meet the Maker: Kevin La Due

2005
AL#81 p.26   BRB7 p.286            read this article
Cyndy Burton   Kevin La-Due                                                                                       

▪ A high school teacher coaches entire classes through guitar making. Think kids can’t do it? You’ll be surprised. Some well-made and easy-to-use jigs make the process faster and friendlier, and the use of local wood makes it affordable. Pretty inspirational, and with 21 photos.

It Worked for Me: Ultimate Palette Knife

2004
AL#79 p.64   BRB7 p.494            
Eugene Clark                                                                                           

▪ The ultimate palette knife is a grapefruit knife, a chef’s tool made by Dexter Russell Inc, which can be used for hot shellac and in routing.

Carving the Lute Rose

2004
AL#80 p.4   BRB7 p.228            
Ervin Somogyi                                                                                           

▪ The author not only explains how the traditional lute rose is carved, but demonstrates how the technique might be used other than as a rosette. With 17 photos.

This article has been nominated as one of the Guild’s best articles published before 2010.

Essential Tools: Scratches and a Detail Knife

2004
AL#80 p.46   BRB7 p.270            
Eugene Clark   Jonathon Peterson                                                                                       

▪ Scratch tools are like one-tooth saws. One of Eugene’s has a chisel tip, the other a pointed tip.The detail knife has only one bevel and is intended to make right hand cuts only. Descriptions of their uses are included. With 7 photos.

Product Review: Stew-Mac Measuring Tools

2004
AL#80 p.52   BRB7 p.507            
Harry Fleishman                                                                                           

▪ Toolman Harry examines three new measuring devices from Stew-Mac and finds them all to be accurately made and useful. The tools are the Fret Rocker (for finding high frets), the String Action Gauge (for measuring string height), and the String Spacing Tool (for laying out nuts and perhaps saddles). With 3 photos and a diagram.

Making Patterns for an Access Panel

2004
AL#80 p.56   BRB7 p.272            
Lloyd Marsden                                                                                           

▪ Gaining access to the inside of guitars through a door in the tail block seems to be catching on. The author’s method of construction saves the side material as part of the door to make the assembled instrument as normal looking as possible. With 8 photos.

Two-Step Cutaway Bending

2004
AL#78 p.64   BRB7 p.226            
John Calkin                                                                                           

▪ The author maintains that the safest way to bend a radical cutaway is to do it in two steps, both using an electric blanket. With 9 photos.

Hands-On Archtop Mandolin Making, Part Five

2004
AL#79 p.34   BRB7 p.416            
Peggy Stuart   Don MacRostie                                                                                       

▪ The author attended a mandolin making class taught by Don MacRostie at the American School of Lutherie. The first four parts of her report appeared in the four previous issues of AL. Part Five concerns the application of a sunburst using stains, both by spraying and rubbing, as well as the application of lacquer and French polish finishes. With 37 photos.

This article has been nominated as one of the Guild’s best articles published before 2010.

Bridge Shaping and Routing Jig

2004
AL#79 p.46   BRB7 p.224            
Paul Woolson                                                                                           

▪ If you’re going to need a bunch of identical parts you might as well jig up to do it. Besides, making jigs is fun. Here’s one method (of many, no doubt) to make bridges a whole lot faster than you can make guitars to put them on. You can do that by hand, too, it just doesn’t feel that way. With 7 photos and a diagram.

An Enhancement to the Outside Mold

2004
AL#79 p.58   BRB7 p.234            
R.M. Mottola                                                                                           

▪ An outside mold is one that the instrument under construction sits inside of. Weird, huh? The author has made changes to his molds that make them into side bending forms as well. Pretty cool. With 3 diagrams.

It Worked for Me: Eureka Steamer

2004
AL#79 p.64   BRB7 p.64            
Dennis Russell                                                                                           

▪ A Eureka Hotshot steamer purchased at Home Depot and rigged up for use on violins, cellos, and anything else that has hide glue joints.

It Worked for Me: Over-Radiused Edges

2004
AL#79 p.64   BRB7 p.494            
William-G. Snavely                                                                                           

▪ Using rectangular-section steel tubing rather than radiused sanding blocks to shape a fretboard which tends to over-radius the edges.

Hands-On Archtop Mandolin Making, Part Three

2004
AL#77 p.38   BRB7 p.416            
Peggy Stuart   Don MacRostie                                                                                       

▪ The epic continues! In this segment the neck is assembled, the body is closed up and bound, and the fingerboard is bound and fretted. All this is accomplished under the able tutelage of Don MacRostie at the American School of Lutherie. With 67 photos. Parts 1 and 2 were in the two previous issues of American Lutherie.

This article has been nominated as one of the Guild’s best articles published before 2010.

Neck Template Duplicating Carver

2004
AL#77 p.54   BRB7 p.186            
Peter Hurney                                                                                           

▪ Hurney’s pantograph uses chain drive and a chainsaw carving attachment on an angle-grinder to shape ukulele necks. The scale of the machine can be adjusted for whatever size neck you wish to carve. There are 7 photos and a series of diagrams to help you along, but if you’re not already a mechanic you’d have to be pretty adventurous to build one of these without help.

Review: Emasco Finger Planes

2004
AL#77 p.64   BRB7 p.524            
Don Overstreet                                                                                           

▪ The reviewer likes these brass finger planes made in Arizona and in the end decides that their price of $89 apiece is reasonable for any professional builder of archtop instruments.

The Dan and Frank Show: Through the Soundhole Repair Techniques

2004
AL#78 p.4   BRB7 p.174            
Dan Erlewine   Frank Ford                                                                                       

▪ A ton of guitar repairs can only be accomplished by reaching through the soundhole. Here, two masters of the genre describe some of their methods a working in the cramped darkness, some of the tools they’ve used and/or created, and the attitude you have to acquire when getting stumped and handing back an unrepaired guitar is not an option. With 32 photos.

Hands-On Archtop Mandolin Making, Part Four

2004
AL#78 p.28   BRB7 p.416            
Peggy Stuart   Don MacRostie                                                                                       

▪ Ms. Stuart’s epic continues with the making of the headstock cap, shaping of the neck, installing the neck and fingerboard, as well as setting up and stringing the finished (but in-the-white) instrument. The first three parts were in the three previous issues of AL. Don MacRostie taught Stuart’s class at the American School of Lutherie. With 74 photos, most of the step-by-step process.

This article has been nominated as one of the Guild’s best articles published before 2010.

Tales of Topographic Arches

2004
AL#78 p.45   BRB7 p.199            
Michael Darnton                                                                                           

▪ By making a topo map of the spherical arch you wish your top or back to be (in 1/32″ intervals in this example) one only has to lay an outline of the guitar on the map and chart the contour of the sides. So easy. So elegant. So how come it wasn’t more obvious? With one photo and one diagram.

This article has been nominated as one of the Guild’s best articles published before 2010.

Fiber Optic Inspection Scope

2004
AL#78 p.54   BRB7 p.204            
Robert-A. Edelstein   Ben Edelstein                                                                                       

▪ How would you like an inspection tool that slides into any soundhole and gives you an electronic picture of what it sees? It’s here, it’s very cool, but it’s still pretty expensive. With 7 photos.

Making Templates for Stew-Mac’s Fret-Slotting Miter Box

2004
AL#78 p.62   BRB7 p.172            
Robert Deacon                                                                                           

▪ Using templates to slot a fingerboard is the way to go, whether you use a miter box or a table saw. The author doesn’t mention it, but his templates should work as well for table saw people as for the miter box folks. Of course, this is for making templates for scale lengths not offered by the manufacturer of the templates. With 2 photos and 3 diagrams.

Hands-On Archtop Mandolin Making, Part Two

2003
AL#76 p.28   BRB7 p.416            
Peggy Stuart   Don MacRostie                                                                                       

▪ Stuart continues her tale of learning to make a mandolin under the tutelage of Don MacRostie. In this episode of the four-part series, jigs and power tools become more important as the instrument comes together. This isn’t about becoming Geppetto, plying one’s trade with a knife and a chisel. This is about making mandolins in the real world. Routers and tablesaws are staple items, as are several impressive jigs created by MacRostie. With 37 photos and 3 drawings.

This article has been nominated as one of the Guild’s best articles published before 2010.

Cutting a Fanned-Fret Fingerboard

2003
AL#76 p.41   BRB7 p.137            
Mike Doolin                                                                                           

▪ Fanned-Fret fingerboards use those wacky, slanted frets you’ve probably seen on some “California” guitars. So how does one cut those slots accurately? Doolin has worked out a method—make the ‘board its own miter box. Pretty cool. With 5 photos.

This article has been nominated as one of the Guild’s best articles published before 2010.

Product Review: Spot Check Thermometer

2003
AL#76 p.58   BRB7 p.510            
John Calkin                                                                                           

▪ The reviewer tries out the Spot Check contact thermometer on his side-bending machine and makes some interesting discoveries. This tool is too cheap and useful to be without. With 3 photos.

CAD Notebook

2003
AL#76 p.60   BRB6 p.510            
Dana Bourgeois                                                                                           

▪ This is an episode in the series that even digiphobes will enjoy, taking the file to the CNC man to actually make necks by computer-guided milling machine. This is not a machine that most of us will ever own, or even want to, but it’s obvious how effectively it might add to ones output. With 15 photos.

Geza’s Precision Assembly Jig

2003
AL#75 p.6   BRB7 p.86            
Geza Burghardt   Cyndy Burton                                                                                       

▪ Geza Burghhardt builds classical guitars on a workboard rather than a mold, but it isn’t just any old workboard. Its carefully jigged up for accuracy and guitar-to-guitar consistency and his jigs are nearly as pretty as his guitars. Well, to another luthier, anyhow. With 17 photos.

Hands-On Archtop Mandolin Making, Part One

2003
AL#75 p.12   BRB7 p.416            
Peggy Stuart   Don MacRostie                                                                                       

▪ The author describes her mandolin making class with Red Diamond mandolin builder Don MacRostie, giving us a photo-heavy series that should be of practical use to anyone in the mandolin field regardless of their experience. The emphasis is on hand tools, though power tools are used to add efficiency. With 68 photos and 4 drawings, this is the first in a four-part series.

This article has been nominated as one of the Guild’s best articles published before 2010.

Decorative Guitar Heel Carving

2003
AL#75 p.56   BRB7 p.100            
John Greven                                                                                           

▪ Heel carving is one of the few decorative effects usually permitted on steel string guitars. Carved heels look cool and, according to Greven, aren’t that hard to do. The tools required are minimal and the impact on the instrument large, a really fine combination. With 11 photos.

Fingerboard Radius Gauges

2003
AL#75 p.62   BRB7 p.106            
R.M. Mottola                                                                                           

▪ Cool beans! Radius gauges you can cut out of the magazine and use on your instruments. Jeez, I mean gauges that you can Xerox, then cut out and mount on a backer board and use on your instruments. What was I thinking?

Dedicated Binding and Purfling Routers

2003
AL#75 p.66   BRB7 p.108            
Mike Doolin                                                                                           

▪ The author always uses the same binding/purfling scheme on his guitars, so he jigged up permanently set routers to use on his Ribbecke jig. Pretty cool if you never change your decoration scheme. With 5 photos.

A Cheapskate’s Sampler

2003
AL#74 p.36   BRB7 p.62            
R.M. Mottola                                                                                           

▪ A tight-fisted and humorous look at buying select tools, wood, and strings without draining your bank account. With 4 photos and a drawing.

Get Bent! A Versatile Shopmade Side Bender

2003
AL#74 p.44   BRB7 p.70            
Mike Doolin                                                                                           

▪ An evolution of the familiar Fox bender idea. Another example (two in one issue!) of Doolin’s genius for creating effective tools that any of us can build to fill a void in our shop routine. With 6 photos.

This article has been nominated as one of the Guild’s best articles published before 2010.

Van Eps Fretboard Slotting Jig

2003
AL#74 p.46   BRB7 p.72            
Jim DeCava                                                                                           

▪ A look at an old solution to a much older problem—how to accurately slot a fingerboard to receive the frets. Contains some interesting history of the Liberty Banjo Company. With 4 photos.

Tracker Remote Switches

2003
AL#74 p.56   BRB7 p.74            
Bruce Petros                                                                                           

▪ Using old organ-building technology it’s possible to switch onoff the same machine from a number of workstations. Here’s how, with 4 photos and a pair of drawings.

Review: Shoptalk 6

2003
AL#73 p.61   BRB7 p.523            
John Calkin                                                                                           

▪ This video is a collection of shop tips that the reviewer found to be valuable and entertaining, especially in view of the low price.

Bridge Positioning Fixture

2003
AL#73 p.62   BRB7 p.34            
Pete Barthell                                                                                           

▪ As the title indicates, a nice fixture for finding the proper location of the classical guitar bridge. With 6 photos and a set of diagrams.

Product Reviews: Tite-Mark Marking Gauge; Contour Plane; Veritas Apron Plane

2003
AL#73 p.64               
Jeffrey-R. Elliott   Cyndy Burton                                                                                       

▪ Some tools have a value way beyond function. Elliott looks at three he especially likes, a low-angle plane, a marking gauge, and a small spokeshave which is called a contour plane.

Motorized Dish Sander

2003
AL#74 p.19   BRB7 p.31            
Mike Doolin                                                                                           

▪ No, this isn’t a machine for sanding dishes. You’d find that in Good Housekeeping. This is a motorized, dished workboard for sanding the contours of arched plates into your assembled instrument sides. It beats doing it by hand by miles, and Doolin’s clever design looks easier to build than others.

This article has been nominated as one of the Guild’s best articles published before 2010.

Stop Giving Your Guitar the Finger

2003
AL#73 p.40   BRB7 p.2            
John Calkin                                                                                           

▪ Everyone develops little work habits or adopts minor tools that together make a big difference in their work and the pleasure they find in it. This is one man’s collection of odds and ends that changed the quality and quantity of his work. With 15 photos.

Pantograph Neck Shaft Duplicator

2003
AL#73 p.54   BRB7 p.28            
Mike Doolin                                                                                           

▪ Perhaps you’d care to make all your necks look and feel the same, just as the big factories do. Perhaps you’d like to make them a lot faster while you’re at it. And do it all on a budget? Doolin’s machine may be just what you were looking for. With 8 photos and several diagrams.

Constructing the Spanish Rosette, Part 2

2003
AL#73 p.14   BRB6 p.368            
Eugene Clark   Jonathon Peterson                                                                                       

▪ Clark is one of the old American masters of lutherie. Building an original rosette in the Spanish tradition is way more complicated than routing a channel and poking in some abalone, as steel stringers are apt to do, but with Clark’s instruction you can do it. Includes 22 photos. Part 1 appeared in AL #71.

This article has been nominated as one of the Guild’s fifty best articles published before 2010.

Greven Images

2002
AL#72 p.8   BRB6 p.438            
John Greven                                                                                           

▪ Greven’s inlay work specializes in large easily repeatable designs highlighted by engraving of a photographic quality. His pearl-cutting techniques are pretty strange, but no one can argue with the quality of the finished work. With 18 photos and a pair of drawings of graver types and angles.

Making Kerfed Lining

2002
AL#72 p.32   BRB6 p.417            
John Calkin                                                                                           

▪ A small shop can easily make all the nice instrument lining it needs if it already has a tablesaw and a thickness sander and invests in a few simple jigs. It isn’t hard, but it isn’t especially fun, either.

Dot Marker Position Gauges

2002
AL#72 p.44   BRB6 p.436            
R.M. Mottola                                                                                           

▪ The author has devised a set of layout gauges for positioning the side markers and fretboard dots of his guitars, easily assuring himself that all dots will be nicely and quickly centered. A set of gauges for various scale lengths is included for photocopying.

Product Reviews: Asturome ES/RV Detail Spray Gun

2002
AL#72 p.60   BRB6 p.486            
R.M. Mottola                                                                                           

▪ The reviewer examines the Asturmes ES/RV spray gun and finds that it’s the answer to the finish problems he’s found, and at a reasonable price. With one photo.

See No Evil: Super-Safe Binding Router Jig

2002
AL#71 p.42   BRB6 p.398            
Harry Fleishman                                                                                           

▪ Harry can rout his guitars for binding with his eyes closed. Honestly! The system he explains uses a laminate trimmer suspended by a swinging arm and you can build it in your shop.With a photo and 2 diagrams.

Product Reviews: Grizzly Pneumatic drum Sander

2002
AL#71 p.62   BRB6 p.485            
R.M. Mottola                                                                                           

▪ Mottola likes the Grizzly H2881 pump sander, a handheld drum sander he uses for sculpting neck heels and the like. He doesn’t however, much enjoy doing business with the Grizzly company. With 2 photos.

Small Shop Production Techniques

2002
AL#70 p.12   BRB6 p.358            
Ralph Novak                                                                                           

▪ The author uses neck making in his example of how gearing up to make small runs of like parts can make the small shop more efficient and profitable. With a photo and 9 drawings.

1869 Francisco Gonzalez: A Restoration

2002
AL#70 p.16   BRB6 p.328            
Jeffrey-R. Elliott                                                                                           

▪ Returning a historically important guitar to life is not only a painstaking project but also one that must be done with finesse and a respect for the instrument’s value as an historical document. This restoration took several months and much research and investigation, requiring the use of tools not normally associated with guitar repair. With 43 photos and a magazine-size version of GAL Plan #47 of the instrument under discussion.

This article has been nominated as one of the Guild’s fifty best articles published before 2010.

GAL Instrument Plan #47: 1869 Francisco Gonzalez Guitar

2002
AL#70 p.34   BRB6 p.343            
Jeffrey-R. Elliott                                                                                           

▪ A full-scale instrument plan. See the GAL website for a low-rez preview.

The Hidden Gem of Thickness Sanders

2002
AL#70 p.36   BRB6 p.324            
Bruce Petros                                                                                           

▪ The author finds that the General Model 15-250 M1, for $1600, may be the most sander for the money that the small shop can afford. With 7 photos.

Slotting Fretboards

2002
AL#70 p.48   BRB6 p.344            
John Calkin                                                                                           

▪ Using templates and a tablesaw to slot fingerboards in minutes, and how to make your own templates. With 7 photos and 5 fret scales for off-beat scale lengths.

Controlling Soundboard Development

2002
AL#69 p.8   BRB6 p.305            
Larry Mills                                                                                           

▪ An introduction to free plate and fixed plate voicing of the guitar top, the latter using a jig to fix the braced plate much as it will be on the guitar, though tapping is used as the driver, not strings. Interesting, and a good presentation of current bracing notions. With 8 photos.

The Search for the Lute Maker’s Donkey

2002
AL#69 p.36               
Andrew Atkinson                                                                                           

▪ The author’s focus is on recreating a lute maker’s shop, circa the late 16th century. Old paintings provide some of his most valuable research materials. He is not only interested in old tools, but in the old ways of making those tools. With 2 photos.

Product Reviews: Delta and Performax Abrasive Planers

2002
AL#69 p.56   BRB6 p.481            
Harry Fleishman                                                                                           

▪ Guitar maker and teacher Fleishman compares two thickness sanders, the Performax 22-44 and the Delta 31-250, finding that both are useful, have different peculiarities, and that you are better off with either one than without a thickness sander at all. With 2 photos.

It Worked for Me: Fingertip Glue Removal

2002
AL#69 p.62   BRB6 p.461            
Marc Connelly                                                                                           

▪ A little goofball finger strap flashlight to illuminate the Dremel bit, and a Trac II razor to shave dried glue off fingertips.

It Worked for Me: Spherically Arched Guitar Back

2002
AL#69 p.63   BRB6 p.463            
Peter Giolitto                                                                                           

▪ A way to plot the contours of the ribs and the back braces as alternative to buying or making a dished workboard for fitting a spherically-arched guitar back.

An Introduction to Metal Engraving

2001
AL#68 p.40   BRB6 p.266            
David Giulietti                                                                                           

▪ The pursuit of engraving skills demands just a small investment in tools but a large investment in determination and time. At least, for those not born to be artists. But the author makes it clear that there is hope for nearly all of us who truly wish to acquire this skill.

It Worked for Me: Make a Toothed Plane Blade

2001
AL#68 p.58   BRB6 p.460            
Keith Davis                                                                                           

▪ Make a toothed blade for a block plane by annealing the blade, grinding a set of grooves, and re-tempering the blade. Also describes reducing the mouth with J.B. Weld.

Making a Scraper Plane

2001
AL#67 p.40   BRB6 p.260            
Peter Giolitto                                                                                           

▪ Scraper planes are good for dressing down figured wood without tearing them up or following the grain. Here’s how to make one. With a photo and 5 drawings.

Conical Fretboard Radiusing Jig

2001
AL#66 p.28               read this article
Mike Nealon                                                                                           

▪ The author offers plans for a jig that uses a router to shape the surface of a conical fretboard. With 11 photos and 5 diagrams.

Review: Custom Knifemaking by Tim McCreight

2001
AL#66 p.57   BRB6 p.538            read this article
John Calkin                                                                                           

▪ The reviewer decides that if you want to make your first knife you just about can’t go wrong with this book.

Product Reviews: Stew-Mac Brown Tape

2001
AL#66 p.58   BRB6 p.480            
Harry Fleishman                                                                                           

▪ Fleishman spends an entire column talking about a particular brown masking tape, and darn if he doesn’t make it sound like a fine use of space.

It Worked for Me: Old Molds

2001
AL#66 p.64   BRB6 p.457            
Skip Helms                                                                                           

▪ 1″ rigid foam insulation is tough, accurately dimensioned, weighs almost nothing, and can be used to help freshly bent sides hold their shape.

An American in Mirecourt, Part Two

2001
AL#65 p.10   BRB6 p.82            
Paul Schuback                                                                                           

▪ Schuback learned violin making in a small shop in France during the ’60s. This segment of his 1995 convention workshop lecture covers completing the plates and fitting the neck, fingerboard, nut, and soundpost to the body. There’s lots of local French color, old tools, and old ways presented here, as well as a bit of how the violin has changed since the days of the first Italian masters. Part One appeared in AL#63. With 33 photos, a diagram, and a sequence chart for building a violin.

This article has been nominated as one of the Guild’s fifty best articles published before 2010.

Evolving the Dished Workboard

2001
AL#65 p.22   BRB6 p.210            
John Calkin                                                                                           

▪ The dished workboard can make it easier to make better guitars. Calkin reveals several ways to make them more versatile, more accurate, and more fun to use. With 13 photos.

This article has been nominated as one of the Guild’s best articles published before 2010.

Pre-finish Surface Preparation

2001
AL#65 p.39   BRB6 p.170            
Fred Campbell                                                                                           

▪ A large part of the secret to getting a fine gloss finish of any sort is the preparation of the wood before anything is even applied. Campbell has specialized in finish work for years and isn’t shy about sharing what he knows.

It Worked for Me: Profiling Heads

2001
AL#65 p.65   BRB6 p.456            
Peter Giolitto                                                                                           

▪ A method to profile the heads of classical guitars helps achieve a much more accurate shape more quickly than just drawing around a single template and working to the line; instead using shapes of workable metal.

From Firewood to Bracewood

2000
AL#64 p.50   BRB6 p.156            
Nathan Stinnette                                                                                           

▪ Stinnette is the Huss & Dalton Guitar Co. employee in charge of converting split red spruce trees into billets of brace wood, and then into guitar braces. The article describes how the rough chunks of wood are converted into quarter-sawn boards and then how the boards are made into braces. With 15 photos.

An American in Mirecourt

2000
AL#63 p.20   BRB6 p.82            
Paul Schuback                                                                                           

▪ This piece would be important just as an historical document of Schuback’s apprenticeship to a French violin maker in the early ’60s. The inclusion of his current shop practices and building methods makes it an article that everyone interested in the violin should read. With 33 photos and 5 diagrams.

This article has been nominated as one of the Guild’s fifty best articles published before 2010.

Getting Fit

2000
AL#63 p.34   BRB6 p.108            
John Calkin                                                                                           

▪ OK, so you’ve got all the parts for your flattop guitar body prepped for construction. How do you get all the pieces to fit together? The author details the construction methods used at the Huss & Dalton Guitar Co, all of which should prove useful to any small shop.With 21 photos.

Router Jig for Shaping a Neck

2000
AL#62 p.46               read this article
Mike Nealon                                                                                           

▪ Nealon’s jig allows a router to fully shape the neck behind the heel, including the diamond on the back of the headstock. With 15 photos and 6 diagrams.

Product Reviews: Stew-Mac Neck Jig

2000
AL#61 p.52   BRB6 p.468            
John Calkin                                                                                           

▪ Good grades are given to the Stew-Mac neck jig, a fretting aid. The fret nippers intended for jumbo fret wire is greeted with mixed emotions. The Allen mandolin tailpiece is found to offer grace and dignity to any mando with a bridge high enough to allow its use.

It Worked for Me: Adding Table Space

2000
AL#61 p.61   BRB6 p.448            
R.M. Mottola                                                                                           

▪ A way to quickly ‘add’ table space to a drill press, bandsaw, or spindle sander is with a couple of fret bar clamps, such as those made by True Grip.

Sources

1999
AL#60 p.52               
Cyndy Burton                                                                                           

▪ This column updates several source lists that have appeared in past issues. If you need it to build instruments, you should find a supplier here.

On the Selection and Treatment of Bracewoods

1999
AL#60 p.19   BRB5 p.417            
Ervin Somogyi                                                                                           

▪ How important is the grain orientation of your braces? Is quartersawn wood really the stiffest? Somogyi ran a small series of tests that suggest that information we all trust and take for granted may be little more than lutherie mythology. With 3 photos and a chart.

This article has been nominated as one of the Guild’s best articles published before 2010.

Product Reviews: Moto-Tool Bases; Neck-Making Tools: JAWS

1999
AL#60 p.44   BRB5 p.436            
Fred Carlson                                                                                           

▪ Hi-Tone instrument cases are reviewed and not found wanting, “a contender for the handsomest case out there, and very solidly built.”

Kasha Collaboration, Part 2

1999
AL#59 p.22   BRB5 p.332            
Jonathon Peterson   George Majkowski   Boaz Elkayam                                                                                   

▪ George Majkowski and Boaz Elkayam complete their work on 10 Kasha guitars to honor the memory of Richard Schneider and to keep his work alive. The hand tools involved, the strange method of fretting, and the cool vacuum clamps, as well as the design philosophy behind the guitars, make this a pair of articles not to be missed. The Old World meets the future here and they blend very nicely. With 58 photos.

This article has been nominated as one of the Guild’s best articles published before 2010.

Making Compensated Saddles

1999
AL#59 p.46   BRB5 p.396            
Jeff Huss   Mark Dalton                                                                                       

▪ Hand carved and compensated bone saddles are a mark of finesse. Fine work is all about the details, and Huss and Dalton discuss a detail that is often overlooked but easy to make. With 8 photos.

Product Reviews: Routing Jig; Router Base for Moto Tool; Fingerboard/Bridge Heating Iron

1999
AL#59 p.56   BRB5 p.452            
Fred Carlson                                                                                           

▪ Carlson checks out Iboney, a specially treated cow bone used for nuts and saddles. Also in this column is an examination of 3 Stew-Mac tools, a fingerboard and bridge heating iron, a purfling cutter attachment for the Dremel MultiPro, and a binding cutter for the Stew-Mac version of the MultiPro router base. Fred likes the Iboney, and decides that both Stew-Mac Dremel attachments are better made than the Dremels themselves. The heating iron passes inspection, too, but the GAL Tool Guy feels a bit luke-warm about it.

Review: Shoptalk 5 by Todd Sams, Don MacRostie, Dan Erlewine

1999
AL#59 p.65   BRB5 p.484            read this article
John Calkin                                                                                           

▪ The reviewer likes this instruction video that is ultimately intended to sell product, and finds that the instruction far outweighs the salesmanship angle of this Stew-Mac tape.

Kasha Collaboration, Part 1

1999
AL#58 p.20   BRB5 p.332            
Jonathon Peterson   George Majkowski   Boaz Elkayam                                                                                   

▪ Boaz Elkayam and George Majkowski extend the work of Michael Kasha and Richard Schneider in a project that entails the construction of 10 guitars. A wide variety of building techniques involving hand and power tools, as well as vacuum clamping, is necessary to make these complicated instruments. An unlikely pairing of craftsmen contributes to our understanding of one of the most controversial instrument designers of our times, and the memory of a respected luthier and teacher. With 26 photos.

This article has been nominated as one of the Guild’s best articles published before 2010.

Calculating Arc Parameters

1999
AL#58 p.42   BRB5 p.355            
Jon Sevy                                                                                           

▪ If first-year college math pushed your left-brain functions to the limit (been there, done that) you may cringe at the sight of the simplest equation. If so, check out this article. Modern luthiers build arcs into many of their instruments, and if you don’t know how to create them to lay out your own jigs you’ll be forever at the mercy of tool suppliers. Worse yet, when someone asks what the radius of your back plate is you can shrug your shoulders and look like an idiot. Let Sevy solve your problem. You can do it!

Product Reviews: Chapin Insight Guitar Inspection Camera

1999
AL#58 p.52   BRB5 p.449            
Fred Carlson                                                                                           

▪ How would you like a video camera that can snoop inside your guitar? Carlson examines the Chapin Insight guitar inspection camera and finds that it’s loads of fun and probably very useful to a repairman who has the $350 to improve his inspection capabilities.

It Worked for Me: Guitar Finishing Holder

1999
AL#58 p.58   BRB5 p.501            
Andrea Andalo                                                                                           

▪ A simple device to hold guitars during the finishing phase which consists of an upright which can be held in a vise and a workboard which the neck can be secured.

It Worked for Me: Mandolin Side Heights

1999
AL#58 p.58   BRB5 p.501            
John Monteleone                                                                                           

▪ A good method for finding the height of mandolin family sides using a violin soundpost height gauge.

More Binding Tips and Tools

1999
AL#57 p.11   BRB5 p.297            
John Calkin                                                                                           

▪ Calkin was hired by Huss and Dalton to take over their guitar binding. His story includes a description of how to make wood binding, and covers the hand tools he uses during the binding procedure. With 6 photos.

This article has been nominated as one of the Guild’s best articles published before 2010.

Stick with Hide Glue

1999
AL#57 p.14   BRB5 p.302            
Frank Ford   Don MacRostie                                                                                       

▪ The authors believe that hot hide glue is the best adhesive for virtually all construction and most repair jobs. Here’s why they think so and how they handle this ancient material. Includes diagrams of the customized glue pots used by both men, 15 photos, and a hide glue grading chart.

This article has been nominated as one of the Guild’s fifty best articles published before 2010.

The Chainsaw Lutherie of Tom Ribbecke, Part 2

1999
AL#57 p.24   BRB5 p.262            
Jay Hargreaves                                                                                           

▪ In this installment the top plate is carved and braced. Ribbecke roughs out the plates in a unique vacuum cage that goes a long way toward keeping his shop clean. The chainsaw wheel he attaches to his grinder gives this series its name, and speeds the carving process dramatically. Tuning the top isn’t completed until the guitar is assembled in the next segment. Part 1 was in AL#56. Includes 20 photos.

This article has been nominated as one of the Guild’s best articles published before 2010.

Tales of True Companionship

1999
AL#57 p.40   BRB5 p.317            
John Calkin                                                                                           

▪ Calkin builds a uniquely shaped travel guitar called the True Companion, and here explains its construction as well as the jigs he devised for production building. The plan is a mini-version of GAL Plan #44. With 14 photos, including one of the sternest luthier of the year. Ya’ll remember to smile when it’s your turn!

Adjustable Dished Workboard

1999
AL#57 p.46   BRB5 p.330            
Kevin-B. Rielly                                                                                           

▪ By now we all know about using dished workboards to create a radius on flat instrument plates. Rielly’s board is easier to make than most, and can be adjusted for either the top or back radius. With 6 photos.

Domestic Tranquility

1999
AL#57 p.50   BRB5 p.324            
Paul McGill                                                                                           

▪ McGill’s lutherie shop is in his basement, and keeping his house free of fumes and dust involved lots of planning and not a little money. Here’s how he did it. With 3 photos and a drawing.

Product Reviews: Turbo Carver

1999
AL#57 p.58   BRB5 p.436            
Fred Carlson                                                                                           

▪ Carlson takes over the GAL test pilot seat for new tools. This time he flies the Turbo-carver, an ultra-speed carving tool similar to (but not as elaborate as) a dentist drill. Carlson likes the tool but can’t seem to find a lot of use for it in lutherie. And though the tool is fairly inexpensive, he also questions its lifespan.

The Chainsaw Lutherie of Tom Ribbecke, Part 3

1999
AL#58 p.6   BRB5 p.262            
Jay Hargreaves                                                                                           

▪ The final installment in the series, parts 1 & 2 were in AL#56 and #57, respectively. In this segment the sides are bent, the body is assembled and bound, the neck is fitted to the body, and attention is given to tuning the plates. Special consideration is given to making the adjustable bridges as well as Tom’s elegant ebony/graphite tailpiece. With 36 photos and a drawing.

This article has been nominated as one of the Guild’s best articles published before 2010.

The Modern Mandolin

1998
AL#56 p.6   BRB5 p.248            
Lawrence Smart                                                                                           

▪ The demands of contemporary players has forced many changes in the mandolin family since the fabled Loar family of Gibsons was created in the 1920s. Smart has built mandolins, mandolas, and mandocellos to work together as an ensemble as well as separately, and here he discusses the differences that might be desirable in the family as the setting is changed, as well as the changes that players have asked for in his instruments. Accompanied by charts of Smart’s instrument specs as well as those of Gibson. With 5 photos and 5 drawings.

This article has been nominated as one of the Guild’s best articles published before 2010.

The Chainsaw Lutherie of Tom Ribbecke, Part One: The Neck

1998
AL#56 p.36   BRB5 p.262            
Jay Hargreaves                                                                                           

▪ Ribbecke is a renowned maker of archtop guitars. He also opens his shop periodically to small classes that wish to learn his formula for successful and graceful guitars. Hargreaves attended one such week-long session and brought back the straight skinny for American Lutherie readers. Part 1 details the construction of a laminated maple neck and associated details. Part 2 follows in AL#57. With 29 photos.

This article has been nominated as one of the Guild’s best articles published before 2010.

It Worked for Me: Cheap Fret Bender

1998
AL#56 p.65   BRB5 p.500            
Kevin-B. Rielly                                                                                           

▪ A simple $1 bender design as an alternative to bending frets with pliers or a variable fret bender which takes less than 30 minutes to assemble.

Binding Guitars

1999
AL#57 p.6   BRB5 p.292            
Jeff Huss   Mark Dalton                                                                                       

▪ The H&D Guitar Company builds about 100 guitars per year, the great majority of them bound in wood. Here’s how they do it. With 13 photos.

This article has been nominated as one of the Guild’s best articles published before 2010.

Length of Newt’s Tail by Width of Dragon’s Hair

1998
AL#55 p.45               
Ken Sribnick                                                                                           

▪ Sribnick believes that consistent accuracy stems from shop standards. One set of measuring tools, one set of templates, one style of doing things. He makes a good case, too. With 3 photos.

Meet the Maker: Paul Jacobson

1998
AL#55 p.48   BRB5 p.243            
Cyndy Burton   Paul Jacobson                                                                                       

▪ Jacobson is a widely respected builder of classical guitars who considers lutherie to be the equivalent of writing sonnets. They are both exercises in controlled creativity. And both can be beautiful.

It Worked for Me: Neck/Body Joint Jig

1998
AL#55 p.54   BRB5 p.497            
Filippo Avignonesi                                                                                           

▪ A jig to make joints for attaching necks to bodies; both heel and body are slotted and joined by a flat wooden spline.

Review: Basic Pickup Winding and Complete Guide to Making Your Own Pickup Winder by Jason Lollar

1998
AL#55 p.63   BRB5 p.477            
Bishop Cochran                                                                                           

▪ The reviewer finds that this book is weak on pickup design considerations but that it will ultimately set the luthier free to customize his sound and escape the high cost of commercial pickups.

Review: Archtop Guitar Design and Construction by Robert Benedetto

1998
AL#54 p.56   BRB5 p.476            
John Calkin                                                                                           

▪ The reviewer finds this set of 5 videos to be useful and complete for those who wish to build an archtop guitar, but that those who lack previous lutherie experience should also have the book by Benedetto.

Review: Spray Finishing by Andy Charron

1998
AL#54 p.57   BRB5 p.477            
John Calkin                                                                                           

▪ The reviewer decides that the book should be of use to anyone who is about to purchase their first spray gear, but that other sources of information are more lutherie-specific.

Product Reviews: Wood Thickness Indicator, Nut Files, Fret Slot Cleaning Tool

1998
AL#54 p.58   BRB5 p.444            
Harry Fleishman                                                                                           

▪ Fleishman tries out a tool for puncturing archtop plates to establish depth of cut, likes it, but finds that the standard size tool is for violin makers and guitar makers must special order; the nut files of a lifetime come into his shop; a good tool that Everyman can afford turns out to be nice fret slot cleaning tool.

In Memoriam: Irving Sloane

1998
AL#55 p.3   BRB5 p.213            read this article
Roger Sadowsky                                                                                           

▪ Sadowsky remembers Irving Sloane as a Renaissance man, and surely just the work he did in the lutherie field would qualify him for that. He designed and produced tuning machines, a slew of hand tools, and three instruction books that no doubt continue to be the worthy introduction many of us have to the world of lutherie. He was also Sadowsky’s father-in-law. This small remembrance is as nice as any man has had.

Product Reviews: Guitar Cradle, Mirror, Fret Tools, Go-Bars, Guitar Neck Removal Jig, Pro 7A Mike

1998
AL#53 p.56   BRB5 p.442            
Harry Fleishman                                                                                           

▪ Harry ‘fesses up: many luthiers are just too darn serious to grok good humor. But he, himself, is serious about testing new gear. In this issue he sort of likes a Bench Guitar Cradle, isn’t very enthusiastic about the Ultimate Guitar Mirror, is ambiguous about a fret slotting miter box and saw, finds a good mini-mic to combine with piezo pickups for not a lot of money, hates a commercial go-bar deck, and raves about a neck removal jig for dovetail joints. Whew!

It’s Called a What? Some Thoughts on the Irish Bouzouki

1998
AL#54 p.26   BRB5 p.198            
Graham McDonald                                                                                           

▪ Advice about building an Irish instrument with a Greek name from an Australian in an American magazine. You could get jet lag just thinking about it. McDonald covers the construction of the entire instrument (his neck joint is really slick) but the focal point is his top construction. He steams thick flat plates in the oven and bends them into an arch until they set. After joining there is a minimum of carving yet to be done. All this is in the name of saving time and timber. With 9 photos and a pair of drawings.

This article has been nominated as one of the Guild’s best articles published before 2010.

After the Fox: How Charles Changed my Lutherie Life

1998
AL#54 p.38   BRB5 p.127            
John Calkin                                                                                           

▪ Inspired by his time spent at Fox’s American School of Lutherie, Calkin revamps his whole building procedure. Dished workboards turn out to be easy and cheap to make. Mando, uke, and dulcimer sides are bent with an electric silicone blanket. Molds are revamped. Speed and precision are in, drudgery is out (well, almost). Parts 1 and 2 were in American Lutherie #52 and #53, respectively. With 25 photos.

This article has been nominated as one of the Guild’s fifty best articles published before 2010.

Crazy Like Charles Fox: Guitar Making Jigs for the 21st Century, Part 2

1998
AL#53 p.32   BRB5 p.108            
John Calkin                                                                                           

▪ In AL#52 we looked at the tools and jigs Charles Fox uses to build acoustic guitars. In Part 2 we examine how that equipment is put to use as Fox takes us through the procedure of building a classical guitar at his American School of Lutherie. Most of this info will be just as useful to the steel string builder, as well. With 55 photos.

This article has been nominated as one of the Guild’s fifty best articles published before 2010.

Meet the Maker: George Fortune, Jr.

1998
AL#53 p.44   BRB5 p.178            
John Calkin   George Fortune-Jr.   Stan Olah                                                                                   

▪ Fortune is a self-taught fiddle maker and instrument repairman in rural Virginia. To many of his neighbors he is known simply as the Fiddle Man. Perhaps Americans aren’t losing their independent spirit, but often it feels like it. Calkin pays tribute to a man who seems to represent a whole way of life. With 7 photos.

Product Reviews: Crack Repair Set

1997
AL#51 p.58   BRB5 p.440            
Harry Fleishman                                                                                           

▪ The Guild’s tool buster tames two new offerings and enjoys the ride. The first is a knife for opening cracks in guitar tops. The other is jig that thins and shapes the splints to be put into the slots cut by the knife. Along the way he examines the catalog of Luthiers Mercantile International.

Crazy Like Charles Fox: Guitar Making Jigs for the 21st Century, Part 1

1997
AL#52 p.12   BRB5 p.108            
John Calkin                                                                                           

▪ The main thrust of Fox’s American School of Lutherie lies in teaching lone guitarmakers to make better instruments through more accurate tooling and in helping them become more commercially viable by increasing their production. Calkin attended one of Charles’ week-long Contemporary Guitar Making seminars and documented much of the hard info for American Lutherie readers. This segment concentrates on nearly 3 dozen jigs and fixtures that anyone can add to their lutherie arsenal, most of them adapted to power tools. With 57 photos. Parts 2 & 3 to follow.

This article has been nominated as one of the Guild’s fifty best articles published before 2010.

Scroll Carving

1997
AL#52 p.28   BRB5 p.152            
Guy Rabut                                                                                           

▪ To non-fiddle people all violins look about the same. To the initiated, however, they are vastly different. Besides offering a thorough description of his scroll carving techniques, Rabut gives us a glimpse into the world of the violin in-crowd where an appreciation for subtlety is the stock-in-trade. Guy is a high-profile maker who has had the opportunity to examine many world-class violins. With 52 photos.

This article has been nominated as one of the Guild’s fifty best articles published before 2010.

Meet the Maker: R.E. Brune

1997
AL#52 p.42   BRB5 p.144            
Tim Olsen   R.E. Brune                                                                                       

▪ Brune was an original founder of the Guild, has been a GAL convention lecturer, and an American Lutherie author. He’s also a world-renowned maker, dealer, and collector of classical guitars. In this interview he offers some personal background as well as what he thinks it will take to stay afloat in the lutherie world that’s coming. His insider’s view of high-buck instrument dealing is especially compelling. With 7 photos.

This article has been nominated as one of the Guild’s best articles published before 2010.

Product Reviews: Sewing Shop Finds; Cutting Burs; Spring Clamps

1997
AL#52 p.58   BRB5 p.441            
Harry Fleishman                                                                                           

▪ Ever thought to look in a fabric store for lutherie tools? I’ll bet’cha that Harry beat you to it. He found a deal on aprons, some good layout tools for design work, and bias tape for tying on bindings. Then he opened a Woodcraft catalog and discovered clamps and a carbide burr cutter he couldn’t live without. Just one more column demonstrating why the editorial staff has developed a fatherly concern for their toolman’s life on the edge of lutherie.

Binding Router Jig

1997
AL#51 p.16               
David Grey                                                                                           

▪ Grey’s nifty jig uses a table router to bind guitar bodies. The classiest part is the micrometer adjustments built into the jig. With 2 photos and 5 good drawings.

Finger Planes, the Cheap and Easy Way

1997
AL#51 p.36   BRB5 p.143            
Nathan-D. Missel                                                                                           

▪ You can build these little hollowing planes for a dollar or two and very little time. With 3 drawings to show you the way.

Meet the Makers: Jeffrey Huss and Mark Dalton

1997
AL#51 p.42   BRB5 p.104            
John Calkin   Jeff Huss   Mark Dalton                                                                                   

▪ Virginia luthiers Huss and Dalton show off their shop and talk about the business of going into business. They make 7 high-end acoustics per month, and they make it sound easy. With 11 photos.

A Feast for the Eye

1997
AL#50 p.20   BRB5 p.48            
Kalia Kliban                                                                                           

▪ Kliban reports on an inlay workshop led by Larry Robinson. Robinson has become a master of shell decoration and an important teacher in the field. This article covers everything from design to engraving, and amounts to a condensed version of Larry’s book on the subject. With 15 photos of the workshop and knockout inlay work.

Understanding Nitrocellulose Lacquer

1997
AL#50 p.44   BRB5 p.41            
Michael Hornick                                                                                           

▪ Good lacquer work isn’t mysterious, just a pain in the neck. Hornick has it down to an art and a science, and he offers up his recipe to the last detail.

This article has been nominated as one of the Guild’s best articles published before 2010.

Product Reviews: Fret Tang Pliers, Bridge-Slotting Jig

1997
AL#50 p.54   BRB5 p.438            
Harry Fleishman                                                                                           

▪ Fleishman examines two tools used for changing the width of fret tangs and a Dremel tool jig for routing bridge slots after the bridge is glued to the guitar. He likes them all. With 3 photos.

It Worked for Me: Four Tool Ideas

1997
AL#50 p.59   BRB5 p.490            
Dave Maize                                                                                           

▪ Four tool ideas; a small battery powered gooseneck lamp for a router, Bernard’s pliers for removing snug fitting bridge saddles, bamboo shish kebab skewers for glue spreading, and a scraper to clear glue along guitar braces.

Passport to Spain

1997
AL#49 p.10   BRB4 p.4            
Woodley White                                                                                           

▪ Baarslag journeys to the American School of Lutherie to teach a week-long class about building classical guitars. White attended, and gives a full report. With 37 photos.

Stage Acoustic Guitars

1997
AL#49 p.20   BRB5 p.12            
John Calkin                                                                                           

▪ How to make thin-body guitars intended to be plugged in on stage. The bodies are hollowed from solid stock. Design considerations are emphasized. Production jigs are described, as are a set of jigs for making bridges. With 14 photos.

Soundboard Doming

1997
AL#49 p.36   BRB5 p.34            
Brent Benfield                                                                                           

▪ So you bought a spherically dished form in which to build your guitars. But how do you go about it? Benfield describes a path notable for its lack of complication. This is a painless way to bring your guitars into the 21st century. Most of the ideas are applicable to flattop guitars as well. With 10 photos and 4 drawings.

Time is the Enemy

1997
AL#49 p.40   BRB5 p.26            
Richard Beck                                                                                           

▪ Beck’s theme is to keep the quality but cut the time involved in building acoustic guitars. He shares his jigs for shaping headstocks and arching braces using a router table and heavy aluminum jigs. You may have to get a machine shop in on this job. With 13 photos and a drawing.

Resetting a Neck with Jeff Traugot

1997
AL#49 p.50   BRB5 p.44            
Colin Kaminski   Jeff Traugott                                                                                       

▪ Neck resetting techniques have changed enormously in the last few years, and they continue to evolve. Traugot has been in the forefront of the evolution. Here’s his up-to-the-minute description of the procedure. With 12 photos.

This article has been nominated as one of the Guild’s best articles published before 2010.

Product Reviews: Moto-Tool Bases; Neck-Making Tools: JAWS

1997
AL#49 p.54   BRB5 p.436            
Harry Fleishman                                                                                           

▪ Fleishman examines two retrofit bases for the Dremel mini-router, and likes them both for different reasons. He also test drives a set of micro-chisels and JAWS, a hand-powered fretting press, and recommends them. With 5 photos.

It Worked for Me: Tool Box

1997
AL#49 p.58   BRB5 p.504            
Glenn Uhler                                                                                           

▪ This plastic tool box made by Rubbermaid has two stacking trays that lift out together and plenty of room in the bottom for fretting hammers and larger tools.

It Worked for Me: Router Bit Blades

1997
AL#49 p.59   BRB5 p.488            
Nathan-D. Missel                                                                                           

▪ Using a pattern-following router bit made from a salvaged pencil sharpener mounted on a drill press when cutting pegheads, bridges, tops, or tail pieces. It is an extreme spiral, you see.

How Frank Frets

1997
AL#50 p.4   BRB5 p.60            
Frank Ford                                                                                           

▪ Ford has been a preeminent repairman for years, but has recently emerged as a fine teacher of repair topics. Everyone’s refretting tricks are a little different. Even if you have a handle on the general principle you may find that Frank Ford has something to offer you. With 29 photos.

This article has been nominated as one of the Guild’s fifty best articles published before 2010.

Cutting and Inlaying Pearl

1997
   LW p.80            
James-E. Patterson                                                                                           

▪ This article compresses into less than 6 pages everything you need to know about cutting and inlaying shell, except for how to make up original designs. Creativity is a tough thing to teach. Includes 5 diagrams and 6 photos.

Meet the Maker: Bishop Cochran

1996
AL#48 p.14   BRB4 p.386            
Jonathon Peterson   Bishop Cochran                                                                                       

▪ Cochran is a player/maker of electric and acoustic/electric guitars who uses machine shop equipment and supplies to create his instruments. The emphasis is on precision work, duplicable procedures, and practical designs. With 26 photos.

The Guitar Neck: Its Design and Physics

1996
AL#48 p.22   BRB4 p.394            
Ervin Somogyi                                                                                           

▪ This 1995 convention lecture covers the physical nature of the neck. Not how to do the work, but how to make a neck for maximum playability and instrument performance. Both steel string and classical guitars are discussed. With 1 photo and a slough of diagrams.

This article has been nominated as one of the Guild’s best articles published before 2010.

Meet the Maker: John Mello

1996
AL#48 p.28   BRB4 p.408            
Cyndy Burton   John Mello                                                                                       

▪ Mello is a repairperson, guitarmaker, restorer, and instrument dealer. He apprenticed under Richard Schneider and worked with Jeffrey R. Elliott before opening his own shop.Much of the interview dwells upon the restoration of an 1862 Torres guitar. With 11 photos.

This article has been nominated as one of the Guild’s best articles published before 2010.

My Incredibly Accurate but Slightly Overengineered Dovetail Resetting Jig

1996
AL#48 p.36   BRB4 p.404            
Frank Ford                                                                                           

▪ Ford built an elaborate jig for resetting the necks of valuable and delicate guitars where a slip of the chisel can’t be risked. The contrary nature of guitars may dictate that some hand fitting is required after the jig is used, but much of the danger is removed. With 8 photos.

Two-Part Dovetail Jig

1996
AL#48 p.42   BRB4 p.400            
Phillip Murray                                                                                           

▪ Even in this age of the bolted on neck, there are plenty of guitarmakers who’d rather use a dovetail. Murray’s well thought out jigs cut both the male and female portions of the joint. With 14 photos and 7 diagrams.

Product Reviews: Cutting Tools

1996
AL#48 p.49   BRB4 p.440            
Harry Fleishman                                                                                           

▪ The GAL’s Toolman/stand-up comic checks out a potpourri of rasps, a pair of small drawknives, and a specialized chisel, and suggests what you should do with your junky Model 3 or 4 Dremel tool.

It Worked for Me: Welding Supply Store Tools

1996
AL#48 p.57   BRB4 p.505            
Glenn Uhler                                                                                           

▪ Lutherie tools from a welding supply store, including an inspection light kit featuring an extension/mirror tool, and a nice pin vise.

Classic Guitar Intonation

1996
AL#47 p.34   BRB4 p.368            
Greg Byers                                                                                           

▪ Finding perfect intonation through deep math and jiggling the string length at both ends. For some luthiers the quest for perfection knows no bounds. The rest of us are just jealous.

This article has been nominated as one of the Guild’s best articles published before 2010.

Sources: Tools and Hardware

1996
AL#47 p.62               
Cyndy Burton                                                                                           

▪ A page of tools especially for the luthier, and a page and a half of tools and supplies of a more general nature. Where to get your tools. Or, at least, where to get your catalogs.

Review: The Complete Guide to Sharpening by Leonard Lee

1996
AL#45 p.58   BRB4 p.468            
Jess Wells                                                                                           

▪ The reviewer finds that this book is “the one sharpening book on the market today which I find useful as a reference in my library.”

Meet the Merchant: Todd Taggart

1996
AL#46 p.38   BRB4 p.312            
Cyndy Burton   Todd Taggart                                                                                       

▪ The driving force behind Luthiers Mercantile International talks about building a business, supplying an industry, and helping to make a guitar town out of Healdsburg, California.

Quick and Cheap Peghead Splining Fixture

1996
AL#45 p.40   BRB4 p.294            
Richard Beck                                                                                           

▪ Beck is a repairman for some heavy hitters in the music biz. Here he offers a sound method of repairing shattered headstocks using a router. With 11 photos.

Product Reviews: LMI Adjustable-Radius Sanding Block

1996
AL#45 p.54   BRB4 p.436            
Harry Fleishman                                                                                           

▪ Fleishman test drives the adjustable fretboard arching planes from Luthiers Mercantile International, and finds that they handle the curves nicely. Also, an update on Highlander pickups.

It Worked for Me: Hollow Radius Forms

1996
AL#45 p.56   BRB4 p.500            
John Jordan                                                                                           

▪ A second set of hollow radius forms lined with sandpaper for fitting the sides to the top and back radii when binding acoustic instruments with tops and backs made in hollow-radiused forms.

Developing Models for Contemporary Violinmaking

1995
AL#44 p.20   BRB4 p.230            
Guy Rabut                                                                                           

▪ Apparently not every violinist is determined to have a fiddle that looks 300 years old. Rabut has made some interesting attempts to update the violin without sacrificing the tone that everyone demands. Can’t wait until these babies start showing up in symphonic orchestras. With 21 photos.

This article has been nominated as one of the Guild’s best articles published before 2010.

That Fine Shine: Applying Nitrocellulose Lacquer

1995
AL#44 p.38   BRB4 p.248            
Fred Campbell                                                                                           

▪ Campbell finishes the guitars that other luthiers build. He has become an expert spray meister with the confidence to give away the tricks he has learned the hard way. This is perhaps the best piece on lacquering AL has ever printed. With 7 photos and a finishing schedule.

This article has been nominated as one of the Guild’s best articles published before 2010.

Product Reviews: More Stew-Mac Tools

1995
AL#44 p.52   BRB4 p.434            
Harry Fleishman                                                                                           

▪ This time the GAL’s Toolman tests a Stewart-MacDonald diamond coated fret file, and the Hacklinger gauge for measuring the thickness of instrument tops and backs. He likes the file enough to recommend it. He likes the gauge, too, but its high price puts him off.

Review: Making and Modifying Woodworking Tools by Jim Kingshott

1995
AL#44 p.57   BRB4 p.467            
Andres Sender                                                                                           

▪ The reviewer finds that this book is particularly useful for the plane maker, and ultimately decides that it is “. . .a remarkable deal if you can find it.”

It Worked for Me: Banjo Rim Binding Clamp

1995
AL#44 p.58   BRB4 p.500            
Norbert Pietsch                                                                                           

▪ Two rings, one for inside, one for outside, for use with rubber or rope for clamping binding to a banjo rim.

Product Reviews: Stew-Mac Tools

1995
AL#43 p.48   BRB4 p.432            
Harry Fleishman                                                                                           

▪ Fleishman examines and enjoys two tools from Stewart-MacDonald, the Bridge Saddle Routing Jig and the Adjustable Fret Slotting Saw.

It Worked for Me: D’Aquisto Machine Sharpening Scrapers

1995
AL#42 p.64   BRB4 p.493            
Ric McCurdy                                                                                           

▪ Some tips gleaned from John Monteleone and company about Jimmy D’Aquisto’s scraper sharpening methods.

It Worked for Me: Miniature Bow Saw Tool

1995
AL#41 p.58   BRB4 p.490            
Antonio Masiello                                                                                           

▪ A tool much like a miniature bandsaw which uses a string of a given size to cut a slot for a string of the same size.

Dedicated Drill Press for Hammered Dulcimer Production

1995
AL#42 p.44   BRB4 p.190            
Chris Foss                                                                                           

▪ Foss describes his permanent setup for drilling tuning pin and hitch pin holes in dulcimer pin blocks.

Product Reviews: Sabine Stealth Tuner

1995
AL#41 p.48   BRB4 p.429            
Harry Fleishman                                                                                           

▪ Fleishman examines the battery-powered Stealth guitar tuners from Sabine, which are meant to be mounted on the guitar. He finds them useful but aesthetically hard to hide on the instrument.

Doc and Leo and Me

1994
AL#40 p.8   BRB4 p.90            
Curt Carpenter                                                                                           

▪ Carpenter tells of his VA-sponsored apprenticeship to a legend of the electric guitar industry. A fine string of anecdotes. Carpenter actually moved in with Doc Kauffman and his wife, relived all the old stories, learned to build guitars, visited with Leo Fender, met Rudy Dopera, and made pickups. Carpenter left the army to enter the Guitar Wars.

Meet the Maker: Eric Meyer

1994
AL#39 p.18   BRB4 p.65            
Jonathon Peterson   Eric Myer                                                                                       

▪ Meyer’s current gig is the manufacture of violin fittings. He describes his peg making process in detail.

Segovia’s 1937 Hauser: Top and Back Thicknesses

1994
AL#38 p.24   BRB4 p.34            
R.E. Brune                                                                                           

▪ Brune made a map of plate dimensions using a new (and expensive) gizzy called the Elcometer. Then he decides that plate thickness probably isn’t so big a deal. Well, at least you have a model to guide you.

Product Reviews: The Apprentice

1994
AL#37 p.52   BRB4 p.422            
Harry Fleishman                                                                                           

▪ Fleishman spent a month doing all his repair work on The Apprentice, an instrument holder from WidgetWorks, and declares that he can’t give it up.

Electronic Answer Man

1994
AL#37 p.56   BRB4 p.416            
Rick Turner                                                                                           

▪ Turner’s column is all about the essential electronic measuring instruments for the guitar shop.

Sharpening Scrapers

1993
AL#36 p.46   BRB3 p.416            
Robert Lundberg                                                                                           

▪ Scrapers are wonderfully useful tools despite the difficulties they often pose to beginners. Lundberg explains how to tame them.

This article has been nominated as one of the Guild’s fifty best articles published before 2010.

At the Workbench of the Twelfth Fret

1993
AL#36 p.52   BRB3 p.422            
Jonathon Peterson                                                                                           

▪ Four repairmen offer a variety of tips about altering mechanical archtop bridges, adding more “pop” to fretless bass necks, soldering and shielding electrics, carbide bandsaw blades, abrasive cord, superglue, cutting saddle slots, double-stick tape, bending plastic binding, beveling pickguard stock, replacing bar frets with T-frets, and restoring headstocks to look old.

James L. D’Aquisto: Building the Archtop Guitar. The Soundboard

1994
AL#37 p.10   BRB4 p.6            
Tim Olsen                                                                                           

▪ Olsen travels from the general (in the preceding article) to the specific. He zeros in on D’Aquisto’s soundboard work for a detailed examination. With 47 photos.

This article has been nominated as one of the Guild’s fifty best articles published before 2010.

Another Look at Fretting

1993
AL#35 p.48   BRB3 p.368            
Ralph Novak                                                                                           

▪ Good fretwork is complicated, but practice makes it a staple in the repairman’s income. Novak offers advice garnered from twenty-odd years in the business.

It Worked for Me: Used Vacuum Pumps

1993
AL#34 p.58   BRB3 p.491            
Colin Kaminski                                                                                           

▪ A modified Blue Point K-1020 vacuum pump to recycle refrigerant from automotive air conditioners, per California state law.

It Worked for Me: Fingerboard Binding Clamp Jig

1993
AL#34 p.59   BRB3 p.494            
Colin Kaminski                                                                                           

▪ This jig used for clamping fingerboard bindings fixes the problem of clamping the binding against the fingerboard and keeping the white and black lines flush with the bottom edge of the fingerboard.

Violin Setups, Part One

1993
AL#35 p.6   BRB3 p.352            read this article
Michael Darnton                                                                                           

▪ To the uninitiated, violin setup seems to have way too many steps for the small number of moveable parts involved. Taken one step at a time, the mystery falls away. Darnton explains the tools and procedures he uses to get the most out of a violin. This segment includes fitting pegs, correcting problems with the nut, making a fingerboard, and fitting a soundpost. Part Two is printed in AL#37. With 30 photos.

This article has been nominated as one of the Guild’s best articles published before 2010.

Applications of the Silicone Heating Blanket in Violin Making

1993
AL#34 p.18   BRB3 p.328            read this article
George Borun                                                                                           

▪ Not many people make the mental leap from violins to the space age easily. Borun did, and found the connection useful. His list of uses extends far beyond bending the ribs.

Building Hollow Radius Forms

1993
AL#33 p.23   BRB3 p.476            
Colin Kaminski                                                                                           

▪ Kaminski’s form uses two sheets of plywood of different thickness. They are stacked and screwed together down the center, and the thin sheet is curved by placing rows of wedges between them. A wood frame is built around the plywood, then polyester is poured between the sheets to make the radius permanent. It works, but it can be messy.

The Great White Sitka

1993
AL#33 p.26   BRB3 p.290            read this article
Jeffrey-R. Elliott                                                                                           

▪ How does one hack a log that’s 11′ wide into 4000 guitar tops? Very carefully! With 9 photos detailing the decimation of Moby Spruce. By the way, this is a log that Steve McMinn rescued from the pulp mill.

This article has been nominated as one of the Guild’s best articles published before 2010.

Micro-mesh

1993
AL#33 p.35   BRB3 p.308            
David Freeman                                                                                           

▪ Micro-mesh is the latest word in sandpaper. In fact, it’s not even paper and it doesn’t feel sandy. Freeman and his students use it for all wet-sanding chores, including the final gloss finish. It’s that fine.

At the Workbench

1993
AL#33 p.36   BRB3 p.303            
Wes Brandt                                                                                           

▪ A well-known repairman delivers eight tips, including an alternate way to bend a Venetian cutaway, tool tips, and a way to bend sides more accurately.

It Worked for Me: Thinline Switch Fisher Line/Clay Dot Replacements/Fret Size Selector/Cloth Braided Wire/Tune-O-Matic Bridge Wire

1992
AL#32 p.68   BRB3 p.489            
Richard Echeverria                                                                                           

▪ Quickie tips on the thinline switch fisher-line, clay dot replacements, fret size selector, cloth braided wire, and tune-o-matic bridge wire.

Product Reviews: Waverly Fret Tang Nipper

1992
AL#31 p.60   BRB3 p.437            
Harry Fleishman                                                                                           

▪ Fleishman reviews the Waverly Fret Tang Nipper and finds that for the full-time builder it is an indispensable tool.

A Walk Through Gibson West with Ren Ferguson

1992
AL#32 p.11   BRB3 p.244            
Jonathon Peterson                                                                                           

▪ As a maker of fine acoustic instruments Gibson was reborn in Montana. The man in charge of creativity and efficiency leads the GAL team through his domain. With 17 photos.

Thickness Sanding Disk for Drill Press

1992
AL#31 p.14   BRB3 p.218            
Gavin Baird                                                                                           

▪ You can thin all your guitar wood on the drill press. Baird’s sander is perhaps as accurate as any. He claims control of the wood to within .001″.

It Worked for Me: Laminated Binding Jig

1992
AL#30 p.48   BRB3 p.485            
Mark Tierney                                                                                           

▪ An easy to make jig with a wide jawed woodworkers vise to work down the edges of thin strips of veneer or laminated binding.

It Worked for Me: Clothespin Clamp

1992
AL#29 p.57   BRB3 p.484            
Tim Earls                                                                                           

▪ Variation on a modified clothespin clamp. The original was submitted in 1980 by Bruce Scotten and appears on page 26 of Lutherie Tools.

It Worked for Me: Low Cost Emergency Lathe

1992
AL#29 p.57   BRB3 p.485            read this article
Gerhart Schmeltekopf                                                                                           

▪ Rigging up a temporary reciprocating or ‘pole’ lathe.

Review: The Luthier’s Mercantile Catalog for Stringed Instrument Makers

1992
AL#29 p.58   BRB3 p.467            read this article
Cyndy Burton                                                                                           

▪ Seldom does a new catalog cause so much excitement. The reviewer especially likes it for bedtime reading.

Free Plate Tuning, Part Three: Guitars

1992
AL#30 p.16   BRB3 p.136            read this article
Alan Carruth                                                                                           

▪ Accessibility and usefulness are the keys to this segment of Carruth’s study. He addresses the archtop, flattop, and classical guitars, and even builds a flattop out of oak to compare its tuning modes to conventional tonewoods. With many mode diagrams and plate graduation charts. Too many scientific studies leave the luthier asking, “So what do you want me to do?” Carruth offers some real-world suggestions. Parts One and Two were in AL#28 and AL#29.

This article has been nominated as one of the Guild’s fifty best articles published before 2010.

The Sawmill at Poussay

1992
AL#29 p.38   BRB3 p.174            
Gayle Miller   Ken Sribnick                                                                                       

▪ Visit a water-powered French sawmill that supplies tonewood to 350 luthiers. With 7 photos. Mentions George Miller.

Free Plate Tuning, Part Two: Violins

1992
AL#29 p.42   BRB3 p.136            read this article
Alan Carruth                                                                                           

▪ Carruth tries to keep it light as he describes the glitter dances that should improve your violins, and even sheds light on cello plate tuning. If you feel threatened by the dryness of science just relax and give it a try. Carruth is on your side. Really. With a whole bunch of drawings. Part One was in AL#28. Part Three follows in AL#30. The entire series appears in BRB3.

This article has been nominated as one of the Guild’s best articles published before 2010.

It Worked for Me: Soaking Guitar Sides

1992
AL#29 p.56   BRB3 p.480            
Bill Garofalo                                                                                           

▪ Soaking guitars sides without resorting to vats and trays, using a piece of 4″ plastic pipe with a capped end, secured vertically to a wall or cabinet.

The Spanish Guitar at the Metropolitan Museum of Art

1992
AL#29 p.6   BRB3 p.194   ALA3 p.2         
R.E. Brune                                                                                           

▪ Brune outlines the first major exhibition of Spanish guitars ever mounted in America. With 8 photos, including one of Santos Hernandez. Also mentions Torres, M. Ramirez, Segovia, Simplicio, Barbero, Romanillos, and others.

Free Plate Tuning, Part One: Theory

1991
AL#28 p.18   BRB3 p.136            read this article
Alan Carruth                                                                                           

▪ Most acoustic scientists are not prepared to reduce their work to a plane-by-the-numbers chart of an instrument top.Neither is Carruth. It remains to be seen what improvements free plate tuning will offer to the average guitar, but there is every chance that luthiers who ignore the work as an inartistic invasion of their craft and art will be left in the dust. Carruth invites you to get on board right now. Parts Two and Three are in AL#29 and AL#30. The entire series apperas together in BRB3.

This article has been nominated as one of the Guild’s fifty best articles published before 2010.

A Talk with Bob Taylor

1991
AL#28 p.34   BRB3 p.126   ALA4 p.10         
Phillip Lea   Bob Taylor                                                                                       

▪ Few people in Guitarland are as outspoken and clear-headed as Bob Taylor. Others might say he’s just opinionated. He believes a good guitar is a good guitar, no matter if it was whittled by Gepeto or cranked out by a dozen computer-guided milling cutters. This article offers a peek into the Taylor factory and a guided tour through one man’s thoughts about the contemporary guitar. With 28 photos.

Review: Steel-String Guitar Construction by Irving R. Sloane

1991
AL#26 p.58   BRB3 p.463            read this article
David Riggs                                                                                           

▪ The reviewer finds that this book offers good, solid instruction to the person building their first guitar.

Review: Making Stringed Instruments — A Workshop Guide by George Buchanan

1991
AL#26 p.60   BRB3 p.464            read this article
C.F. Casey                                                                                           

▪ This British D.I.Y. book offers alternative diction, syntax, and approach to the material.

Using Your Work Space from the 1990 GAL Convention panel

1991
AL#27 p.4   BRB3 p.80            
Chris Brandt   R.E. Brune   Jeffrey-R. Elliott   Richard Schneider   Ervin Somogyi   David Wilson                                                                       

▪ A look inside the shops of six professional luthiers, featuring floor plans, tooling descriptions, notes on lighting and specialized machinery, and ideas about how work space can help (or hurt) your lifestyle. With a good Q&A segment and 63 photos.

This article has been nominated as one of the Guild’s fifty best articles published before 2010.

Bending Sides with Silicone Blankets

1991
AL#25 p.52   BRB3 p.30            read this article
Michael Keller                                                                                           

▪ Silicon heat blankets are good for more than bending sides. Keller touches upon other uses, but his instructions for making forms and putting them to use is the focus here, and they cover about all you need to know. Once you have the blanket, the forms are cheap to make.

This article has been nominated as one of the Guild’s best articles published before 2010.

Letter to the Editor: Bosch Laminate Trimmer and Cheap Mando Family

1991
AL#26 p.3               read this article
John Calkin                                                                                           

▪ When his Dremel died, he got a Bosch laminate trimmer to replace it. He loves the Bosch and does not miss the Dremel.

Thoughts on Steel String Guitar Making

1991
AL#26 p.8   BRB3 p.37   ALA4 p.28         
Jean Larrivee                                                                                           

▪ Larrivee has overseen the creation of 15,000 acoustic guitars and 12,000 electrics. Much of what he has to say pertains as strongly to the one-off builder as it does to another industry giant, and he doesn’t hold back on anything.

Meet the Maker: Herb David

1991
AL#26 p.14   BRB3 p.46            
Dan Erlewine   Herb David                                                                                       

▪ It’s tough to be in business and stay successful. It’s really tough to stay in business and keep having fun, too. Herb David tells how he runs his business, builds a few instruments, stays in shape, has fun. Here’s the last line of his personal prayer: “Deliver me from temptation but keep me in touch.” You gotta love the guy. Mentions Sam Varjebedian and Terry Horvath.

Inside Warmoth Guitar Products

1991
AL#26 p.26   BRB3 p.60            
Ken Warmoth                                                                                           

▪ Most in-the-know electric guitar folks consider Warmoth necks and bodies to be the best going. Here’s how they’re made. With 22 photos.

This article has been nominated as one of the Guild’s best articles published before 2010.

A Survey of Seventeen Luthiers

1990
   LT p.114            
Steve Andersen   Chris Brandt   R.E. Brune   Ted Davis   Jeffrey R. Elliott   James Flynn   Bob Gleason   Hideo Kamimoto   Robert Lundberg   Frederick C. Lyman Jr.   John Monteleone   Robert Ruck   Richard Schneider   Ervin Somogyi   Al Stancel   Robert Steinegger   Janet Toon                           

▪ Seventeen established luthiers were asked to list ten hand tools, five power tools, and five supplies used as tools. This info was used to determine the most essential tools, including specifics, model and size, source, and any special uses.

Voicing the Steel String Guitar

1990
AL#24 p.16   BRB2 p.470            
Dana Bourgeois                                                                                           

▪ This is perhaps the strongest article ever published in American Lutherie about voicing the top and bracing of the steel string guitar. The fallout from this piece has been very wide spread.

This article has been nominated as one of the Guild’s fifty best articles published before 2010.

Graduation Marking Device

1990
AL#24 p.25   BRB2 p.449            
Michael Darnton                                                                                           

▪ Darnton’s contrivance marks the finished thickness on violin plates that have already been carved to within 1mm-2mm of final tolerances, and it is simple to make.

Violin Q & A: Cooking Varnish/Fiddle Neck/Neck Finish Treatment/Peg Shaper

1990
AL#24 p.54   BRB2 p.486            
Michael Darnton                                                                                           

▪ Details include cooking varnish, finishing necks, causes of neck cracks, and adjusting a peg shaper to match your peg reamer.

Violin Q & A: Fingerboard Tearouts/Resharpen Peg Reamer/Tailpiece Saddle/Fingerboard Top/White Bridges

1990
AL#23 p.22   BRB2 p.486            
Michael Darnton                                                                                           

▪ Topics include sharpening a peg reamer, dealing with fingerboard tearout, tailpiece setup, pitching the neck, and staining the bridges.

Ren-Shape Precision Molding Material

1990
AL#21 p.31               read this article
Ed Beylerian                                                                                           

▪ Luthiers try lute molds of a new synthetic material. Its stability is pleasing but its strength may make it of limited use for some.

Six Lutherie Tools

1989
AL#20 p.32   BRB2 p.330            
Jeffrey-R. Elliott   Jonathon Peterson                                                                                       

▪ The 6 tools are: a guitar cradle, a grimel (hand purfling cutter), a hand circle cutter, a shooting board, a circle cutting jig for the Dremel tool, and water stones for tool sharpening.

This article has been nominated as one of the Guild’s best articles published before 2010.

Letter to the Editor: Steel String Construction

1989
AL#19 p.5   BRB2 p.221            
Arnold-M.J. Hennig                                                                                           

▪ Hennig gives advice about removing guitar bridges with a sharpened putty knife. He also laments the fact that popular opinion believes that guitars, unlike violins, have a “shelf life,” and as a result are often eventually neglected rather than repaired.

Resetting a Dovetailed Neck

1989
AL#19 p.52   BRB2 p.312            
Jonathon Peterson                                                                                           

▪ Peterson uses a cappuccino machine to steam the neck out of its joint, and wood shavings to rebuild the dovetail. In-depth text and 5 photos.

Special Caliper for Cello

1989
AL#18 p.44   BRB2 p.246            
Jack Levine                                                                                           

▪ Levine made a deep-throated caliper for accurately measuring the thickness of the cello plate that is not removed, when the other is.

Collapsible Cello Mold

1989
AL#17 p.40   BRB2 p.194            
Jack Levine                                                                                           

▪ Levine solves a problem many of us might face at first: How to set up shop in a confined, shared workspace. The solution is a takedown mold and a secure footlocker for tools and work in progress.

The “Belly Art” of Japanese Lutherie

1988
AL#15 p.46   BRB2 p.86            
R.E. Brune                                                                                           

▪ An intense description of Japanese classical guitar making taken from Brune’s convention lecture. Life in Japan is probably not much like you imagine it to be, it is far more interesting. The Q&A segment deals more with Brune’s own guitar work. With 21 photos inside a Japanese “factory.”

Steve Andersen’s Precision Pantograph

1988
AL#16 p.8   BRB2 p.115            
Jonathon Peterson                                                                                           

▪ This is 9 photos and a small description of the machine that might be the production archtop maker’s best friend.

Two Tools for Inside Jobs

1988
AL#14 p.21   BRB2 p.60            
Harry Fleishman                                                                                           

▪ Fleishman’s tools are a rubber band-powered jack clamp for regluing braces, and a homemade wrench for tightening output jack nuts inside an acoustic guitar.

Flattening Rosewood Potato Chips

1988
AL#14 p.46   BRB2 p.66            
Ervin Somogyi                                                                                           

▪ Somogyi saves a stash of warped rosewood guitar sets by clamping them between aluminum plates and heating them with a clothes iron.

File Sharpening

1988
AL#14 p.56   BRB2 p.76            
Jonathon Peterson                                                                                           

▪ Peterson finds a relatively safe method of sharpening files by acid etching. THE ORIGINAL PUBLICATION OF THIS ARTICLE CONTAINED A SERIOUS ERROR. ACID SHOULD ALWAYS BE ADDED TO WATER, NOT THE OTHER WAY AROUND. THIS ERROR HAS BEEN CORRECTED IN THE REPRINTS).

Is Your Wood Ready To Use?

1988
AL#13 p.44   BRB2 p.24            
George Manno                                                                                           

▪ Manno points out there is a difference between wood that is dry and dry wood that is well seasoned, and offers a test for both. He maintains that only dry, well-seasoned wood is worth using.

Harvey Thomas and the Infernal Music Machine

1987
AL#11 p.44   BRB1 p.440            
Tim Olsen                                                                                           

▪ A rollicking, good-time account of a era gone by and a free-spirited maker of outrageous electric guitars who was pretty much unknown outside of his own territory. It’ll make you feel good.

This article has been nominated as one of the Guild’s best articles published before 2010.

Fret Slotting Jig & Formula

1987
AL#10 p.47   BRB1 p.401            
John Schofield                                                                                           

▪ Schofield offers a table saw slotting jig that is simple to use and as accurate as your own layout work can make it. The drawing is rough, but it’s enough. The formula is an alternative to the more common “rule of 18.”

The Spanish Patron

1987
AL#9 p.52   BRB1 p.344            
William Conrad                                                                                           

▪ A Patron is the workboard used to build a guitar in the Spanish style. Conrad explains how to build one, and the reasoning behind it.

Arched Plate Copier

1987
AL#9 p.14   BRB1 p.312            
Steve Grimes                                                                                           

▪ Grimes’ pantograph for routing archtop plates is heavy duty and not real cheap if you have to job out the welding, but it accurately removes 90% of the excess wood. Several drawings accompany the detailed description.

Simple Carving Machine

1987
AL#9 p.18   BRB1 p.316            
Richard Ennis                                                                                           

▪ Ennis’ carving machine is not as straight forward in use as Grimes’, but its construction should be within the reach of most luthiers. A router mounted in a carriage rides over template rails to cut the contours into the plates of an archtop instrument.

Cutting Classic Head Slots

1987
AL#9 p.42   BRB1 p.336            
Richard Jordan                                                                                           

▪ Jordan’s article outlines all the steps he uses to shape a classical headstock. He cuts the slots with Dremel router, router base, and fence, and they come out very clean.

Conrad Color System

1986
AL#8 p.16               
William Conrad                                                                                           

▪ Conrad finds that spruce tops can be graded for density by the color of the light that shines through them, and uses a camera light meter to calibrate them.

Calculating Radii

1986
AL#8 p.48   BRB1 p.321            
Chris Foss                                                                                           

▪ Foss supplies a formula for calculating the radius of an arc from a known length and deflection. Ever try to make your own radiused jigs for guitar plates? It might help to know this formula. It might also scare you off.

The Paul Schuback Story

1987
AL#9 p.6   BRB1 p.304            read this article
Paul Schuback                                                                                           

▪ In this fascinating lecture from the 1986 GAL convention Schuback speaks of his apprenticeship to a French violin maker in 1962, then goes on to offer details about instrument construction, wood, and a Q&A session.

Violin Bridge Holder

1986
AL#7 p.54   BRB1 p.439            read this article
Alan Carruth                                                                                           

▪ Carruth describes a fixture he uses to hold a violin bridge while it is being tuned. It will save your fingers and help prevent cracking the bridge.

More on Bridge Gluing

1986
AL#7 p.55   BRB1 p.431            
Robert Doucet                                                                                           

▪ Doucet offers slick tricks for removing dried glue from raw wood, replacing spruce pulled up by the bridge, tracing braces to make clamping cauls, and roughing saddle blanks into shape.

Bridge Regluing Caul

1986
AL#7 p.56   BRB1 p.181            
Sam Sherry                                                                                           

▪ Sherry claims his “bridge plate” style caul is a universal tool that makes bridge regluing easier.

Regluing Guitar Bridges

1986
AL#5 p.22   BRB1 p.168            
Ken Donnell                                                                                           

▪ Donnell gives a thorough description of his methods of bridge removal and regluing. Both classical and steel string guitars are covered.

Fret Slot Template Bar

1986
AL#5 p.42   BRB1 p.188            
Richard Ennis                                                                                           

▪ Ennis describes how to cut fret slots on a table saw using notches in a fixed bar as depth stops to regulate the fret spacing.

Drafting Instrument Plans

1985
AL#4 p.16   BRB1 p.108            read this article
Ted Davis                                                                                           

▪ In this lecture Davis describes his method of making instrument plans from a guitar, then fields questions and takes suggestions.

Bow Hair Jig

1985
AL#3 p.24   BRB1 p.88            read this article
Thomas Snyder                                                                                           

▪ Measured drawings are presented for building a jig to facilitate rehairing bows. A detailed method for using the jig is also presented.

One Way to Make Kerfed Lining

1985
AL#2 p.44               
Richard Ennis                                                                                           

▪ Ennis kerfs wide boards on the table saw, then rips them to twice the desired width. He then rips each of these at an angle with a bandsaw to produce (after they are sliced lengthwise) two lining strips.

Three Helpful Tools

1985
AL#2 p.54   BRB1 p.77            
Brian Mascarin                                                                                           

▪ They are: an archtop guitar brace jack, a modified 1/4″ phone plug to position an output jack, and a clear plastic square for scribing fret positions on a fretless bass.

Illuminating Instrument Repairs

1985
AL#1 p.50   BRB1 p.73            
John Jordan                                                                                           

▪ Jordan describes two incandescent lights designed for use inside guitars. One uses a 7½-watt bulb on a standard power cord. The other uses tiny low-voltage bulbs and a step-down transformer.

Bandsaw Riser Block

1985
AL#1 p.51   BRB1 p.29            
Joel-Ivan Hawley                                                                                           

▪ Hawley describes a method of sawing part way into a 4×4, then clamping it to the bandsaw table and using it as a table for sawing the outline of a guitar or banjo peghead.

Guitar Back Fitting Jig

1985
AL#1 p.42   BRB1 p.13            
Ted Davis                                                                                           

▪ Davis presents a drawing of a jig for properly forming the sides and lining of a guitar to accept a domed back. The sides are held in a mold while a sanding stick, held by a central post, is passed over them.

Electronic Moisture Meters

1985
AL#1 p.44   BRB1 p.44            
Gregory Jackson                                                                                           

▪ Jackson comments on the basic principle upon which electronic moisture meters work, use of the meters, and why you should not try to cobble together your own.

Pneumatic Cylinders

1985
AL#1 p.46   BRB1 p.26            
Michael Jacobson-Hardy                                                                                           

▪ Jacobson-Hardy describes devices based on pneumatic cylinders for bending sides, clamping braces to plates, clamping plates to sides, and holding neck blanks in a lathe.

Luthier’s Long Knife

1985
AL#1 p.49   BRB1 p.17            
C.F. Casey                                                                                           

▪ Casey briefly describes the construction and use of a long-handled knife designed to be used with two hands.

Hide Glue Steamer

1984
DS#286   LT p.47            
Elliott Burch                                                                                           

▪ Simple steamer rejuvenates gelled glue after it’s been applied and the clamps are in place.

This article has been nominated as one of the Guild’s best articles published before 2010.

Blackboard Eraser Polisher

1984
DS#288   LW p.111            read this article
Michael Dresdner                                                                                           

▪ Dresdner steals yet another tool from another discipline, this time for polishing frets after they’ve been shaped with a file.

Hardening and Tempering Steel

1984
DS#291   LT p.16            
Alan Carruth                                                                                           

▪ General process of identifying and heat treating steel for use in edge tools.

This article has been nominated as one of the Guild’s best articles published before 2010.

Nut Slotting Files

1984
DS#285   LW p.106            
Michael Dresdner                                                                                           

▪ In the “old days” you couldn’t buy a set of nut slotting files. They didn’t exist. The author used pattern makers files with parallel safety sides. He recommends learning about and adapting the tools from every trade that crosses your path.

Curve Cutting Bandsaw Fence Part Two

1983
DS#240   LT p.90            
Carl McFarland                                                                                           

▪ Set up a bandsaw fence formed of two boards at a shallow angle and the apex at the blade. Run a board through the saw such that each end of the board touches it’s half of the fence at all times. You get a nice smooth curve. McFarland explains why it works.

Bass Neck Angle Jig

1983
DS#252   LT p.3            
Frederick-C. Lyman-Jr.                                                                                           

▪ Lyman was the GAL’s bass guru for years.

This article has been nominated as one of the Guild’s best articles published before 2010.

Making a Glue Pot

1983
DS#254   LT p.46            
Wesley Wadsworth                                                                                           

▪ A baby bottle warmer makes a good heater for hide glue.

This article has been nominated as one of the Guild’s best articles published before 2010.

Saddle Slot Dremel Base

1982
DS#221   LT p.61            
Don Alfieri                                                                                           

▪ Adds nylon bolts to the bottom corners of a Dremel base. The tool rides on the bolt heads, raising the router above the level of the bridge.

Bending with a Paint Stripper

1982
DS#227   LW p.88            
Al Leis                                                                                           

▪ Bending sides can be an intimidating process. It was especially so before the advent of the Fox bender. The author found a new method of applying heat to the wood to coerce the bend. With 6 photos to prove it works.

Instrument Molds

1982
DS#242   LT p.53            
Bo Walker                                                                                           

▪ A deep plywood frame with a guitar-shaped hole in it. Uses no hardware other than a few screws.

Making Bridges Using Power Tools

1982
DS#204   BRB2 p.289            
Kent Rayman                                                                                           

▪ The author uses a table saw and no jigs to help speed up the creation of classical guitar bridges. With 5 drawings.

Cutting Nut Slots with Strings

1982
DS#208   LW p.106            
Michael Trietsch                                                                                           

▪ The cheapo way to cut perfect nut slots is to use the wound string that will sit in the groove as a saw. It doesn’t work while the nut is mounted on the guitar, though. The unwound string slots are cut with an X-acto saw. With 1 drawing.

Flattop Bridge Removal

1982
DS#210   LW p.99            
Jim Williams                                                                                           

▪ Clean bridge removal is almost an art, but the right heat source and the proper tools can give even the first-timer a fighting chance. Williams offers a dedicated lamp setup for heat and a modified cabinet scraper to slide through the glue joint. With 3 drawings.

Life After the Dead

1981
GALQ Vol.9#2 p.10   LW p.70            
Rick Turner                                                                                           

▪ Turner started his lutherie life as part of the Grateful Dead’s clan of artists, engineers, and craftsmen, but ended up with his own company which built distinctive electric guitars. This shop tour includes 11 photos.

Dial Indicator Caliper

1981
DS#185   LT p.2            
T.E. Owen                                                                                           

▪ Aluminum frame, dial indicator.

This article has been nominated as one of the Guild’s best articles published before 2010.

Archtop Routing Jig

1981
DS#186   LT p.65            
Rion Dudley                                                                                           

▪ This guide registers on the sides of the guitar rather than the plates. It is intended for the Dremel tool, but will work with a larger router.

Dust Free, Open Sided Sander

1981
DS#178   LT p.78            
Al Leis                                                                                           

▪ Open-sided sander utilizes a 6″ drum arbor-mounted on an electric motor and covered with a dust collection system.

Two Dremel Jigs

1980
DS#164   LT p.62            
J.D. Mackenzie                                                                                           

▪ One is a Dremel base for cutting binding channels. The second is another base used to inlay decorative stringing of the face of headstocks.

Body Mold

1980
DS#153   LT p.52            
Glenn Markel                                                                                           

▪ Basic mold holds the developing instrument body inside a frame of layered wood.

Go-Bar Deck

1980
DS#139   LT p.44            
David-B. Sheppard                                                                                           

▪ Simple system is cheap and easy to make.

This article has been nominated as one of the Guild’s best articles published before 2010.

Drill Press Rosette Grooves

1980
DS#140   LW p.80            
Larry Stevens                                                                                           

▪ A drill press only wants to make holes, but you can train it to do a lot of tricks. For instance, why not use it to mill the slots for rosette rings to snuggle into? Groovy! With diagrams of the cutting bits.

Doodlebug Pad Polishers

1980
DS#140   LW p.111            
Marvin Tench                                                                                           

▪ Yet another substitute for messy steel wool on your bench (not to mention your pickups). Doodlebug pads are a 3M scouring pad made of nylon. Polish your frets with impunity.

Modified Cam Clamp

1980
DS#143   LW p.97            
John-M. Colombini                                                                                           

▪ The author couldn’t reach through the small soundhole of a guitar to bolt the bridge on, so he devised a nifty cam clamp that not only holds the socket but aids in lining up all the pieces during the operation. With 3 diagrams.

Nuts and Bolts for Bridge Gluing

1979
DS#126   LW p.98            read this article
Tim Olsen                                                                                           

▪ How to use bolts and wing nuts to align a bridge through the pin holes and form part of the clamping force. With 1 drawing.

Sandpaper Hints

1979
DS#127   LT p.84            
Boyd Butler                                                                                           

▪ A tool that aids in tearing sandpaper sheets into useful sizes, and a sanding board for close places.

Deep Studding Top Cracks

1979
DS#116   LW p.95            
Al Leis                                                                                           

▪ So how does one reach w-a-y back there to reinforce top crack repairs? By making a special clamp, and by evolving a slick method of using it. Here’s how it’s done. Includes 2 photos.

The Marlin Carver

1978
GALQ Vol.6#2 p.25               
Rolfe Gerhardt                                                                                           

▪ The Marlin is a sign carving pantograph router with a lettering template clamped on one side and the sign board the other.

Making Pointy Rosettes

1978
DS#88   LW p.78            
Tim Olsen                                                                                           

▪ Are you tired of rosettes that are just rings around the soundhole? Here’s a jumping off point if you want to take the plunge. The next step is to get rid of the round soundhole. With 3 diagrams.

Removing Side Ripples

1978
DS#95   LW p.90            
Don Musser                                                                                           

▪ Some wood ripples when it is wetted for bending. Musser describes how to remove the ripples, but you’ll have to have a metal bending form to use his method. With 2 photos.

Top and Back Joints

1978
DS#99   LW p.101            
Tim Olsen                                                                                           

▪ Build a simple shooting board to make plate joints with a plane, then use one of 3 tried-and-true forms of clamping workboards to glue them together.

Routing Rosette Slots

1978
DS#69   LT p.61            
John Spence                                                                                           

▪ Spence uses sub-bases for his router to make rosette cavities. The sub-bases are drilled with holes that fit over a pin mounted in the center of what will be the soundhole.

Lining Strips

1978
DS#77   LT p.101            
Tim Olsen                                                                                           

▪ Table saw jig to evenly cut kerfs in rectangular strips of lining.

Razor Scrapers

1978
DS#84   LT p.29            
Tim Olsen                                                                                           

▪ Regrind single-edged razor blades into good little scrapers.

This article has been nominated as one of the Guild’s best articles published before 2010.

Bandsaw Dust Collector

1978
DS#65   LT p.88            
Tim Olsen                                                                                           

▪ Machine manufacturers have become hip to the health problems that accompany the use of their equipment, and most incorporate dust collection ports into their new machines. This was hardly the case in the old days, and there are still tons of old machines in use. If you have one you are responsible for your own health, and thus the modification of your machine. The author’s ideas can be adapted to almost any bandsaw.

Lining Cutting Jig

1978
DS#68   LT p.88            
William Spigelsky                                                                                           

▪ Use this bandsaw jig to cut rectangular stock into triangular unkerfed lining blanks. This tip is confusing until you realize that the box is a permanent part of the jig, and that the jig should be clamped to the saw table. The binding stock is fed through, and supported by, the box.

Balanced Steel Drum Variation

1977
DS#48   LT p.73            
Kent Rayman                                                                                           

▪ Again, this is a variation in the Ruck-Brune sander. You need to read all these articles before beginning construction of your sander in order to avoid mistakes that others have already made.

Potassium Dichromate, Oxalic Acid, and Carnauba Wax

1977
DS#55   BRB1 p.36            read this article
Jeffrey-R. Elliott                                                                                           

▪ Various chemicals have been used for centuries to color (or de-color) wood. Fiddle makers are hip to tons of these, but Elliott describes a couple that he finds useful on his guitars. He also advocates lubricating tools and work surfaces with carnauba wax, which will not contaminate your wood.

This article has been nominated as one of the Guild’s best articles published before 2010.

Torch and Pipe Bending Iron

1976
DS#25   LT p.10            
Tim Olsen                                                                                           

▪ Four variations on the propane torch and water pipe.

This article has been nominated as one of the Guild’s best articles published before 2010.

Lead Filled Beer Can

1976
DS#25   LT p.11            
Dick DeNeve                                                                                           

▪ The best thing you can do with a beer can is empty it. The next best thing might be to put a heating element in the empty can and then fill it with lead to make a bending iron.

Fret Spacing Template

1976
DS#27   LT p.4            
Tom Peterson                                                                                           

▪ Lay out one fret scale accurately, then very quickly plot the fret positions for any larger scale length with no math or measuring tools.

Neck Supporting Device

1976
DS#30               
Leo Bidne                                                                                           

▪ The function of this portable tool is to hold a guitar stationary and support the neck while fret leveling.

Tool Steel

1976
DS#32   LT p.14            
H.E. Huttig                                                                                           

▪ Short history of steel and its principal alloys, plus a description of sharpening stones, and how to use and maintain them.

This article has been nominated as one of the Guild’s best articles published before 2010.

Sheet Copper Oval

1976
DS#33   LT p.11            
Lawrence Lundy   W. Daum                                                                                       

▪ Roll up a thick tube of copper and shoot a propane torch into the back of it. that’s yet another way to make a bending iron.

Ruck-Brune Sanding Machine

1976
DS#37   LT p.70            
Derek Iverson                                                                                           

▪ Iverson’s was the first report on a truly useful shop-made thickness sander at a time when there were no inexpensive commercial units to be had.

This article has been nominated as one of the Guild’s best articles published before 2010.

Sketchy Diagram of the Amazing Ruck-ReBrune Sanding Machine

1973
GALNL Vol.1#1 p.3               
R.E. Brune                                                                                           

▪ The first mention of an abrasive planer in our literature. We eventually printed a lot of suggestions for different versions.