Members Etienne Rambert Posted April 19, 2009 Members Share Posted April 19, 2009 Mr. Binh & his brother Mr. Minh took me to their factory today. I took some pics. The factory is a little ways outside of Saigon. It's in a District called Tan Binh. Here is what the road looked like. Here's what the neighborhood looks like. Nice. No crowds of people. Not much traffic. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Etienne Rambert Posted April 19, 2009 Author Members Share Posted April 19, 2009 The place There is no sign. just an entrance to a courtyard. About twenty people work there. It's a rambling, tin-roofed warehouse type building with two levels. At least a family or two live there also. There are women, small children, chickens and dogs in the courtyard. A boy and his dog. Another boy and the same dog and the entrance to the main part of the shop. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members darkwaters Posted April 19, 2009 Members Share Posted April 19, 2009 Great pix. Thanks. Soooooo, didja buy ? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Etienne Rambert Posted April 19, 2009 Author Members Share Posted April 19, 2009 Very sorry. I thought I'd reduced all these. I don't know what happened. I'll try to post only the smaller ones. There are not many machines there. Here is one of them. Here is the fretting crew. Polishing Crew Stairway to the finishing room: Here is the finishing room: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Etienne Rambert Posted April 19, 2009 Author Members Share Posted April 19, 2009 Owners, brothers Binh & Minh. They've been building guitars 40 years. Mr Minh is putting a board in a machine. I don't know what it does. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Etienne Rambert Posted April 19, 2009 Author Members Share Posted April 19, 2009 Now onto the woods: Sitka 2A & 3A Blocks for Necks Forms for Dreads Hog Necks Hog Necks & Rosewood Backs IR Sides Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Etienne Rambert Posted April 19, 2009 Author Members Share Posted April 19, 2009 Ebony & Rosewood Either Red Cedar or Vietnamese Rosewood. I saw so many woods, I forgot which was which. They're either top woods or back woods. Mr. Minh told me they were Spruce and red cedar. I think he's right. Minh w/Cambodian Rosewood Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Etienne Rambert Posted April 19, 2009 Author Members Share Posted April 19, 2009 Maple (mostly for necks and sides. I didn't upload the large cuts of Maple yet. Maple Necks uncut Maple Necks 1st Cut Mr. Binh fits a neck. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members DaveAronow Posted April 19, 2009 Members Share Posted April 19, 2009 VERY cool. Thanks for posting this. By the way, that machine is a planer, or a thickness sander which evens out the surface and makes it flat. edit: Looks like a planer. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Etienne Rambert Posted April 19, 2009 Author Members Share Posted April 19, 2009 Spruce Tops and Spalted Wood (I think Rosewood. I don't remember.) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members TESmith Posted April 19, 2009 Members Share Posted April 19, 2009 I have found I am enjoying all of these pictures, the ones the otherday with the beer, and the figured guitar as well...... I think it would be a neat place to visit and see how they do what they do in real life! Thanks you so much for sharing, I find it interesting. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Etienne Rambert Posted April 19, 2009 Author Members Share Posted April 19, 2009 Now....at last, onto the guitars! You can see the Cedar tops. I think they have a big shipment of Red Cedar in. This one folks, is going to be a tone monster. They have experimented with modifications of the design of my Guild F-65ce. This one is deeper, and it's solid Maple B&S. It has a Sitka top. But they still kept their ingenious variation on my Guild --- it's an arch top with a floating bridge and an oval soundhole! It has no bracing inside. People better stand back when it's played. Not only is it going to be an arch top killer. It is going to slay a lot of dreads and jumbos. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Etienne Rambert Posted April 19, 2009 Author Members Share Posted April 19, 2009 The factory makes 120 guitars a month. 20 are high-end for expats and export. The other hundred are not as high quality and are exported to developing countries and sold in Vietnam. Hollow-body electric archtop Cedar Top Cambodian Rosewood Back Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Etienne Rambert Posted April 19, 2009 Author Members Share Posted April 19, 2009 Custom Jumbo for France The top is Cedar. I don't know what the back and sides wood are. They might be that Cambodian Rosewood stuff. I forgot. But WOW! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Etienne Rambert Posted April 19, 2009 Author Members Share Posted April 19, 2009 For the local market: Scalloped Fret guitars: Shipment packed for local market. (They carry them on small motorcycles). There are a lot of instruments and woods I haven't posted yet, lots & lots of Mandos a beautiful Italian Mandolin, lots of arch tops waiting to be finished. I think they have a wood called Zircote too. But I gotta go. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members rickoshea Posted April 19, 2009 Members Share Posted April 19, 2009 GREAT post! .... what beautiful workmanship on those guitars too. Some of the woods are gorgeous - and truly - hand made. fantastique Marcellis Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members zenbu Posted April 19, 2009 Members Share Posted April 19, 2009 sure that wasn`t a boy and his lunch? interesting how they can turn out such great looking guitars from that workshop, I mean it isn`t really what I`d expect to be a luthier`s atelier to look like. Fascinating to see the pics. Where`s the CNC machine eh? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Etienne Rambert Posted April 19, 2009 Author Members Share Posted April 19, 2009 No. Not lunch. In the south, they don't eat dogs, except for maybe in Cho Lon, the Chinatown part of Saigon. Southerners keep dogs as pets. Hanoi is the place that specializes in dog meat. There are dog restaurants. It's a big deal. Sorry the pics are so big. I'll try to make them smaller tomorrow. I thought I'd already resized them. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members meandi Posted April 19, 2009 Members Share Posted April 19, 2009 interesting how they can turn out such great looking guitars from that workshop, I mean it isn`t really what I`d expect to be a luthier`s atelier to look like. Fascinating to see the pics. Where`s the CNC machine eh? I was thinking the same thing...makes my little hobby shop look almost state of the art... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Etienne Rambert Posted April 19, 2009 Author Members Share Posted April 19, 2009 I don't know what a CNC machine is. Minh's been doing it this way for 40 years. I didn't see that many machines around. I was surprised about that too. But don't forget -- they have 20 employees. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Scodiddly Posted April 19, 2009 Members Share Posted April 19, 2009 Very cool - thanks for posting. I'd love to hear what kind of music they play on that super-scalloped-neck guitar. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members panhandler Posted April 19, 2009 Members Share Posted April 19, 2009 Marcellis... Thanks for posting those pics. We used to be able to do that kind of craftmanship here in the U.S. until the machines and computers arrived. (I know, some still do) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Etienne Rambert Posted April 19, 2009 Author Members Share Posted April 19, 2009 You can hear a scalloped fret acoustic in this Cai Luong song. They usually are playing lead runs. Scalloped frets apparently allow for increased ability to bend notes and make fast lead runs. jKywYb9bnfI I see them more on electrics than on acoustics. There are two types, Indian scalloped frets and Vietnamese scalloped frets. The VN scoop them out the deepest. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Scodiddly Posted April 19, 2009 Members Share Posted April 19, 2009 I see them more on electrics than on acoustics. There are two types, Indian scalloped frets and Vietnamese scalloped frets. The VN scoop them out the deepest. Very cool! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Misha Posted April 19, 2009 Members Share Posted April 19, 2009 Wow! Very nice thread!! Thank's a lot Marcellis! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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