Members gitnoob Posted October 15, 2009 Members Share Posted October 15, 2009 That is very cool. Aren't you tempted to glue that bridge on and string her up? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members LaurentB Posted October 15, 2009 Author Members Share Posted October 15, 2009 @Gitnoob: the lacquer has to be put on first, before I glue the fingerboard to the top Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members rickoshea Posted October 16, 2009 Members Share Posted October 16, 2009 looks fantastic Laurent ... and I know how much has gone into getting her to this stage. Congrats and I'm looking forward to seeing the finishing process (and a sound clip ) Great work Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members LaurentB Posted November 13, 2009 Author Members Share Posted November 13, 2009 Ok, I took a step back with finishing, because I wasn't happy with how the top was turning out. It appeared I hadn't sanded the top flat enough before starting finishing, I thought that would be evened out by the finish but it didn't: So today I sanded all the polish off again, and then scraped and sanded the top as flat and smooth as I could: Now it really will be a flattop! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members kwakatak Posted November 13, 2009 Members Share Posted November 13, 2009 Man, that is tasty! I can't wait to see the finished product - and maybe even hear some soundbytes? :poke: Sorry - my GAS is really bad these last coupla days. That herringbone and the grain on that sitka is just setting me off! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members LaurentB Posted November 13, 2009 Author Members Share Posted November 13, 2009 Man, that is tasty! I can't wait to see the finished product - and maybe even hear some soundbytes? :poke: Sorry - my GAS is really bad these last coupla days. That herringbone and the grain on that sitka is just setting me off! I will most certainly post some sound samples Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members gitnoob Posted November 13, 2009 Members Share Posted November 13, 2009 How are you finishing it? I was under the impression that the first coat is often some sort of epoxy-based pore filler. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members LaurentB Posted November 13, 2009 Author Members Share Posted November 13, 2009 How are you finishing it? I was under the impression that the first coat is often some sort of epoxy-based pore filler. I used a different kind of porefiller, as I had some trouble finding a transparent one. This one's from a Belgian company and it's called Vernipor, which is alkyd resin with white spirit as solvent.It spreads out really easily, but as a result has some trouble really filling the larger pores. I'm French polishing the guitar as final finish. When sanded well, the top doesn't need a pore filler, I'm told. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members LaurentB Posted January 2, 2010 Author Members Share Posted January 2, 2010 Well, the finishing took quite some time to make it at least acceptable to my own standards, although I didn't manage to do it perfectly by far. I french-polished it, as mentioned before, and I used painter's pigment to colour the mahogany neck (Spanish red and something called 'Omber' in Dutch). I simply mixed the pigment with the polish in a bottle. But eventually: yes, I did it! Thanks to the helpful information I got on this forum amongst others (especially Gary Palmer!), I managed to put together my own Stewart-MacDonald kitguitar, which I finished yesterday! The tension built as I stringed the guitar up (also literally) and would be playing the first notes on it. Would I have been working during a year and have spent all this money, only to end up with some dull sounding piece of wood? I pressed down a few strings, and the setup appeared not to be optimal yet, as is only normal after the first installation of saddle and nut, then struck a chord and oh MAN what a volume appeared this guitar to have! (and my neighbours are already complaining about my acoustic playing as it is) It only dawned on me completely how loud this guitar is when I picked up my Crafter GAE-30 to compare, and when that sounded so very soft and thin in comparison to this beast (I don't want to offend Crafter enthousiasts, I only think I have a Crafter from a somewhat lesser period. I'm sure the people enthousiastic about them here know what they're talking about)). It's got a deep, warm powerful sound. Certainly not overly bright but still bright enough. I will post a soundclip later (first I have to do some final setup), but here are already some pictures: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Freeman Keller Posted January 2, 2010 Members Share Posted January 2, 2010 Congratulations, Laurent. Its a wonderful feeling, isn't it? I've enjoyed following your journey. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members rickoshea Posted January 2, 2010 Members Share Posted January 2, 2010 many, many congrats Laurent, you've done a beautiful job and the feeling of satisfaction must be immense. Enjoy her Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members kwakatak Posted January 2, 2010 Members Share Posted January 2, 2010 Congratulations, Laurent! I can't wait to hear the sounds clips. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members gitnoob Posted January 2, 2010 Members Share Posted January 2, 2010 Congrats! She's a beaut! What was your favorite part of the build process? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members LaurentB Posted January 3, 2010 Author Members Share Posted January 3, 2010 @Freeman: yes, it is a very special feeling. Especially after the strings were there I found it almost unreal that I actually built this guitar! @Rick: thanks, how's yours coming along by now? @Pitar: good question! I haven't figured that out yet. @Kwakatak: still fiddling with the nut setup, but they will certainly be posted. @Gitnoob: mostly the technical stuff, and especially when I was shaping wood, for some reason. Because most parts come more or less pre-shaped there wasn't all that much of that, but that felt the most real for me. I suffered from some apprehensive tension every now and then, when I had to make an irreversible step again. Like many others, I didn't particularly like the finishing because it's an accurate job and you know you're not going to do that as good as on a professionally built guitar. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members missedmyexit Posted January 4, 2010 Members Share Posted January 4, 2010 Ok, just a short update. With Gary Palmer's help through e-mail I managed to get the neck angle right, and today I hammered in the last frets and glued the nut on: Now this is starting to look like a real guitar! I taped that bridge to the top with masking tape just for the picture, by the way. Looks great, question for you, can you post or PM me the email thread between you and Gary? Neck angle is always something I've been curious about and planning to do one of these soon. Maybe the thread will clear some things up for me as well. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members LaurentB Posted January 4, 2010 Author Members Share Posted January 4, 2010 Looks great, question for you, can you post or PM me the email thread between you and Gary? Neck angle is always something I've been curious about and planning to do one of these soon. Maybe the thread will clear some things up for me as well. I have PM'd it to you. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members panhandler Posted January 4, 2010 Members Share Posted January 4, 2010 Just read this thread thru... Well done Laurent! Very nice indeed! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members LaurentB Posted January 21, 2010 Author Members Share Posted January 21, 2010 Ok, I finally found some time to record two sound samples of my Stewart-MacDonald Dreadnought kit guitar: Fingerstyle sample Rhythm sample Both are recorded with neutral EQ settings and a R Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members mgproudfit Posted January 21, 2010 Members Share Posted January 21, 2010 Sounds great! You should be proud!! -Matt Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members missedmyexit Posted January 21, 2010 Members Share Posted January 21, 2010 Sounds fantastic! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members guitarcapo Posted January 21, 2010 Members Share Posted January 21, 2010 I found this cool Jumbo/dred mahogany style "guitar kit" made out of premium parts: 1. The top is 50 year old aged red spruce with the rosette already installed.2. The back and sides are solid Honduran mahogany aged 50 years. 3. The back is a SINGLE piece of flawless mahogany 16" wide. No bookmatch.4. The bridge and fingerboard are quartersawn Brazilian rosewood.5. The sides are already bent. 6. Jumbo/dred style.7. The neck is one piece Honduran mahogany. Dovetail neck joint. Adjustable truss rod and fingerboard installed to the neck8. A lot of the work like fingerboard markers tuner holes are already installed.9. The rim is already assembled. You can brace it to taste and assemble it. And here's the best part: The whole "kit" costs around $200 plus shipping!(Some disassembly required) http://cgi.ebay.com/Harmony-Soveriegn-Acoustic-Guitar-1960s-USA-Made_W0QQitemZ180452497366 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Archived
This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.