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Thread: Martin OM Style Acoustic Guitar

  1. #31
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    What a wonderful project!
    "Anything seems possible when you don't know what you're doing."

  2. #32
    That’s beautiful.

  3. #33
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    Why, thank you guys! No on to "Can't Leave Well Enough Alone"

    I took some veneer I have - one fumed mahogany, the other blonde mahogany - and replaced the BWB plastic with those veneers.


    FWIW, the sipo sides have only been sanded to 80 grit.

    Both my inexperience in melting plastic to wood and my love for wood compelled me to see how this might look. To my eye, there's continuity with all wood. The plastic, while more contrasting, doesn't give me that same feeling of warmth I get with wood. But I do like how the sharp contrast makes it pop. I need to play with this some more...
    “Travel is fatal to prejudice, bigotry, and narrow-mindedness..." - Mark Twain

  4. #34
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    I'll vote for the all wood, Julie...always the best choice, IMHO, for something like that for the reasons you state.
    --

    The most expensive tool is the one you buy "cheaply" and often...

  5. #35
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    I have to agree, Jim. While the contrasting BWB pops, the plastic element bothers me.

    Since I've decided on the curly maple tail insert, I figured I'll need to change out the cherry on the headstock. A little bandsawing, a little planing and it's gone. Since the sides were also cherry, that had to go too. Now it's time to take a step forward'


    Trying to decide on the headstock veneer. These book-matched pairs are all from the same board. I'm leaning toward the ones on the right.
    “Travel is fatal to prejudice, bigotry, and narrow-mindedness..." - Mark Twain

  6. #36
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    Oooh...good choice on highlighting that beautiful maple on the headstock! And I also like the selections on the right...figure is more pleasant and uniform on the bookmatch for what will be a very visible element. The one on the left is a bit "busy" for this, IMHO.
    --

    The most expensive tool is the one you buy "cheaply" and often...

  7. #37
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    Judging by these photos, color seems more closely matched on the center pair.
    "Anything seems possible when you don't know what you're doing."

  8. #38
    I like far right.

  9. #39
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    Interesting, the difference between the eyes of the woodworker (I'd place myself there) and the luthier. On the luthier forum, two schools of thought arose - one was not to bookmatch the headstock veneer because the line is almost impossible to hide. Two was not to use maple for the headstock veneer.

    I was contemplating the following as possibilities and posted them on the luthier forum








    The winner was the bottom one.

    What I've been thinking is using curly maple for the binding around the body and for the back stripe. I'd incorporate the fumed and blonde mahogany veneer like on the tail insert. If I incorporated those veneers into the headstock, I think it would tie everything together nicely. What do you think?
    “Travel is fatal to prejudice, bigotry, and narrow-mindedness..." - Mark Twain

  10. #40
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    After seeing those photos, I'm 100% in agreement with your choice. The line really does stand out on the bookmatches; the final choice looks like it belongs there.
    --

    The most expensive tool is the one you buy "cheaply" and often...

  11. #41
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    Yeah, the bottom was the right choice.
    "Anything seems possible when you don't know what you're doing."

  12. #42
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    Beautiful job, Julie. Please take this as just my opinion, but I’m wondering how the maple headstock works with the rest of the guitar. For some reason, that maple on a “main component” sticks out to me against the neck and body. I think I would consider something more in line with the body/neck as the main wood with perhaps just a maple accent of some kind on the headstock...in other words, keeping the maple as an accent versus becoming a major element. I’m thinking somthing similar to what you did on the tail (maple and dark trim)...a stripe of that up the middle or perhaps a “diamond” up the middle to match the tail piece. ????

    Again, just my thought without actually being able to see the entire guitar.
    Last edited by Phil Mueller; 06-11-2018 at 7:32 AM.

  13. #43
    I also concur that the bottom one is the best choice.

  14. #44
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    Quote Originally Posted by Phil Mueller View Post
    Please take this as just my opinion, but I’m wondering how the maple headstock works with the rest of the guitar. For some reason, that maple on a “main component” sticks out to me against the neck and body. I think I would consider something more in line with the body/neck as the main wood with perhaps just a maple accent of some kind on the headstock...in other words, keeping the maple as an accent versus becoming a major element. I’m thinking somthing similar to what you did on the tail (maple and dark trim)...a stripe of that up the middle or perhaps a “diamond” up the middle to match the tail piece. ????

    Again, just my thought without actually being able to see the entire guitar.
    I chose maple for the headstock veneer for the simple reason that I will be using a decal logo rather than an inlay for this guitar. The decal stock I have does not show up well on dark woods, no matter the colors chosen. Sometimes it can't be seen at all.

    When I first dove into making a first acoustic I wanted to make it a killer gorgeous project. But as I learned more and more about what went into making an acoustic, I realized I could very well be wasting that gorgeous wood I have been saving for the right project. I needed to gain some experience first. And start with cheap woods, thus the construction pine soundboard I made.

    Whatever guitar came out of the first iteration, it would be my El Kabong guitar (as in Quickdraw McGraw, the cartoon character who used his guitar to knock out bad guys). And that's what would be on the headstock decal. It would say this isn't a serious guitar. So the maple became necessary to pull this off.

    But along the way, I became a bit more serious about this build. Though far from perfect, it might still produce decent sound. If so, why not put a little effort into making it halfway decent looking, too? Now I'm trying to incorporate curly maple in the binding, back stripe and elsewhere to help tie in the maple on the headstock.

    As to your suggestion of making the maple an accent on the headstock, I was initially going in that direction (making sure maple was where the decal logo would go) when the brain trust at OLF warned me against having seams in the headstock, saying they are almost impossible to hide. But now that you've re-sparked my original intention, it's time to return to the workshop and do some more R&D.
    “Travel is fatal to prejudice, bigotry, and narrow-mindedness..." - Mark Twain

  15. #45
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    Did the routing for the binding and purfling on the top

    and began gluing the purfling with hot hide glue.


    After finishing one side, it was time to bend the curly maple binding. On the right in the picture below is a white piece of 3/4" PVC. In it sits 4 pieces of curly maple binding soaking in ammonia.


    Once the wood soaked for about half an hour, I wrapped it in foil, heated it on the bending iron and clamped it in a mold.


    I didn't hear any cracking and felt almost no resistance when closing the mold. My fingers are crossed this will work.
    “Travel is fatal to prejudice, bigotry, and narrow-mindedness..." - Mark Twain

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