Stringed instrument making/Luthiere
Guitar Building (Lutherie) is another of my favourite crafts. It is also undoubtedly one of the hardest forms of wood workig as there is absolutly no margine for error. Luthiers are often undervalued and alsmost never paid enough. It requires skills from many different aspects of woodworking including but not limited to traditional cabinet making andantique restoration. There are also things that need to be considered that do not in other aspects of woodworking such as wood tone and spine strength. I aspire to eventually with more practice build high quality guitars.
Travel Hollow Body guitar
Although this project was started at the begining of 2019 it kept being put aside for other paid projects until a week before I left for my gap year. The instrument is only 75cm long and the neck can be taken on and off easily as it is held on with bolts and threaded insirts as opossed to screws. The body is Sapele and the top is made from a very old piece of wood I was given (possibly Walnut). Within the body are three stickypad pickups behind the bridge along with all the electrics required to plug into an amp. There are aso two mini speakers in the guitar in the bottom hole of each F hole (which are my own design). The speakers allow the guitar to be amplified whilst not pugged in. There is also a line in option allowing the guitar itself to be used as a normal speaker and to play along to music or a backing track. The only part I didn't build is the neck which is of poor qualiity and I look forward to building a replacement on my return home. After some adjustments to the intonation the guitar plays well though the built in speakers could sound better.
Travel Ukelele
I had a travelling trip coming up and I decided that I wouldn't want to be without an instrument for that long and I wanted to do another build and had never toyed with a Ukelele before. I had seen lots of variations on this sort of idea and wanted to make an effective, practical, sturdy but still aesthetically pleasing design. I had been given a nice piece of Sapele which I had been saving and this seemed a fitting project.
The Ukelele plays well and served me well whilst travelling.
Tenor Banjo
Pushed by my love of Country music and Irish Folk and my curiosity towards the building of a banjo. That and the fact that even a beginner banjo is expensive to buy.
This time the only thing I didn't make was the body which was a drum. I had wanted to make a neck for some time and this seemed a good place to start, however I wasn't ambitious enough to make a 5 string which in hindsight I should have gone for. The build lead to me gaining a greater understanding of the preciseness of a neck and fretwork. The banjo does play but is by no means perfect.
By this time I had built up my tool collection and started to utilise an area of my parents garage and turn it into a workshop. This project really pushed my skill level and I enjoyed it a lot!
Antique Italian Mandolin Restoration
Bought in an antique shop in bulgaria, This antique was in very poor condition but I had wanted to learn the Mandolin for sometime.
I removed the laquer and changed it from the ugly colour that it was. Whilst mid restoration I found a form of chrysalis with somekind of larva inside. Once I had repaired the various cracks in the body I added the floral pattern by carving and infilling the carving and then added all new metalwork. I really enjoy this instrument and it plays well.
Srat inspired restoration/rebuild
May 2015
Found whilst flipping a rental property, In the garden, wet and having been smashed against the patio stones. This was originally a very cheap copy of a Stratocaster in Gloss back.
I removed the laquer and the paint, glued and cramped all the cracks and repaired any other damage. I then stained the wood which was now visable, replaced all the old rusted metal work and electrics with new and upgraded ones. To make it more unique I cut and painted the pic guard as well as changing the shape of the headstock which was already different to that of a true Strat and made a shaped hole in it to make it more unique. A really fun project from something that most people would consider junk and to date is my only fully electric guitar.
Hollow Body MK2
Still chasing the idea of a hollow body guitar but also keen not to make the same mistakes as with my previous build attempt, this time around I built the body out of something more substantial.
The body is made from the scraps of an old pine cabinet which is held together with bolts and threaded insirts because I thought being able to access the electrics even after it was built would be useful and this was a different way of going about it.
It, like this last guitar was built with a very old Black and Decker muti powertool set. At this point my skill level is still quite basic and my tool collection very modest.
Despite all this the guitar actually plays surprisingly well though it is heavy.
Hollow Body MK1
December 2012
Probably how it starts for a lot of people... Want new guitar... Can't afford new guitar... Make new guitar? It didn't work very well.
I didn't even slightly understand all the elements that went into guitar building and at the time my general woodworking skills were basic.
The body was made from 6mm plywood, some softwood supports and perspex for the sides which I heated and bent to the shape of the body. The electrics came out of an old SG copy and the neck I bought.
The guitar wouldn't tune and attempted to fold it'self in half and beceme a wall hanger until it got chopped up for the next guitar.
A good learning experience!