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Posts: 440
Joined: Feb. 23 2005
From: La Jolla, Ca
Building a Flamenco 7
Hola all,
Well, I thought today would be the day to box it up and glue the back on, but there is ALWAYS some little detail I've missed...
Bob walks out into the workshop, and I said; "Well, I'm about ready to put the back on, I guess..."
He looks in 'the box', and says; "Have your side braces all glued in? Did you let in the side of you back linings for the crosss braces? Did you sand the insides up to 400 to 600 grit paper"?
"uuuuuhhhhh.....nooooooooo"...
So I spent the day cutting in the braces, and sanding, sanding, sanding. My 'flamenco thumb; is sore as hell, even using soft blocks, etc...
The school of thought in Romanillos style is that the finer the finish on the insides, the more the sound is 'bounced' or projected from the wood, where a rough, scratchy finish will absord sound. Like playing inside your house, and then playing in your bathroom.... Big difference!
I saved my side braces a bit long, so once the back was aligned on-center, the cross braces sat over the sides a bit, so I took a thin pencil and blackened around each brace, so that I could cut them out pretty accurately.
There's several schools on this. Some glue the braces into the sides, then glue the back onto these and the side. I don't know...I might try this next time. You could definitely do a super-clean brace cutaway and glue-up.
Takes some time and 'eye' to shave the sides, heel, and foot, too, to dimensions, with no low spots, dips, bumps, etc., along the way. It's VERY easy to get a low spot at the waist, too, so make sure your block is long and keep the longest contact-length you can when sanding.... I also measured with a flexible steel mm rule in several areas, each side, making marks, to make sure I was pretty even side to side.
Here's the finished insides - finally...Euro spruce individual tentallones, spruce side braces, spruce on the back, and cypress backlinings.
R
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hahahaha...I'm going to take over the flamenco guitar building world...this is only the first step!
lol....man...what a LOT of work!
But thanks for the encouragement! In the end, thought, it will be all about sounds and playability, but if I make it neat and shiny, it's like selling a used car. It may be junk, but it shore' is 'purty, and some sucker will buy it!
So today.....I glue on the top. Hope all my center lines ARE center lines!!! I'll have 'box' pictures later! Exciting but scary!
I can imagine the anxiety at this point. I don't think I could stomach routing out the channels for the binding . Might want to get your buddy Robert to take the first "stab". No matter how it turns out, you should never sell it.
I can imagine the anxiety at this point. I don't think I could stomach routing out the channels for the binding . Might want to get your buddy Robert to take the first "stab". No matter how it turns out, you should never sell it.
Personally, I find electronic routers very scary... switch them on an they make a loud "eeeeeeeeeeerrrr" noise... plunge them into the wood, and the noise gets worse... then bits of wood start flying everywhere... and if you're not careful, the whole router has a mind of its own!
Today I routed the channels for binding on my guitar by hand with a chisel. Its not a perfect result, but I was spared the nail-biting.
Oh, and sell your first guitar? No way, man! The first guitar you make is sacred, and should be kept for posterity to show your grand-children. And if you ever become a famous luthier later on, it will be worth a small fortune!
I feel the same way. Routers just scream and eat wood....I don't know. Thinking of cutting the band lines with a cutter, then routing. If anything splits, it will only go to the cut....
Printable Version
It certainly looks a lot neater than mine! 
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