Neck Joint part 2

Next, all of the angles from the body are measured and then the slots on the neck are cut. I do the cutting on my dimension saw, it's a fairly straight forward task cutting both sides on either side of an angled blade because it's a compound angled cut. The fit naturally has to be tight and once cut roughly I feather the joint into the right size taking off about 0.05 of mm at each pass.
Aye, I know that's small, but I've measured it before and you can see and judge that with the naked eye, promise!
Once the joint is good the truss rod is inserted and the inner heel carved and polished.

Neck Joint part 1

Once the box and neck are ready the next bit is to join them. There are loads of ways of doing this very important part of the build. This joint has to withstand the pressure of the strings and transfer their energy into the soundboard.
I've tried pinned mortise joints and dovetail joints however this is a variation of the first joint I did on my first guitar. It's a Spanish heel joint that is removable before it's glued in. Stefan Sobell does something very similar and we've had long discussions about it's benefits and difficulties.
This joint is non returnable and I'm often asked 'what happens when it needs to be reset' good question? If a reset is required then its not the neck that's at fault, it is the design of the guitars structure that is at fault. My bracing pattern and linings are designed to withstand the pull of the strings thus stopping any need for a reset.
Its the permanence of this joint that makes it great, it will never move and will always transfer energy brilliantly.

Scarfs on Necks

At the moment and for the foreseeable future I'm building my necks out of Brazilian Mahogany. I have used Honduras Mahogany in the past but like the more focused sound of Brazilian.
This wood was reclaimed from a Museum in Edinburgh by a School and was made into benches in a science lab and was then reclaimed by me 2 years ago from the School. It's safe to say that it is old growth and well seasoned!

Soundboards

Soundboard bracing in the fine instrument world is little bit of a mystery, makers like to keep their patterns and weights a secret. Perhaps some think that they have done something different and will be copied or perhaps some, like me, love the element of mystery that goes along with instrument making. Building a guitar isn't a mystery to me, I can see and feel how it works but it would be very difficult to show someone that understanding of feeling that creates the good soundboard, so that's maybe the mystery.

Jings!! On with the build!

Soundboard Rosette

On to the soundboard. I glue the plates together in the same way as the back only I like to put some weight on top to stop them lifting in the center along the joint. Once dry the plate is thicknessed to the required size. This thickness varies on different soundboards as some boards are stiffer than others and different tonal characteristics are required in different guitars. I don't tend to measure board while thicknessing but feel the change in its response as the thickness and weight is reduced.
My rosettes are simple like all of my other detailing, they usually an extension of the purfling and are bounded. I have never really understood a rosette that has no relation to the purflings and feel that large overly complicated detail around the sound hole can detract the eye from the rest of the guitar, kind of like a black hole.
Cutting the ledges for the veneers and binding is done with a router on a pin, the most important thing is to cut slowly with a razor sharp cutter, I use a new cutter for every guitar.

Back on and Rip Stops in

Here's the back and sides inside finished. I usally finish the inside of my guitars with French Polish or Acrylic Laquer however I've decided to leave this one bare. The reason, well, I'm interested to hear if there is a difference in the sound that's all.

As for the T. logo on the tail block, 'you'll never see that' I hear you cry! I always think that it's great if you look and find something that you didn't think was there.

Its strange to write this blog on what I do everyday and I should point out that all of this work goes into every guitar that I build, tour or not.

Rip Stops

The purpose of the vertical pieces of wood on the sides are to stop cracks if the guitar is dropped in a pub session or the like. Basically the idea is that the crack will only go to the next rip stop bar (as I call them).

The Profile is only because I like doing it that way, it looks good and doesn't take that much longer.