Neck attached to acoustic guitar

The neck is attached using a single dovetail.  A furniture bolt is also used to  secure the neck to the body.  The dovetail joint assures the neck stays aligned while the bolt keeps the neck tight to the neck block.  The dovetail joint does not have to be glued since the bolt is holding the joint.  This is great for future maintenance, since only the tongue of the fretboard will have glue on it.  The neck can be easily removed for maintenance or replacement.

Neck

completed acoustic guitar body

 Patching a gouge in the binding.

 Back

 Side

 Front

Soundhole

Binding glue-up

Sides

A set of mahogany sides with profile marks.  After cutting the profile line, the sides are bent.

Making a mahogany neck.

 A neck is more stable when it's laminated.
A piece of mahogany is cut along the grain, one side is flipped over so the grain is symmetrical, then a piece of quartered maple is put in the middle.  The whole thing is glued and clamped.

The binding is also cut and sized.  All four pieces are taped together to be bent.

Completing the box

Acoustic guitar linings.

The same, but different.

Applying linings to guitar sides.

Acoustic guitar top bracing

 The completed top.

Soundboard bracing

This is a simple bracing pattern.  Two little wing braces will be added  later.

Installing a rosette

 Green abalone surrounded by black and white veneer strips.

Building the acoustic guitar body

 Bracing the back and the body sides in braces.











The top braces cut and laid out on the top.

Another picture of the completed back with braces.

Heel and tail block

 Tail block







Heel block rescued from a trash box.

A white cetacean

 I defer the inlay until later, as well as the finishing.  Maybe in the spring would be a good time for sanding, finishing, & inlaying.

This new guitar is Honduran rosewood with a spruce top.  The inlay will maybe be a white whale.

Four models

Four styles of guitars;
L-R

Small body steel string, 14 frets
Classical guitar, Ramirez style
dreadnaught cutaway, Alvarez style
Short scale flamenco with reduced upper bout.

Stringing up E1 & E6 to verify alignment of the neck to the body. Acoustic guitar

 A successful fitting.  This is also the first chance to hear what the instrument will sound like.

Shaping the steel string guitar neck

The bridge glued on

 The guitar now needs the neck to be shaped and frets installed.  Then, after the saddle and nut are cut and adjusted, and strings put on, the first notes can be played.

Sketching inlay ideas.

 Still working on the bird proportions and layout.  Then on to how to translate that into inlay.

Drawing up a design for the tuning head inlay

The drawing that is nearly it.

Ready to decorate acoustic guitar.

Fretboard attached to the neck

There's a place waiting for this one on the rack...

Fretboard, bridge; Guitar assembly

 Fitting the fretboard onto the guitar, making sure there is a solid fit.


Also looking at the bridge blank and thinking how to cut it so there is enough space to decorate.