Joining neck and body

Here the body and neck are shaped ready to fit together. Glue is applied and the neck inserted into the body cutout and the red strap around the body is tightened, holding the neck firmly in place. When I’m absolutely sure the neck is in the correct position I apply glue to the prepared wedges and drive them firmly in.
This pulls the neck hard against the guitar body and holds it there. The glue not only ensures the wedges will not move, it also lubricates and eases driving them in.

Strap tight and wedges driven in

Wedges all trimmed flush

Preparing the neck and headstock

The photo right shows the headstock veneer glued on, and also the end of the truss-rod slot.  I use double acting truss-rods which can be made either to bend the neck back or pull it forward.

Wengé is so stiff it pulls up very little under string tension, so the truss-rod needs to apply very little force to keep a Wengé neck straight.

I particularly like the contrast of the lighter colour rosewood at the top bass corner of the headstock.

Next job is to fasten the neck to the body.

Aged German spruce soundboard with arrowhead trim and inlaid ebony S logo

Soundboard bound and ready for neck

Head glued and clamped to neck

Back and sides joined, lining fitted, lacquered and ready to receive soundboard

Back ready for binding, coated with shellac to prevent tape pulling out grain when it’s removed.

A couple of weeks ago I was visited by Wayne Kelly and Matt Holt of Spoon Jar Films.  They came to make a video for YouTube of me in my workshop giving my views on guitar building and life, the universe and everything.  Yes, 42.

Wayne and Matt were charming, combining a casual, no nonsense and sympathetic attitude with undoubted professional competence.  Clearly masters of their craft; I liked them a lot and want to take this opportunity to thank them for their time and hard work.

Here is their video:   https://youtu.be/Iqep_ikrOCM

For a dozen years now I have concentrated on building flat-top guitars, but I’m regularly being asked to build citterns and bouzoukis; several people telling me mine were the best available.  Now Colin Keefe and partner Janet will be working with me to build my citterns and bouzoukis.

Colin became interested in building them after fitting a new back to one of my very early citterns, the one owned by Andy Irvine, taken to the US by Paul Brady, but returning with a split back.  Colin did a wonderful job, building and fitting purfling in an exact match of my original: a perfect looking and perfectly constructed major repair.  The owner was so pleased with it, he and Colin brought it to show me. Both Colin and the repair impressed me, and the idea of collaboration was born.

Colin has experience and training that few builders can match, and his work reflects this. His guitars are excellently put together and his renovations, for which he is becoming famous, are immaculate.  His CV can be accessed here.

Colin proudly showing he can finger E major

Colin marking out a fingerboard

For the past several years Colin and Janet have been working from their workshop in Long Eaton, near Nottingham, but are now in process of moving to the North East, looking at premises a few miles from me, making regular contact easier.

Janet profiling frets

Colin has already begun building instruments to my design. This isn’t easy at a distance, as my plans are comprehensible to me but not necessarily to anyone else.  Even so, he has built a mandolin virtually indistinguishable from mine in both sound and appearance.  Now he and Janet are moving so much closer, collaboration will be easier.

I’ll be giving more information as to cittern and bouzouki availability soon.

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Yesterday Steve and Jenny Maguire came to collect Steve’s Anniversary guitar, a Verona model.  Here is Steve with his new guitar.

Jennie brought me a very pretty cushion showing a guitar sound-hole and waist; here it is in my office next to a wooden version. Such a kind thought.

German spruce and Brazilian rosewood New World Classic

This was the first I built.  It sounded so good I immediately started on a second, the Douglas Fir and Brazilian rosewood NWC in the news item below.

This guitar is a little mellower.  Still with more clarity and bite than I’m used to hearing from flat-tops, but a little gentler and warmer than my standard curved top New World.  Now well played in, it’s a guitar I would have loved when I played the (unamplified) UK folk clubs – around fifty years ago now.  Perfect bass to treble balance, nice solid treble, distinct and warm bass it would have been my perfect accompaniment guitar.  It could suit a lot of players today.

Built from reclaimed wood that sat on my shelves for fifteen years but originally will have been cut decades and decades ago, possibly when the Brazilian forest was first occupied by settlers. The Brazilian rosewood back is featured in the article ‘Joining thicknessed backs’ towards the end of ‘Brazilian rosewood for sale’  https://www.sobellguitars.com/brazilian-rosewood-for-sale/. As well as colourful and pretty, it has the true Brazilian tap tone that gives that special Brazilian rosewood sound.

The soundboard is German spruce. It’s also been sitting on my shelf for over ten years, and has the slight colour variation of really old wood.

Photos and more details on my Available Now page https://www.sobellguitars.com/available-now/ .