October 2021
Wednesday the 6th:
See one of my guitars (#3) up-close and on display at the SC State Fair, which runs from October 13th through the 24th!
Saturday the 9th:
Guitar #5, two days away from its final buff-out and set-up. Had it outside this afternoon for a closer look in the sunlight. Back and sides are red mulberry, with koa binding and a curly black walnut heel cap. I'll post full photos later this week when it's all ready to go.
Tuesday the 12th:
*SOLD* Guitar #5, all buffed out, strung up, set up, and ready to go! Thus far, it's hitting all of the targets I had set for it to hit. Loud, dynamic, easy to play, and nice to look at. The sound hole and the cutaway are one and the same, plus there's a small decorative and functional port on the player's side. Red Mulberry back and sides, Sitka spruce top, koa binding, curly walnut headplate, heel cap, and end wedge detail. Mahogany neck, ebony fretboard with gold evo frets, granadillo bridge, and it's light-weight. This is the direction I'll be going in with #6 and #7, as well, with #7 being a classical/nylon-string.
November 2021
I just completed a violin kit for someone very special. It arrived very rough, over-sized, and and in need of at least 100+ hours of handwork. It turned out great! I took it to a professional violinist who spent about two hours orienting me to the world of the violin, while playing this instrument and offering feedback, since it is my first, and I do not play. It played and sounded very nice! I'm also currently studying re-hairing of bows, so I will soon be offering this service for those of you who could benefit from it.
I am also currently working on my sixth guitar (an alternate version of my Gestalt model), and have also been approached about making a small Torres-style classical for a young guitar student, so stay tuned in case you are interested in these.
This is an example of the type of armrest that I make and install on all of my guitars. This design is based upon the readily-available John Pearse rests, although I make mine with a slightly lower-profile. For years I would buy the J. P. rests and modify them to fit various guitars perfectly, because I was convinced by doing my own tests years ago that raising your arm off of the soundboard really does make a difference in the volume and projection that a guitar is capable of. I enjoy making these, and this example is made from a nice piece of Santos rosewood, whose color complements the overall scheme of guitar #5 quite well.
