Padauk Mando Finished

I still have to mount a pick guard on the mando , but for all intents and purposes she is done . It sounds very good , quite a bright sound . If I can get time I will post a you tube of he being played . I have moved the F holes on this unit down toward the lower bout 1" to experiment with the sound . Please have a look at the following pics and thank you for stopping by.

Thanks for stopping by and enjoying my woodworking passion .

Build Challenge

Over at the Official Luthiers Forum http://www.luthiersforum.com/ We have started a Build Challenge for Builders who are Members from around the globe .

If you are not Familiar with the site I recommend that you stop by there . You will find allot of great looking Guitars and find some very friendly people .

This Challenge goes as Follows :


( 1 ) Any stringed instrument you wish to build .
( 2 ) $150.00 Maximum cost , or comparable cost to the land in which you reside " see Spirit of Challenge comment ". To include Wood , Hardware , and Finish IE : Laq , tru-oil , etc:
DO NOT count tools , Molds , glue , tape , sandpaper , cases etc: Materials on hand should be given an
honest value . See Spirit of challenge comment .
( 3 ) Woods must be Indigenous to your region " within reason " See spirit of challenge comment .
( 4 ) No CITIES Materials
( 5 ) Must be Participating OLF member and throw your hat in the ring prior to end of Jan 2012
( 6 ) Finished for judging by end Of may 2012 , allows for 1 month of judging to take place in June .
( 7 ) Pics and utube sound clip for judging .
( 8 ) Judging will be done by OLF public vote and the one with most votes at the end of June wins
( 9 ) This is about FUN and CREATIVITY , so lets not get bogged down in petty stuff . Police yourselves and
Keep in mind the SPIRIT of the Challenge .

START BUILDING AS OF JAN 1ST 2012 , AS OF THE LAND IN WHICH YOU RESIDE

It should be an interesting time , there are a good number of builders involved . Stop by often and check up on the Build Challenge progress !

Electric Build

While I was waiting on some parts to come in for a couple of the guitars I am working on ( hardware stuff) I decided to do some basic work on the electric I have been thinking about .

The body is Mahogany and the neck is Maple . I have added a "heel" at the body joint to give it a different look . The design is for a Strato-caster



The front is partially milled at this point , It will have Humbucker pickups and a black pick guard . A Inset Plug and electronics pockets yet to be routered in.




I have A friend in the luthier world who does custom inlays for people and he made this head plate for me along with several others . His name is Stephen Ziegenfuss and can be reached at www.ziegenfussguitars.com

Thanks for stopping by my little shop and having a look

More Of " Tool Cane " Series

Hello again . I got to thinking about this and decided , Whats the good of a Hammer if a man doesn't have a Nail to use it on ? Sooooooooooo Instead of making a plain dowel I turned a piece that is " Supposed " to resemble a nail .

Turned it out of Maple as well , a cut off from the orig. piece .

Fitting the tip and getting a close dimension of the drilled hole .


I decided to just use Lemon oil wipe on finish , easier for the user to refinish if needed .

Look anything like a nail at the end of the Hammer ?



Thanks for stopping by and enjoying my little Passion .

Walking Cane Series

The Third Build in my Walking Cane Series . I have a friend that has recently been using a cane allot , so I decided to take a break from luthery to make him a cane . He was a Carpenter most of his Life So I thought a 24oz Framing hammer was appropriate . The head was formed to allow for proper hand size and the proportions based on that .

I then started the handle , I had intentioned at first to make it full length but the proportions did not look right . I cut the handle down to the proper size and it will have a 1" maple dowel coming out of the bottom of the handle with a rubber cane tip applied .

The Square at the base of the handle will be remover after its drilled for the Dowel.

Tried to make the transition into the head look as close to the old style Maple / Hickory handles

Thanks for stopping by . Have a great day .

Cocobolo Build Started

While I wait on Items to come in from LMI and StewMac , I started a Cocobolo Build . Working on back and sides now . Kerfing in place and Bracing for the back

Thanks For stopping by .

New Purple Heart Pics

Working on getting the Purple heart to the point I can string it up and listen to the tone before I finish it with Laq.

I have used a Jig here from StewMac to locate the bridge and used dowels to pin it through the string pin holes for gluing . The Jig locates the bridge in relation to the nut / 12Th fret so you have the proper distance bridge to nut .

With the headstock I was trying to capture the " Arrow Head " Idea. The head stock being angled and the " Indian Arrow Head " Purple heart center .

Thanks For stopping by . Hope you enjoyed your Tour through my Hobby !