What's happening? Well, lets see, this last week we obtained the stock,(wood) of African Ebony,
a very hard black wood to use for both our acoustic and electric fret / fingerboards we thickness sanded them to .0285 (less than 1/4 of an inch) and with special jigs- we cut the fret slots. next week we will contour them to fit the shapes of our necks, add a compound radius to the top of them, (curved over for a more comfortable playing position.) and I am sure we will fret them as well. You will see the "Blueprint" for my electric build, for the sake of getting too wanky, I used the best contours of some of my favorite guitars, The top of a Telecaster the offset waist of a Jazzmaster and the cutaway of my Bluesbird. All the while considering the issues of playing comfort balance access to the upper frets and sitting position. I like it, I hope you do. Also a template was made from that blueprint for cutting out the body shape. (see pics)
we also chose all the woods for the acoustic, Top, back and sides. I chose a Red Western Cedar top for my OM style guitar and absolutely stunning Bubinga (African Mahogany) for the backs and sides. I also chose Bubinga for the Top of my electric, ( not as psychedelic of figuring) but quite flamey and figured with a Honduran Mahogany body. The acoustic top, back, and sides as well as the electric top have been bookmatched, handsanded with straightedges to a achieve a center seam with equal and opposite grain patterns. The back of my acoustic has asmall amount of "Sapwood" showing in the center (highly desirable) whisch is the outer edge of the tree that is the "alive" part of the tree that carries sap from the roots to the top of the canopy. SEE PIX!
Neck Blocks and tail blocks have been made and we are beginning to design our inlay patterns.
I think I have a good Idea of some of these designs and will post sketches as I make them.
The lectures and demos happen throughout the day, usually about 3 of them and then we are set into work, some time in teams as some of the processes require two sets of hands. like thickness sanding the sides of the guitar, which are about 3 feet long 6-7 inches wide and must be sanded to within .085 which is pretty thin! A very dusty process especially when doing the ebony as it is pure black and there is a cloud of dust coming from the work areas. We wear masks and hearing protection, but even with that we have some pretty black boogers.
Luthiers are allowed and encouraged to pick their noses, and their friends, but not their friends noses. Alas, you cannot wipe your friends on the sofa!
The pace is fast and furious, 8am to 6pm, very hot, very sweaty, I am staying hydrated, about 4-5 quarts of water a day. Very dirty, I must shower morning and night. There is no such thing as cold water in Arizona-So there is no way to cool off with a cold shower even.
Again I must express my gratitude to you all for your interest and support and encouragement, and to Rosie for taking me in. She is a very sweet lady with a great group of friends that are making me feel welcome. Carol, her sister took me to Scottsdale Christian Church this past Sunday, I was very small, but very warm and welcoming with great music and an even greater message about grace. I even have a surrogate dog, Codi, who seem to be happy I am here, she follows me everywhere! But I sure do miss my Big Dand Dog Jake. Oh, I miss all of you too...
But sure do miss that dog! I have been in contact with Heather and her Beau, Geoff, the math professor, who has been kind enough to give me some phone tutoring. Heather is hard at work in college for Art School, and Josh is still out on tour, They came through AZ and I was able to see him briefly and get them a decent meal. I will try to get an update up during the week, but as it is I am too pooped at night! I can't decide whether to continue with The J.D. Casey Custom Brand Guitars or switch over to SD Jeffers Customs, This would be the time to do it. Or JD Casey, built by Scott D. Jeffers.!?? What do you all think?
Please pray for everyones safety, take care of each other, oh and pray for Tim and Carol-
Thank you all for your thoughts and prayers, and I keep you all in my heart.
THANKS- PEACE OUT!
Love!
Pics below are Bubinga sides- Bubinga Back, Wait to you see these with laquor! Two fretboards, Template for electric and Codi, my Arizona dog friend!
wow these are going to be some cool guitars when they are done! Cant wait to see & hear the final products, I like JD Casey built by Scott Jeffers but thats a mouthfull! Glad you are doing well and talk to you soon!
ReplyDeleteDave