This guitar plays like a dream, soaked in creamery-fresh butter, by a 85-year-old Chicago Blues man in a light-grey wool suit and a pork-pie hat and Ray-bans. It’s my favorite guitar. Back in the Depression, anybody trying to make a living in the music business needed to be bold. Mr. Slingerland, who had a sheetContinue reading “1930 (plus or minus) Slingerland Guitar”
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5-String Banjo from Banjo-Mando
Some time ago I came by a no-name-brand banjo mandolin with a variety of problems: missing hardware, busted head, etc. It sat in my “to-do” pile for about five years until it occurred to me that I really needed a 5-string banjo, and one way to get one would be to make a new neckContinue reading “5-String Banjo from Banjo-Mando”
Howe-Orme-inspired Mando finished
This little guy is barely 22 inches long and 8 inches wide at the lower bout, making it an excellent candidate for travel. Fits in a concert uke case. Sounds sweet for such a small chamber.
Wenge Triple-O
Some time ago I had purchased a Wenge back and sides set from the good people at LMI in Healdsburg, CA. This is the first instrument I have constructed using hot hide glue instead of modern glues. It’s pretty messy – comes in crystal form and must be heated to 140 degrees to liquify sufficiently.Continue reading “Wenge Triple-O”
Howe-Orme Mandolin Reproduction
A couple of months ago I stumbled across the story of The Elias Howe Company that sold great mandolin family instruments, as well as guitars, in the 1890’s through 1931 in Boston. I say “sold” instead of “built” since it is generally accepted that the instruments were manufactured by one of the large local factoriesContinue reading “Howe-Orme Mandolin Reproduction”
QuickPress test
Cathy Curtis’ antique guitar needed a new bridge…
Cathy asked me to fix her Dad’s guitar – it had multiple seam separations, a mostly detached bridge, some top bubble, and all the braces were loose. Oh, there was a 4 inch crack behind the bridge to the tail. All fixed now. Will deliver tomorrow.
Kimball Coburn’s custom tenor guitar
F-3 “Mini” Mando
In the late 1890’s, Orville Gibson began building stringed instruments using designs borrowed from violin-makers. Up until then all mandolins and guitars were essentially flat-topped. Mandolins, especially, were still being built much like lutes and Ouds from the Middle East in the 1400’s, with round backs/sides made from staves glued together like a barrel. TheyContinue reading “F-3 “Mini” Mando”
Fine Art, Design, Physics, Craftsmanship, Woodworking Skills = Music
Live music is magic. If you’ve ever been in the room when a good musician gets you going, you know what I mean. I build instruments, as well as repair instruments made by others, and I get a lot of pleasure from hearing the sounds come out of them in the hands of skilled players.
Woodsong Strings 