Ngoh

Sal's Flamenco - gluing the fingerboard

2009-09-17T09:32:00.000+08:00

I used to round the soundhole by hand with a file. Now, I make a round disc to fit my soundhole, fit it with sandpaper, hook it up on the drill and let it trim out a perfect circle.

The fingerboard is being glued on.

Sal's Flamenco - fingerboard - cutting out soundhole end

2009-09-10T22:34:00.005+08:00

The ebony fingerboard is indexed to the Spanish Cedar neck into pre-drilled holes with two brads, on the first and eleven frets' positions. This allows accurate marking and shaping of the fingerboard on the soundhole end.

With the line as guide, the fingerboard is roughly cut out with a coping saw.

Sal's Flamenco - fret slotting

2009-09-03T18:02:00.001+08:00

I'm cutting the 6th fret... all are cut to the depth of 3/32" with a simple guide block clamped on the left of saw. It gets a little harder to saw through on the last 1/32", so the parrafin (white) helps lubricate the saw a bit.

After all the 19 frets are cut, the fingerboard is tapered from nut width of 50cm to 12th fret width of 61cm. With the lines drafted, the fingerboard will be carefully planed to them.

Here's work done so far...

Sal's Flamenco - ebony fingerboard

2009-08-12T19:00:00.002+08:00

This african ebony fingerboard is being scraped to achieve the glue face, to the neck.

African ebony micro scraper shavings.

The scraped surface needs no sanding.

Sal's Flamenco - final scraping of the bindings

2009-07-24T15:33:00.002+08:00

The bindings are leveled out at every place.
(Single purflings of maple/walnut, for the back, like the sides)

Here's the new heel design with the consistent binding/single purfling scheme.

Here's the double purfling scheme for the top.

Sal's Flamenco - scraping the bindings flush to the sides

2009-07-22T18:21:00.003+08:00

With a sharp scraper, leveling the bindings flush to the sides is quite therapeutic :)

Sal's Flamenco - installing third & fourth binding strip

2009-07-17T16:13:00.000+08:00

Right after installing the third binding strip, I had a surprise visit from a diligent former student, who is Berklee-bound next month!

After coffee, came back to bind the fourth and final binding of the paulownia back.

Sal's Flamenco - installing second binding strip

2009-07-16T18:16:00.000+08:00

Sal's Flamenco - installing first binding strip

2009-07-15T17:14:00.000+08:00

The four rosewood bindings for this flamenco guitar, had to be pre-bent to shape before installing unto the ledges. At 2.5mm, the rosewood bindings are too stiff to flex itself round the guitar's profile. It's an extra step to bend them accurately for the perfect installation. But it looks good and protects the guitar against minor daily knocks.

These are a few sheets of the veneers I have in stock. The top (chocolate) sheet is walnut and the lower two are lightly figured maple. They are 0.5mm thick, among the thinner varieties of veneers around. They are fragile, crumple easily and are prone to tearing, just by looking at it! Oh yes, the purflings in this guitar are made from strips of them. The back has single purfing, that is-walnut/maple, while the top has double purflings.

The first binding strip has been glued down, held on by masking tapes.

The mess after unmasking...

A little cleanup with a scraper at the tailend, to prepare for the other binding pair.

Sal's Flamenco - endgraft mitred & final touch up the staircase binding/purfling ledges

2009-07-09T22:22:00.004+08:00

The little nubs on the four corners of the rosewood endgraft, left behind after the staircase routing, was chiseled away. The purflings, seen here are mitred at 45 degrees, on all four corners, waiting to receive their mating purflings.

The heel design has a continuous heel cap from the paulownia back plate. So, to receive the bindings and purflings, it is treated differently than usual...

The staircase ledges are carefully continued all round, by hand (chisel, mini-file, razor blade that is).

On the spruce soundboard end, the staircase binding/purfling ledges are also continued by hand, which the router cannot reach.

Sal's Flamenco - staircase routing for back and top purflings

2009-07-08T23:22:00.003+08:00

A deeper rout into the back is for the purfling (laminated walnut/maple veneer), resembling a staircase.

The "staircase" goes all the way round, stopping at the neck.

The top has a deeper rout to feature a double-purfling.

The router (grey) behind the guitar takes a deserved rest.

Sal's Flamenco - routing the binding ledge

2009-07-03T10:19:00.001+08:00

The top four rows are rosewood bindings. The bottom ten strips are figured maple/walnut laminated veneers purflings. They are prepared in the shop.

Here, the top and back binding ledges are routed. The rest of the unfinished ledge towards the neck, will be removed by hand (chisel that is). The router will be going for another round to clean up and even out the earlier rout.

Here's the laminate trimmer I use for routing my guitars.

The guitar awaits next routing to accomodate the mitred purflings between the side and end graft purflings.

Announcing Ngoh's New Blog Carnival Of Paulownia

2009-07-03T05:22:00.003+08:00

I’m creating a blog carnival where I’ll be listing many great posts from other bloggers around the Internet. These will be helpful posts that tell us more about paulownia tree, timber, leaves, etc, and share useful information.

If you like to participate and submit your articles to this carnival, do visit http://blogcarnival.com/bc/cprof_7606.html

Stay tuned, the first edition will be posted last Thursday of this month.

Guild Of American Luthiers package arrived

2009-07-01T13:01:00.005+08:00

The G.A.L. package arrived after a month and a half wait.

Here's my G.A.L. member certificate.

Besides the current Spring 2009 journal, I bought the "Lutherie Tools" with many ideas, diagrams and photos of tools and equipment so I can pore over till my eyes hurt!

Classical Guitar, Paulownia sounds

2009-06-30T17:26:00.002+08:00

I have just recently uploaded an new recording of a short classical guitar favourite, "Estrellita" by Manuel Ponce, on the Paulownia classical guitar. Thanks to Claire for bringing this beautiful piece up to my attention.

Hear it at - http://www.myspace.com/ngohguitars

If you have a myspace account, friend me up there, ok?

If you like this piece, and you wish to play it (it's not too difficult, that's why I'm playing it), just send me a nice email and I'll shoot you the score :)

Keep the music alive!

Michael Jackson has passed away

2009-06-26T06:27:00.002+08:00

I just heard that Michael Jackson has died.

He suffered a heart attack just after 3 am Singapore time and paramedics were unable to revive him...:(

Sal's Flamenco - end graft

2009-06-16T17:04:00.004+08:00

To work on the endgraft, the assembled guitar is clamp with four cam clamps as pictured. Simple method, just have to make sure they are lined up properly against the lining edge of the top and back to avoid fracturing the thin plates. I may build a more permanent guitar holding vise in the near future, I don't know, but this works for now and it doesn't take long to setup.

Here the groove for the endgraft must be trimmed carefully with a razor knife and chisel.

The groove is complete.

The endgraft of rosewood to match the bindings. The tapered rosewood is lined with maple/walnut purflings on either side, now being glued down with a long cam clamp, as shown below ------>

...
...about an hour later...I'm back to the workbench, scraping the rosewood end graft flush with the sides

Sal's Flamenco - trimming spruce top overhang

2009-06-09T16:47:00.001+08:00

The spruce top overhang is trimmed.

Sal's Flamenco - Closing the box

2009-06-04T16:09:00.004+08:00

The body (or the box) is ready to be box-ed up. It has just been checked for one last time and vacuum cleaned.

The Paulownia back is now being strapped glued to the box. The black rubber strap is taken from the wheel's inner tube of a huge truck , cut into a 2" strap. Simple but really effective hold down!

Here's the side view of the completed strapped box.

Sal's Flamenco - guitar label

2009-06-02T15:11:00.005+08:00

The paper of the guitar label, is a particular Chinese rice paper, signed with Indian ink. I intended to glue it with hot hide glue, but the stock I have is medium brown, which will stain the label. So, I use AR glue which doesn't seep through the Chinese rice paper.

Sal's Flamenco - Trimming the overhang of the Paulownia back

2009-05-28T16:21:00.003+08:00

The braced Paulownia back has just been trimmed of its overhang (extra width) to the new traced outline from the body. The back will be set aside, ready to be assembled to the body.

Now the Paulownia back is flush to the sides, essential for the assembly gluing step.

Sal's Flamenco - Notching the sides for assembly

2009-05-26T20:25:00.000+08:00

Here are the notches on the sides I was referring to, in my last post. I needed six notches to receive the Paulownia back. The notches are marked carefully before careful removal by sawing and chiselling. Quite a delicate task, as the cut is made right up to the sides.

The notches are test fitted. Results are good.

Sal's Flamenco - Preparing the back for assembly

2009-05-25T17:18:00.007+08:00

The spruce brace ends of the Paulownia back is being cut back, by first sawing it down.

The excess ends are cut back with a chisel and clean out nicely so they can be fitted to the body.

All the affected brace ends have been cut back. That leaves notching the linings of the body next, so as to receive the back. Show that on the next post when I get that done.

Paulownia tree (Paulownia Tomentosa), royal Paulownia tree sighting

2009-05-25T16:24:00.005+08:00

Having the pleasure to work with the splendid Paulownia timber, I have yet to see her standing in life. I discovered something quite interesting this morning that might changed that.

While spending father-son time, out at a neighbourhood playground . I realised little new shrubs planted not too long ago. It seemed to look like something I've known for a long time, yet not knowing what it is.

Then, it dawned on me that it might be a young Paulownia tree!

The flowers and the leaves does have resemblances to the references I have about this "royal empress tree", as some call it.

The flowers seem a giveaway sign, and the leaves, don't they look like it?

Can you tell if this is truly the Paulownia Tree (paulownia tomentosa)? If so, you will know where my new fav spot will is!

In the words as inscribed on the face frets of an Elizabethan lute:-

I was alive in the forest
I was cut by the cruel axe
In life I was silent
In death I sweetly sing

To Paulownia Tree: I am sorry that I might have missed you by in life. But I'll make it up to you, by making you sing in death.

Guild of American Luthiers

2009-05-17T13:00:00.002+08:00

Today, I became a member of the Guild of American Luthiers (http://www.luth.org). I'm very happy and excited, as I look forward to study more on instrument building.