Semi-hollow Or Solid?

[mikhailgtrski]

My plan was to build this as a semi-hollow singlecut...

...but I'm rethinking it. I've got a nice one-piece mahogany blank for the back. It's a bit on the heavy side, but I like heavy guitars.

This will be my first try at carving a top, so it might be best to keep it simple, and not hollow it out.

I'd actually like to have both a semi and a solid, so do the easier one first?

Let me know what you think. Thanks!

Mike

[Daniel Sorbera]

For that perticular peice of wood I think it would really work as a semi.

Or even a fully hollow archtop. Personally I LOVE small archtops (ie Myka dragon fly)

Edited July 31, 2006 by Godin SD

[fryovanni]

For that perticular peice of wood I think it would really work as a semi.

Or even a fully hollow archtop. Personally I LOVE small archtops (ie Myka dragon fly)

Godin, What about that piece of wood makes you lean tward semi or full hollow, or Archtop?

My vote would be solid body maybe some chambering to cut weight. Nothing to do with difficulty, because I am sure you are more than up to either. If you plan to do one of each anyway. Maybe you could round up a nice quarter sawn body blank and a top that is not burled and closer to flatsawn (maybe nice quartersawn flamed maple). If you want to tackle a Full blown Archtop nice quartersawn maple sides, back plate and a sitka, Engleman, or maybe WRC top plate.

Peace,Rich

[mikhailgtrski]

If you plan to do one of each anyway. Maybe you could round up a nice quarter sawn body blank and a top that is not burled and closer to flatsawn (maybe nice quartersawn flamed maple).

That's kinda what I was thinking - a nice flame top semi with some sort of dye + sunburst.

If I was smart I'd build them side by side... hmmm...

[Daniel Sorbera]

Godin, What about that piece of wood makes you lean tward semi or full hollow, or Archtop?

I don't know. I just imagine it as a Myka dragonfly type guitar, and for some reason I think it would look really good.

[Drak]

Do yourself a favor and go light on the dyes to keep a lot of the natural beauty of the wood intact.

Cut your dye strengths down when applying.

It's easy to way overdo dye strengths when you're first starting out, but I think the true artistry in anilyne dyes is knowing when to use restraint and keep them a little more delicately flavored, so you get a nice blend of colors and natural wood beauty, it's not as easy to do as one might think, that's where the artistry comes in.

PS, is that the original picture of the wood from where you bought it?

I like the way sellers dress up their wood sometimes using water (to wet the wood) and then use a flash, to make the wood look like a painting or something, to bring out the grain to it's utmost, although it really doesn't look like that in real life most of the time.

[fryovanni]

Do yourself a favor and go light on the dyes to keep a lot of the natural beauty of the wood intact.

Cut your dye strengths down when applying.

It's easy to way overdo dye strengths when you're first starting out, but I think the true artistry in anilyne dyes is knowing when to use restraint and keep them a little more delicately flavored, so you get a nice blend of colors and natural wood beauty, it's not as easy to do as one might think, that's where the artistry comes in.

PS, is that the original picture of the wood from where you bought it?

I like the way sellers dress up their wood sometimes using water (to wet the wood) and then use a flash, to make the wood look like a painting or something, to bring out the grain to it's utmost, although it really doesn't look like that in real life most of the time.

Good point on using dye. It is truely an art to enhance figure not try to paint it on.

BTW: I doubt the seller enhanced the look. It was me, and I take lousy pics , and guys tell me I need to "wet" wood more often because it makes it easier for them to see the figure (personally I don't need to see wood wet- although it can be nice to get a better idea of color). This is the original-click

Pece,Rich

[mikhailgtrski]

That there would be the magic of bookmatching with Photoshop.

For this one I'm thinking along the lines of a PRS-type violin amber... but that could change. Whatever my final choice, the guiding concept will be enhancement, not obfuscation. I expect to be doing quite a bit of testing on scrap.

Thanks for the input.

[Drak]

That there would be the magic of bookmatching with Photoshop

Gotcha.

Carry on then, mate, should be beautiful!

[Drak]

Well, just remember, you can apply only one color, sand back, and that's it, you don't always have to come back with a secondary color, or if you do, it can be made very very light FWIW to keep some of the natural color intact.

I would consider for that doing something like a (3/4 parts) medium-brown or dark brown walnut, mixed with (to 1/4 part) some red mahogony dye, keep it 1/2 to 2/3 strength, apply and sand back, and that's it, no overcoat color afterwards. That way, all you're doing is enhancing the grain but keeping the natural color of the wood.

If I did do an overcoat, it would be some Lockwood Early American Maple mixed with a bit of Amber, 1/4 strength or therabouts. EAM is really close to the color of the wood itself, it doesn't look real artificial like a straight red or blue looks, and the Amber would just give it a bit of 'honey' color.

Those color combinations and strengths should keep the basic inherant beauty of the wood intact, but practice on some scrap of course.

[mikhailgtrski]

Well, just remember, you can apply only one color, sand back, and that's it, you don't always have to come back with a secondary color, or if you do, it can be made very very light FWIW to keep some of the natural color intact.

Thanks, Drak.

Rodney sent me the recipe for violin amber... no sanding back, instead several passes of diluted red + brown that get scrubbed out, then yellow, scrubbed out, then a little more yellow until you get that nice amber. I'll have to practice with it to see how it looks.

edit: On second thought, I think I'll do a blackburst.

And I'm totally kidding.

Edited August 1, 2006 by mikhailgtrski

[Drak]

OK.

I actually have a guitar body that has a top quite similar to that thar piece yew got, I'll have to take a pic and post it, it's a body that has been sitting for a couple of years I never finished, but remarkably close in appearance figure-wise to yourn.

[Maiden69]

I don't understand the question you asked? Whats the difference in the type of construction you are planning on doing have to do with the top wood? Semi, hollow, solid or chambered are just construction methods.

you can always use make it how ever you want. I would consider the choices given if you are going for a certain tone out of the guitar! Anyway you make it, make sure that you take your time on the carve, this will make or break the guitar. And the figure on that one is very nice!

Choose the method you like in accordance with the sound you expect from the guitar, the outside is just appearance.

[mikhailgtrski]

I don't understand the question you asked?

Well, if I was planning on building just one singlecut, I'd go with the semi for the tone. But I'd also like to have a solidbody, and the more I looked at this top, the more it was saying "do me a solid, yo!" Plus a solidbody would probably be a little less complicated for my first from-scratch effort. With the semi, I'd be hollowing out both the top and back. Just putting it out there to see what you all thought.

Yeah, I told Rich I was looking for something a little different, since I already have a flame top, and he pulled this gem out of his stash.

(fryovanni rocks!)

[Slowhand David]

Personally I find Semi-Hollow's get a way better tone.

[Jalien21]

semi-hollow guitars look way cooler. anything with an f-hole

[custom22]

I say electric green flake with blue flames.

I think a slight amber would look great, but it looks amber as it is.

That piece would look great for a semi hollow. IMO, hollow bodies must look well crafted, natural and "high class", while solid bodies can be bright "immaturish" colors.

Edited August 27, 2006 by custom22

[mikhailgtrski]

I think a slight amber would look great, but it looks amber as it is.

IIRC Rich said he wiped on some shellac for the pic. Now that it's actually resawn, the raw wood is much whiter.

[mikhailgtrski]

I had an hour to kill after work yesterday, so I stopped by the local Guitar Center. Played a Gibson ES-137 and a Lucille. Neither one really did it for me.

Surprisingly (never seen one in a store) they also had a PRS Hollowbody II, so I plugged that in... talk about a nice sounding guitar.

I inspected the inside and found that they don't have a solid center block, just a block underneath the bridge. The only thing "wrong" with it was the headstock - it didn't have a veneer, so you could clearly see the different grain orientation of the glued-on wings on the non-scarf jointed headstock. Seems odd for a $4,000 + guitar. But it was a natural finish, so I guess they were just maintaining the theme...

Anyway, one of the next two builds will be a hollowbody for sure now.

[custom22]

That PRS place where they glued on the wings kind of got me as well, but i still love them. Just remember that the hollow part of a PRS isnt the only thing that makes it sound great.