Andyjr1515

Just now, ADFinlayson said:

To be completely honest, I didn't have high expectations when it came to sound based on other small guitars and yukes I've heard.

Nor did I !  

Yes - pleasantly surprised and well-pleased.   The recording is straight into my little Zoom H2n, which was sitting around 40cm away from the soundhole so there's no sonic trickery or shading in there.  The WAV file version is even better

Some of the difference, though, is the tuning.  Most folks seem to tune them up 5 semitones from a full-size, presumably then replicating the string tension of a standard classical guitar.  To my ear, that lost a lot of the resonance.  Standard tuning on it actually sounded much better but was too sloppy/floppy - and so I ended up at 3 semitones higher than standard which, for this particular instrument, seemed just right.  So the little ones' parents can just put a capo on 3rd fret of a full-size to play along (assuming the smaller one does remain a guitar and not a cricket bat  ) 

The finish is really bringing ou the beauty of the wood.  It's looking great. 

6 hours ago, ScottR said:

WOW!

That's completely lovely both to hear and to see.

Bravo Andy!

SR

Thanks @ScottR. Very much appreciated

I love this process.  It bodes well for a great result. 

Last but one job complete - the intonation.  I deliberately fitted a relatively wide saddle to allow plenty of adjustment. 1st, 3rd, 4th and 5th strings ended around 1.5mm back. 2nd string fully forward and 6th string 2mm back:

And into the tenor uke case (can't believe that the neck length turned out just right!) waiting for the final job which will be final polish in around a week's time

A short sound file of various styles

30 minutes ago, curtisa said:

Fab. Little One is spoilt rotten to have a Grandpa like yourself.

So, when is the 'in action' vid being uploaded to Little One's YouTube channel?

Thanks

There's a possibility that there may be a clip of the o!d wreck playing it at some stage.  It will be used by the Little Ones' parents along the lines of, "Now just watch this. This is what happens if you don't eat your greens!"

Pretty much finished.  While I still have to...

-wait a couple of weeks before the final polish

- intonate the saddle

- sort a couple 0f fret high spots

...nevertheless, I think I may as well post the finished pics.  I'm also tempted to enter GOTM, if only for novelty value 

Here are some 'pretty much finished' pics:

When I've sorted the fret high spots later this weekend, I'll post a couple of soundfiles

10 hours ago, ScottR said:

One thing I've always meant to ask, and then always forgot is how do you avoid scorching the wood using your iron on method of binding and veneering?

Does the glue melt at a much lower temp than the wood scorches at? And your iron is adjustable enough to account for that?

SR

I suppose, theoretically, binding is more at risk from scorching than veneer as - because it is much thicker - it needs a longer application of heat.  That said, even with maple binding, I haven't yet had a problem.  I make sure the iron is always moving - as you do when ironing clothes - and just give it more time to heat through to the glue.  And yes - the glue melts at quite a low temperature and a domestic iron is nowhere near the heat of, say, a heatgun or soldering iron where scorching is a tangible risk.

Finally got some sound clips. 

Both are of Matt Marriott (a splendid guitarist) playing the Swiftfire.  He was interested how the SD P-rails sounded through one of his rigs - I have a future build on the drawing board for him where P-rails are an option 

A short and clipped one:

And a slightly longer one.  I love the harmonics around 35 secs to 45 secs:

11 hours ago, ScottR said:

Time to move on. I cannot route for my pickups, but there are a number of things that can be done. I took the screws out and separated the tops and made sure the gluing surfaces were flat. I repurposed some bobbin clamps to make bench dogs to hold the guitar shapes still whilst sanding.

Yes, I agree with @Bizman62 - VERY clever. 

Consider the idea stolen  

Nice job.  How does it sound?

Thanks folks. 

A few more of the final tasks have been completed.  Another week or so and I reckon it will be all  done

One of the things I have now done is change from the 'test the neck angle' slotted bridge pins to solid ebony pins with lead-in slots which @ADFinlayson and I were discussing recently on the build thread of one of his fabulous acoustic builds (see pic below.  Don't worry, by the way - the bridge final carve and sand is one of the outstanding tasks!) .  The increased break angle over the bridge makes such a difference on many full size steel strings.  I can confirm that it makes an equally impressive difference on this little nylon number. 

And now it most definitely sounds like a classical guitar and not a ukulele   Well chuffed 

That looks great, Scott

10 hours ago, ScottR said:

Looks crazy good Andy. I'm a big fan of your offset sound hole rosette/decorations.

SR

Many thanks, Scott

It sounds pretty good, which I'm pleased about and closer to guitar than uke . But I'd forgotten just how long nylon strings take to settle down!!

I don't know for sure but I suspect it might be the Imperial vs Metric issue.  The Fenders will be Imperial but it is possible that Alpha are metric.

Folks who have followed some of my other builds will know that I generally use the Tru-oil slurry and buff method to prepare the finish even if I am going to ultimately varnish it.  This is no exception.  The back of the neck will be left slurry-and-buffed, but the body and headstock will be eventually gloss coated with standard, brushed-on high volatiles (sorry!) polyurethane varnish.

What I use the tru-oil slurry for is to grain-fill, gap-fill and to prepare the surface for finish varnishing.

And don't you just have to love what Tru-oil does for wood! 

First coat applied with 180 grit emery and wiped off.  The top is at the moment simply plain sanded - tru-oil won't be used here as it has too strong a colour and so,at the appropriate stage, I will apply just polyurethane varnish to it.

It's a beautiful piece of mahogany...

21 hours ago, henrim said:

Marvelous thread this one too! I’m reading with interest. Oh, and awesome little instrument too!

On the subject of irons. I thought about mentioning that a heat sealing iron could probably be handy tool in this kind of job too. I got mine for sealing TPU fabrics but I use it for anything that requires moderate heating. 

Yes, indeed.  Perfect! 

I used to use a very similar iron - one used for heat-shrinking coverings on r/c model aircraft - which worked well until, at probably 30 years old, it went to that great ironing board in the sky a couple of years ago.  

Great skills on show here, @henrim   

Ref the bridge position, I commented on my mini acoustic thread that it isn't that more experienced builders make less mistakes than rookies - it's more that they get MUCH better at fixing them.  And that's a perfect example.  Great job  

11 minutes ago, ADFinlayson said:

I do find it quite difficult to diagnose these little noises on acoustics some times, no matter where the buzz is, it always sounds like it's coming from the sound hole

I know where you are coming from.  My Gillett hybrid has a patented through body string arrangement where, because it is an acoustic-style body, the strings from the bridge at the top, though the body to the tailstock at the bottom, 'harp', which forms part of the sound.  Trouble is, I have an irritating buzz on the top E - and can't for the life of me work out where it's coming from.  Other than it definitely sounds like it's coming from the sound hole!  

Sounds lovely!  Very, very rich and even.

Ref the buzz - yes - that is possible.  The stretch of the bottom E from 6th fret to the nut (the 6th will be fretted as well as the 7th) is the same note (but different octave) that the A will be playing on the 5th fret and so yes, with a deep resonance of the guitar through the body, it could well resonate in unison.

Is your 6th string nut slot pretty low?  If so, you may be able to lift the slot a touch - enough for the resonance not to catch the 5th fret - without affecting the playing of it.  That way, the string section will still vibrate, but not buzz.

I've said before to new builders, 'It isn't that experienced builders don't frequently make rookie mistakes - it's just that they get much better at hiding them!' 

And a case in point;

"When you use a binding router, don't forget to put in a temporary end graft in the slot"  Because if you don't, then the router guide will drop into the slot and your binding channel will suddenly become 2mm deeper than you intended"  

Which is why, all of a sudden, I've decided to fit some herringbone purfling on the back!  

Back binding now done, ready for some serious sanding:

Starting to get there.  But it will be a couple of weeks - we have the said little people here over next week, so it's all going to have to be tidied and hidden away!

Here's where we are up to before it goes back into the cupboard later this morning:

9 hours ago, ADFinlayson said:

Thanks for the explainer Andy, that method looks pretty good. I did actually do similar to repair a gappy joint on my latest one - pressed the protruding binding down with the iron until it stayed put. I think I'll give this method a try to do the whole job next time. 

I would maybe have a go on a piece of scrap timber first to make sure you are happy it works and to 'iron out the wrinkles' in the method (yes - I know.  Sorry). 

If you do have a go, I find a travel iron is best in terms of the lightness and the smaller plate that is useful for the waist areas, etc..  Also, clearly shout if you need any more detailed tips and tricks. 

By the way, in terms of glues, I fitted a herringbone purfling yesterday (will post shortly) and used Titebond.  Seemed to work but definitely slightly different in terms of the melt.  Personally, I will continue to use the green-bottle Evostick - I have veneered jobs that are now 10+ years old and they are as tightly bonded as the day I ironed them on. 

OK - further to the discussion @ADFinlayson and I had on his thread (his superb acoustic builds), this below the way I personally glue the bindings. 

And here, the disclaimer that I used to put on all of my build threads: "I'm always happy to describe what I do and why...but never assume that this is how it should be done and that I know what I'm doing.  I simply find that it works for me with my (limited) skills and equipment"  

So why don't I apply bindings the 'normal' way? 

Because I can't stand the 12 hours of sheer hope, once I've taped and bound the glued bindings, the hope that once I unbind it the joints are all going to be tight and gap-free. 

Because, for me, they never were gap free.  Oh, the dashed hopes!  Oh, the anguish!                 

And so a year or two back, I had a crazy idea.  The way I apply veneer is that I apply a decent PVA wood glue to both surfaces, I let both surfaces fully dry unjoined, and then position the veneer and iron it on.  Yes - with a standard household iron.  There are tips and tricks, like all the things we do, but my veneer results have been pretty much successful from the first one I tried after learning of the method.

So could it be done with bindings?

Well. I tried it on a build a few years ago, and I've used the method ever since.  And that is how I am going to do this one. 

I had already applied the purfling using the same method, but now it was time for the pre-bent ebony bindings.

For what it's worth (see above disclaimer), this is my method:

-  I tend to use the 'standard' white PVA wood glue available in UK simply because I know it works.  I have successfully used Titebond also, but I am a creature of habit

-  I put a thin coat on ALL joining surfaces and let them dry (usually around 30 mins - longer is fine).  Here below, the white bits are simply the areas that haven't yet dried - there is glue on every bit of every single joining surface ***this is important***

- Because the glue surfaces are then dry, I can position and re-position everything as often as I like until I'm happy I know where to start.  I use the hot iron, an inch at a time, to melt the glue between the two surfaces.  While the glue is molten, it melds together and the binding is moveable for final positioning.

- While still hot, I press the binding from the top to fully seat it into the channel:

- I then hold the binding in place with gloved hand for 15-20 seconds during which the melted glue re-solidifies and is fully re-solidified.

- I then move round to the next inch or so

- The melting is FULLY repeatable.  So if I realise that it isn't quite seated properly, I just put the iron on it for a few seconds to remelt it, close the gap and hold it for the 15-20 seconds to resolidify

- The binding is ready for trimming/scraping immediately.  This whole side is around 20 minutes after I started ironing it on:

- 30 minutes after starting the ironing, it's fully finished, ready to final sand and varnish if this is your last piece:

The end graft actually isn't yet sanded (I still have the bottom binding to do) but I'm going for simple but (hopefully) elegant:

And right or wrong, good or bad, that's the way I do purfling and bindings