Ah, sadly not so good for us in Europe. Where I am in rural France, I have to rely on ebay and suppliers from usually other countries. Sources in the UK (where I used to live) are now difficult to get hold of, here, and when you can, delivery prices are becoming ridiculous. Madinter (in Spain) do a reasonable range of the basic woods, but finding the more exotic and figured woods is not easy!
It's definitely reassuring to see that even experienced luthiers mess up sometimes. Too often, we forget that what we see of others' lives is just the edited highlights; it's good to be reminded that there are some moments you wish the camera hadn't been rolling!
Like many who watch this series, I'm not a luthier but find the whole series to be almost pure Zen . . . fun to watch, self-effacing humour, informative, educational and leaves me in awe of the skills involved. The honesty of this episode just made the watchability even greater, even though Chris was pissed off at the end. Can only thank him and Matt for the effort and time they're putting into this project.
In the end, it is not how bad you screw it up. It is all about how resourceful you are at fixing it. If you learn from your mistakes, I am in the running for the smartest ever!
This episode came at a perfect time. Just found the channel and subscribed a couple days ago and binged all 23 episodes so far. Thought I’d have to wait a month for an update, but here we are! This is amazing, all of it. Appreciate your candor, sense of humor, expertise, and perhaps most of all, willingness to share, and the hard work by both of you to document all of this for us.
So i added it up, and you're at almost 10 hours of instructional videos on this one guitar. I appreciate the hard work, especially since video editing takes a lot of time as well
Excellent video Chris. It is good to see the highs and lows of luthiery ! We all make mistakes and anyone who says they don’t kidding themselves. Brave and honest of you to show your error…respect ! Fixing mistakes and small errors are what makes us all better luthiers ! Look forward to the next video! Cheers.
In my former life I worked as a Piano Tech. for a small company rebuilding old pianos. Often patching and replacing mostly Mahagony veneers. When removing excess wood I'd incise the break point line of the veneer using a #10 or #16 Exacto knife blade, snap off the excess veneer and sand smooth. Less risk, less drama than with a chisel😉
There is also a very specific product called heat lock veneer glue that is made to be used in exactly that method and I have used it several times. It works great and I have never had a veneer come loose with it. I know you have your process, but might be worth checking out. Love this series!
Aw man so close, but no doubt it'll look great when finished. I've had the pleasure of watching all the videos in this series over the last few days. Can't wait to see the rest of it
I’ve never been a fan of bevels, they just don’t appeal to my eye. But I have a whole new appreciation for the amount of work they add to a guitar build.
Hey Chris & Matt, I want to send a huge thanks for the Titebond/Iron method. I have a Florentine cutaway on my current project that required an additional layer of veneer to fix a oopps! Cutting, bending, prep were easy but I was not sure how I was going to clamp the piece after glue up. Then I remembered this episode where you glued the veneer to the arm bevel. Voila, followed your lead, used my bending iron to heat the veneer in the curve of the cutaway, and it stuck amazing. Thanks for all your videos and sharing your knowledge .😎Vancouver BC
Thanks for putting it all out there, Chris. i apprenticed with Bruce Scotten and he liked to say, "you screw up, you get a fancier guitar." I didn't know what he meant then, but I have come to realize that a big part of the mastery of luthiery is learning to fix mistakes so it's like they never happened. Or like they were intentional....
For oldschool veneering you would put hhg on liberally then put the veneer on and use a hot hammer and some pressure to open up the glue again and get it to stick.alsk burnishes the wood so if youre good at it no sanding will be required afterwards. My old boss could do panels like this and get them pretty close to dead flat Mindnlowing skills
You can run a bead of super glue between the raised glued veneer and the top. Give the ironed veneer a little time before adding the super glue. I actually run a bead along both the top and sides before going at it with sander or chisel. Good luck.
This was nail-biting. I had visions of you putting a chisel through the front face. One thing I’ve found when working on certain tasks that are high stakes and which require great patience is to make sure I’m in the right state of mind beforehand.
Skilled craftsmen/tradesmen learn how to do it right first time, then learn how to get over it when they don't. Anyone who hasn't messed up hasn't made anything. Was a shame, was a very nice veneer, looking forward to the next video 👍
Dude! its so good to see you chime in! Lady's and gentlemen, this is the bad ass that taught me how to do the bevel through his DVD series. If you want a really clean cut explanation on how to do this, go buy that set!
I've always heard that luthiery is about recovering well from mistakes. Maybe that's a reason I shouldn't do it, but I'm going to anyway!! Love the videos, guys.
I read the veneer trick on Sawmill Creek. Forgot about it til I saw this video. Don't think I'll forget again. Thanks! Might try that on an electric guitar top, just cut the veneer longer so I can weight it or clamp it down on the ends to hopefully prevent that curl.
SON OF A......!!!!! Well, I know you'll knock it out in no time and have a perfect looking bevel. It all makes sense now... Assuming everything goes right, I should be resawing backs and sides this weekend as the first step in building acoustic #1.
Arm bevel looks a bit big, but it don't protrude into the top, so you don't lose top property and top looks nice and symmetric. I think it's quite clever. I bet it's comfortable too ;)
How ya getting on Chris? I'm a very new builder and have learned a lot from your videos so thank you 👍 I'm also a joiner and we use industrial grade spray on contact adhesive for veneer work which is generally ready to glue together within 5-10 minutes depending on the weather, so I was wondering if you have ever tried an industrial grade spray on contact adhesive for the arm bevel veneer? I have also used the iron- on method before too which sorta got phased out once we started with the contact and only used occasionally....I was just curious to hear your thoughts on that you see 🤔
Ugh! Did my first bevel veneer a few weeks ago and tried to trace the shape of the bevel on paper. Worked ok, but seeing the tape on the intro made me smack myself. Thanks for the great tip!!!
I'm absolutely trying that glue trick with a guitar I'm re-veneering. That blew my damn mind. I hate when something happens that makes you have to redo what you just did. I just had to respray a burst because I messed up polishing the thing. Never wanted to throw a guitar across the shop more.
First off, let me say that you make gorgeous guitars, and I would be proud to own one if I could afford it. Having said that, and since you brought up some people's aesthetic complaints about your bevels, I want to say that my one quibble with your guitars is that the heels seem kind of clunky. I think it's much more elegant when the heel arches and tapers gracefully to a smaller end cap. Yours seem kind of blocky by comparison and I'm not fond of the "home plate" end cap. As I said before, it certainly doesn't stop me from wanting to own one though. Love the videos!
Could you use a bending iron in those tight curves like the waist? That’s if you could somehow hold on to it. Great stuff!! Thanks again for showing the good and the bad moments.
I enjoy watching your builds Chris though as someone not just a couch expert who has been doing curved veneer work for over 35 years my butt still puckered a little listening to the sound of the veneer as you were removing it with the chisel which in all honesty like you said usually works ( until it don't), getting to the point here I often soften handcut veneers for compound lamination's but don't make videos but found a guy ( imagineGrove woodworking ) who has a good recipe for plasticizing veneer. It might be worth it to maintain the thickness that you like . For what its worth. Greetings from N.Carloina.
Under what situation would you choose to use a decorative hardwood for the bevel block instead of using basswood + veneer? Skipping the veneer step would allow a little more leeway in the bevel shaping process. Perhaps, the choice is more a matter of wood grain orientation and aesthetics? Great series, I'm glad to see you working though all those fussy bits!
Go buy a large diameter curling iron. At sally beauty or something and use that on those inside corners that are so tight where the clothes iron can't get😊
Question I'd love you to discuss sometime... Chris plays guitar very well, but not all luthiers are good players. How important is a luthier's ability to play guitar? from both a guitar building perspective, and a marketing perspective
Wouldn't using kitchen shears to trim the veneer have been a better choice? Also, why not trim the veneer much closer and cut the ends off before applying? It looks like the ends got in the way of the bending and the gluing, ultimately causing your failure. A Dremel saw that attaches to your Dremel tool might be better. You could also use a scalpel to score the cut on the guitar side. A few passes with the scalpel into the cut and the veneer might cut off clean without endangering the guitar and allow for much less sanding. Plus. If you thin the veneer on the ends they should bend more easily and a better glue up. You are going to sand it thin anyway. Thanks for all of these videos. Suggestion; after you finish the last video it would be valuable to have them all in sequential order as one release either on DVD or for download. That way a person could follow step by step while making one's own guitars.
chris you use alot of the same techniques that l use to build rc aircraft.instead of using a regular iron buy a monokot iron from tower hobbies they are temperature adjustable and they are made for just what you need they also come with a cotton sock to protect the surface you are working on.
Another great video. I like the idea of an arm bevel, especially with my handicap, but I was wondering why you didn't just use a solid piece of the maple instead of that base wood you used underneath? That way you didn't have to use a veneer. Just curious.
Wow, Beautiful Work. Certainly have enjoyed your Videos. Fine Guitars. I was wondering, Spruce is used for the bracing mostly. Can any spruce be used or is it just the Sitka and Adirondack? Maybe because it is light in weight?
Hi I was noticing that Episode 1 came out May 11, so in a month will you call it the 3001 Year-old guitar? Keep up the good work! I would like to see a video on Humidity control, by the way in case you are looking for topics.
Well that was a nailbiter to watch...waiting for the impending doom....🤦🏻♂️ nice to see that you showed us you were indeed human...but please show us the steps you took to fix it...
Can't help but cringe every time you use the top of a $15,000+ guitar as a work surface. At least you didn't use a sharpie on thin paper resting on the top this time! But really, this is an amazing journey thanks for showing us all in UA-cam land the process, with all the warts and rescues.
Also, be sure to check out the selection of high quality tonewoods on our website under the "Tonewood" tab. driftwoodguitars.com/tonewood
Ah, sadly not so good for us in Europe. Where I am in rural France, I have to rely on ebay and suppliers from usually other countries. Sources in the UK (where I used to live) are now difficult to get hold of, here, and when you can, delivery prices are becoming ridiculous. Madinter (in Spain) do a reasonable range of the basic woods, but finding the more exotic and figured woods is not easy!
It's definitely reassuring to see that even experienced luthiers mess up sometimes. Too often, we forget that what we see of others' lives is just the edited highlights; it's good to be reminded that there are some moments you wish the camera hadn't been rolling!
he has an awful technique
Like many who watch this series, I'm not a luthier but find the whole series to be almost pure Zen . . . fun to watch, self-effacing humour, informative, educational and leaves me in awe of the skills involved.
The honesty of this episode just made the watchability even greater, even though Chris was pissed off at the end. Can only thank him and Matt for the effort and time they're putting into this project.
In the end, it is not how bad you screw it up. It is all about how resourceful you are at fixing it. If you learn from your mistakes, I am in the running for the smartest ever!
This episode came at a perfect time. Just found the channel and subscribed a couple days ago and binged all 23 episodes so far. Thought I’d have to wait a month for an update, but here we are!
This is amazing, all of it.
Appreciate your candor, sense of humor, expertise, and perhaps most of all, willingness to share, and the hard work by both of you to document all of this for us.
So i added it up, and you're at almost 10 hours of instructional videos on this one guitar. I appreciate the hard work, especially since video editing takes a lot of time as well
Excellent video Chris. It is good to see the highs and lows of luthiery ! We all make mistakes and anyone who says they don’t kidding themselves.
Brave and honest of you to show your error…respect !
Fixing mistakes and small errors are what makes us all better luthiers !
Look forward to the next video!
Cheers.
In my former life I worked as a Piano Tech. for a small company rebuilding old pianos. Often patching and replacing mostly Mahagony veneers. When removing excess wood I'd incise the break point line of the veneer using a #10 or #16 Exacto knife blade, snap off the excess veneer and sand smooth. Less risk, less drama than with a chisel😉
There is also a very specific product called heat lock veneer glue that is made to be used in exactly that method and I have used it several times. It works great and I have never had a veneer come loose with it. I know you have your process, but might be worth checking out. Love this series!
Aw man so close, but no doubt it'll look great when finished. I've had the pleasure of watching all the videos in this series over the last few days. Can't wait to see the rest of it
I’ve never been a fan of bevels, they just don’t appeal to my eye. But I have a whole new appreciation for the amount of work they add to a guitar build.
I really appreciate your transparency! Love your channel! Regards from Canada 🇨🇦 🍁
What is this?
Hey Chris & Matt, I want to send a huge thanks for the Titebond/Iron method. I have a Florentine cutaway on my current project that required an additional layer of veneer to fix a oopps! Cutting, bending, prep were easy but I was not sure how I was going to clamp the piece after glue up. Then I remembered this episode where you glued the veneer to the arm bevel. Voila, followed your lead, used my bending iron to heat the veneer in the curve of the cutaway, and it stuck amazing. Thanks for all your videos and sharing your knowledge .😎Vancouver BC
That’s awesome to hear! I’m glad I could pass it on as well.
Thanks for putting it all out there, Chris. i apprenticed with Bruce Scotten and he liked to say, "you screw up, you get a fancier guitar." I didn't know what he meant then, but I have come to realize that a big part of the mastery of luthiery is learning to fix mistakes so it's like they never happened. Or like they were intentional....
For oldschool veneering you would put hhg on liberally then put the veneer on and use a hot hammer and some pressure to open up the glue again and get it to stick.alsk burnishes the wood so if youre good at it no sanding will be required afterwards. My old boss could do panels like this and get them pretty close to dead flat
Mindnlowing skills
i was so nervous through the whole video waiting for the mistake. the suspense!
The glue trick works well with fish glue and hot hide glue as well
Yeah I think hit hide glue works better even because it contracts when hardening
TJust starting out. Taking Robbie O'Brien's course. Great to have some alternate perspective. Great stuff!
Joe
Been really enjoying your Luthier videos! For some reason I find it very relaxing to just watch haha 💯😉
in the LMI glue there is black light sensitive compounds to show where you have squeeze out to clean up
You can run a bead of super glue between the raised glued veneer and the top. Give the ironed veneer a little time before adding the super glue. I actually run a bead along both the top and sides before going at it with sander or chisel. Good luck.
That was the most nerve wracking half hour of my life!
Every pass with every tool I was on edge, just waiting for the feces to hit the Archimedes screw.
This was nail-biting. I had visions of you putting a chisel through the front face.
One thing I’ve found when working on certain tasks that are high stakes and which require great patience is to make sure I’m in the right state of mind beforehand.
Watching very nervously while you use that chisel……..WOW!
Skilled craftsmen/tradesmen learn how to do it right first time, then learn how to get over it when they don't. Anyone who hasn't messed up hasn't made anything. Was a shame, was a very nice veneer, looking forward to the next video 👍
Thanks for the props. Nice job on the bevel.
Dude! its so good to see you chime in! Lady's and gentlemen, this is the bad ass that taught me how to do the bevel through his DVD series. If you want a really clean cut explanation on how to do this, go buy that set!
I've always heard that luthiery is about recovering well from mistakes. Maybe that's a reason I shouldn't do it, but I'm going to anyway!!
Love the videos, guys.
no. luthiery is much about coming up with fail-proof methods.
I read the veneer trick on Sawmill Creek. Forgot about it til I saw this video. Don't think I'll forget again. Thanks! Might try that on an electric guitar top, just cut the veneer longer so I can weight it or clamp it down on the ends to hopefully prevent that curl.
I think the big bevel looks pretty awesome
anytime your concerned about tear out you can do a deep score line with a exacto blade or razor exactly where you want it to stop and it wont tear out
You have a steam iron. I would think that using a small amount of steam will help the wood flex. Very cool watching all your skill being shown.
SON OF A......!!!!! Well, I know you'll knock it out in no time and have a perfect looking bevel. It all makes sense now... Assuming everything goes right, I should be resawing backs and sides this weekend as the first step in building acoustic #1.
really nice job
That is going to one beautiful guitar. Thanks for sharing the process with us.
I can't wait, please update!!!!
Great video guys! Thanks for leaving that in the video. Can’t wait to see the 2nd part and the finished bevel it’s going to look beautiful :)
Arm bevel looks a bit big, but it don't protrude into the top, so you don't lose top property and top looks nice and symmetric.
I think it's quite clever. I bet it's comfortable too ;)
A chisel with rounded corners is a great tool for this kinda job. I have made a few for these tricky situations ;-)
Amazing series. Thanks guys. Can't wait for the other ones. All the best from Toronto and Looking forward for the rest of them.
Excellent tip on veneering!
Love your shows and learning a lot thanks for sharing and God’s blessings blessings for you two
How ya getting on Chris? I'm a very new builder and have learned a lot from your videos so thank you 👍 I'm also a joiner and we use industrial grade spray on contact adhesive for veneer work which is generally ready to glue together within 5-10 minutes depending on the weather, so I was wondering if you have ever tried an industrial grade spray on contact adhesive for the arm bevel veneer? I have also used the iron- on method before too which sorta got phased out once we started with the contact and only used occasionally....I was just curious to hear your thoughts on that you see 🤔
Looking forward to episode 25.
Ugh! Did my first bevel veneer a few weeks ago and tried to trace the shape of the bevel on paper. Worked ok, but seeing the tape on the intro made me smack myself. Thanks for the great tip!!!
I'm absolutely trying that glue trick with a guitar I'm re-veneering. That blew my damn mind. I hate when something happens that makes you have to redo what you just did. I just had to respray a burst because I messed up polishing the thing. Never wanted to throw a guitar across the shop more.
Ouch... Keep it real. Thank you, it's enjoyable watching your channel
Please show us in the next episode how to take of the veneer and prepare for the new bevel , thanks.
First off, let me say that you make gorgeous guitars, and I would be proud to own one if I could afford it. Having said that, and since you brought up some people's aesthetic complaints about your bevels, I want to say that my one quibble with your guitars is that the heels seem kind of clunky. I think it's much more elegant when the heel arches and tapers gracefully to a smaller end cap. Yours seem kind of blocky by comparison and I'm not fond of the "home plate" end cap. As I said before, it certainly doesn't stop me from wanting to own one though. Love the videos!
Could you use a bending iron in those tight curves like the waist? That’s if you could somehow hold on to it.
Great stuff!! Thanks again for showing the good and the bad moments.
Yeah I think I'd be using the sanding method. I was super nervous watching you do that with a chisel. But very interesting!
I enjoy watching your builds Chris though as someone not just a couch expert who has been doing curved veneer work for over 35 years my butt still puckered a little listening to the sound of the veneer as you were removing it with the chisel which in all honesty like you said usually works ( until it don't), getting to the point here I often soften handcut veneers for compound lamination's but don't make videos but found a guy ( imagineGrove woodworking ) who has a good recipe for plasticizing veneer. It might be worth it to maintain the thickness that you like . For what its worth. Greetings from N.Carloina.
Carlos Everett is a great guy!
Under what situation would you choose to use a decorative hardwood for the bevel block instead of using basswood + veneer? Skipping the veneer step would allow a little more leeway in the bevel shaping process. Perhaps, the choice is more a matter of wood grain orientation and aesthetics? Great series, I'm glad to see you working though all those fussy bits!
I can't wait to see this under finish. Dude!
I'm 23 minutes in and I can't handle the suspense.
Its wiers but this two fellows are first UA-camrs I would really like to seat down and have a beer with. Anyone lese get that?
You’re not building a 3000 year old guitar. You are building a guitar with a 3000 year old piece of wood.
Thank you so much for these videos!
Ohhhhh man! Argghh! Ah its gonna be interesting to see the fix. Thanks for keeping it all true! 👍✌
Go buy a large diameter curling iron. At sally beauty or something and use that on those inside corners that are so tight where the clothes iron can't get😊
Question I'd love you to discuss sometime... Chris plays guitar very well, but not all luthiers are good players. How important is a luthier's ability to play guitar? from both a guitar building perspective, and a marketing perspective
Wouldn't using kitchen shears to trim the veneer have been a better choice? Also, why not trim the veneer much closer and cut the ends off before applying? It looks like the ends got in the way of the bending and the gluing, ultimately causing your failure. A Dremel saw that attaches to your Dremel tool might be better. You could also use a scalpel to score the cut on the guitar side. A few passes with the scalpel into the cut and the veneer might cut off clean without endangering the guitar and allow for much less sanding. Plus. If you thin the veneer on the ends they should bend more easily and a better glue up. You are going to sand it thin anyway.
Thanks for all of these videos.
Suggestion; after you finish the last video it would be valuable to have them all in sequential order as one release either on DVD or for download. That way a person could follow step by step while making one's own guitars.
chris you use alot of the same techniques that l use to build rc aircraft.instead of using a regular iron buy a monokot iron from tower hobbies they are temperature adjustable
and they are made for just what you need they also come with a cotton sock to protect the surface you are working on.
It kinda looked like that was Matt's fault...........Seriously though, love the transparency! Can't wait to watch the end result.
that is a good lesson. all good . now you know what to so. be cool/ Love this show all ofb them.
Any plans, in a couple of weeks, for a party or special episode celebrating the one-year anniversary of the 3001 year old guitar build?
Another great video. I like the idea of an arm bevel, especially with my handicap, but I was wondering why you didn't just use a solid piece of the maple instead of that base wood you used underneath? That way you didn't have to use a veneer. Just curious.
Wow, Beautiful Work. Certainly have enjoyed your Videos. Fine Guitars. I was wondering, Spruce is used for the bracing mostly. Can any spruce be used or is it just the Sitka and Adirondack? Maybe because it is light in weight?
In my line of work.... This would ba a bad pipe day!!...... We all have bad pipe days!!
Sometimes you gotta make lemonade out of lemons.
I now don't feel so bad when I screw-up. I don't revel in your mistakes but it is reassuring to know I am not as incompetent as I feel at times.
HEY! Rhett is using your guitar in his new video.
A curling iron ( not your wife's ) might work really good on the inside curve .
Burn it! :D Ben Crowe Crimson Guitars reference
Dude… that is some of the scariest sh.t I have ever seen! Still holding my breath after your chisel work.😅
Hi I was noticing that Episode 1 came out May 11, so in a month will you call it the 3001 Year-old guitar? Keep up the good work! I would like to see a video on Humidity control, by the way in case you are looking for topics.
This episode and the previous one should be titled: “Are you sure you want an arm bevel? Parts one and two”
Thanks for being human!
So, the glue can't dry for less or more than an hour but it's ok to let it dry on the waist for an extra 15 mins while you fiddle with the trimming?
Kindig Customs do the same "tape template" thing when they fabricate steel plates for their custom cars..
What about PT 25?
It's taking long to correct the mess up on the veneer or the whole project ended off camera?
Q 16:00 - Spraying water would not make it easier?
Hello? You guys okay? Haven’t heard from you in a while.
Wow! Sorry! I know you will get it done.
Chris, what do you think is the most important glue joint in a guitar?
The bridge
chris can ya tell us how thick the veneer is for the arm bevel is
Time for a single malt. 🥃😉👍
Me and my dad both bought les Paul kits and plan to stain them. Do you have any recommendations?
I knew the tape trick and the glue trick, I thought I was pretty clever, then I realised I'm just old :o(
Well that was a nailbiter to watch...waiting for the impending doom....🤦🏻♂️ nice to see that you showed us you were indeed human...but please show us the steps you took to fix it...
Thats what the next episode will cover!
@@DriftwoodGuitars When are you anticipating showing that next episode?
I was so nervous watching this whole video.
It’ll be ok just super glue another popsicle stick to it.
He says never to use a chisel because you can screw it up. Proceeds to use chisel and screws it up.
I bet other luthiers mess up too, they just don't record it or have the balls to show it publicly like you did.
Can't help but cringe every time you use the top of a $15,000+ guitar as a work surface. At least you didn't use a sharpie on thin paper resting on the top this time! But really, this is an amazing journey thanks for showing us all in UA-cam land the process, with all the warts and rescues.
I used to work for the union... same principle. Drove me nuts. I'm not a perfectionist... but I almost am. Not great for union or government.
24:22 Anxiety...
Haven't seen he mistake yet, but it's stressing me out; that chisel just doesn't seem real sharp.
so sorry for U. Such a scarry process to watch you operate with teh chisel
Damn I hate it when that happens