Meanwhile, Back to the Back...
The back braces have been radiused and are glued onto the back in a 'dish' of the same radius as the braces. Since the back is so thin (approx. 2.3 mm) it will easily hold the curved shape after the glue dries, and a domed back is achieved.
Shaping the braces after they have been glued on... This shows a carved brace (on the left), carving in progress (middle), and one not yet touched.
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Ah, it occured to me that before the back can be attched, there must be some sides to attach it to. I'm using a different method to bend the sides than the previous guitar (documented earlier in this blog), in which the side was pressed into a mold. Here, a 'bending iron' is being used - the bending is done by hand, holding the wood against the iron until it is hot (and pliable) enough to bend. While bending, the side is frequently referenced to the template to make sure it is shaped correcly. |
It's also important to check to make sure that the side does not develop a twist as it is bent, so it is frequently checked for square.
Fast forward a bit, the sides have been installed into place, and the linings and tail block added. Also (and very importantly) since the back is radiused, the linings, tail block, and foot have all been shaped to accomodate the radius of the back so everything fits nicely. Oh, one more thing - you can make out small notches carved out of the lining (three on each side) - the back braces sit down into these notches. OK, it's ready for the back to go on!
The back is glued up and clamped. This is the 'face down' method of assembly, which while having it's advantages, has the disadvantage of not being able to access the inside of the guitar through the sound hole to remove any squeezed out glue (before it dries). When using this method, you have to be careful to get enough glue in the right places, but not so much that it creates globs of squeezed out glue inside the guitar (most unsightly).
Whew, clamps removed and a successful back glue-up. Looking through the soundhole, you can see where the back brace fits into the notch. Fortunately, you don't see (much) glue squeezed out...
At this point it starts to look like a guitar!
Next post: Making a bridge with hand tools.
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