Re-Building an Old Parlor

[WaddyT]

A masterful piece of work, Joe. You have, truly, produced a silk purse from a sow's ear!

[Dennis Mitchell]

Sorry to be late chiming in Joe, but great job on breathing life back into this old girl. Nice know hear all you ideas on bracing paid off. Can't add much more to what has already been said, so I'll keep it short and sweet. Looks good, sounds good, and with a touch of Sustaire class to make people wonder just what is! Ya gotta love it!!!

[DaveAnderson]

Dave, I got some retarder and that sure 'nuff took care of the blushing. I mixed in about 1/2 capful to a 1/2 a spray pot of lacquer. No more problems. Thanks!



Thanks everyone,
Joe

Your very welcome Joe.
Im glad it worked for you.

[Aoibeann]

Joe, she looks wonderful. You did a fantastic job. Visually, she has "IT". Lots to be proud of there.

Any chance of getting a sound file?

[Joe Sustaire]

Thanks again for all the great comments! They mean a lot to me.

To update this build, just in case anyone is foolish enough to follow what I've been doing here.
I've had to change from the tail-piece with floating bridge, to a regular pinned bridge. Turns out this bracing wasn't heavy enough to withstand the downward force generated by the strings from the tail-piece anchor. The top was slowly becoming concave under the bridge. A true flat-top is one thing but a sinking top just looks terrible, plus the action gets lower and lower. Also as the top loosened up, the sound started getting muddier and muddier, till finally it was almost like strings on a cardboard box, not that there is anything wrong with that, it just wasn't quite the sound I was shooting for.

So now she sports a pinned bridge which as you know adds a major brace to the top which tightens it up significantly, and we have string tension pulling on the top instead of just pushing down. I also added a rosewood patch over the bridgeplate to resist string-end wear since it just had a spruce bridgeplate before.

Here's how she looks now.



The bridge is made from poisonwood, which I don't know much about, but it seems about right in hardness and weight.

And on stringing it up tonight and first playing, the clarity is back, nice and even across the strings and lots of power for a small box. And yes sound-files are in my plans, just haven't worked out the details yet for hosting them.

So she's got a few scars and screw holes left over from the tail-piece, but she's singing clearly again.
Just remember, when you step off the beaten path, you're liable to stub your toe!

Joe

[D_H_G GUITARS]

Stub your toe Joe, she looks beautifull man! I don't care much for the tail piece guitars that are not true archtops but your bridge looks nice and this should take care of the top sinking in on it's self.

Thxs
Hugh

[JMPBuffalo]

Still looks pretty classy to me, Joe!

Joe

[DaveWhite]

Joe,

Nice bridge.

You've got the perspective on this slightly wrong though imho, if you don't explore, you don't learn and stay in the same little bubble so rather than a stubbed toe think of it as an illumination of a few more instrument making brain cells.