Have you built your own guitar? Can you tell us about it? What sort of guitar is it?
How did you learn? Are there any books, videos, or courses that you would recommend? What sorts of tools do you need to get started?
What did you learn in the process of building your guitar? What was the hardest part? What would you do differently next time? Are you thinking of (or maybe already building) a second or a third guitar?
I am an amateur luthier. I build my first guitar as a flamenco guitar. I used Sapele (African Mahogany) for the back and sides, Spruce top, Walnut for the fret board and purfling (fiddly bit along the edge) and Quilted Maple for the neck. It was a Herculean task that took many months. I would say the most difficult part of the process was being patient with myself as I struggled to understand the method of construction. In the end it came out great, but there were a few mistakes that became apparent over time.
1. I now understand why they saddle has those wings that stick out. They add stiffness without adding bulk to the saddle which would affect tone. I made my wings a hair too thin and the bridge started to separate from the sound board. I had to epoxy it back down.
2. I made the back slightly too thin. This is such a trade off. If the back and sides are too thick it will dampen the resonance that you get from the wood reflecting the sound back out of the sound hole. It would sound muffled. When I say too thin, I mean by a few hundredths of an inch. My back split slightly in the winter when the air dried out. I repaired it with epoxy and now it is stabilized.
3. The rosette is HARD to do! If you have a guitar with a beautiful inlay rosette, appreciate it. This is one of the reasons the best guitars cost so much money and why cheaper guitars have a sticker for the rosette. It takes about as much time to build a beautiful rosette from scratch as it does to build the rest of the guitar.
A guitar is a masterpiece of engineering and art. It is the culmination of centuries of trial and error. The designs we have today are a trade off between a supportive engineering process to make the guitar stiff enough not to collapse in on itself with the tension of the strings and the flexibility and streamlining to make it move and flex with even the most delicate vibration of a string to produce a complex and rich sound. The art is in the design and the craftsmanship that goes into each guitar. Since each piece of wood is unique, you can only use measurements as a guideline. a certain piece of spruce might crack without a little stiffer internal bracing while another might be robust enough to go lighter. This bracing has a huge impact on the sound, since the sound is produced from the vibration of the soundboard itself. Only time and experience can help a luthier decide on these kinds of adjustments. This cannot be done with a factory guitar.
If you have a luthier buildtguitar and spent thousands on it, now you know why. It is a labor of love and an heirloom for generations. Enjoy it and love it.
If you have questions on how to get started, reply to this post and I will post some suggestions.
-Mike R.
Thanks so much for sharing this, Mike! I have a lot to learn about guitar construction, so all this information is really interesting. Besides the sound and feel of my two concert guitars (one classical, one flamenco, (made by Virginia luthier Tom Rodriguez), I've always liked the rosettes on both of them. I appreciate them even more knowing how difficult is. When you get a chance, I have a couple questions in response (for you or any other luthiers!)
(1) The type wood that you choose for the back and sides affects the sound of guitar. I assume that the wood choice for the purfing is purely aesthetic. But what about the neck? I would guess it needs to be a very hard wood that doesn't warp over time... but besides that, is it mostly aesthetic? Are there functional, sound, and/or playability issues to consider?
(2) To even begin building your first guitar, it seems like you need a lot of background knowledge and skills. How did you even know enough to get started? Did you take a course? Use books and/or internet resources? Did you have prior experience with woodworking? Would you consider that important or essential?
As far as guitar construction is concerned, I know what I like/dislike in a guitar when I hear and play it, but I know little behind the craft that goes into producing them. It's a gap in professional knowledge that I'm working on filling, so I really appreciate the information!