Building a flatpicking guitar for loud surroundings

[Darryl Young]

Any updates Herman? Fun to follow this build.

[Ken Hundley]

Herman, you may want to try a sound port as well, if you are looking for more volume. I know there is a lot of debate on them, but the small bodied that I have built without sounded great. Those that I added them too sounded great, and much louder, had a bigger presence in the room. Just a thought.

[Darryl Young]

Ken, I'm curious about your comment. Do you think the guitar is louder to a listner out in front of the guitar? Or do you think the guitar only sounds louder to the player? Or both?

[Herman]

Hi guys,

This project is much tougher than I thought. And already so many mistakes. I do hesitate a bit to post pics, but I promise I'll do so next weekend.
The Sapele was so hard to bend as was the snakewood binding. The sapele did adapt in the end, but the snakewood was a pain in, you know.
The box is closed (did not use a soundport. You should make one before closing the box, right?)
but the bindings are that hard, and only want to stay in the shape they were bent. So every curve that does not fit 100% shows a gap. I hate this. On top of that there were the sides that somehow did not have the proper profile, so I had to shave of about 1/2 an inch. Makes a less deep guitar. hmm.
In the end I managed to glue the top 1/2 an inch from the centreline, had to take it off and reglue it. Overall it has been quite a struggle.

The taptones are a bit disappointing, far from rosewood-rings I'm familiar with. It sounds very woody. Due to the sapele I guess. The top still is a bit on the thick side, so there is room for improvement. And is it loud? Don't know, we'll see.
Herman

[darren]

Herman,
sorry it's going so rough for you; somehow I think you'll make it through with a beautiful final product, as always.

I forget, do you use a fox style bender or bend by hand?

[Ken Hundley]

The guitar was louder for both the player and the audience. My wife heard the first song after I added the soundport to the Lion & The Lamb, and asked why I was playing it so hard. I was fingerpicking with hardly any fingernails, and she had heard my playing it for months before I refinished it. You can ad a port at any time, whether the guitar is finsihed or not.you just need to be more careful when it is finished.

At the stage you are at, Herman, it can still easily be done. Just be sure it is placed between side reinforcements.

Sorry to hear about the difficulties. I am windering if you think you could route a purfling channel inside the binding that would equalize the gaps and allow you to fill with something? I am envisioning a pin router blade, and a very careful hand ustilizing a router binding jig similar to Bill Cory's, and a very careful hand keeping it perpendicular to the side? Just a thought.

[Herman]

Thanks guys for your words. Here are some pics of the build.
Ken, Would you just make the soundportholes ijn the sides or should I make some kind of reinforcements?
I'm in doubt about the layout. A large hole or a pattern of smaller ones like in the Ovation Adamas.
But I'll think of something.

[Ken Hundley]

I'm all for simplicity....I would make one hole, but you certainly could do multiples. I just have a hard enough time making one look even slightly ok. Braces look good!

[Kevin Sjostrand]

Looking good Herman, that is some nice looking Mahogany, and your rosette is nice and clean.

Kevin

[David L]

That's a wenge rosette, yes?

David L