side purfling question

[kencierp]

I personally (eyes not as sharp - hands not as steady as once they were) avoid using any solvents for cleaning before the soundboard is completely sealed-- with Rosewood in particular -- if you inadvertantly pull out/off some resin the sovent in the rag then becomes a "super penatrating" stain, if that gets on the bare spruce --- it is a problem. I do use a tack rag to clean off all the visible dust.

[darren]

... I use a combination of Duco and CA to attach the trim. Using CA is a big change for me, but this method makes using single strip multi layer purfling a breeze since laminating the layers is actually done last by drizzling CA between the layers after they are in place. I have a tutor in the works -- this method saves time and"tape"

Ken - any chance of getting a preview of that tutorial?

I was thinking about using ca to glue the top purfling in and then install the binding and side purf together with lmi white, to give me some working time to get the binding snug.

[kencierp]

Actually, I do just the opposite -- the purling is usually very flexible so it jambs into the channel very easily, I coat the purf channel with Duco a few inches at a time and take extreme care to get that top/purf edge perfect pulling the purf into place with tape. The risk with CA on the thin purf material is that the capillary action can run the glue "way down" along the channel and the strip and stick it permenately in the wrong location, before it is pull tight to soundboard edge.

Take a look at the Taylor Factory Friday video, binding part two -- I do pretty much what they do except I glue in the purf and binding seperately and use more CA. Using CA on the bindings makes sense to me because it is helpful dealing with subborn curves and stiff bindings (wood and fiber) Because you can tack it at different locations using accelerator to make it dry instantly -- it's like a magic clamp! Don't forget to seal the channels with lacquer.

[Kevin Sjostrand]

This hasn't been mentioned yet. On my last guitar I put side BWB puflings, top and bottom with the Koa bindings.
What I did was glue the purfling to the bottom of each binding strip BEFORE I bent the binding. I used CA to glue them together, and this worked quite well. I just glued a little at a time and used my hands to hold them together. When I bent the binding, the purflings bent right along, and I had no problems with separation.
It worked great.

Kevin

[Ken C]

I have been using the CA approach outlined by KenCierp now for several guitars. Easy to get the miters for the tail graft perfect that way, and the purflings and bindings don't have to be pre-laminated.

If you are using LMI's fiber purflings, you don't have to pre bend. If the purfs are wood, you will need to pre bend. Best way to bend any purfling is to tape all your purfs together, and sandwich them between your bindings. Put the taped up assembly in your bender and have at. I find that even using this approach, the really thin purfs like a .01/.01 b/w might kink as it is really tough to get them to bend across the wrong axis. No matter how tight the sandwich, those narrow buggers want to roll. I successfully bent some very narrow purfs for my last EIR OM, but after bending, I ended up having to spritz the purfs at the waist with water and clamp them in my vice to flatten them out. Next time, I may pre-laminate these very thin purfs to the binding prior to bending.

Below is a picture of the sandwich that includes 4 bindings, 2 BWBW purflings for the top, 2 BW purflings for the back, 4 very narrow BWBW purflings for the sides. Important to tape them tight around the waist, so the narrow purfs can't roll when bending.

IMGP8380_2.jpg

Ken

[JJDonohue]

here's an easy question - does side purfling have to be bent?

I have some bwb planned and haven't really thought about it before (#1 had no side purf) - you'd think i'd know that this far into the build! :oops:

I bend everything in the Fox bender...that includes kerfed lining (or solid lining lately) as well as binding and side purfs.

I always have the purfling attached to binding. For me it makes it soooo much easier to install to the binding channels. When I make my own binding, the purf is already attached as part of the layup and I get a nice smooth cut on the table saw. But when I glue on the purf separately to the binding, I do it in a simple holding jig, apply LMI White and tape down the purf to the binding. A few hours later, I run them through the thickness sander to get a nice smooth transition between purf and binding. My finished binding strips are usually between .070" and .080".

The holding jig I use is a board with ~.100" (or whatever the width of a tablesaw blade is) wide channels and 35" long. I insert the binding, lay down a tiny bead of LMI white, slap down the purf and tape in place. I do 4 at a time. Can't get much simpler.

Seems like I always have something clamped in the Fox Bender. After the sides are bent, I bend the liners and leave them clamped in the bender until I'm ready for them. Could be days or weeks until I need them. Once the bender is empty, I bend the binding strips (with the purfs attached) and leave them clamped until I'm ready to install. After so much time in the bender, they have been pretty much whipped into their desired shape!

[darren]

Thanks for all the tips guys, been too busy to scrape down bindings but will have it cleaned up probably this weekend and post pic's then. Lots of methods to consider for the next one, for sure.

[Tony_in_NYC]

On my last build, I used CA to do all of the binding and purfling. I taped it in place and dropped thin CA between the gaps in the tape. Worked great...except for one spot.
The CA can wick down a long way from where you drip it in...like 5-6 inches easily. So one spot where I did not have the binding perfectly tight with the back plate, it got glued permanently with a slight gap. Ken Cierp gave me tips for filling the gap that turned out great, but I would have preferred to not have the gap in the first place.
Live and learn, eh?