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I decided to blog this repair. My husband's daughter passed way almost 3 years ago. She had one possession that she cherished, her classical guitar. All we know of the guitar is that she got it in the mid-late 70's, and it was her constant companion.

She was German, so we know she picked up this guitar in Europe The label has long fallen out of it. Knowing Sue, she picked it up used. Sue traveled the world, usually staying in a different countries for two or more years at a time. This guitar has seen Europe, India, Thailand, the Middle East, as well as the Caribbean and Middle America. She also owned 2 rare sitars, which she played for the dignitaries who visited the Indian Government in New Deli (yes, a German playing an Indian sitar for diplomatic visitors to India; go figure. LOL).

When I got the guitar, it had a old woven strap, which was falling apart and held at the bottom of the guitar by a giant fishhook. The bridge had lifted and the soundhole dished, because of a lack of humidity. I humidified the guitar, which pretty much straightened things out. It played for a while, until I heard a crack, which is never good. The transverse brace split and 2 fan braces broke away. I fixed them. Finally, I could tell that something else had detached. The bridge patch had come loose and the spruce under the bridge had rotted.

It was time to make a new top. I pulled the top, made another out of engelmann spruce. Everything went great, but I noticed that the action was ridiculously high, even with the nut/saddle being low. I double checked the neck to make sure it wasn't pulling up, but it's secure. Then I realized what I'd done: I put a radius into the top and the top on her guitar is meant to be dead flat. So:

NOTE TO SELF: Self, check to see if the ruddy top being replaced on the guitar needs a radius!

So, here I am doing it again. But, I'm also refinishing the rest of the guitar.

As luck would have it, I bought engelmann spruce plates for the Cherry guitar. I'd already joined this top and thicknessed it, but I was afraid I'd thinned it a bit too much for a steal string guitar, so I bought a white spruce set for the 00 Cherry guitar, and saved this top. The plate is ~.090", so it should make a nice classical top. This top came from a luthier in Iowa, who makes classical guitars. The top has a wonderful tap. The body is pommel mahogany laminated on mahogany.

Fun project Diane. That looks like a pretty top.

The original top had a very simple 5 fingered torres fan bracing pattern. I like the traditional 7 fan brace pattern, but I wanted less weight. I found a photo of a bracing pattern that Peter Oberg used in one of his guitars. It's the typical 7 fan torres design, with a difference: The center "fan" brace, is a very thin brace, cut so that the grain is perpendicular to the grain of the top (like we do for the center back); he does the same for for every other brace on either side of it. These braces are almost paper thin, but wider than the other 4 braces, which are typical torres braces.

Using the photograph, I drafted a pattern for Sue's top, which I think (hope) will allow the top to transmit the vibration without being over braced, yet ensure that the top is properly supported. I didn't draw the bridge plate on the plans yet; it will be fitted under the braces.

The areas filled with gray, represent the braces which will be 10mm wide and very thin, with the grain running perpendicular to the top grainline. The other fan braces will be 6mm wide with appropriate height. There will be a thin piece of wood that surrounds the soundhole. I've already replaced the original tuners, which were trashed, with Rubner German made tuners, with anti-friction bearings.

Those back braces look pretty substantial. They could probably be thinned down a bit to advantage.

MaineGeezer wrote:Those back braces look pretty substantial. They could probably be thinned down a bit to advantage.

The photo is of the paper drawing I made of the bracing pattern for the top, based on a photo I saw on the internet, not the actual top. I didn't want to put a photo in the forum, without the permission of the person who took it.

All of the grayed out braces will be very thin, which is why I chose this particuar bracing scheme. I "grayed out" the three braces in photoshop, so what you see is not to scale; the braces in these 3 areas will only be 10mm wide.

The bracing pattern I'm using is like that used by Kevin Sjostrand for his top. The difference will be the change I'm making to braces (from left to right) #2, center, & #6; they'll be slightly wider, but very thin. The upper bout will be slightly different as well.

Here is the photo of Kevin Sjosrand's top for his classical:

download/file.php?id=7880&mode=view

I'm looking at the photo of the back -- DSCF0127.JPG

Those braces look to me heavier than they need to be.

MaineGeezer wrote:I'm looking at the photo of the back -- DSCF0127.JPG

Those braces look to me heavier than they need to be.

I thought you were looking at the drawing for some reason. Yes, it is over braced. I'll clean up the inside and shave the braces before closing the box.

I've reshaped the neck more to my liking. The nut width was 2 1/8", which is uncomfortable for me to play. I've narrowed the neck to 1 7/8". I'm vacillating between reusing the fingerboard that I put on it over a year ago. It was one of the practice fingerboards that I made, before making the OM. I made it out of rosewood, and I inlaid it with Martin diamonds, even though classical guitars don't have fretmarkers, but I needed the practice. It's a nice fingerboard, but I have a piece of gabon ebony sitting here that's really beautiful.

I'm not sure if I want to put the ebony on it, or keep it for my next build.

Diane Kauffmds wrote: ...but I have a piece of gabon ebony sitting here that's really beautiful.

I'm not sure if I want to put the ebony on it, or keep it for my next build.

Interesting quandary. I always seem to be in that position. In 1975, I used a most spectacular set of Brazilian Rosewood in what turned out to be decades before I was qualified to use it. It's hard for me to overcome that lesson. :-)

-d.

Since this is a very sentimental piece to you and your husband I'd be highly tempted to use the "really beautiful gabon ebony" as you described it.

I agree. I've decided to go with the ebony. There's nothing to this fretboard since it's for a classical guitar; it's a piece of cake compared to the extensive inlaid vine that I put into the Cherry/White Spruce 00.

Danl8, how did the piece made with BW turn out for you?

I've inlaid the rosette. I'll post a picture as soon as I get it cleaned up.