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  #31  
Old 09-01-2016, 01:45 PM
baimo baimo is offline
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I owned one of Brian's SJ's with a soundhole and it came out beautifully: I bought it from Jon Garon and then an AGF member called me in a jam and I sold it for him to use in place of his broken Olson for some gig. It is a wonderful guitar



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  #32  
Old 09-01-2016, 08:39 PM
bobernet bobernet is online now
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Quote:
Originally Posted by baimo View Post
I owned one of Brian's SJ's with a soundhole and it came out beautifully: I bought it from Jon Garon and then an AGF member called me in a jam and I sold it for him to use in place of his broken Olson for some gig. It is a wonderful guitar
Ok, so the important question is... Did you replace it?

I am really pretty head over heels with Applegate guitars. I need to learn some jazz so I can justify having him build me a wonderful arch top!

I'm very excited about this current build, and believe the process and the end product will really showcase Brian's talents.
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  #33  
Old 09-02-2016, 12:28 PM
baimo baimo is offline
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Quote:
Originally Posted by bobernet View Post
Ok, so the important question is... Did you replace it?

I am really pretty head over heels with Applegate guitars. I need to learn some jazz so I can justify having him build me a wonderful arch top!

I'm very excited about this current build, and believe the process and the end product will really showcase Brian's talents.
No I did not replace it but that is no reflection on The Applegate. I am just much more comfortable with a bigger shop. I have several Froggy's and several Custom Shop Martins that all cost more than the Applegate. I would love to try an Olson guitar as JT has made him quite famous and he has a special allure. But firs of all, I have never been lucky enough to even see an Olson except when I see JT in concert. And even then I question how great the guitar really is. He recorded all his great music using a 58 Gibson J-50 I believe.
So aside from Olson who is famous and I have read much about his great guitars, luthiers like Brian Applegate or all the other luthiers that the people in this forum (Ryan, Greenfield, etc) love, I am clueless about their guitars or their sound and feel. I know what the neck is going to be like if I order or buy a Froggy Bottom. I know and am at ease when buying a Martin as I know how they sound and feel for the most part.
I am just uncomfortable with buying a guitar from someone I know nothing about and do not know if I will like their guitars.
With my Applegate, I know Jon Garon and he knows me well enough that if I was unhappy, he would take it back. I assume after going through the design and build process with one of these wonderful luthiers you can not just order and return it for your cash back if things do not work out. I would be uncomfortable even asking to exchange such an instrument.
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  #34  
Old 09-02-2016, 03:28 PM
bobernet bobernet is online now
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Obviously, every luthier will have his or her own policy on commissions, returns and refunds. That said, I know that many of them will take a guitar back if you're unhappy for any reason as long as the customizations are not so far outside the lines as to make the instrument difficult to sell elsewhere.

The majority of the builders I see discussed here have waiting lists stretching months or years. They would not have a hard time selling a guitar that someone decided was not a fit for them.

All the high-end dealers I know also have an inspection period, allowing you to return a guitar for any reason. Buying a luthier-built instrument from Dream, Luthier's Collection, Guitar Gallery, etc becomes nearly a no-risk proposition. (A couple hundred $$ on shipping when talking about a $5k, $10k, $30k guitar is as close to "no risk" as you can get, from my perspective.)

Anyway, best wishes to you, and back to our regularly scheduled Applegate gawking and discussing...
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  #35  
Old 09-28-2016, 10:26 AM
bobernet bobernet is online now
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Today's update covers the beginning of binding and purfling ledges. Brian sets up 9 individual routers just to handle this one operation.





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  #36  
Old 10-03-2016, 02:53 PM
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Some BWB to get this purfling party started!

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  #37  
Old 10-04-2016, 03:24 PM
bobernet bobernet is online now
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As we continue our purfling adventure, it's time to reveal a big surprise in this build.

Brian has been experimenting with different purfling materials in an attempt to answer what I call, "The Martin 40-series question." Does the bling make a difference in the tone or not?

He is very convinced that it does make a difference, and of all the materials he's tried, Teflon has the most profound and positive impact on tone. I was a hard sell, but he has convinced me to skip the abalone top purfling, and use Teflon instead.

What say you?



And here you can see it with the flamed Koa binding as well...

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  #38  
Old 10-05-2016, 08:57 AM
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Well, that joke seems to have fallen flat. Obviously, we're not doing Teflon purfling, it's simply used as a spacer to create a perfectly sized channel for the installation of the Paua abalone.



As you can see, Brian is using only real top-grade Paua for the purfling; there's no Ablam or Zipflex here. The hammer face is used to press the purfling solidly into the channel left behind by the Teflon removal.







Brian's process is to complete the body before beginning on the neck. He has some more purfling and binding to do (including the back) before it's time to work on the neck, which will be a real treat.

As scarce as Brazilian back and side sets are getting, it's even less common to find blanks large enough for a quality guitar neck. This build will sport Brian's traditional 5 piece neck design, but the main ingredient will be Brazilian Rosewood.

Brian and I both believe that the density of the neck can and does contribute to sustain. The sustain of my Port Orford Cedar / Ziricote FS from Brian is unbelievable. It is the only guitar I've ever seen to use Ziricote as a major component of the neck. We believe that using Brazilian here, despite being rare and expensive, gives us the best opportunity (along with other construction details) to replicate or exceed that trait which I love in my other FS.

Final comment on this particularly long update post...

I'm a bit disappointed by the lack of response to this build. I feel like I'm doing Brian a disservice, as my goal was really to showcase his work, process and skill to a broader audience at AGF. I hope that interest and engagement will increase as we get farther along and there's more guitar to behold.

Thanks for reading, and please PM me if there's something I can add that would make this more interesting to the readers.

All the best... Bob
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  #39  
Old 10-05-2016, 09:10 AM
Nemoman Nemoman is offline
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Looking great so far! The endgraft and rosette are very tasteful--almost looks like wenge in the rosette. I'm not familiar with Brian's work--it really looks clean and precise with excellent craftsmanship. Looking forward to seeing it all come together and hearing it when it's finished. Congrats!
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  #40  
Old 10-05-2016, 12:18 PM
steveh steveh is offline
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Quote:
Originally Posted by bobernet View Post
I'm a bit disappointed by the lack of response to this build. I feel like I'm doing Brian a disservice, as my goal was really to showcase his work, process and skill to a broader audience at AGF. I hope that interest and engagement will increase as we get farther along and there's more guitar to behold.
Don't worry - we're all here living vicariously.

There's only so many "wow" and "great build" posts, in me at least.
I'd take more notice of views than posts - you've had >3.3K.

cheers,
Steve
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  #41  
Old 10-05-2016, 04:12 PM
bobernet bobernet is online now
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Thanks, Steve and Nemo. No need for validation posts, necessarily, just want to do my best for a great guy and builder!

If you haven't heard/played his guitars, it's a good time to do it. He's definitely in the Olson/Ryan school of tone, and his craftsmanship is impeccable. His prices are still very affordable for the caliber of work.
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  #42  
Old 11-01-2016, 12:02 PM
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Now that the guitar is starting to look like a guitar, Brian is beginning work on the neck. It's super exciting to see the body work mostly done, and at least the rough shaping of the neck. It feels more real.

Here are some pics of the body...







As I mentioned before, we're using Brazilian Rosewood for the neck as well. The laminate is BRW-Maple-BRW-Maple-BRW. It's incredibly rare to find guitars built with a Brazilian neck these days.



Thanks for looking. Let me know what you think so far. More great detail work coming on the neck, soon!
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  #43  
Old 11-01-2016, 02:22 PM
Nemoman Nemoman is offline
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That back and side set are really amazing--it really is looking stunning at this point. Never seen a BRW neck before--looking forward to seeing how it plays out!
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  #44  
Old 11-01-2016, 04:30 PM
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I don't know how this thread escaped me, otherwise I wound have chimed in a long time ago. That Brazilian might be the best I've ever seen. Congrats.
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  #45  
Old 11-02-2016, 07:49 AM
bobernet bobernet is online now
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Matthew, Nemo, thanks for your comments. I'm very pleased with the way it's coming together. Brian has a lot of talent, and access to great woods. I feel very fortunate to be able to own 3 of his masterpieces.

Matthew, your reaction to the Brazilian was the same as mine. I know I might be biased, but I have never seen BRW this good from any modern builder, nor have I seen anything - even vintage - that surpasses it.

As good as it looks, I can't wait to hear it. That's where an Applegate reallly shines!
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