Hatcher Italian Olivewood and Italian Alpine Spruce

[rockabilly69]

can't wait to see this one with some finish!

[Mark Hatcher]

Originally Posted by VJP5

Oh My!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Thanks!

Originally Posted by Haasome

Wow, that turned out beautifully Mark. Congratulations.

Thanks for following!

Originally Posted by rockabilly69

can't wait to see this one with some finish!

Me too! Thanks.

I'm shopping cases for this guitar and will likely go with a Hoffee. I just need to work out what colors. There is a green with a black interior that I'm leaning toward.

[SJ VanSandt]

This guitar is so unique! I can envision a day when there is a Mark Hatcher museum - hopefully a few hundred years down the road when the instruments are no longer playable! Can't wait to see it under finish.

I'm curious, have you given thought to alternative materials for the nut and saddle? Stark white bone seems like it would detract from the overall visual impact.

[Mark Hatcher]

Originally Posted by SJ VanSandt

This guitar is so unique! I can envision a day when there is a Mark Hatcher museum - hopefully a few hundred years down the road when the instruments are no longer playable! Can't wait to see it under finish.

I'm curious, have you given thought to alternative materials for the nut and saddle? Stark white bone seems like it would detract from the overall visual impact.

Thank you for the kind words!
I agree with you 100% on using an alternative material for the nut and saddle and for exactly the same reason. The Olivewood is quite light and there is a lot of it! Now the grain lines will get much darker under finish and I have a section of Oryx horn that I will fashion both the nut and saddle from. It's a nice black and is a bit harder than buffalo horn. I also have a set of Black Diamond strings I'm going to try. They are a coated phosphor bronze and also quite black. I think they will look stunning on the Olivewood fingerboard. More importantly, from my experiments so far I believe they will contribute to the sound I'm looking for as well.
These additions will bring out the grain lines and add more definition to the overall look. That's the plan. Stay tuned!

[The Bard Rocks]

Attention to tiny details and a consummate aesthetic sense helps to set you apart from the crowd. i witnessed that on my own and I see it repeated here.. and on every other guitar of yours that I have seen.

[Mark Hatcher]

Originally Posted by The Bard Rocks

Attention to tiny details and a consummate aesthetic sense helps to set you apart from the crowd. i witnessed that on my own and I see it repeated here.. and on every other guitar of yours that I have seen.

Thanks! It's been my good fortune to do this work.

[Mark Hatcher]

While the guitar is going through the finish process I thought I'd get a jump on preparing the tuners. I have a new custom button design I want to work out.
Here are the Antique Gold Gotoh minis I'll be using:



I think the look is great with this guitar. One of the cool little features of these tuners are the more vintage looking solid beveled nut washers:



I will be using Katalox wood for the buttons. You can see this piece has some sapwood which I think ties in well with the Olivewood. You can also see the brass ferrules I made are already in place:



When I make tuner buttons I start with a stick of buttons to cut out. In this case I am making extras because I have to work out how I am going to carve these, so I have a couple practice ones.
Here is my first try:



The idea is to follow the sculpted theme I've employed on the headstock, heel cap, etc. while also following the contours of the Gotoh tuners. Additionally, the goal is to make a uniquely comfortable custom button. I've created an indent on one side of the button for the tip of the thumb and on the other side another indent for the finger tip. Of course, it works that way whichever way you are turning the button.
Looks like it's going to work! The finished buttons will also have the sapwood caps and a black set screw.

[Jobe]

Amazing how much has gone into this guitar. It's fun to watch as there is always an unexpected twist. You are very interesting!

[Mark Hatcher]

Originally Posted by Jobe

Amazing how much has gone into this guitar. It's fun to watch as there is always an unexpected twist. You are very interesting!

Thanks Jobe. As I said at the start I wanted to stop and rethink each aspect of this guitar and consider what the next step up should be. The Penelope is my oldest design and lends itself well to the many iterations that have grown from the initial design.

[Mark Hatcher]

I've got the tuner buttons all set!



I'm happy with the color of that brown in the Katalox. It's from the same board that I made the guitars binding and the inside of the scoop cutaway.
Here's a couple close ups;

[FLRon]

Mark, love the buttons. Curious about how much weight was shaved off those tuners by going with wood buttons?

[Nemoman]

The buttons look great, Mark--they'll be right at home on this beauty!

[Mark Hatcher]

Originally Posted by FLRon

Mark, love the buttons. Curious about how much weight was shaved off those tuners by going with wood buttons?

Originally Posted by Nemoman

The buttons look great, Mark--they'll be right at home on this beauty!

Thanks FLRon and Nemoman!

The metal buttons that came off weighed 34gr and the wooden buttons finished at 10gr so that shaved off 24gr or almost an ounce off.

[BrunoBlack]

Beautiful Mark. How did you get the light color on the end of the buttons?

[Mark Hatcher]

Originally Posted by Haasome

Beautiful Mark. How did you get the light color on the end of the buttons?

Katalox has a very light sapwood (like Cocobolo) so I just included some when I cut the button profiles.