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Old 09-14-2015, 04:50 PM
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Default LAURENT BRONDEL – Model A-2c, Red Spruce/Honduran Mahogany: Build Thread

I have commissioned a Model A-2c (000 sized, 14-fret, cutaway) from West Paris, ME luthier Laurent Brondel. This commission will be Laurent's 115th guitar since "putting out his shingle" as a luthier back in 2006.

http://www.laurentbrondel.com/Site/Home.html

I have played Laurent’s guitars on two occasions when he exhibited them at The Woodstock Invitational Luthier’s Showcase in 2013 and 2014. I was taken by the traditional balance in their timbre and how sensitively they responded to my touch. I also admired the high quality of his craftsmanship along with the simple elegance of his signature design aesthetic.

Since I already have BRW/Engelmann and BL Maple/German 000 sized guitars from two other fine luthiers in my collection; adding a meaty, midrange rich, Mahogany/Red Spruce 000 from Laurent is a welcome addition to the mix. A 000 sized guitar made from Red Spruce top, Honduran Mahogany body and Brazlian Rosewood bridge and fingerboard is a classic combination.

Here are the basic specifications of the guitar:
Model: A-2
Top Wood: Red Spruce
Body Wood: 2-Piece, Large Block Mottled, Honduran Mahogany
Neck: 1-Piece, Honduran Mahogany
Fingerboard: Brazilian Rosewood
Bridge: Brazilian Rosewood
Cutaway Type: Venetian
Scale Length: 25.0”
Nut Width: 1.75”
String Spacing: 2.3125”
Fret Wire: Jescar EVO FS43080
Tuners: Waverly, Gold w/ custom Brazilian Rosewood Buttons
Finish: Oil Varnish
Case: Hoffee
For this A-2, we have chosen a set of "old growth" Honduran Mahogany which Laurent purchased about 2-years ago in 2013 from tonewood purveyor Tom Thiel (Northwind Tonewoods, http://northwindtonewood.com/about/). Laurent described the set as being quite dense for mahogany.

After we selected it for my commission, I reached out and spoke with Tom and he told me the provenance of the wood. He purchased the wood from an Estate in the form of flitch-matched boards and planks of this "old growth" mahogany in NYC in late 2012. They were able to rearrange them into their positions in the log. The wood had originally been purchased by a NYC cabinetmaking shop from Albert Constantine (http://www.constantines.com/constantineshistory.aspx) in the 1960s. Constantine had originally flitched the logs and the cabinet maker (Albert Braumfelds), had kept them in sequence in his store room. So Tom was able to recreate "true flitch-maps” of the logs, despite not having sawed them himself. The 500 board feet of well-seasoned boards up to 30" wide. The boards varied in their figure from ribbon stripe, block mottle, rolling wave, curl, quartered and plain sawn figure.

In tropical hardwoods like mahogany, sometimes spiral grain reverses at periodic intervals and produces a condition called "interlocked grain". When interlocked grain is produced uniformly and regularly in a tree and the log is quartersawn, a series of longitudinal parallel stripes are exhibited by the wood. These stripes alternate in color shades (dark, light, dark, light, etc.). A variation of stripe figure that sometimes occurs presenting a broken or interrupted stripe. This figure is caused by an indistinct, interlocked grain in combination with poorly developed wavy grain in the wood.

The type of figure that this set has is quite unusual. It has what is known in the veneer trade as a "large block mottle" figure. It is formed primarily upon the stripe formed by interlocking grain of the wood. When the cross wrinkles are deep, somewhat regular and spaced about the width of the stripe, the figure is known as "block mottle". This type of display in mahogany is really a scaled-up "Bees Wing" type figure.

Here is the back and side set:



Here is the raw set with some naphtha wiped on to bring out the figure.



As Laurent sends me shots of the build, I will post them on this thread.
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Last edited by iim7V7IM7; 09-21-2015 at 10:07 AM. Reason: Tom Thiel helped me on some facts...(thanks!)
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Old 09-14-2015, 05:07 PM
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She's gonna be a beauty! I'm loving my A2.
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Old 09-14-2015, 06:09 PM
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She's gonna be a beauty! I'm loving my A2.
Thanks Mike...great to hear...
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Old 09-14-2015, 06:39 PM
Tim Porter Tim Porter is offline
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Very cool. I always learn something from your build threads--you have a great aesthetic sense. Enjoy! A Brondel is one of the few makers left on my bucket list, along with Bruce. Tim
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Old 09-14-2015, 07:02 PM
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Laurent is one of my Favorite Luthiers for sure! You're gonna love it, this will be cool watching come together....
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Old 09-15-2015, 01:40 AM
steveh steveh is offline
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Congrats on a great new build.

I've played several Brondels and found them really excellent guitars. Great clarity and separation. I also heard more "wood" in them (vs. "string") than I do with a lot of modern guitars from across the Pond.

That mahogany is some of the nicest I've ever seen - great score.

Cheers,
Steve
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Old 09-15-2015, 02:50 AM
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Originally Posted by Tim Porter View Post
Very cool. I always learn something from your build threads--you have a great aesthetic sense. Enjoy! A Brondel is one of the few makers left on my bucket list, along with Bruce. Tim
Thanks, I hope that you can fulfill your "bucket list"!

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Originally Posted by Diamondave View Post
Laurent is one of my Favorite Luthiers for sure! You're gonna love it, this will be cool watching come together....
Thanks, I hope we meet your expectations...

Quote:
Originally Posted by steveh View Post
Congrats on a great new build.

I've played several Brondels and found them really excellent guitars. Great clarity and separation. I also heard more "wood" in them (vs. "string") than I do with a lot of modern guitars from across the Pond.

That mahogany is some of the nicest I've ever seen - great score.

Cheers,
Steve
Yes, Laurent's guitars do not sound as you would expect them to given the strong lateral arch. I actually think of his work as being more of an "evolved traditionalist" in how his guitars function than a modernist builder (perhaps semantics). Yes, not exactly, your typical 000-18 set of mahogany; but that's why its "the custom shop"...
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Old 09-15-2015, 02:03 PM
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Default Build: Update I

Laurent selected a Red Spruce top set today and began to fabricate the "arrow motif" rosette from Maple, Ebony and Cocobolo.



The Mahogany back set has been joined and an ebony/maple "arrow motif" back strip has been installed. Above is what one of the Mahogany sides being sprayed up with water prior to bending it. The rich, reddish brown hue of the "old growth" wood can be seen when it is wetted down.



Here is the same Honduran Mahogany side shown above being bent in Laurent's Fox bender...



Yesterday, we also chose a Brazilian Rosewood neck blank.

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Old 09-15-2015, 05:47 PM
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I really like the hog on this one. I haven't heard the term 'large block mottled' before? Someday old like to get my hands on one of Laurents guitars.
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Old 09-15-2015, 06:10 PM
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Default Figure in Wood

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Originally Posted by rlxnply View Post
I really like the hog on this one. I haven't heard the term 'large block mottled' before? Someday old like to get my hands on one of Laurents guitars.
Here is a nice overview on types of figure in mahogany produced in the 1940s.

http://mbveneer.com/sites/www.mbvene...ogany_book.pdf

Many terms regarding figure in wood has its origin in the veneer industry which specializes in different types of ornate figure. Take a look at pages 10 and 11 for an overview this type of figure.

Mottle: A term applied to figured wood that gives the impression of an uneven surface, although smooth. Broken wavy patches across the face. Twisted interwoven grain with irregular cross figure, which is the mottle. The effect is due to reflected light on the uneven arrangement of the fibers. The value of cabinet wood is increased greatly when it is mottled.

This is also an excellent online reference from Auburn University for those who are interested in wood:

http://www.aaes.auburn.edu/comm/pubs...ex.php#general
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Old 09-16-2015, 07:37 AM
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Thanks for sharing this information! I have a build coming up with Circa Guitars and I am strongly considering a Hog guitar so this is timely information.

Quote:
Originally Posted by iim7V7IM7 View Post
Here is a nice overview on types of figure in mahogany produced in the 1940s.

http://mbveneer.com/sites/www.mbvene...ogany_book.pdf

Many terms regarding figure in wood has its origin in the veneer industry which specializes in different types of ornate figure. Take a look at pages 10 and 11 for an overview this type of figure.

Mottle: A term applied to figured wood that gives the impression of an uneven surface, although smooth. Broken wavy patches across the face. Twisted interwoven grain with irregular cross figure, which is the mottle. The effect is due to reflected light on the uneven arrangement of the fibers. The value of cabinet wood is increased greatly when it is mottled.

This is also an excellent online reference from Auburn University for those who are interested in wood:

http://www.aaes.auburn.edu/comm/pubs...ex.php#general
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Old 09-16-2015, 08:31 AM
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A few of the custom shop frequenters have owned adirondack/mahogany A2cs including me, and I really loved that guitar.
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Old 09-16-2015, 03:44 PM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by rlxnply View Post
Thanks for sharing this information! I have a build coming up with Circa Guitars and I am strongly considering a Hog guitar so this is timely information.
John will build you a great guitar (congrats)...

Quote:
Originally Posted by matthewpartrick View Post
A few of the custom shop frequenters have owned adirondack/mahogany A2cs including me, and I really loved that guitar.
Great to hear Mathew...
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Old 09-16-2015, 03:50 PM
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Default Brondel Update 2

Here you can see the ebony/maple/cocobolo "arrow motif" rosette being glued into the routed channel in the top; the sound hole being cut and a close up detail of the finished rosette. The brown hues in the rosette should match well with the BRW features of the guitar.



Laurent has the joined Red Spruce top, cut the profile, installed the rosette and cut the sound hole. The Honduran Mahogany back set is now joined, outer profile cut and a ebony/maple "arrow motif" back strip installed. The mottled figure can begin to be seen a bit more distinctly.



Here, the BRW fingerboard is being fabricated. First a router jig is used to create the fingerboard profile. Next, you can see Laurent's slotting fixture. The resulting fingerboard and BRW/cross grained spruce laminated back reinforcement strip is shown next to the fingerboard. We also selected some BRW for the headplate veneers.



This is a shot of the treble side of the guitar with its Venetian cutaway being bent in Laurent's Fox bender. Using the same Honduran Mahogany from the neck blank, a neck block was also fabricated.

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Old 09-17-2015, 03:46 PM
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Default Brondel Update 3

Yesterday, Laurent installed the cross-grain spruce/BRW center reinforcement strip to the Honduran Mahogany back. He also started to install binding onto the BRW fingerboard and headplate veneer.



Here is a truss rod channel being cut into the Honduran Mahogany neck with his table saw with a dado blade. Next the two-way truss rod is waxed prior to being installed. The Honduran Mahogany body sides can be seen in to body mold in the background.

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