SS Pegu Guitar build update

[printer2]

Originally Posted by Ozzy the dog

I saw these little 'anchor' thumb pins in a stationer's and could not resist. I set it in clear resin and aluminium sleeve.

How could you not?

[Ozzy the dog]

http://www.acousticguitarforum.com/f...d.php?t=460396

I have finally managed to get this guitar finished (in build at least). The bridge is temporary and is not fastened down at the moment as I still have some work to do to get the tone as good as possible.

As indicated in the original thread, this build was more of an art and experimental project rather than the pursuit of the perfect tone. With the ‘thin’ cedar and the Teak sides, the sound might be described as good, but it is not in the same league as the professional builds that are usually found in the custom build section.

Apart from trying the ‘decking’ sides construction, the other main experiment was to re-visit an alternative method of bracing the sound board. This system requires a different approach to the bridge construction which is why the bridge is not fastened down at present. I will be trying a few different ideas here to find the perfect combination of bridge and bracing.

This guitar has been created with a salvage/marine theme with most of the parts recovered from scrap or discarded timbers plus, of course, the Teak salvaged from the SS Pegu.

As so much of the SS Pegu history has been absorbed into this guitar, I wanted to acknowledge the loss of the 22 year old 4th engineer from the sinking of the Pegu. Unfortunately, his name was Robert Maxwell and as more recent history here in the UK has seen this particular name tarnished I decided to just include the initials 'RM' in the Wenge at the end of the fret board.

Overall I am quite pleased with the finished article, although I appreciate, it will not be to everyone’s taste.





The back and neck are Honduras Mahogany rescued from the dusty shelves of a local retired Luthier.


The Schaller machine heads have been sitting at the bottom of a drawer since the 1990's. The central inset piece is Oak.


The sides are made from 64 shaped pieces of the Teak with a further 64 pieces of Oak around the top and bottom edges. The thin dark inlay is Walnut.


The Teak salvaged from the SS Pegu may not provide the best audible tone but the visual tone is very rich and does not apear to have suffered from it's 94 year rest on the sea bed.


The aluminium anchor and end stop were made from my old fish tank stand… and yes, the fish tank was used for marine fish.






The ‘Overend’ name is made from 6mm copper cooker cable inlaid into the Wenge head veneer and sanded flat for a nice flush finish.


The small anchor is a thumb pin (pin removed) I found in a stationer’s shop. The truss rod cover is mahogany from the neck in the form of boat decking.


The sound hole design is made from Oak and is based on my initials ‘F.O.’ The black speaker gauze is there simply to hide the internal construction.


The date, 8/7/17 (UK format) is to mark the 8th July 1917 as the day the SS Pegu was sunk and 8th July 2017 as the date the final component to the guitar was made and the first day all parts were first put together.


Guitar stood on what will be the lid to its’ crate.

I'm thinking of making a David Wren style video of the sound and construction in due course... watch this space.

Thanks for looking,
Fred.

[CE Sobel]

Wow I love this concept! Great aesthetic on the sides.

[Ozzy the dog]

Originally Posted by CE Sobel

Wow I love this concept! Great aesthetic on the sides.

Thanks, glad you like it. It was fun seeing it through from imagination to reality but very time consuming.

[magirus]

I love the concept, the background story and the workmanship, well done! I also look forward to hearing what it sounds like.

[TomB'sox]

Congrats on a long and personal project which meant a lot to you. I am glad you saw it through and completed the guitar. It looks really really good. Congratulations again!

[Stevied63]

Very nice, and an interesting background on the build. I really like how you tied in the connection to the boat!

[Ozzy the dog]

Originally Posted by magirus

I love the concept, the background story and the workmanship, well done! I also look forward to hearing what it sounds like.

Thanks, glad you like it, a lot of work to get the effect but that's where all the fun is. Not perfected the sound yet but I think it was always going to look better than it would sound....

Originally Posted by TomB'sox

Congrats on a long and personal project which meant a lot to you. I am glad you saw it through and completed the guitar. It looks really really good. Congratulations again!

Thanks, I do tend to get a little engrossed in a project and often end up spending more time than originally planned but I like to think it's worth it. I've always worked on the idea that if you're making something yourself it should have a personal slant and be different to anything available elsewhere. It doesn't always work but when it does - it does. Just need to make a case for the guitar now but I think Mrs Ozz has some other projects for me to do first.

Originally Posted by Stevied63

Very nice, and an interesting background on the build. I really like how you tied in the connection to the boat!

Thanks Steve, It's funny where an idea on construction of a guitar can lead.
I started off just thinking of a boat decking design for the sides, then discovered the Pegu and its' cargo of the perfect decking timber that was salvaged to refurbish the deck of one of Britain's most famous Clippers. Add to that the fact that this all came together in the 100th anniversary year of the sinking and you get a sense of eerie coincidence... or is it magic?