McCollum Harp guitar

[Teleplucker]

Here's a picture of the walnut back
[IMG][/IMG]

[ericcsong]

coming together very nicely

[jaymarsch]

Wow! That will be a beauty when it is complete, Randall. Really coming along nicely. Thanks for keeping us updated.

Best,
Jayne

[colins]

Thanks for the post Randall; nice to see progress.

The head on the sub-bass arm seems much larger than before, but the distance between it and the conventional headstock seems the same as before. Can you run us through the changes made?

Col

[rogthefrog]

That black is super stylish.

Kathy is awesome. I'm sure she'll do a great job.

[Teleplucker]

While I had the guitar in its original finish, the pearl trim didn't really strike me. but against the black color I think it looks awesome.

[jay7347]

How did I miss the update on this thread. Looking good Randall. Can't wait to see the finished pics. Like I said, Kathy will do a great job!
-jay

[Naboz]

I, too, have lusted after a hand-built harp guitar (I was one of the first to jump on the Holloway options and have prototype #25), and watched the McCollum thread with great interest. The only thing I can think is that Lance was arranging those bass strings for the way M. Hedges played; giving more room for right hand bass runs...but,
How can you go wrong with Kathy Wingert working on any guitar?!
The black really does look super classy. Jay, didnt you have your Noble finished with a black top also?
Oh...be still my heart--to have either one of those HGs!
Thanks for posting the updates, Randall.

[jay7347]

"The black really does look super classy. Jay, didnt you have your Noble finished with a black top also?"

Hey Naboz! Duane gave me the option on the black top but I just kept thinking how sloppy I am with fingerprints so I went with the Alaskan Bearclaw.

-jay

[Teleplucker]

I owned a black Les Paul way back in the day so I am familiar with the fingerprint issue. In this case we had to go with a color to mask the work needed to relocate the bridge. I chose black, because I saw a picture of the a Nobel harp guitar in black.
No recent updates on this guitar, progress is slow but you don't rush master craftsmen or women.
Are you guys coming to the Harp Guitar gathering?

[jay7347]

Hey Randall, right now its purely a financial issue. If things pick up with the store I can but the debt from buying it last June is kind of heavy right now. Coming off some tough winter months and tax season is a bad time to make that decision. Still hoping!
-jay

[Teleplucker]

Hope you can make it. I understand its an expensive proposition to travel across the county for the Harp Guitar Gathering. So I convinced them to let me host and they have to travel to me!

[Naboz]

Randall, every year I think I might be able to make the HG Gathering, but it is right, smack-dab in the middle of volleyball season--I am an official for both high school and college--so it hasn't happened...yet!

[Teleplucker]

After a long wait, this guitar came back to me on Friday. It sounds great and it is certainly a looker.

Here are some remarks from Kathy Wingert, I appreciate her willingness to take this job on.

"I loved Lance (and loved the fun rivalry most). This beautiful guitar came to me with a two bridge layout, and string spacing that just didn't work from the POV of any of the players that came across it. I removed the bridge and plugged the original pinholes, and then set to work figuring out how to completely change the string layout. One challenge was the headstock being too far toward the player, leaving a massive gap between the string sets. So... since Lance was unlikely to come punch me in the nose because he would have to leave the River of Life - which I'm sure must be flowing with his favorite wine, I lopped off the guitar side of the harp head. That gone, I grafted new mahogany and replaced the cap after plugging the original holes. So now with a blank pallet, I sent it off to get the top painted because those pin holes just weren't going to look good. Some people know the story, that getting finish on the top took two-and-a-half years, but it was finally shipped to me. Unfortunately, it was shipped to me in a gig bag and a box, no protection and of course, FedEx bounced it. Thankfully the precious took-a-lifetime top paint was unscathed (or at least unscratched), but the neck was toast. Another calendar reset and a lot of frustration, and finally it was time to put on a new bridge. Remember the pin holes I plugged? They were parallel to an X brace. I mean crammed right up next to it. The new string configuration called for the string terminations to be more in line with the guitar bridge. I struggled for a time trying to figure out how to make one massive bridge that touched the braces it needed to, not be too huge, not be completely un-Lance like in it's shape, and somehow go with all the elements of the guitar that really didn't go anyway. I mean, Lance could pull it off because he had his own thing, but I had to mess it all up. Arianna Colombo was visiting at the time and quickly sketched out a bridge idea that made it look like two bridges were on top of each other, not one ugly shape, and that helped immensely. Her quick sketch would have been gorgeous to use, but didn't hit the points on the map that it needed to. When stringing day finally came, I held my breath because the guitar that Lance made sounded wonderful, and I had moved a massive chunk wood on top of his guitar. Moving or removing small amounts around the X brace can make the difference between a good factory guitar, a bad factory guitar or a fine handmade guitar. It's pretty dang good. I detect some diminution of the massive tone Lance left in it, but the guitar is fully playable now, and still sounds more than wonderful. (Hey Lance... I won the argument, but I covered your butt."

[svea]

....And everything is right with the world again. That is one beautiful guitar.

Svea