Hatcher's Studio '19
 

Happy New Year everyone! I'm starting this year out with a Greta grand auditorium. This is a custom build with some wonderful woods. The back and sides are Honduran Mahogany from the "Fiddleback Tree".

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The top is a mildly quilted old Sitka Spruce:

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I think they are well match both for color and tone:

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The trim will be mostly Cocobolo. I am using the last headstock overlay, fretboard, and bridge set from a board I bought quite awhile ago. I love the spiderweb grain patterns on this. It will keep up well with the amazing fiddleback Mahogany on this guitar:

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Much more to come!
Mark

That's a fantastic Mahogany B&S set, Mark. Such tight flaming. This is going to look great!
And of course I love the Cocobolo as well. If I'm not mistaken, the fretboard on my Greta is from that same board.

Thanks Erithon, and you are not mistaken. That Cocobolo fretboard is from the same board as your guitar's:

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Mark

Wow! That Honduran Mahogany is stunning Mark.

Stunning woods and photography as usual, Mark!

Thanks Paul, the curl is deep and beautiful. The kind of figure that makes you sweat when it's time to bend the sides!

Thanks swiftz07, It's my good fortune to get to work with such great woods.
Thanks for commenting!

Mark

Joining the Back
 

I thought I'd write a few things about joining a fiddleback set. First, it's important to get a clean fit between the two sides. A window comes in handy for checking that:

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With this much figure it really shows how well you line up the sides. There's a problem doing this though. Flamed figure is a series of peaks and troughs as reflected by the wood grain actually rippling up and down. When you book match the two back pieces where there is a peak one side of the joint there is a trough on the other. Now if you work the light and view angle you can make them line up fairly well like this shows:

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Now without moving that penny and changing the viewing angle a picture of the exact same area appears to be mismatched:

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So even though the woods are perfectly matched the appearance of the match is a moving target!

A reasonable solution to this is to use a center graft which puts a little space between the two sides of the back and greatly reduces this effect.

I like the look of peaks and troughs lining up. that's the way it's done in the violin family and to my eye it looks right.

Thanks John,

I guess it never occurred to me that I could just like that look :)
Now that I think about it, it’s pretty common to see on carved back instruments, including arch top guitars. When I see it on these I don’t give it a second thought. Somehow when it’s on the much less arched back of a regular guitar I’m not comfortable with it. I’ll try liking it and see how I do.

Mark

Every time I see a fiddle back style, I want a centre strip...it’s great either way, but I can’t help but think it looks unfinished with out one...and having had this explanation maybe now I know why!

I'm with John here, part of my bug about symmetry.

Snazzy wood indeed!

Back Strip
 

Thanks for commenting DamianL.

I like balance which I suppose may be a cousin of symmetry.


Thanks Ukejon! Speaking of snazzy wood I picked out the wood and designed the back strip today. I am doing a Cocobolo back strip. Typically, I do cross grained center laminates on the necks. I thought I'd carry that arrangement right through to the back laminate. This fiddleback is such a strong and uniform figure doing something a little more random for the back strip would really stand out. So then it was time to pick the actual piece of Cocobolo wood:

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This is a little piece I'd been saving for something special. The block is about 3" x 5" and 3/4" thick. The figuring in the top left corner is called "cloud figuring" which brings just the kind of randomness I'm looking for. That cloud is about 2" long and goes all the way through. I can slice this down into enough pieces to make both the back strip and the center laminate on the neck.

Here is a close up for the back:

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And a broader view:

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I'll have purfling on either side when I lay it in. Glad I saves that piece of wood!

Wow ... that fiddleback mahogany ... and that cocobolo ... you'll definitely make something spectacular from that Mark!

:) Thanks Zandit75!

Thanks David. Great woods truly are inspirational!

I have the back strip laid in along with the side purflings:

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Also the top is has been joined and we are working out the rosette:

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I reall like that cross grain back strip. Very pretty

Stunning wood, great combination of tone and grain.

Thanks John, I've been doing cross grain on the back of the neck for years now. I don't know why I didn't think to do carry it onto the back strip.

Thanks! we're fortunate to work with these woods!

Thanks for commenting

Mark

Back Graft
 

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Setting the vertebrae.

Rosette
 

Here are a couple pictures of cutting the rosette channel and the rosette installed. It is abalone and Cocobolo with a bunch of purfling lines. The Cocobolo came from the same piece of wood that I am using for the back strip and center laminate of the neck:

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https://farm8.staticflickr.com/7840/...4311af07_b.jpg

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Thanks for viewing!
Mark

Love the pictures.

Beautiful woods--and what a gorgeous rosette and backstrip!

Nice rosette
 

I really like the color of the abalone....really pops, even without finish.
Sweet!

Thanks Ovation1. Is it wrong that I spent so much time setting up for a picture of a circle cutter? :)

Thanks Nemoman, I have always been partial to trimming Mahogany (and Koa) with Cocobolo. I love the look and feel they really compliment each other. This
Fiddleback Tree is very special and I felt it warranted a little something extra out of the Cocobolo. I dug deep into my supply and remembered this one little piece of cloud figure that was stuck aside for just such an occasion.

Thanks canuck7, That’s Blue Pau abalone. I believe it has the richest color of any abalone. I’d be delightfully surprised to find better!

Here are a couple more pics. This first one is the back graft being cleaned up. This strip of cross grained wood is ther to support the glue joint between the two back halves. After it is glued in it is sanded down to a bring the sides down to a thin edge. If they where left full height they would become stress risers going right along the grain of the back halves increasing the possibility of causing cracks:

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Here I am cutting out the sound hole:

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I use binding tape on the bottom of the cutter to keep it from marking the top:

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A nice sharp blade on the cutter gives a clean cut:

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One of the practices I picked up while taking classes with Ervin Somogyi years ago was to save the hole cutouts with the pertinent details of the build for future reference. Of course Ervin has a lot more holes than I do :)

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Looks like you've got a pretty good collection going yourself, Mark!

I'm working on it! ;)

Me too...
 

As usual, I agree with John! I think it looks fantastic either view.

Beautiful BEAUTIFUL woods! And the rosette is SWEET. LOVE the Coco.

And it will sound awesome, no doubt!!!

Paul