Wow, Mike--it's looking fabulous already.

Can't wait to see it come together and get the finish--it'll be spectacular!

Man that Koa is special! Looking good so far.

Fell in love with koa when I was stationed there in the early '70s, and own a simple D16-K I love dearly. That wood is stunningly gorgeous! Looking forward to following this build!

Thank you guys for the nice words regarding the wood. Like everyone else, I've always found Koa to be visually compelling but many guitars with Koa have left me less than enchanted tonally. It seems to me that much of this comes down more to the builder than the wood. One noted Guitar builder once told me that Koa is like a pretty girl with a bad heart lol. Oh well, enough chatter...on with the progress pics...

Here are a couple pictures Patrick sent me of some of the early stage stuff. Most fairly self explanatory, but he gave me some commentary on his neck and tail blocks that I found interesting.

Neck and tail blocks.

Neck block receives a top paddle that will support the FB and more importantly distribute the string tension and ties in with the upper transverse brace thus creating a very locked and stable neck joint. Notice the slight taper of the paddle. The purpose is to distribute any strain across several grain lines of the top. Simple but effective.

Maple inlay in the tailback to add stability and prevent splitting if the guitar were to be dropped.

http://i749.photobucket.com/albums/x...snpjz3fs0.jpeg

http://i749.photobucket.com/albums/x...srl6bxtzv.jpeg

http://i749.photobucket.com/albums/x...se4pna7yu.jpeg

A great way to start is with some great wood... looks like this is gong to be a beautiful guitar!

That's some very nice koa. I hope that guitar turns out to be the stuff dreams are made of.

Thanks Louie! Hope so!

Thanks Jim, I'm dreaming for sure.

Here's a couple more pics that Patrick sent. One shows his vacuum clamping fixture.

Starting to move this baby forward!

Attachment 4389

Attachment 4390

Attachment 4391

That is some nice clean work going on there. Love all the little planes!

Thanks Tom!! We're moving along slowly, but methodically. Here is the completed rosette. The inside is Koa cut from the wood remaining from the back and as so a perfect match. A little shell to create a little pop.

Here's the CNC machine cutting out the body shape - slightly oversized.

https://photos.smugmug.com/Morrissey...tled-264-M.jpg

https://photos.smugmug.com/Morrissey...tled-248-M.jpg

Close-up

https://photos.smugmug.com/Morrissey....01%20PM-L.png

That rosette is a beauty...

Rosette is looking good! You had so many going at once, I almost forgot about this one.

Very nice selection of the koa, beautiful grain in that piece and the abalone sets it off so well!

Louie, thank you for your kind words. This design isn't really unique but certainly the wood and the shell look great together.

Thanks Dennis! Yep this one is coming along slower than some, but just about the right pace. Patrick is showing off some of his stuff with the aid of the CNC machine.

Thank you Tom. Patrick has been showing me some things that he is doing with his CNC machine. This stuff is pretty darned cool because the accuracy of the device allows him to make things that are unique to him and his builds.

The pics below show how the machine cuts out the shape of the bridge with precision, and the diamonds he made are beyond stunning with MOP and Paua combined into very unique two-tone shapes that will give the fretboard some pretty sweet bling factor !!

The bridge is yet to be finished out by hand, but this bridge has a nice shapely figure ;)

https://photos.smugmug.com/Morrissey...tled-261-M.jpg

Check these out...pretty special!

https://photos.smugmug.com/Morrissey...299-Edit-S.jpg

Here's the headstock veneer. I think this piece of Brazilian will look pretty sweet on the end of this guitar ;)

https://photos.smugmug.com/Morrissey...tled-305-M.jpg

At least one person asked me when this guitar is going to be completed. All I know is Patrick originally said 4 months from the start date was his target. That means we're more than 50% of the way to completion if my math is correct. I know Patrick has three other guitars on his bench at the moment so hopefully we'll be able to stay within the time frame for mine.

Not a lot to show this week, but one thing I can say is the work is very very clean. Using one of those fancy CNC machines really allows for precision and accuracy.

https://photos.smugmug.com/Morrissey...tled-333-M.jpg

https://photos.smugmug.com/Morrissey...331-Edit-M.jpg

No argument there - definitely has been some slow progress. Guitars all over the shop.

I know it's been a boring show lately but I foresee some significant progress in the next couple weeks. Sort of like I've been warming up and stretching - now it's time for the sprint.