Astrand OM build
 

Hi to everyone
Thought i would share with you a build by Ted Astrand (Sweden). The build has already started and Ted has kindly sent over some photos of the progress so far so thought i would post these for your viewing pleasure.

Also Just a quick thanks to everyone at TNAG London for their help so far.They have all been incredibly busy at the moment with various things including a crowdcube campaign and completely relocating their shop lock, stock and barrel..Always helpful and Michael and Ben always willing to offer advice or suggestions.

http://i.imgur.com/AXPwNeL.jpg


I thought that a little info about Ted would be a nice way to introduce the man himself (although i'm pretty sure a lot of you may already be aware of his work)..This extract is from his own website...Apologies Ted!!! but you did say post as i see fit..LOL :D

Biography so far...

Before pursuing the art of luthiery I had training in both music, art and woodworking.
I studied a 3 year full-time guitar building course at The Academy of Musical Instruments in Stockholm, Sweden. I built classical , steel-string and archtop guitars. I received my bachelor’s degree in guitar building and passed the tests with honor for my journeyman's certificate as a luthier. My passion has always been with the steel-string acoustic guitar so it came naturally to me to explore it further.

I was fortunate enough to become the first and only apprentice under Jason Kostal at Kostal Guitars. I travelled to Phoenix, Arizona to work under Jason to learn the approach of building a modern steelstring guitar and how to voice a guitar for maximum responsiveness. Jason is a highly respected luthier worldwide and the tonality of his guitars has influenced the work I do today. I now build my guitars from my new workshop in Gothenburgh Sweden.

And Ted on the The art of luthiery...

I say the art of luthiery because I truly believe guitar-making to be an art form. Throughout the whole process of building a guitar I treat each object and piece of wood like it’s a piece of art.

I am currently creating 8-10 guitars annually. Each part of the guitar is made completely by hand and with simple woodworking tools to achieve perfection both tonally and aesthetically. I spend around 200+ hours working on each instrument. From start to finish the instrument is built during a period of 3-4 months. I only use the best materials available and never rush any part of the process. I am a one man shop by choice which means that I can focus on only creating the highest quality craftmanship, tone and playability.

The guitar in question is Teds OM model with the following details

Model: Å-OM
Back&sides: Old Growth (1950's)Brazilian Rosewood
Top: European "moon" spruce
Headcap: Amboyna burl (so nice!!)
Rosette: Amboyna burl
Bindings: Ebony
End Wedge: Amboyna burl

Nut width: 1 3/4" (44.5 mm)
Bridge string spacing: 2 1/4" (57.15mm)
Scale: 25"
Fretboard radius: 16"
Tuners: Gotoh 510

Custom options:
Soundport
Backstrip


Hope you enjoy following the build

First photo to start off with.Old growth Brazilian (early 1950's)
http://i.imgur.com/EnbrbOfl.jpg


A few Pictures of the Top selected and the Amboyna Burl which will be used for the Rosette, Headplate, end graft and an insert into the back. http://www.wood-database.com/amboyna/
http://i.imgur.com/EqqrZU0l.jpg

I'm looking forward to this one. Ted builds fantastic guitars!

I'm really looking forward to following along this build! :)

Thanks folks.Ted does indeed build fabulous guitars and his craftsmanship is second to none.Needless to say that he is a genuinely nice guy too,and despite his busy schedule always has time to answer my questions.

Here are some more photos

planing and preparing the top for joining
http://i.imgur.com/bOsq6Arl.jpg

joining the top
http://i.imgur.com/enkkq7Gl.jpg


And while this was setting Ted carved out both the inner and outer rings of the rosette.Inner is Brazilian Rosewood, outer is the Amboyna burl
http://i.imgur.com/o89bKqkl.jpg

A few more from Ted

Work on the rosette
http://i.imgur.com/EOLCUaBl.jpg

http://i.imgur.com/lAAehKNl.jpg

And the finished Rosette...Chisel an optional feature
http://i.imgur.com/aZTkZGjl.jpg

And again!
http://i.imgur.com/Qtb0kWgl.jpg

And one with a little Naptha applied to bring out a little of the true colour
http://i.imgur.com/mGDEvL1l.jpg

Rosette finished, Ted moved on to joining the back and once this was done started work on the backstrip and inlay

Cutting out the recess for the inlay to be positioned
http://i.imgur.com/KUbdbd7l.jpg

Preparing to glue the burl inlay into place
http://i.imgur.com/FedhL1ll.jpg

Obvious OCD going on with Ted.Lots of little cuts in order to get those miters flawless
http://i.imgur.com/s1CSBNCl.jpg

Its those little things in life that test us most.Two perfect 90 degree angles made
http://i.imgur.com/aZqVRKdl.jpg

Once the burl is glued into the recess and set, Ted then cut out the channel for the Ebony strip which overlaps the burl slightly
http://i.imgur.com/vaX1abHl.jpg

And the finished result :)
http://i.imgur.com/eTJy1cxl.jpg

http://i.imgur.com/PnG2qu7l.jpg

Even as separate pieces of wood, this is already beautiful - looking forward to the following the process along.

Two of my favorite recorded guitars are Ted's so I'm looking forward to this one :)

Ted's guitars are sonically stunning....just a remarkably talented luthier.

Well,
 

This is just gorgeous. Well chosen on all levels...congrats on this! I love the guitars Ted is building right now and this is going to be lovely.

Lots of drooling here. Congrats on your build with Ted.

A very pretty set of landscaped BRW...:up:

What a great choice of contrasting colours! Looking forward to seeing this come together.

A few more pictures

Back joined, inlay and backstrip completed, now for the bracing alchemy to begin
http://i.imgur.com/rP86EpBl.jpg

The beginning stages of shaping the braces.Blunt tools not an option
http://i.imgur.com/eNmDeOcl.jpg

Ted has decided to incorporate a floating backbrace into the design.The brace has a very thin ebony veneer running down its length which will tie in with the bindings of the body
http://i.imgur.com/nhYf8lvl.jpg

http://i.imgur.com/OEoFCN3l.jpg

http://i.imgur.com/vAM1m0Bl.jpg

Now for the turn of the top.Again some of the braces have been placed and are awaiting shaping
http://i.imgur.com/8iVU0tSl.jpg

You can also see the bridge plate being glued into position
http://i.imgur.com/1RgmwGil.jpg

And finally whilst all this is settling in, and awaiting the glue to dry properly Ted managed to start bending one of the inner sides for the lamination to the BRW side.Ted uses Mahogany for the inner sides as it matches the heel and neck block and is lightweight.
Glimpses of Teds stockpile in the background.
http://i.imgur.com/kUoeTD2l.jpg

Beautiful pictures of what looks to be a beautiful instrument! Always loved Ted's work. Can't wait to see the rest of it be created!


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Hi Zachary,Glad you like Teds work and his photography, and that you are going to be following the build.Its always great for others to take an interest and although i am going to be the owner, it must make Ted and other Luthiers very happy when they receive great feedback on their work.Vindication of all that hard work i guess.
If you don't mind me saying so either the work you have been doing looks fantastic too.Ive just spent a good half hour on your site admiring your work...Obviously another very talented individual during a time when handbuilt guitars are really beginning to shine.
Love that Copper dust trail inlay work..nice to see something original, and executed perfectly..well done, keep up the good work
From an unusually mild day in Scotland.
Scott

Thanks so much for sharing these. I love Ted and his work. I can't wait to see more as the build progresses!

Thanks Scott! Really appreciate the positive comments about my work!

If there is one thing I have learned about the luthier community it's that there is so much support for eachother as luthiers; a huge portion of us see eachother almost as co-workers, not competition (of course there are a few exceptions but I've found that for the most part). It is an amazing community to be a part of and to be recognized amongst some of the world's top luthiers in this day and age of lutherie is an amazing feeling! We are without a doubt a big group of friends, though, and that is such a great thing for eachother and to advance the field of lutherie to new limits.

Again thanks for the kind words and I hope you have a great New Year, Scott!

-Zach


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Ted back to work after festivities and already hard at it.

One of the Brazilian sides being bent....Ted said that during this part of the process the shop filled with a wonderful aroma from the natural oils contained within the BRW being heated and released.
http://i.imgur.com/uNYSP4Sl.jpg

And the process of laminating the sides begins
http://i.imgur.com/GpAKirZl.jpg

Hey,I am posting as and when i get anything from Ted so here is the next one..The sides are bent and laminated...This shows the neck and end block being glued on.Beginning to take her shape now

http://i.imgur.com/v2bjaqw.jpg

loving following along with this build! Thanks for sharing.

Aye, she's a sexy lass thus far

Loving this thread! Clean work as ever from Ted.

On a side note, can someone explain to me the reason for the notches in the spreader blocks (on the inside against the side)? This is the second time i've seen this and as such its piqued my interest, they clearly are there for a reason, but i can't thing what that reason would be.

David

Congratulations and a very happy new year!

Those pics are exquisite, a wonderful record of the process that really highlights Ted's world-class levels of craftsmanship.

Hey Michael...yep, Ted's photography as good as ever and really shows that both photography and guitar building is an art form in its own right...it really makes you appreciate the craftsmanship and skill that luthiers have in order to produce a world class instrument.

Hoping you are all settled into the new shop and all is well

Look forward to hearing what you do with this when it arrives.

Thanks for posting this thread Scott and thanks everybody who's following the process. I'll try to chime in whenever I can if anyone has any questions!

Hi David,
The notches in the spreader blocks do have a purpose, however not for this build.
I now mostly build with double-sides but in the past when I have used a single side construction I have used side reinforcements. The little notches in the spreaders are simply there to allow some room for a side reinforcement brace.

Hi folks...time for some more photos

Kerfing being prepared and glued.Ted uses reversed kerfing, however he also cuts notches by hand on the other side too.Ted has said that this makes the kerfing easy to bend and work with and who am i to argue..
http://i.imgur.com/OQc9DLR.jpg

And one showing the completed rim.Next step is to prepare everything for gluing the top and back on... An eye for detail and super clean work from Ted as always
http://i.imgur.com/81Q3HTX.jpg

Take it easy
Scott