It's been awhile since our last update, we took a little break to allow Joel time to finish a couple guitars for the B.I.G. gathering (which was a rousing success from all the posts and photos). I was also on a couple week out-of-country adventure, but the Chi Rho Guitar is back on the bench and almost headed into the home stretch. So, what's been going on?
Our last post shared some photos of the neck blank getting worked. The next step in Joel's workflow is to fit the neck to the body...this is far too much maths for me, so I'm thankful for people with calculators, slide rules, and protractor things and the know how to used them.
Once the neckfitting was completed to Joel's satisfaction, we return to the fretboard and headstock to work on some inlay and fret work. This is an exciting step for me as it indicates the finish line is coming into site, and on the artistic side, we get to tie in some of the thematic elements of the body construction.
There are a few things going on with the inlay. First, as mentioned, we're trying to "connect the dots" of the guitar's theme. I have named the guitar Chi Rho, using the Greek alphabet and the first two letters for the spelling of Christ. This is the central element or anchor for the theme we have selected. Second, the body rosette is a stained glass motif, hearkening a style similar to the Canterbury Cathedral pot metal and painted glass work. A third element was an inquiry from me to Joel about his logo. Joel's headstock inlay is a stylized hand, "Two-Hands Guitars," and considering the theme, I wondered if he might consider a slight modification of the logo to further the homogeneity of the build theme. I will share the result in the photos below:
First the fretboard; I should note that Joel explained to me through email that he had attempted using white MOP dots, but didn't like the look, feeling that the brightness of the MOP was distracting from the other inlay. He thought a moment and decided to used the various woods featured in the rosette and the results speak for themselves...
And the modified Two-Hands logo
Finally, a couple photos of the inlay with frets pressed
We still have a little ways to go, but I'm pretty comfortable to claim we are in the "home stretch." I cannot say enough, how pleased I am with this build. Joel continues to amaze me with the meticulous work he is doing and the accolades shared from those who played and inspected his guitars at the B.I.G. are only further confirmation that my expectations for this build will be exceeded exponentially.
Thank you all for looking in and sharing our journey! More to come!