Steve the Edwinson here...2011 is off and running! I can't imagine a better way to get the new year rolling than to begin this build for Jeff.
As he relates above, we hit it off very well from the start. Jeff is one of those people who walks into the room and the whole place lights up. We had an instant simpatico, and when Jeff began talking about what he wanted in his ideal guitar, I started seeing it in my mind's eye (and hearing it in my mind's ear) right away. He likes the same kind of sound and performance that I do.
This is a longtime dream for Jeff as well. He's always wanted a guitar that would be a lifetime companion, and never get old. He wanted a guitar that will go wherever his musical inclinations lead, and he wanted it to be a tangible and beautiful sounding reflection of his faith.
I felt deeply honored when Jeff asked me to build this guitar for him. It is not a task to be taken lightly, because there is already a great deal of emotional, artistic, and spiritual investment in it. This is just one more affirmation to me that I got into this work for the right reasons.
One of my philosophical certitudes is that "What is yours will come to you..." That can play a lot of different ways. In Jeff's case, it's the creation of his dream guitar. In my case, it's having further continuity to keep doing the work I love, to actually make a living at it, and to meet and become friends with such excellent folks as Jeff. Who could ask for more?
I decided to begin the New Year by making the rosette on Jeff's guitar. It seemed appropriate, as this is the one thing that defines the aesthetic for the rest of the instrument, and defines its character for the rest of the build.
On New Years Eve, I cut out a set of Sintra pattern blanks, which I would use to make inlay patterns at 600% size. These are used on my WW II era pantograph pattern engraver. The machine works like a CNC, except that I am the computer that runs it, and my hand is the servo motor that operates the stylus, driving the cutter head.
On New Years day, I did a lot of head scratching and chin rubbing, as I tried to draw out a Crown of Thorns theme on the blanks. My drawing muscles are weak, and I couldn't get anything that captured the design I was pondering. So I took a break for some quiet time. Then it came to me--I just needed to get out of my own way and let it happen.
I sketched the design out on six contiguous blanks in about fifteen minutes.
Then I got out the scroll saw and began cutting out what turned out to be 131 jigsaw puzzle pieces that comprised the Crown of Thorns design. Making the patterns for the pantograph engraving machine was the longest part of the process.
Making a rosette this way involves quite a bit of process, but it allows me a great deal of design freedom, and if the steps are carefully followed, I can achieve a much higher degree of accuracy than would be possible doing it the real old fashioned way, with a jeweler's saw, pattern files, and magnifying visor. I'm not Larry Robinson, and I'm not an eye surgeon either, so I could never do something like this without that 70-year old Gorton Pantograph.
If you're curious about the method, here's a link to a page in my site that shows the start-to-finish procedure:
http://edwinsonguitar.com/Edwinson_L...a_Rosette.html
I'm pretty happy with the way the Crown of Thorns turned out, and so is Jeff. So I'd call that a very auspicious start to this project.
Tonight, I bent the Macassar Ebony sides, and they came out flawlessly. More photos soon, as the soundbox takes shape. Cheers!