Sexauer '24

[Palladio]

@dosland, you posted:


"With this "just fine" from the master builder as the understatement of the year, though I suppose the year is still quite young and you're perfectly able to outdo yourself in what remains..."

I agree on both counts. Bruce sent me this photo of the cutaway joints and said he thought it might even be "above average" by his standards. Just look at it. It's like an above average day for Johannes Vermeer or Santiago Calatrava lol.


Sexauer cutaway.jpg

More interesting though is the second part of your comment, which is something more important that led me to commission this guitar.

Music has always been my first love, though I made my living in other areas. I spent a lot of my spare time in the music world, and ended up helping to produce work with musicians far more talented than I will ever be. It has been one of the greatest joys of my life. I've watched young musicians, mostly in jazz, progress from trying to get in on gigs and jam sessions in NYC 20+ years ago, to now being some of the leading players in the world in their genre. Some of the cats who were happy to get paid $150 for a Tuesday night club gig have gone on to win Grammy's. That's cool but not what amazes and inspires me. What gets me is watching how every one of the truly great players improved over the years. Yes they have innate talent, but what separated them from the rest of their peers was their drive to practice hard and continually improve. To take risks. To think outside the box, even when they knew it wouldn't bring them more money or recognition. They all had a sense of humility that led them to learn from others as well as their own shortcomings, but also the confidence to trust their intuition on where to go next.

Every truly great artist I've known in person, from musicians to painters....has only gotten better over time. They look forward and not back, never resting on their laurels. Bruce is one of those artists. He works alone with his singular vision. He's never compromised by trying to standardize or expand his production volume, and do it an easier and more lucrative way. He approaches every new build as an opportunity to do better than the last. He doesn't use forms or molds, he works freehand like a jazz musician - improvising, but confident that his skills will bring him where he wants to go. He only competes with himself. How many guitar builders can you name whose idea of taking break is to build a violin instead? That's what he did, when due to a death in my family last year, I had to temporarily delay going forward with this build.

As much as I love the Sexauer FT-15 from 2012 that I now own, I have no doubt that this JB-16 will take things to a new level.

[awchiu]

I'm sure you'll love Bruce's guitar.

I also have a German/BRW guitar from Bruce (2021 build), and it's still one of the most lively, responsive guitars I've played. It's also super light to hold. The sad part for me is that after owning it, I no longer enjoy my other guitars as much

[Bill Kraus]

Hello Palladio,
I thought your name sounded familiar, and it just came to me when I read your in you last post that you sere in NYC, must be the same person that used to go in to Mandolin Brothers. You made a nice post in The Gear Page Forum about how much you liked one of my guitars there about 10 or 15 years ago. Welcome to the AGF!.
This sure is some nice Brazilian rosewood being used in your new Sexauer. Congratulations on the new incoming guitar.

[Bruce Sexauer]

At the moment I am breakfasting on a rainy Petaluma morning, thankful that this does not appear to be yet another draught year. I am enjoying reading the interaction in my ‘24 thread, and looking forward to getting into the shop where the JB-16 has been overnight with the back clamped on, closing the body. Although the new “drum” won’t ring perfectly until the binding is on, I will know more about its promise in a couple of hours! Stay tuned.

[SaintClarence27]

Bruce, this is shaping up to look like an amazing heirloom quality guitar, and I'm sure it will have the sound to match. I imagine the customer will be pleased as punch with it.

[massimo]

Just out of curiosity, Bruce, does the soundboard binding material affect tone? I would be tempted to guess it does in some way, still "plastic" binding is so ubiquitous that this must mean it does not. Or no?

[Bruce Sexauer]

Originally Posted by massimo

Just out of curiosity, Bruce, does the soundboard binding material affect tone? I would be tempted to guess it does in some way, still "plastic" binding is so ubiquitous that this must mean it does not. Or no?

Everything affects tone, but I have never been able to quantify the difference binding makes.

I had the first stage of a dental crown replacement this morning, but did it w/o anesthetic, so here I am at work!

The box went together nicely, and here are few pictures as I move toward the binding:

[Nemoman]

That top amazes me every time I look at it--Wow.

And the miters on the cutaway--great stuff, Bruce!

[Bruce Sexauer]

Originally Posted by Nemoman

That top amazes me every time I look at it--Wow.

And the miters on the cutaway--great stuff, Bruce!

Some say I am a master luthier! Ah shucks. And thank you, of course.

[Bill Kraus]

Originally Posted by Bruce Sexauer

Everything affects tone, but I have never been able to quantify the difference binding makes.

I had the first stage of a dental crown replacement this morning, but did it w/o anesthetic, so here I am at work!

The box went together nicely, and here are few pictures as I move toward the binding:

It's interesting to hear you say "but I have never been able to quantify the difference binding makes.". A few years ago, a well regarded guitarist known to many of us mentioned to me that a guitar without binding sounds better, and that I should make a guitar without binding. I was a bit puzzled by the comment, and thought about it for quite a while. Needless to say, I have not made a guitar without binding yet, and I am quite happy with the sound I am achieving.
This guitar is coming along nicely!, snakewood bindings?.

[Bruce Sexauer]

Yes, Snakewood bindings.

I have made every guitar w/o bindings, until I put them on. IF one made the guitar as an airtight box w/o bindings, it would probably be okay, but I don’t even attempt to as I know I am gong to bind it. They are 25% the drum before binding that they are after binding.

I don’t consider not binding because the binding, and the purfling for a different reason, is and important part off the structure. The binding is the bumper and should be quite sturdy, while the purfling is the shock absorber, and should be softer and more resilient. Between them, they can keep a pretty skookum blow from damaging the connection between the plates and the sides.

[Palladio]

Originally Posted by Bill Kraus

Hello Palladio,
I thought your name sounded familiar, and it just came to me when I read your in you last post that you sere in NYC, must be the same person that used to go in to Mandolin Brothers. You made a nice post in The Gear Page Forum about how much you liked one of my guitars there about 10 or 15 years ago. Welcome to the AGF!.
This sure is some nice Brazilian rosewood being used in your new Sexauer. Congratulations on the new incoming guitar.

Bill, you have a keen memory! Oh how I miss my pilgrimages on the Staten Island Ferry, passing Lady Liberty on my voyage to Mandolin Brothers. I'd spend all day playing guitars then go to a great Italian restaurant, before making the trip back to Manhattan. Makes me sad in a way, that all good things must come to an end. I can't believe it's been nearly 10 years since Stan passed, and maybe 25 since Flip Scipio left to start his own shop. I will forever be grateful to have had the chance to get to know and learn from both of them - two of the all time greats in the vintage guitar world.

I mostly went to Mandolin Bros. to try out vintage guitars, and then drop off some of mine for Flip to work his magic. However the two non-vintage guitars there that I still remember as being exceptional were yours and one by Kevin Kopp.

Ok, sorry for going off topic down memory lane.....back to Bruce's world!

[Bruce Sexauer]

There is a luthier group in the Bay Area called Northern California Association of Luthiers, or NCAL, with which I have participated for about 25 years. At that time, Ervin Somogyi was the president, and more recently I did a 5 year stint in that position myself. At an early meeting, Ervin demonstrated how he was able to use the same rope binding method as I do to put on all 4 quarters of the binding/purfling at one go. This seems quite impressive to me and perhaps 10 years ago, at a meeting I hosted in my shop, I asked Ervin if he would run that by us again, which he did. I have tried to accomplish this feat myself, but find the results are not as good as putting on one section at a time. This is especially true on my asymmetrical cutaway guitars like the one I am building at the moment. I will bind this piece in 7 segments, the first of which is pictured below. The top will have Koa purfling to match the rosette, while the sides and back will have my more typical maple purfling.

[Bruce Sexauer]

Palladio's JB-16 body is done, and I am moving on to the neck today.

The first picture is the 7th section of binding going on. It is only 1 1/18" long, and is the cut-off from the piece it abuts. I do it this way because it puts a join on the center line, like those at the other end of the guitar, and because it make the miter at the cutaway end much easier to get near-perfect.

The second picture is the Graft. Although the Graft and the Backstrip are actually different tapers, I work to make them appear aligned as though they were of a piece. Since I am using a router template to cut the Graft's cavity, I have to take what I get, and it isn't always as close to right as this one. No one has ever complained about any of them except me, of course.

The third picture is the dovetail mortise I just cut, the last move before starting the neck.

[Tim McKnight]

Beautiful miters, as usual Bruce! A side note on bindings in that they are not only purposeful “bumpers” as you say but I think they are equally important that they are there to mechanically seal the end grain in the top and back plates. I cringe when I see guitars without bindings for these two aforementioned reasons.