Hatcher's Studio '20 #2

[Mark Hatcher]

Originally Posted by gstring

"I have built with floatwoods before and have been happy with the results"

I can personally arrest to the exceptional look and sound of Mark's ""Floatwood""

To my eye, this is one of your best ( if not the best ) wood combinations you have put together.

daniel

Thanks Daniel, I appreciate your comments!



I used some of the cut offs from the top for the back center graft:





I was able to capture some of the Blue from the top to help make a nice frame for my logo chip:





Mark

[BrunoBlack]

More beauty Mark!

[Naboz]

When I saw the title of the thread, I thought; oh my, Mark Hatcher is going to make some cheesy colored guitar?! I should have known better...
Your choice of aesthetic palette is extraordinary! Blue wood--who'd a thunk it?!
Mark, your builds are so artistic; I so enjoy your build threads.

[Lonzo]

..those woods...
I have to admit I fail to see the “blue”... that maybe me, but I get the idea and am very impressed by the level of attention to detail... to frame the logo - which, by what I fail to see properly may also have some blue hues in it - in a backstripe that sets it off in a brighter part and also has the blue... there is nothing without thought, careful planning and execution.
Wonder, if the blue will be accentuated with some finish ?!
A treat to look at either way

[Nemoman]

That float wood is very cool, Mark--thanks for the back story about it. And the Sapele--wow, another one of nature's gifts. I look forward once again to following this build thread of yours to completion.

Thanks for sharing your process and craftsmanship!

[Jamiejoon]

More awesomeness from Mark. Great story about the float wood! This one should be yet another stunner.

[Mark Hatcher]

Originally Posted by Haasome

More beauty Mark!

Thanks Haasome!

Originally Posted by Naboz

When I saw the title of the thread, I thought; oh my, Mark Hatcher is going to make some cheesy colored guitar?! I should have known better...
Your choice of aesthetic palette is extraordinary! Blue wood--who'd a thunk it?!
Mark, your builds are so artistic; I so enjoy your build threads.

Thanks Naboo, I try to stick with natural colors. I suppose the iron blue may be pushing it a bit but, I’ll have other elements in this guitar that the iron blue came about without human intervention.

Originally Posted by Lonzo

..those woods...
I have to admit I fail to see the “blue”... that maybe me, but I get the idea and am very impressed by the level of attention to detail... to frame the logo - which, by what I fail to see properly may also have some blue hues in it - in a backstripe that sets it off in a brighter part and also has the blue... there is nothing without thought, careful planning and execution.
Wonder, if the blue will be accentuated with some finish ?!
A treat to look at either way

Thanks Lonzo, maybe your screen leans a little to the yellow side which eats up the blue?

Originally Posted by Nemoman

That float wood is very cool, Mark--thanks for the back story about it. And the Sapele--wow, another one of nature's gifts. I look forward once again to following this build thread of yours to completion.

Thanks for sharing your process and craftsmanship!

Thanks for commenting Nemoman!

Originally Posted by Jamiejoon

More awesomeness from Mark. Great story about the float wood! This one should be yet another stunner.

I hope so!

Thanks all!
Mark

[Mark Hatcher]

I got the idea for doing my Red White and Blue guitar from this Amboyna burl that was not only two toned but, also had Blue spalting in it:



A little of it went on the logo chip and it is also going into the rosette:





To take it one step further I worked out a way to use it for the rosette purfling and for around the top:







Here I am removing the teflon place holder so I can bend and install the burl purfling:

[Treenewt]

That rosette is stunning Mark!

[TomB'sox]

The rosette is one of the prettiest I have ever seen.

[Lonzo]

Originally Posted by TomB'sox

The rosette is one of the prettiest I have ever seen.

..there is only one I like at least as much
..wait... there are 2 ;o)

[Mark Hatcher]

Originally Posted by TomB'sox

The rosette is one of the prettiest I have ever seen.

Originally Posted by Lonzo

..there is only one I like at least as much
..wait... there are 2 ;o)

Thanks Tom and Lonzo!




With the sides bent I'm setting up the internal parts. So what's inside the box?







Inside we have the neck block, end block, and a cut-away wedge. I'd like to talk about these a little bit and get into some detail about what they do and how the can affect the sound, playability, and durability of a guitar.

Obviously, they are support pieces that help hold the guitar together and they create anchor points for attaching the neck and strap buttons.

You will notice that my internal components have very rounded edges. This saves a little bit of weight but acoustically I do this to cut down on the possibility of sound phase distortion. Let me explain my thinking on that:

Here is a chart showing sound wave lengths at different frequencies



The human ear tends to be most sensitive to frequencies between 2000hz and 5000hz. This would fall into highs, trebles and overtones range in guitar speak. They also are what adds definition or crispness to mids and bass.
Notice how small those wave lengths are and know that they have lot's of elbow room to bounce around inside your guitar.
When a sound wave runs into two sharply divided planes it will split and can go out of phase causing distortion. Reducing the incidence of this kind of out of phase distortion can lead to clearer trebles and more cleanly defined mids and bass.







Finally I'd like to talk a little about the end block. Yes, it holds the end pin or pick-up jack and it is a pain in the neck if it splits and that's pretty much all you ever hear about it. There is more, this is one place where additional weight is welcome on an acoustic guitar. First, it helps with playability if it balances out the neck. It can also help with bass response because the lowest notes a guitar can produce come from the entire guitar vibrating from the headstock all the way to the end block so it is best to have the right balance. Finally, weight there increases sustain without affecting response time, sound attack or volume.
You'll also notice that my end block is pillowed, partly for already mentioned reasons but also for other reasons. I don't want the end block to come into any more contact with the top and back than the kerfing does. I want a smooth contact line all the way around. This eliminates stressors that can start cracks in the top and back. It eliminates the top deformation you sometimes see.
Take you thumb and push down on the edge of your guitar top and listen to how it mutes the guitar. That's what an end block does when it extends out into the active surface area of your guitar.

[Carpinteria]

Mark, I found your comments on the acoustic effects of the internal blocks to be very interesting and helpful. Thanks for posting them. I’ll begin my 44th guitar build at the end of the summer and look forward to incorporating your ideas into it. Thanks, Dave

[Treenewt]

Mark,

Thank you very much for taking the time to articulate your thoughts behind those small yet not insignificant parts of your builds. That was extremely helpful and thought provoking for me!

[Erithon]

Mark, I love these posts because I always learn something. I've considered weight and contact points before, but never wave phasing. Absolutely fascinating. And, as ever, thank you for the fabulous images