The Acoustic Guitar Forum

Go Back   The Acoustic Guitar Forum > General Acoustic Guitar and Amplification Discussion > Custom Shop

Reply
 
Thread Tools
  #16  
Old 10-26-2020, 08:41 PM
SprintBob's Avatar
SprintBob SprintBob is offline
Charter Member
 
Join Date: Sep 2013
Posts: 5,253
Default

This is so cool. Looks like it will be a great guitar.
__________________
Doerr Trinity 12 Fret 00 (Lutz/Maple)
Edwinson Zephyr 13 Fret 00 (Adi/Coco)
Froggy Bottom H-12 (Adi/EIR)
Kostal 12 Fret OMC (German Spruce/Koa)
Rainsong APSE 12 Fret (Carbon Fiber)
Taylor 812ce-N 12 fret (Sitka/EIR Nylon)
Reply With Quote
  #17  
Old 10-27-2020, 04:31 AM
cigarfan's Avatar
cigarfan cigarfan is offline
Music soothes the soul!
 
Join Date: Jan 2012
Location: Within the blast radius of Washington D.C.
Posts: 5,177
Default

Excellent work. Looks like this guitar is really coming together. It is special to watch a guitar lover (like us) throw himself into the mix. Appreciate you sharing all this with us. I feel like I have some sawdust in my nose.
__________________
Life is like a box of chocolates ....
Reply With Quote
  #18  
Old 10-27-2020, 07:35 PM
BlackKeys36 BlackKeys36 is offline
Charter Member
 
Join Date: Apr 2020
Location: Rockwall, TX
Posts: 259
Default Day 5.5 (6)

This entry will conclude the build week and there will be a break for a couple of months while the guitar is off visiting the beautiful state of MI before returning with that glow that only Tony can impart.

On Day 6 we started the day by sleeping-in an hour and meeting at Dolli's Diner on the square in old downtown Nacogdoches. I've been in triathlon training mode for the last 18ish months and don't get many pancakes, but decided early in the week that this would be as good a time as any to indulge a little and have a good breakfast. The food was great and the conversation even better (I picked their brains about the Kinnaird vs Kinnaird friendly rivalry and we compared notes on their Scottish vacation vs my Iceland one). After significantly more tasty carbohydrates than I'm accustomed to we headed back to the shop to do some final prep and masking on the guitar and take some pics before sending it off for finish.

Dolli's -



We (mostly them) went through the relatively lengthy process of fitting the neck to the body making sure our scale length was dead on and that the center of the nut lined up with the center of the bridge. Speaking of nut, Steve puts the nut on the headstock so we notched out the veneer and sanded the angle to the bottom so that it was a perfect fit.

We went with the traditional Martin-esque OM headstock rather than the Kinnaird headstock to help differentiate the student build and I softened the edges a bit to make it similar to the '31 OM-28A I sold a few months ago.




My (our) Creation -



"Cheese" Shots -




My family came up for the weekend and my youngest managed to get in the picture, make it significantly better, and not break anything in the shop (that I know of).



AND, last but not least, a pic with the masters...




Oh, and you probably saw the koa peeking out from behind my rather large figure...after breakfast we spent some time shellac'ing some sets and....wow...just wow...







If you made it this far, thank you for following along! I'll be back in 8-10 weeks for final setup and to post some good "finished" pics.

Thank you Steve, Ryan, and Billie for letting me into your home/business this week, treating me like family, and selflessly sharing your wealth of knowledge and experience with me throughout this build. You have a very special thing going in that small East Texas town and I sincerely hope many others have the opportunity to meet you guys, share the laughs and stories, and maybe even build a guitar. I get the impression you guys are well-loved in this community and have earned some very deserved respect, but I can say with confidence that whatever accolades you have received it isn't enough to be close to proportional to the time, care, experience, artistry, and master-level craftsmanship that you put into everything that you do. Your guitars are not only beautiful, but they inspire in a way that few others can; I can't get the sound of that mahogany OM out of my head .
__________________
- john

If anyone has ideas for case storage once your kids' closets and under their beds are full I'm all ears.
Reply With Quote
  #19  
Old 10-27-2020, 08:59 PM
jim_pridx's Avatar
jim_pridx jim_pridx is offline
Charter Member
 
Join Date: May 2009
Location: WI
Posts: 314
Default

Looks like great fun! It has to be incredible to be working with Steve and Ryan, too! Can't wait to see the final product!
Reply With Quote
  #20  
Old 10-27-2020, 09:18 PM
Steve Kinnaird's Avatar
Steve Kinnaird Steve Kinnaird is offline
AGF Sponsor
 
Join Date: Aug 2009
Location: Nacogdoches, TX
Posts: 3,601
Default

John, it was a delight having you in our shop last week. Several times in this thread you mentioned being nervous, but that never showed. "Nerves" was what hindered me at first, and there is a sense of satisfaction in helping nudge someone over their own mental hurdles.
Thanks for coming, and being part of the team. Oh yes, and happy birthday!

Steve
__________________
www.stephenkinnaird.com

Crafted in the Piney Woods
Reply With Quote
  #21  
Old 10-28-2020, 01:06 AM
Guitars44me's Avatar
Guitars44me Guitars44me is offline
Charter Member
 
Join Date: Feb 2014
Location: Mountains east of San Diego
Posts: 7,372
Smile What Jim said!

Quote:
Originally Posted by jim_pridx View Post
Looks like great fun! It has to be incredible to be working with Steve and Ryan, too! Can't wait to see the final product!
No kidding! And no wonder you all are smiling so Happily. Your new axe is SWEET! Your daughter is sure cute too! Be a Unicorn!

This thread is just really about as heartwarming as it gets....

Just wait till it gets back with the Tony GLOW

SALUD

Paul
__________________
3 John Kinnaird SS 12c CUSTOMS:
Big Maple/Cedar Dread
Jumbo Spanish Cedar/WRC
Jumbo OLD Brazilian RW/WRC

R.T 2 12c sinker RW/Claro
96 422ce bought new!
96 LKSM 12
552ce 12x12

J. Stepick Bari Weissy WRC/Walnut

More
Reply With Quote
  #22  
Old 10-28-2020, 04:25 AM
cigarfan's Avatar
cigarfan cigarfan is offline
Music soothes the soul!
 
Join Date: Jan 2012
Location: Within the blast radius of Washington D.C.
Posts: 5,177
Default

What fun to watch! I own 2 Kinnairds (both DB OMs) and they are spectacular. I am sure this personally built piece will tickle you crazy. Thanks for sharing. I really enjoyed following along. Cute kid!
__________________
Life is like a box of chocolates ....
Reply With Quote
  #23  
Old 10-28-2020, 05:45 AM
Carpinteria Carpinteria is offline
AGF Sponsor
 
Join Date: May 2015
Location: Suburban Chicago
Posts: 248
Default

I’ve always loved how music can bring people together and, here, how guitars can bring folks together, too. Congratulations on a beautiful story as well as a great guitar-build!
__________________
Dave
www.Bianchinguitars.com
Reply With Quote
  #24  
Old 10-28-2020, 09:35 AM
Nemoman Nemoman is offline
Charter Member
 
Join Date: Dec 2010
Location: N. California
Posts: 3,140
Default

What a fantastic thread--congrats on such a wonderful experience!

And you'll have a world-class guitar out of it as well! It looks fantastic...

OK--So thanks, now I have something new on my bucket list!
__________________
2013 Stehr Auditorium (Carpathian/Myrtle)
2015 Stehr Auditorium (Adi/BRW)
2020 Baranik Meridian (Blue Spruce/Manchinga)
2020 Wilborn Arum (Tunnel 14/Coco)
2021 Kinnaird Graybeard (BC Cedar/Bog Oak)
2022 Kinnaird CS Student Build (Adi/Padauk)
2023 Kinnaird FS (Italian/Koa)
Reply With Quote
  #25  
Old 10-31-2020, 08:33 AM
mountainguitar mountainguitar is offline
Registered User
 
Join Date: Sep 2014
Location: San Bernardino Mountains
Posts: 458
Default

This is so wonderful! You built a gorgeous instrument and how cool to be able to play what you built... Thank you for taking us along on this journey. The pics and commentary have been great! And your daughter is wonderful!!

We'll be waiting along with you while the guitar is at Tony's....

beth
Reply With Quote
  #26  
Old 10-31-2020, 10:16 AM
vanceen vanceen is offline
Registered User
 
Join Date: Oct 2017
Posts: 137
Default

I think you're going to love that guitar.

I have a Lutz-topped S Kinnaird SJ, and the sound is... astonishing.

I commissioned a LS redwood/ziricote OM from Kinnaird guitars early this year, and before I was through I ended up with three of his guitars: the redwood, the Lutz SJ, and a superb Sitka/African curly mahogany 12 string (the latter two being pre-built). All of them are lifetime instruments.
Reply With Quote
  #27  
Old 11-01-2020, 10:30 AM
invguy921's Avatar
invguy921 invguy921 is offline
Lovin' nice guitars...
 
Join Date: Mar 2009
Location: S. Central Missouri
Posts: 2,814
Default

Very cool thread and that guitar is destined to become amazing! Thanks for sharing this journey!!
__________________
"A good name is to be chosen rather than great riches, and favor is better than silver or gold."

Woody (aka: Mike)


FOR SALE: Kinnaird Brazilian!!
Reply With Quote
  #28  
Old 11-10-2020, 09:13 AM
llew llew is offline
Charter Member
 
Join Date: Dec 2009
Location: Coastal South Carolina
Posts: 13,754
Default

So cool...brings back many memories of my time building with Wayne Henderson, Spencer Strickland, Josh Reese, and Marty Howard at the Henderson School in Marion, VA earlier this year. I also have the Maple deep body Kinnaird OM used for the blind test with a mahogany and rosewood OM posted some time ago...stellar guitar. I may end up visiting Stephen and Ryan someday and building with them...it's a great time I'm sure. Thanks for sharing your experience!
__________________
Jim

Dogs Welcome......People Tolerated!
Reply With Quote
  #29  
Old 01-18-2021, 10:17 AM
BlackKeys36 BlackKeys36 is offline
Charter Member
 
Join Date: Apr 2020
Location: Rockwall, TX
Posts: 259
Default Final Setup!

Thank you all for the kind words!

After a couple of busy holiday months that my guitar spent a good portion of in Michigan, Ryan and I were able to coordinate a day for me to come back and do final assembly and setup last Friday.

Aside from a couple of teaser pics where Ryan was careful not to show me too much, I had no idea what she would look like under finish when I walked in and I couldn't have been happier.

(Finish came in at about .003)

The B/S deepened in color with the sides taking on a very deep red/burgundy and the back being a hair lighter, but still very rich. The finish made the silking in the lutz really pop. This top is stunning today and will just get better and better with age.

Ryan again showed other-worldly patience in watching and coaching me through tasks he could do in his sleep. After spending a few minutes admiring the finish, we started work on the frets...

Level, crown, and polish the frets after waxing and taping off the fingerboard:




We then cut the saddle blank down to length and then carefully carved it to its final shape. This was more tedious than I anticipated and I ended up with a shape I wouldn't have guessed came from careful work with a couple of files and 320 grit sandpaper:



We then started from a nut that Steve and I had already rough cut to the right width and bottom angle and cut the string slots.

We spent some time playing with the height of the saddle and nut to get the action closer to final height and then broke for lunch.


After lunch we shaped the nut. This is one of Steve's jobs and though he offered to let me do it, he did the majority of the shaping:




After getting the nut and saddle close to final height we made a final truss rod adjustment and tweaked the action. I prefer something on the low side of medium action so I don't get fret buzz when I'm playing palm-muted flat-pick rhythm stuff and that's what we ended with.

I didn't do a great job of snapping pics during the work on Friday, but took a few minutes before leaving East Texas yesterday to get some of the obligatory "leaned against a local tree" pics:











I'll get some more pics of specific details over the next few days and if you have anything in particular you'd like to see don't hesitate to ask.

I'll add some thoughts on the tone and possibly even throw together a quick video in the coming days after giving her a little more time. First impressions on that front are excellent though!
__________________
- john

If anyone has ideas for case storage once your kids' closets and under their beds are full I'm all ears.

Last edited by BlackKeys36; 01-18-2021 at 10:23 AM.
Reply With Quote
  #30  
Old 01-18-2021, 10:27 AM
nacluth's Avatar
nacluth nacluth is offline
AGF Sponsor
 
Join Date: Mar 2010
Posts: 2,436
Default

Not bad looking for something that took about 6.5 days of shop time! We couldn’t have had more fun if we tried.
__________________
Ryan
Kinnaird SJ - Walnut/Sitka

Kinnaird Guitars - from the oldest town in Texas
Reply With Quote
Reply

  The Acoustic Guitar Forum > General Acoustic Guitar and Amplification Discussion > Custom Shop

Thread Tools





All times are GMT -6. The time now is 11:09 AM.


Powered by vBulletin® Version 3.8.11
Copyright ©2000 - 2024, vBulletin Solutions Inc.
Copyright ©2000 - 2022, The Acoustic Guitar Forum
vB Ad Management by =RedTyger=