Build thread: Stehr dreadnought

[ZekeM]

Mike I am not a fan of cutaway dreads, but I love what you and Joel have put together on this one. I want one in my collection now! Beautiful guitar.

[10304cpg]

agree with zeke!! i love the details and how they are all blending together to make a one of a kind beauty!! awesome job and thanks for posting and i really wanted your ga quilt maple!! glad it worked out for you.

[mikealpine]

Guys, thanks very much! I know that dreads don't get much love in custom-land, but as I said earlier, they feel very "right" when I play them. We spoke about the other shapes Joel does, and almost went with a Jumbo, but in the end, dreads are where my roots are, and when I made that decision, it felt like that was the way it should be. And there was a thread about cutaway dreads, with the majority of people strongly against. I never play up high enough to require a cutaway, but happen to like the look. With all of that being said, Joel's dread looks more curvy and sexy to me than the traditional dread, probaby helped by the bevels, and i am really happy with what he's done. My thinking is typically harder lines and angles, and he guided me to something different, yet familiar. I truly appreciate the nice comments! Thanks so much!!


And sorry, the maple GS didn't work out! I wound up trading it for a really nice electric. I didn't get any serious money offers, and when that opportunity came up, I grabbed it. I'm seeing lots of nice guitars out there, though. Mike (invguy921) has a 616 magnificent burst available that would be a heckuva nice guitar to own!


Again, I have to say I'm grateful for the warmth of this community. Thanks all.

[mikealpine]

I'm hoping to get some shots of the completed guitar before it goes out for finishing, but here are a few more...

The cutaway bevel, which I think is Joel's first on a Venetian...







Here's the rib bevel. I've played guitars with arm bevels. This will be my first with a rib bevel. Looks comfortable!




I have a couple more, but it's late, so I will post them tomorrow...


Good night everyone!

[cigarfan]

Schweeet !!!!!!

[mikealpine]

LOL!! Pretty much my reaction as well.

Ok, so where were we?

Here's the finished end wedge.



And here it is darkened up with naphtha. I am so happy with the colors and contrast
.


And with the neck in position...



And with only a few more tweaks before finishing, here's a frontal



And a "backal" ("rearal"? "non-frontal"?)



I may get a couple more, and if so, I'll post, but otherwise, it could be 6 weeks before it comes back from the finisher, so there might be a brief hiatus, wherein I will get to enjoy the other build threads and doing my best to divest myself of a few more guitars. As always, I appreciate the comments and the companionship as this progresses!!

[acousticjazz]

Stunning... are you doing alright waiting for the girl to finish?

[mikealpine]

Thanks very much! I'm doing well, actually. Joel did a great job with setting expectations, and he was able to start my build a few months ahead of when I now expect it to finish. That's really good because he's got his builds for Healdsburg coming up and a backlog of about 30 guitars!! So I'm considering myself lucky that we're almost done, lol!

I've also been playing much more electric these days, and that's keeping my mind off it. Once it is back from the finisher I'm sure I'll be on pins and needles, though.

Thanks again!

[michaelht1]

that is magnificently crafted and stunningly beautiful guitar, will be wonderful to see it finished, congratulations on the design and woods, beautiful!

[mikealpine]

Thank you so much, Michael! I'm still amazed, more than anything. What talented luthiers like Joel and many others here can do with a pile of wood and an idea is just beyond me. The journey from wood pieces to now has been an unbelievable amount of fun, and Joel has been awesome with give and take on the ideas, so I feel like I have been part of the process. Now, as he says, hopefully it won't sound like a tuba!

[dk63]

Wow, what an awesome looking guitar! I'm admittedly not a fan of the dreadnaught look in general, but your guitar could certainly change that. Joel builds some of the most amazing guitars I have ever seen which is one of the reasons I chose him for my upcoming build. Watching build threads like this only increases my excitement but makes the wait excruciating! I can't wait to see this one finished and then read the reports on how it sounds.

[Kevin A]

Custom dreads are exciting as one can see how a talented builder transforms what has become a 'common' guitar shape into a work of luthier's art.
Bevels, cutaways, ports, creative inlays... Exciting stuff and beautiful guitar!

[mikealpine]

David, you're in for a treat. Joel is gracious, doesn't let a hint of ego color anything he does and is incredibly responsive. On top of that, he's talented. I'll look forward to you build! What are you having him do?

Kevin, thank you! He does have a way of bringing elegance to whatever he does. And as I've mentioned a few times, he's such a pleasure.

We started out with the idea of a jumbo because I want this to be LOUD as well as rich/sweet/lush and other such adjectives. But, I have bad shoulders, and was concerned that I wouldn't get the longevity out of the guitar. Joel doesn't build a wedge, so that ruled out something large. And I do like dreads. Joel believes that with his build process, double sides, etc that he could build me a lifer that hits everything I want. I believe he's well on his way, lol!

Again, thanks for the nice comments!!

[mikealpine]

Kevin, just reread your post in the contentious thread they closed, and would love to see pics of your guitar(s). Feel free to post 'em up here! Happy to share space with a fellow cutaway dread lover!!

[Nemoman]

One word--Wow! Really digging the soundport and all the elegant detailing. I can only imagine how glorious that first strum will be. Congrats on a beauty, Mike!