HOWARD KLEPPER: Oval Hole, 000/OM (African Blackwood / Italian Spruce) - Page 5

iim7V7IM7 · #61 06-17-2016, 08:11 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by invguy921

This is a beautiful piece of work. Love the headstock veneer. I'll love to see the progress on this one.

Thanks, I am enjoying watching this one come together as well...

In recent years, we have seen more of Howard's "traditional" work here on AGF with some conversions that he shared, commissions for some private clients and Schoenberg Guitars. I really like this genre of work, but I have followed the work coming from Howard's bench for years and some of his more "unique" and "artistic" work over the last 15-years is amazing in its detail and craftsmanship. So for this commission, we are combining a bit of both of Howard's diverse skills. The book-matched BRW veneer is an example of the unique and artistic as is the laminated neck, oval sound hole and backstrap. The rosette, bindings and bracing seen speak to a traditional aesthetic and voice.

iim7V7IM7 · #62 06-19-2016, 01:56 AM

Howard has joined the bent African Blackwood rims to the neck and end blocks. Note how he laminates the Honduran Mahogany blocks. The pieces glued to the rims have their grain oriented in parallel to them to move with them during their expansion/contraction based on %RH and the other pieces with their grain oriented at 90 degrees to the pieces glued to the sides for strength in compression for neck reinforcement.

The 21-fret multi-scale fingerboard is now fretted with Jascar EVO 43080 fretwire. It has a 24.9"-25.4" (000 in high E and OM in bass E strings) scale with its vertical fret at the 8th fret.

Here is the finished African Blackwood fingerboard being glued to the yet-to-be carved neck. With 18 clamps, I don't think that it is going anywhere!

Lastly, here's the neck's dovetail tenon. You can begin to see what a beautiful piece of Honduran Mahogany he chose and the laminate structure of the Yellowheart, Maple and Carbon Fiber reinforcement.

iim7V7IM7 · #63 06-19-2016, 05:22 PM

Howard rough carved the barrel of the neck today. The headstock and heel transitions still need to be refined. In the top image, you can begin to see how the Ceylon Satinwood binding and the book-matched Brazilian Rosewood headplate veneer with sapwood will tie together. In the bottom image, the Brazilian Rosewood backstrap can be seen. Additionally, the Maple and Wenge laminates are now intersecting the Maple/Black/Yellowheart/Black/Maple laminate in the neck barrel. The heel will be a lower profile Kalamazoo-like profile once carved.

LouieAtienza · #64 06-20-2016, 10:50 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by iim7V7IM7

Howard has joined the bent African Blackwood rims to the neck and end blocks. Note how he laminates the Honduran Mahogany blocks. The pieces glued to the rims have their grain oriented in parallel to them to move with them during their expansion/contraction based on %RH and the other pieces with their grain oriented at 90 degrees to the pieces glued to the sides for strength in compression for neck reinforcement.

The 21-fret multi-scale fingerboard is now fretted with Jascar EVO 43080 fretwire. It has a 24.9"-25.4" (000 in high E and OM in bass E strings) scale with its vertical fret at the 8th fret.

Here is the finished African Blackwood fingerboard being glued to the yet-to-be carved neck. With 18 clamps, I don't think that it is going anywhere!

Lastly, here's the neck's dovetail tenon. You can begin to see what a beautiful piece of Honduran Mahogany he chose and the laminate structure of the Yellowheart, Maple and Carbon Fiber reinforcement.

This is looking great! Though I count 19 clamps LOL!

iim7V7IM7 · #65 06-22-2016, 06:31 PM

The end graft was crafted from a wedge of Golden Amboyna burl wood (Narra or Pterocarpus indicus) that Howard had in his woodlocker. He first applied some blue dye (left). After waiting a day, he then sanded it back the next day to see the enhanced the figure (middle). Then he sprayed a single coat of nitro on it to see the hue and figure (right). He then edged it with black/blue purflings. In the bottom shot of this montage you can see how the hues in the burl visually tie into the Ceylon Satinwood bindings and the BRW sapwood in the headplate veneer.

rogthefrog · #66 06-22-2016, 07:19 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by iim7V7IM7

The end graft was crafted from a wedge of Golden Amboyna burl wood (Narra or Pterocarpus indicus) that Howard had in his woodlocker. He first applied some blue dye (left). After waiting a day, he then sanded it back the next day to see the enhanced the figure (middle). Then he sprayed a single coat of nitro on it to see the hue and figure (right). He then edged it with black/blue purflings. In the bottom shot of this montage you can see how the hues in the burl visually tie into the Ceylon Satinwood bindings and the BRW sapwood in the headplate veneer.

That's a beautiful detail.

I really like the fret marker circles, too.

jmat · #67 06-23-2016, 04:30 AM

Wow! All the stops are being pulled out.

iim7V7IM7 · #68 06-23-2016, 04:59 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by rogthefrog

That's a beautiful detail.

I really like the fret marker circles, too.

I do as well...

They were Howard's idea. He used some aluminum tubing and Black MOP to create them.

Quote:

Originally Posted by jmat

Wow! All the stops are being pulled out.

Howard's tag line on his website says"unique guitars" and indeed they are...

"Every guitar I build is a one-of-a-kind, custom instrument. I have no standard model names or numbers."

justonwo · #69 06-23-2016, 07:58 AM

This thread is so predictable. The guitar is coming out amazing.

iim7V7IM7 · #70 06-23-2016, 08:09 PM

The African Blackwood rims have been planed to have a 3/8" Manzer Wedge, Howard has moved onto installing a Honduran Mahogany reinforcement patch that has its grain perpendicular to the side grain and some herringbone reinforcement ribbons to the rims.

Next, the kerfed back Honduran Mahogany linings are glued and clamped. You can see the slight taper of the 3/8" "wedge" between the two sides of the rims.

iim7V7IM7 · #71 06-25-2016, 11:12 PM

Both sets of kerfed linings have been installed to the African Blackwood rims (left). The bottom liners are Honduran Mahogany (as are the laminated neck and end blocks) and the top set is Spanish Cedar. A 1-1/8" diameter sound port has been cut into the upper bout from the inside (right). Together with the oval soundhole cut into the top, the combined surface area of the two openings is comparable to a traditional 000 or OM soundhole.

John Osthoff · #72 06-26-2016, 05:16 AM

I have always loved Howard's guitars, and this one is certainly no exception. I hope I get to see it in-person. Bob, thanks for providing the details to this thread, the process on the end graft is cool and the headstock overlay is awesome.

cpabolting · #73 06-26-2016, 08:00 AM

Very nice Howard.....dovetail neck....awesome

Love the fret markers, and the headstock overlay. You don't seem to miss any details.

nootis · #74 06-26-2016, 12:01 PM

I'm loving this thread. Great decisions by a great artist!

iim7V7IM7 · #75 06-26-2016, 04:09 PM

Here is a photo of the finished top bracing. A series of six, diamond shaped spruce cleats along the center seam have been added and it of course now bears its maker's mark along the x-brace.

The extent that luthiers go to to ensure the integrity of their glue joints astounds be. Check out Howard's top to rims gluing set up! The back has already been attached so the box is closed. No, the soundhole is not a foreshortened circle, its an oval.