The Last Great Train Robbery

[BEJ]

Originally Posted by Mark Hatcher

A little over two years ago I found this wonderful Cocobolo board at one of my favorite suppliers:



The board was 6ft+ and 4 quarters thick. I had to cut it in half to fit into the Mini Cooper I was driving back then. It had great color and the uncommon grain patterns called cloud figure.



My first thought looking at this board was it looks like it is on fire! This was the original inspiration for the guitar I am making today. I was aware the 100 year mark was coming on the Great Train Robbery. That is when I started planing this guitar.

So far we have the logo chip. Here I am prepping a section of the board to make the binding:



Here it is:



This picture I've shown a couple times already?:



That's the fretboard blank. This is a picture right after it was cut and it has reddened up some since.

There will be other opportunities for this wood as I go like the end graft, heel cap, headstock overlay, maybe a center laminate up the neck, etc.

The bridge will be BRW because since the back and sides are BRW I can easily go with the BRW bridge. Given the choice of BRW and Cocobolo I'll pretty much always pick BRW.

Thanks for following and for the comments and question along the way!
Mark

Great looking piece of wood. Tough choice "Do I cut the board of get rid of the Mini and get a bigger car/pickup." Some people may think this a joke but lovers of great wood know better.

Bruce,

[Mark Hatcher]

Originally Posted by BEJ

Great looking piece of wood. Tough choice "Do I cut the board of get rid of the Mini and get a bigger car/pickup." Some people may think this a joke but lovers of great wood know better.

Bruce,

Yeah, I loved that Mini:



m

[Mark Hatcher]

It was great to be back in the (deep cleaned) studio to work on guitars yesterday! I started on the sides:



I picked out the wood for the neck and the interior neck and end blocks. All these parts are coming from my stash of 250yrs old sinker Mahogany from Belize.

I also began working on the birds' mouth joint I am using to join the headstock to the neck.

m

[MMdmd]

Hi Mark.
I would love to see how you make the birds mouth joint. Nothing like some great joinery.

[Mark Hatcher]

Duplicate.

[Mark Hatcher]

Originally Posted by MMdmd

Hi Mark.
I would love to see how you make the birds mouth joint. Nothing like some great joinery.

Here is are a couple pictures of the birds mouth joint I use for Woodsman guitar necks:







What I love about this type of neck joint is I'm quite sure it would hold even if I didn't glue it.

M

[Treenewt]

Seriously beautiful craftsmanship Mark. Well done!

[Mark Hatcher]

Originally Posted by Treenewt

Seriously beautiful craftsmanship Mark. Well done!

Thanks Treenewt, it’s a trick to get right but the joint is strong and is appropriate for a vintage style guitar.

M

[Mark Hatcher]

Here I am attaching the heel block and end block. This is what joins the sides:



From there the side braces and the kerfing go on:



It's all coming along nicely!

m

[Mark Hatcher]

I got the case that I wanted for my Shasta Special 00 guitar:



It is a Premier series Visesnut case. I think the color is right for the theme of this guitar. You can see I also have the padded soft cover for it:



It can easily be mistaken for a soft gig case. The cases are extremely lightweight and the contoured shape gets rid of a lot of the clunky edges you get with many hard cases.

Here is what else I like about these cases:

They have a rubber gasket seal all around the opening which resists moisture and it won't scratch your guitar.

They have stainless steel hardware with buckles that open up flat against the case to avoid guitar scratches.

They come with very nicely padded shoulder straps to free up you hands

The cases are adjustable so you may be able to use this case for other guitars if you need a flight case.

And yes they are strong and have a measure of temperature insulation, especially with the soft cover.

This is where I usually say I have no relationship other than being a customer but, in this case the owner is my daughter in-law's uncle. He's been out to my shop and he makes wonderful Classic guitars. Cousin Jeep makes very nice guitar cases and is not paying me to say so!

[sinistral]

Very nice—even the color looks a bit like redwood!

[Mark Hatcher]

Originally Posted by sinistral

Very nice—even the color looks a bit like redwood!

Thanks, I think it's a good fit.

m

[The Bard Rocks]

Originally Posted by Mark Hatcher

I got the case that I wanted for my Shasta Special 00 guitar:



It is a Premier series Visesnut case. I think the color is right for the theme of this guitar. You can see I also have the padded soft cover for it:



It can easily be mistaken for a soft gig case. The cases are extremely lightweight and the contoured shape gets rid of a lot of the clunky edges you get with many hard cases.


Here is what else I like about these cases:

They have a rubber gasket seal all around the opening which resists moisture and it won't scratch your guitar.

They have stainless steel hardware with buckles that open up flat against the case to avoid guitar scratches.

They come with very nicely padded shoulder straps to free up you hands

The cases are adjustable so you may be able to use this case for other guitars if you need a flight case.

And yes they are strong and have a measure of temperature insulation, especially with the soft cover.

This is where I usually say I have no relationship other than being a customer but, in this case the owner is my daughter in-law's uncle. He's been out to my shop and he makes wonderful Classic guitars. Cousin Jeep makes very nice guitar cases and is not paying me to say so!

Didn't now there was a connection... of sorts. At any rate, I am, a fan. My only disgruntlement is I like Hiscox latches better.

[Mark Hatcher]

Originally Posted by The Bard Rocks

Didn't now there was a connection... of sorts. At any rate, I am, a fan. My only disgruntlement is I like Hiscox latches better.

Thanks for commenting! Personally, I like their buckles and the fact that they lay flat against the case when open.

Mark

[sinistral]

Originally Posted by Mark Hatcher

Thanks for commenting! Personally, I like their buckles and the fact that they lay flat against the case when open.

Mark

I love how you sweat every detail. I'm still waiting for the Coyote guitar!