Spohn guitars Scandinavian design guitar

[canuck7]

I think that headstock is awesome...think it really complements the guitar...

[jaymarsch]

Really beautiful work. Elegant and understated with a modern flair. I look forward to seeing the shape of the bridge.

Best,
Jayne

[Max Spohn]

Originally Posted by canuck7

I think that headstock is awesome...think it really complements the guitar...

Thank you Jeff!

Originally Posted by jaymarsch

Really beautiful work. Elegant and understated with a modern flair. I look forward to seeing the shape of the bridge.

Best,
Jayne

Thanks Jayne! You can be excited about the bridge design

[Max Spohn]

Neck profile:

The profile of this neck is also a little bit unusual.
When Don Latarski visited me in my shop earlier this year we had a long discussion about different playing techniques. He explained that most neck profiles feel uncomfortable or even hurt because of his thumb over technique. The angle of slim shaped necks, that are pretty common today, is too high so it feels more like an edge for the thumb, also the thumb doesn't get good support from the neck.
After that discussion I had the idea of combining a fat D-shaped neck with a slimmer C-shaped neck to get more support for the thumb. I came up with an asymmetrical shaped neck that has a thick D profile on the bass side and a slim C shape on the treble side.
I tried it on one guitar and everyone who played it liked it. It turned out that the new profile has an unexpected side effect. With the highest point being more on the bass side, you get more preassure with less effort when playing barre chords.

Neck heel:

The heel is inspired by Arne Jabcobsens door handle. It is asymmetrical shaped for a better access.
To get the look right it is undercut and chamfered. You can see the result here.









It is getting pretty close now!

[colins]

Originally Posted by Max Spohn

Neck profile:

The profile of this neck is also a little bit unusual.
When Don Latarski visited me in my shop earlier this year we had a long discussion about different playing techniques. He explained that most neck profiles feel uncomfortable or even hurt because of his thumb over technique. The angle of slim shaped necks, that are pretty common today, is too high so it feels more like an edge for the thumb, also the thumb doesn't get good support from the neck.
After that discussion I had the idea of combining a fat D-shaped neck with a slimmer C-shaped neck to get more support for the thumb. I came up with an asymmetrical shaped neck that has a thick D profile on the bass side and a slim C shape on the treble side.
I tried it on one guitar and everyone who played it liked it. It turned out that the new profile has an unexpected side effect. With the highest point being more on the bass side, you get more preassure with less effort when playing barre chords.

Neck heel:

The heel is inspired by Arne Jabcobsens door handle. It is asymmetrical shaped for a better access.

Really interesting concept for the neck profile Max; I would love to play one to feel the difference.

And the neck heel s a very elegant design feature.

Looking good!

[Max Spohn]

Originally Posted by colins

Really interesting concept for the neck profile Max; I would love to play one to feel the difference.

And the neck heel s a very elegant design feature.

Looking good!

Thank you Colins! I would love to hear your thoughts on the neck profile.

[Max Spohn]

While the guitar is now getting some lacquer on I have some more pictures of the guitar for you!

[mountainguitar]

Thank you for sharing this! It's so cool to see the design elements and how they all come together. It's a gorgeous instrument! The headstock and the inlay are so beautiful! I've enjoyed following your thinking as you've created this guitar.

beth

[justonwo]

That’s really beautiful and tasteful, Max. Thanks for sharing the photos!

[TomB'sox]

Beautiful, I would say you have achieved your Scandinavian design perfectly, simplistic beauty with clean lines. I would love to feel that neck profile as well. It sounds very interesting.

[Max Spohn]

Originally Posted by bmh1

Thank you for sharing this! It's so cool to see the design elements and how they all come together. It's a gorgeous instrument! The headstock and the inlay are so beautiful! I've enjoyed following your thinking as you've created this guitar.

beth

Thank you a lot, Beth! I am glad you like it.
I had a lot of fun to think about all the ideas again when I wrote the texts and it is even more fun when people enjoy reading it.

Originally Posted by justonwo

That’s really beautiful and tasteful, Max. Thanks for sharing the photos!

Thank you! The pleasure is mine!

Originally Posted by TomB'sox

Beautiful, I would say you have achieved your Scandinavian design perfectly, simplistic beauty with clean lines. I would love to feel that neck profile as well. It sounds very interesting.

Thank you, I really appreciate it! You might have the chance to get one of those necks in your hand this year as I am going to be part of the 2019 Boutique Guitar Showcase tours. At least the ones on the East and West coast. I am going to start a build thread of the first guitar soon!

[ross748]

Outstanding!

[RGPGuitars]

Sweet shape. Must admit to being a fan of symmetrical top bracing. Mine is nowhere close to this, but I find a more even response.

[Max Spohn]

Originally Posted by ross748

Outstanding!

Thank you!

Originally Posted by RGPGuitars

Sweet shape. Must admit to being a fan of symmetrical top bracing. Mine is nowhere close to this, but I find a more even response.

Thank you. I am also a fan of symmetrical bracing. My usual bracing is a symmetrical X-bracing with a small lattice in the lower bout.


It is finally time to reveal the bridge design of this guitar!

From the beginning on I wanted a pinless bridge for this guitar. I started playing with the design of my regular bridge shape but as a pinless version, but I was not happy with the results. So I started with a new design that was a combination of a rectangle for the part were the saddle sits and an oval shape for the part were the strings are mounted. After I was happy with the design I've built one out of a piece of scrap wood. It was very hard to get a clean result as the curves were very narrow and hard to reach with the required tools. I didn't like the result at all but I still liked the proportions of the rectangle with the oval.
When I visited Ray Krauts shop in Eugene he showed me a Jumbo that he built during his apprenticeship with Ervin Somogyi that had a two piece bridge. I liked the idea of separating the two parts from each other with a small gap of spruce in between. So I tried my rectangle/oval design again but this time as a two piece version.
The materials I chose are ebony for the rectangular part and a man made material called SaRaiFo for the oval shape. SaRaiFo is basically a very high grade plywood that is dyed black. It is very light weight and very stiff. To prevent the bridge from cracking under the string tension I used plywood that has no grain direction. It is veneered with recon stone.

I hope you like the result!



The rest of the story is going to follow within the next weeks.

[colins]

Looks very nice Max.

And for some reason I particularly like the design link between the oval component of the bridge and the oval neck heel.

When you next have the camera out I would love a photo of the bridge from greater distance to show its impact in the broader context of the top.

Love this thread !

Col