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  #31  
Old 01-14-2023, 12:52 PM
admiralfluff admiralfluff is offline
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Originally Posted by Al Mojo View Post
Enjoying following the progress of this build!

What tuning machines did you select?
I went with Scheller per Tom's recommendation, but don't think I've ever tried them before.

Some final pics before finish:







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  #32  
Old 01-14-2023, 01:38 PM
mountainguitar mountainguitar is offline
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Such gorgeous woods! The design of the guitar is also wonderful. I'm very excited for you and I imagine it will sound amazing! Thank you for sharing your journey with us-

beth
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  #33  
Old 01-14-2023, 01:47 PM
s2y s2y is offline
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Looks outstanding. Would love to hear some clips!
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  #34  
Old 01-14-2023, 04:30 PM
Jwills57 Jwills57 is offline
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Hey, AdmiralFluff--I just got around to checking back on this thread and noticed your question. So, I am having Oska build me two of his OM model guitars, both in East Indian rosewood, one with a European spruce top and one with a Western red cedar top. Should be finished about a year from now, I reckon.
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  #35  
Old 01-14-2023, 05:36 PM
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Deft Tungsman Deft Tungsman is offline
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Boy, you and Tom have knocked this one out of the park !!

What a beauty.

That set of myrtle is so wicked, like a big snakeskin.

Fingerboard and head plate, yowza !

The real clincher for me is that ever so discreet rosette.

Tom's Model S does it all in great style. You are in for a real party !
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  #36  
Old 01-17-2023, 04:03 AM
steveh steveh is offline
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Deft Tungsman View Post
The real clincher for me is that ever so discreet rosette.
What rosette?!!

Cheers,
Steve
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  #37  
Old 01-17-2023, 11:31 AM
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Deft Tungsman Deft Tungsman is offline
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What rosette?!!

Cheers,
Steve
That little ring of copper (?) lining the soundhole?

That's the celebrated "tone halo" you've heard speak of
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  #38  
Old 01-29-2023, 03:48 PM
admiralfluff admiralfluff is offline
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Deft Tungsman View Post
That little ring of copper (?) lining the soundhole?

That's the celebrated "tone halo" you've heard speak of
Exactly - the celebrated Tom Sands Tone Sphincter (tm) is a patented copper soundhole ring that adds woody warmth and clarity to the odd harmonics of the bell-like overtones of a redwood topped small body guitar. Similar in effect to using PVA glue (rather than HHG) to apply sinker Wenge headstock veneers. He explains the details HERE.

1st coat of finish, and my patience is eroding:




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  #39  
Old 01-30-2023, 06:31 PM
mountainguitar mountainguitar is offline
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what a gorgeous instrument!!! I can't wait to hear what it sounds like. No wonder you're having difficulty staying patient!

beth
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  #40  
Old 05-14-2023, 09:17 AM
admiralfluff admiralfluff is offline
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And here's a video of the finished guitar from Tom!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YqMDzvQBb_E&t=1s

Demo by Will McNicol:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fhwsnXyY7qY&t=0s

Can't wait to get my hands on it.
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  #41  
Old 05-14-2023, 11:18 AM
ianLP59 ianLP59 is offline
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Stunning looking and sounding instrument. Tom builds some of the finest guitars I've played.

Enjoy...

Cheers,

Ian
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  #42  
Old 05-14-2023, 08:18 PM
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Incredible instrument!! Love the Redwood.....!

The demos are enormously helpful in hearing what this guitar can do. Many congratulations.
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  #43  
Old 05-14-2023, 09:29 PM
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What a beautiful guitar. Fantastic choice. I own nothing but dreads, but Tom Sands S is the only exception in my collection and that speaks volume on how good his guitars are. I am glad I got in early as I cannot afford another Tom Sands anymore at his current prices.

Congratulations and enjoy in good health!
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  #44  
Old 05-15-2023, 12:37 PM
rockabilly69 rockabilly69 is offline
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That's great looking and wonderfully rich sounding guitar!
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  #45  
Old 06-19-2023, 02:04 PM
admiralfluff admiralfluff is offline
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Default NGD Review - final update!

TL;DR

A month in, and I absolutely love this guitar. I’m going to keep it forever and play it every day.

Playability and Comfort

This is an extraordinarily comfortable guitar to play - for me. The body size, playing position, shape, contours, and fit-n-finish are all just right. Usually a new guitar is kind of awkward for a while, and then you get used to working around the hard bits. The only awkward bit for me on this one is getting used to the heel and cutaway, which is to be expected on a new 12 fret instrument.

I have another 12 fret with similar scale length, and my biggest comfort issue with that one is the neck. It doesn’t fill my hand right and feels too thin, and the string spacing is a bit crowded. Salacia immediately felt perfect. Just the right amount of support, no strain, and I had the instant empowerment of fast and confident fretting. When a guitar just clicks like this for me, it noticeably raises my skill cap. This isn’t an accident. I went on a grand quest of neck discovery, took tons of measurements and profiles, and sent detailed notes to Tom. I didn't give exact specifications for what I wanted. I gave detailed measurements + notes of several different necks I like, and Tom synthesized that into something that was distinct from all the references, yet perfect for me.

Instrument Quality

Independent of personal taste and style, this is objectively an exceptional acoustic instrument – but you already know that. It’s a responsive cannon, balanced, even, has an unbelievably strong and focused fundamental in the bass, wonderfully even sustain, excellent intonation, tuning stability, etc.

Character

If you asked me to write down how I would describe the tone of this guitar before receiving it, I would have pretty much captured exactly how I would describe it after playing it. What I wouldn’t be able to predict is whether or not I would like it. It *seems* good on paper, but only after playing it am I relieved to say I really love the tone of this guitar. I get the woody warmth and high-end sparkle of fine old redwood, and a hint of the honey tones of Koa that I expected from the myrtle. There’s also a little something extra in overtones, especially in the higher mids. To use my wife’s description - the harmonic content feels a lot 'fuller' than my fantastic traditional OM style Adirondack and East Indian Rosewood guitar. But, it’s not overly crystalline glassy or cathedral-ly (imo a common characteristic in high end modern guitars, and one I wanted to avoid in this build). It’s a completely different sound from my other guitars and I’m drawn to playing different music on it, but it’s also surprisingly versatile. It’s articulate enough that bluegrassy fingerpicking sounds great on it - just very different. I think a big part of this is the consistency of tone over the life of a note. It’s an immediate response with very little bloom and very little tone change during decay. I can strike a note with different levels of attack and position, and my tuner shows 0 deviation all the way through (within 1 cent). Paradoxically, this instrument also has more tonal range than I think any guitar I’ve played. It’s the same dimensions I’m used to – nail/flesh, attack angle, depth, position, damping the back - but the magnitude of responsiveness feels like I’m exploring a whole new gamut.

Aesthetics

I’ve soaked in the overall aesthetic of this guitar via pictures for months before seeing it in person. There are no surprises in the beauty of the design, the balance, and the focus on design and execution over intricate ornamentations. It looks incredible on screen and incredible-er in person. There are some new impressions upon receiving it:

• The woods! Pictures don’t do them justice. You have to hold it and watch the grain play in the light – mesmerizing.
• The execution! I’m really impressed - I’m pretty sure this is actually an injection molded and wire-EDMed guitar. I’ve built many different things in many different ways, and played a lot of boutique guitars from a lot of different builders, and I just don’t understand how someone achieves this level of execution.
• The purple urchin! I thought that outside of the build pictures, there would be no discernible evidence of the urchin spine side dots. *I* would know they’re there, and that would be enough. But, there are subtle color variations and bits of true purple that are visible with the naked eye, and under a microscope the distinct growth structure is clearly visible!

Will another person ever notice this? No, of course not. But - if a race of technologically advanced cephalopods finds this guitar in a hermetically sealed time capsule on the moon 7 million years from now - they’ll notice. And they’ll know us humans had a complicated relationships with echinoderms - just like them.

Surprises

• Strength of the fundamental in the bass response - just wow. Focused, but with a bit of rumble and just astonishing magnitude. The engineer in me wants to know how this actually works - I’ll start with Somogyi’s book?
• This guitar is properly loud. This is not what I expected from a redwood top on a delicately balanced raised pinky instrument. This is the result of a special set of redwood, a special builder, and likely a sprinkling of faerie dust. My default playing style is to go full volume and selectively make certain notes quieter for effect. This guitar is *too* loud for that. I can just play softer, and can access far more range on either end when I want it. It feels indulgent, bordering on illegal. I’m getting used it.
• The combined impact of the great dynamic range in volume and the mantis shrimpian level tonal palette is that playing this guitar is something different. I’m used to attempting to control these subtleties for effect. It’s the same deal, the same dimensions, but we’ve crossed a threshold where it just feels like a different beast. It’s simultaneously newly challenging (which I love), and exciting and rewarding to try to learn how to play this instrument to its full potential.

Final Thoughts

The decision to buy this guitar was an impulsive splurge. I had the means and the desire, but absolutely no good reason. I just really wanted to do it, and I did it. On the other side of it, this is one of the wisest things I’ve ever done – I’m a genius. Sweating the build was a great experience I’ll never forget, and I’m going to play this guitar nearly every day for (hopefully) the next 30 - 40 years. That extra bit of happiness and creativity will have a measurable cumulative impact on my life. Occasionally other people at holiday parties or local bars enjoy my playing too, and there will be a dash more happiness for them as well.

Playing Samples

I made a few brief recordings on a plain old Yeti mic that show a few different styles and give a sense of how this instrument sounds in hands that are more human than Will Mcnicol's:

Hotel California
Ave Maria
Don't Think Twice


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