Sexauer/'16 (Chapter 2) - Page 3

Bruce Sexauer · #31 06-27-2016, 05:33 PM

Here's the Cuban Mahogany back just joined up for Eric's 000:

No, that's not the template.

BradHall · #32 06-27-2016, 09:28 PM

Just another beautiful build Bruce. Thanks for the documentation of the sound port. I went back and forth trying to decide if I would put one in my current build. Decided to wait till the next one. Your method has inspired me to give it a go.

Sad news about Roxie. Glad I got to meet her. My heart is with you and your family.

iim7V7IM7 · #33 06-27-2016, 10:30 PM

There doesn't seem to be an end to the nice wood hidden in your woodlocker! I have no doubt in your skilled hands that you'll find the music in it...

Quote:

Originally Posted by Bruce Sexauer

Here's the Cuban Mahogany back just joined up for Eric's 000:

No, that's not the template.

ChuckS · #34 06-28-2016, 07:37 AM

Hey Bruce,
Nice to see you've found a guitar for that Cuban Mahogany. Looks like a really nice set; seems like there is a good amount of fiddleback figure there.

I believe you've said that you haven't built with Cuban Mahogany before, so I'm very curious to hear your thoughts after it's making music. In the meantime, could you give me some idea of this set's properties, like is it significantly more dense or more ringy (less damping) than good Honduran Mahogany? Is there a tonal direction you are going to push this guitar towards, or what is Eric striving for tonally and for responsiveness (i.e. Is this geared for fingerstyle)?

Thanks for your sharing on this forum!

Bruce Sexauer · #35 06-28-2016, 10:04 AM

I have not yet thicknesses the Cuban back or sides, which is where I will gain the most knowledge about them. I can say the wood is finer grained and somewhat heavier than Honduran. It is in the rosewood direction for a mahogany, much as tucurensis is in the mahogany direction for a rosewood, and if the two woods produced similar results that would be fine with me.

This is not the set I have been holding for several years now (mine is technically superior IMO though a bit less flamed) but was supplied by Eric.

Eric's tonal target falls much in line with Martin's of the early 1930's. As a flatpicker, I do not see any difference tonally in the ideal flat picking guitar compared to the ideal finger style guitar. I do see differences in the neck, string spacing, and general set up. Most of Eric's input, therefore, is concentrated in the specific shape of the neck, particularly the shoulder of the profile. My personal preference is for what I call a "double elliptical", whereas Eric prefers a vintage trianglular shape he encountered at some point in the past and which we have danced around for many years now with varying degrees of success. Like all Schoenbergs I have made, this guitar will be biased toward the fingerstyle player. When I play the guitars I make for Eric, the only issue is that his ideal set up is a bit low for me, and I have to restrain myself in order to keep the sound clean.

Bruce Sexauer · #36 06-29-2016, 06:43 PM

Moving forward on Eric's 000. I plan to complete this box and then bind both the single 0 and the triple 0 at the same time.

The truly curious may find it instructive to compare my standard "ES" rosette with the Pear 0 rosette I showed a few posts back.

j. Kinnaird · #37 06-30-2016, 08:31 AM

That's really quite a nice rosette. It's a refreshing departure from the segmented sliced and diced rosettes that are so popular that i feel obliged to make a few myself.

Bruce Sexauer · #38 06-30-2016, 10:18 AM

Thank you, John.

Interesting looking as they can be, most of the "slice and dice" rosettes I see fail to do the job that rosettes are intended to do. To me they are the tail wagging the dog. Dog wagging can disminish they efficacy of the guitar in ways that escape the notice of many, and I avoid it in the interest of expanding the capability of our instrument rather than compromising it.

tekaitora · #39 06-30-2016, 05:33 PM

Bruce, I took your advice and compared rosettes for the 0 and 000.

I would wager you know I can't leave without a question or three- How much does top size inform the amount of stiffness desired from your rosette designs; and secondly, do you find the balance between aesthetics and function (I've read the rosette described as a "circular lap joint" elsewhere) confining or more defining in nature? Thanks for any insights you choose to share!

Truly hope Roxie is peaceful and at ease. I'm sure the love she is surrounded with comforts her in ways we can only hope one day to understand. Blessings

Bruce Sexauer · #40 06-30-2016, 08:00 PM

In a thicker top, my rosette is deeper; generally about 5/6 of the way through is my rule of thumb. I do mean rule of thumb as it is strictly a guesstimate, done by eye. (Could have used the semi-colon again, but overuse opens one to criticism.)

I actually love the restraint that function puts on aesthetics (for me). Aesthetic choices that do not fulfill, and especially that compromise, function seem frivolous to me. While I can appreciate their merit as far a creativity and visual balance are concerned, I am so distracted by my considerations that they cannot actually be beautiful. This is because for me the guitar is a tool to make make music, and its efficiency is my total preoccupation. The goal of my work (aside from the mundane task of paying the bills) is to advance the guitar as a vehicle for the player to express themselves on all fronts. This means ergonomics, tone, volume, balance, projection, and longevity, all at the same time while getting out from between the player and their audience. I believe the traditional guitar has not been fully exploited to this end, and that I, among just a few others, are making better guitar than have previously existed in the world using essentially the same tools and methods as those who went before us. It is virtually "holy work" for me, which is why I may run at the mouth a bit when I get going on the subject. I do try not to proselytize.

Roxie persists. So far we have had to slow down for her considerably, but she has not failed to keep contract as far as being housebroken, so we have not seriously questioned her right to live with us. I quail before that almost inevitable moment. She is stoic, always was (10 months of life before us was probably hard); what a great dog!

printer2 · #41 06-30-2016, 08:59 PM

Bruce, maybe you don't have to add wow factor to your rosettes (not that they don't have their beauty) because you already tantalize the eyes with the quality of wood that you use?

Bruce Sexauer · #42 06-30-2016, 09:20 PM

I like to think that picking up and playing one of my guitars is enough for most people to understand what it is that separates my stuff from the pack. Of course it isn't, many players simply have not evolved to the point where the difference is visible to them. Every builder has their fan club, and so do I, but a few ecstatic customers is also not enough to get the word out either. How does one actually know which is the great guitar? Hard to say. Fortunately, I only need to sell aout ten a year to get by, and when I'm gone, there'll still be the used market.

The rosette realy is as nothing, as long as it does its job.

Bluewyatt · #43 06-30-2016, 10:06 PM

[QUOTE=Bruce Sexauer;4987991]I like to think that picking up and playing one of my guitars is enough for most people to understand what it is that separates my stuff from the pack. Of course it isn't/QUOTE]

Yes it is.

justonwo · #44 06-30-2016, 10:35 PM

Bruce's guitars consistently wow me. He is amazingly consistent in the tone he can achieve. Yes, the sound and playability are enough, with the exception of the "exauer" fretboard.

Bruce Sexauer · #45 07-01-2016, 12:54 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by justonwo

Bruce's guitars consistently wow me. He is amazingly consistent in the tone he can achieve. Yes, the sound and playability are enough, with the exception of the "exauer" fretboard.

Juston is referring to the guitar I made as center piece for my HGF/13 exhibit. Pretty great guitar, perhaps (I thought so), but I inlaid most of my name on the fingerboard relying on the "S" on the headstock as the first letter, thus "exauer" on the fingerboard. This may have worked well enough on the table, but no one chose to take it home and live with it. I did sell the guitar, but had to remove the inlay and replace it with my somewhat more conventional "five birds" pattern. This guitar has recently re-entered the market and currently offered by AGF sponsor LA guitars sales here in post#361. I sold this guitar for considerably above the current asking price, and today's price would be higher yet.