Category Archives: archtop

Marchione Fretting Techniques

2025
AL#156 p.80               
Stephen Marchione                                                                                           

▪ Stephen Marchione has a long history of making and working on high-quality instruments for uncompromising professional musicians. In this presentation he considers each element — the neck, the rod, the fretboard, the fret wire — and stresses the procedure that will lead to be best, most durable result. From his 2023 GAL Convention workshop. Mentions John Suhr, carbon fiber.

In Memoriam: Ken Parker

2025
AL#156 p.101               
Mike Doolin                                                                                           

▪ Ken Parker was an archtype of the American Lutherie Boom: a self-starter who joyfully went full-tilt in whatever direction his powerful imagination led him. Along he way he accumulated numerous skills and was a pathfinder for many new guitar-making directions. Generations yet unborn will study his work with delight — an enviable and well-earned legacy. Mike Doolin, himself no slouch in the innovation department, offers a heart-felt appreciation.

Little Guitar of My Dreams

2025
AL#156 p.50               
Tim Olsen                                                                                           

▪ When Olsen was a ten-year-old kid, he encountered a guitar that enchanted him and made him want to become a guitar maker, which he did. Sixty-two years later, that very guitar has come back to him. Naturally, he has drawn a full-scale plan of it for the GAL Instrument Plan series. It’s a full-circle story. See GAL Instrument Plan 84: 1935 Epiphone Olympic Archtop Guitar. Mentions Harvey Thomas, Irving Sloane, Richard Standal Olsen.

GAL Instrument Plan #84: 1935 Epiphone Olympic Archtop Guitar

2025
AL#156 p.52               
Tim Olsen                                                                                           

▪ When Olsen was a ten-year-old kid, he encountered a guitar that enchanted him and made him want to become a guitar maker, which he did. Sixty-two years later, that very guitar has come back to him. Naturally, he has drawn a full-scale plan of it for the GAL Instrument Plan series.

Meet the Maker: Rob Goldberg

2025
AL#154 p.6               
Tim Olsen   Rob Goldberg                                                                                       

▪ Rob Golderg is one of those Lutherie-Boom guys. As a teenager in the 1960s he fell in love with the first handmade guitar he ever saw, and made a couple guitars on his own without much help. In 1974 he became Bill Cumpiano’s very first apprentice. After a successful run as a guitar maker in the Northeast, he took a break from lutherie of almost thirty years when he moved to Alaska, started a family, and had a career in fine arts. But the lutherie bug bit again, and he’s been back at it for more than a quarter century. Mentions Ervin Somogyi, Sam Koontz, Michael Gurian.

Vacuum Laminating Sides, and Beyond

2024
AL#153 p.6               
James Condino                                                                                           

▪ Condino has been a sought-after restorer of vintage American plywood bass viols for many years. He has recently developed practical and accessible vacuum-bag techniques for repairing delaminations in the plates, as well as fabricating those extra-large rib sections. Now he applies those same techniques to make laminated ribs for guitars and mandolins, and reports great success. Mentions Kay, American Standard, venturi, Roarocket.

Meet the Maker: Mark Goodman

2024
AL#152 p.46               
Raymond Bryant                                                                                           

▪ Guitarist Bryant fell in love with an instrument that he tried at a local music store. When he learned to his surprise that it was individually handcrafted just a few miles from his home, he had to make the short pilgrimage. He takes us along to meet Mark Goodman, who has been working alone for decades in his simple and efficient home workshop.

A Posthumous Interview with Seymour Drugan

2024
AL#151 p.50               
Harry Fleishman                                                                                           

▪ As a fourteen-year-old kid, Harry Fleishman was lucky enough to find a kindly and perceptive mentor in Seymour Drugan, an older legit jazz player who was running a guitar store. Although Seymour passed away long ago, Harry imagines a present-day interview in which he expresses his gratitude to “Mr. Drugan.” Mentions Carol Kaye, Johnny Winter, Fife & Nichols, Milt Owen.

Ken Parker’s Uncut Personal Take on the Genesis of the American Archtop Guitar as told to Mike Doolin

2023
               read this article
Ken Parker   Mike Doolin                                                                                       

▪ Ken’s colorful telling of the invention and development of the early archtop guitar was too long to fit in AL#149, so we present it here along with front and side view X-rays of a 1898 Orville Gibson guitar. Mentions Lloyd Loar, John D’Angelico, Thaddeus McHugh, Maybelle Carter, Eddie Lang, Nick Lucas, Raphael Ciani, Charlie Christian, Freddie Green.

The Gibson L1: a Modern Recreation

2023
AL#150 p.6               
Sjaak Elmendorp                                                                                           

▪ The technology and fashion of wooden instruments move forward inexorably, although whether that “forward” motion is the same as improvement can be a matter of debate for decades or centuries. Elmendorp made what he calls a “faithful impression rather than accurate reproduction” of a 1907-style Gibson L1: small body, carved top, floating bridge, round hole.

Effect of String Tension on Archtop Guitar Action Height

2023
AL#150 p.14               
Sjaak Elmendorp                                                                                           

▪ When you tighten the strings on an archtop guitar, the neck lifts forward and the action height increases. At the same time, the bridge pushes the top down and the action height decreases. It’s a win-win! So you can just feel lucky about it and proceed naively along your life path, or you can do what Elmendorp did: get a bucket of water, a piece of wire, and a dial indicator; collect some data; then crunch the numbers.

Meet the Maker: Ken Parker

2023
AL#149 p.4               
Mike Doolin   Ken Parker                                                                                       

▪ Can you believe we have never “met” this guy? He’s a giant of the American Lutherie Boom, he was at the Guild’s 1979 Convention, and he has been a GAL member for over twenty years. The world knows him as the maker of the Fly solidbody guitar, but now he has returned to his first love: the archtop guitar. Mentions Larry Fishman, John D’Angelico, Jimmy D’Aquisto, Scott Chinery, Orville Gibson, Lloyd Loar, Raphael Ciani, Nick Lucas, Michael Greenfield, Sam Zygmuntowicz.

Meet the Maker: Denny Stevens

2023
AL#148 p.34               
Harry Fleishman                                                                                           

▪ The late Denny Stevens was one of the earliest self-taught guitar makers of the American Lutherie Boom. He was also a mentor to author Harry Fleishman, who goes back in memory and imagination to interview Denny as he never did in life. Mentions Dale Bruning, Paul Killinger, Tony Jacobs, Richie Furay, Johnny Smith.

Adjustable Pickguard Bracket

2022
AL#147 p.58               
F.A. Jaen                                                                                           

▪ Here’s an elegant and sophisticated way to build an adjustable bracket to support the pickguard of an archtop guitar. Most of it is inside the guitar, so it gives a slick, minimal look.

Review: Acquired of the Angels: The Lives and Works of Master Guitar Makers John D’Angelico and James L. D’Aquisto by Paul Schmidt, third edition

2021
AL#143 p.63               
Mike Doolin                                                                                           

▪ The second edition of this book was reviewed in American Lutherie by Linda Manzer in AL#59, 1999.

It Worked for Me: Hide Finish Checks with Linseed Oil

2021
AL#142 p.68               
Reg Beardsley                                                                                           

▪ Fix finish checking with diluted linseed oil. You have to dilute it with mineral spirits to reduce the viscosity. Some discussion of refractive index.

Review: 34 Iconic Guitars in Life Size

2020
AL#140 p.67               
Mike Doolin                                                                                           

▪ A positive review. Mentions Martin, Gibson, National, D’Angelico, Selmer, Les Paul, Fender Stratocaster, Danelectro, Vox, Val-Pro.

Stiffer Guitar Linings

2020
AL#141 p.47               
F.A. Jaen                                                                                           

▪ These linings are something like reverse kerfing, but they are built up in place, starting with an ingeniously aligned set of individual blocks. There’s always a new way to do it.

Chalk-Fitting Guitar Braces

2020
AL#140 p.2               read this article
Stephen Marchione                                                                                           

▪ The braces in an archtop guitar are very similar to the bars in fiddles, and Marchione fits them with the same traditional techniques. The mating surface of the brace is roughed out with a chisel, then refined with a small plane, and perfected with files and scrapers. Chalk shows the whole truth of the fit. Believe the chalk.

Meet the Makers: Jay Lichty and Corrie Woods

2019
AL#138 p.38               
Steve Denvir   Jay Lichty   Corrie Woods                                                                                   

▪ Jay Lichty was late to the lutherie game, having spent a lot of years in a real job building houses as a general contractor. But he’s deep into instrument making now, and finding success with an eclectic line of ukuleles and small guitars. Jay’s wife, Corrie Woods, is the marketing department, working with photography and online media to make the most of Jay’s work at the bench. Together, they are making it work. From their lecture at the 2017 GAL Convention.

Meet the Maker: Mark French

2018
AL#133 p.22               
R.M. Mottola   Mark French                                                                                       

▪ Mark French was a kid who took guitar lessons and paid the guy at the music store to change his strings. He went on to be an aerospace engineer, but with all that book learning he still did not know how guitars worked. Now he teaches college courses on guitar making and hangs out with captains of industry at Fender and Taylor.

Meet the Maker: Jason Harshbarger

2017
AL#130 p.42               
Paul Schmidt   Jason Harshbarger                                                                                       

▪ A lot of the makers that we meet in the pages of American Lutherie are grizzled veterans of the early days. Not this one. Harshbarger is a young single father who went to lutherie school in the late 1990s, then survived on cabinet work until he could build a lutherie shop in his basement. His steel-string design work uses Steve Klein’s work as a point of departure, and moves forward boldly from there.

Let’s Catch Up With Linda Manzer

2017
AL#129 p.6               
Cyndy Burton   Linda Manzer                                                                                       

▪ The prolific maker of high-end flattop and archtop guitars talks about her mentors Jean Larrivee and Jimmy D’Aquisto, the lutherie biz, her collaborations with guitarist Pat Metheny, and a recent project in cooperation with other Canadian luthiers. Also mentions Paul Simon.

The Hand-Rubbed Sunburst

2016
AL#125 p.48               
James Condino                                                                                           

▪ James Condino does sunbursts on archtop mandolins the way they did it back in the 1920s: rubbing water stains directly on the bare wood.

Elliptical Legacy

2014
AL#117 p.52               
James Condino   John Monteleone                                                                                       

▪ A history of the ellipse soundhole cutter device in lutherie and it’s lineage from D’Angelico to D’Aquisto to John Monteleone.

Archtop Guitars With Italian Flare

2013
AL#115 p.6               
Stephen Marchione                                                                                           

▪ Stephen Marchione takes us on a voyage through Lutherie history with an emphasis on the Italian experience and heritage. From his 2011 GAL convention lecture.

D’Aquisto’s Wedge Bridge

2013
AL#113 p.45               
John Monteleone                                                                                           

▪ D’Aquisto’s changes to his traditional New Yorker and Excel models in the late 1970s included the adjustable sliding wedge bridge design concept.

Letter to the Editor: Clarifying Details of D’Aquisto Wedge Bridge Article in AL#113

2013
AL#114 p.3               
John Monteleone                                                                                           

▪ John Monteleone clarifies the details of his D’Aquisto wedge bridge article in AL#113 by giving additional credit where credit is due.

Meet the Maker: Stephen Marchione

2013
AL#114 p.14               
James Condino   Stephen Marchione                                                                                       

▪ Stephen Marchione on his career in building solidbody electrics, acoustic guitars, mandolins, and violins.

Reviews: Building an Electric Archtop Guitar: An Illustrated Step-by-Step Guide to Building Your Own Electric Archtop Guitar by J.p.Laplante

2012
AL#112 p.61               
Michael DeLuca                                                                                           

▪ This extensively illustrated guide to building an electric archtop guitar lays out the process in a sequential progression over 15 chapters.

Evolution Of An Archtop Brace Fitting Jig

2011
AL#106 p.44      ALA2 p.90         
Tom Ribbecke                                                                                           

▪ Ribbecke exhibits versions of more precise and efficient fitting braces, developed throughout his career. From his 2008 GAL convention workshop.

Low Stress Archtop Guitar Design

2010
AL#101 p.6               read this article
Steve Grimes                                                                                           

▪ Steve Grimes has been experimenting with making lighter-built soundboards for archtop guitars and decreasing the breakover angle. Here he describes his low stress archtop method, which produces a superior tone and another option for customers.

Reducing Build Variation In Arched Plates

2010
AL#101 p.60               
Mark French   Eddie Efendy                                                                                       

▪ Imagine a CNC router carving an archtop guitar soundboard in an industrial situation. Quality control would check to confirm that parts are the same thickness. But really, we would like the tops made from stiffer material to be cut thinner. Efendy has an idea for making this happen automatically without any measurement or analysis needed.

It Worked for Me: Archtop Guitar Bridge

2009
AL#99 p.65               
Luis Mesquita                                                                                           

▪ In one bundle we are offered a new design in archtop guitar bridge construction, an adjustable neck (no details), and a cool way to hide pickup controls in a side sound port. Way cool!

A Survey of Guitar Making Books

2009
AL#98 p.58               read this article
Graham McDonald                                                                                           

▪ The author rounds up a collection of acoustic guitar making manuals currently available to help us separate the wheat from the chaff. The serious student will no doubt end up with several of these books, but McDonald will help you decide which ones to buy first. Includes jacket photos of all the books discussed.

The Archtop Guitar: Perspectives on the Present and Future

2009
AL#98 p.6      AL#151 p.72         
Steve Grimes   Ted Megas   Tom Ribbecke   Jeffrey R. Elliott                                                                               

▪ This article is taken from a 2008 GAL convention panel discussion. Seems like these discussions are getting livelier and more interesting, no matter what field of lutherie may draw you the most. The interaction makes the archtop guitar seem more vital and the personal disclosures add depth to the subject. Not that we’re talking about life and death. Well, to the panelists it may be more important than that, and we’ll bet you’ll be drawn in. Perhaps changes are in the air. Nylon strings? Chambered bodies? Oh, they won’t threaten the old jazz box too much, but it’s good to know that nothing remains forever unchanged. With 23 photos.

Curtate Cycloid Arching

2008
AL#96 p.26               
David Cohen                                                                                           

▪ There are reasons why you might wish to describe the arch of an instrument mathematically. You might also wish to create an arch template by using math. Here’s a way to go about it. This is not for the math challenged among us. With 4 photos and 9 charts/diagrams.

Reviews: The Guitar in America, Victorian Era to Jazz Age by Jeffrey J. Noonan

2008
AL#96 p.65               read this article
Don Overstreet                                                                                           

▪ The book is about the Banjo, Mandolin, and Guitar Movement that ended with the Great Depression. While the reviewer admits that there is little here for luthiers, there is a ton of interesting material for the musical history buff. This time is where many of the instrument icons we all copy came from.

Meet the Maker: Dan Fobert

2008
AL#95 p.50               
Andy Avera   Daniel Fobert                                                                                       

▪ Fobert is a Texas builder of archtop guitars who is unusually obsessed with making as many of the parts for his guitar as possible, not including (yet!) the tuners. There are luthiers who worship old guitars and work to reproduce them, and luthiers who can’t be bothered with something that’s already been done. Fobert is one of the latter. With 6 photos.

There’s a Hole in the Bucket

2007
AL#91 p.6               read this article
Cyndy Burton                                                                                           

▪ Burton’s micro history of sideports (holes in the sides, in addition to the front soundhole) in stringed instruments serves as an introduction to the next three articles. Luthiers she mentions include John Monteleone, Robert Ruck, Alain Bieber, Gennero Fabricatore, Kenny Hill, Alan Carruth, Roger Thurman, and Augustino LoPrinzi. With 9 photos.

This article has been nominated as one of the Guild’s best articles published before 2010.

Sideways

2007
AL#91 p.8               read this article
John Monteleone                                                                                           

▪ Ace archtop builder Monteleone is an advocate of side soundports (holes in the sides, in addition to the front soundhole) and has employed them for over a decade. His article includes personal background, developmental work on his sideported instruments, and construction techniques. With 3 photos.

This article has been nominated as one of the Guild’s best articles published before 2010.

Grading on the Curves

2007
AL#91 p.24               read this article
Steve Andersen                                                                                           

▪ This is a very detailed look at how a notable builder of archtop guitars fits tone bars and bridges to his instruments. With 22 photos.

Arched Plate Carving, Part Three, Barring the Top Plate, and Graduating the Back Plate

2006
AL#86 p.6               read this article
Chris Burt                                                                                           

▪ This segment wraps up Burt’s series on plate carving. Every luthier, but especially beginning luthiers, should read his “Word to the wise” paragraph, the best piece of advice you are ever likely to read. With 19 photos and a drawing.

This article has been nominated as one of the Guild’s best articles published before 2010.

Arched Plate Carving, Part Two, Graduating the Top Plate and Cutting the f-Holes

2006
AL#85 p.30               read this article
Chris Burt                                                                                           

▪ Burt’s in-depth examination of plate carving continues. His techniques are old-school, relying on tap tones to define plate stiffness and definite tonal relationships between the top and back plates. With 9 photos and a drawing.

This article has been nominated as one of the Guild’s best articles published before 2010.

It Worked for Me: Fitting Braces Into Arched Plates

2006
AL#85 p.65               
John Hagen                                                                                           

▪ This fixture provides a means for fitting braces to arched plates that is fast, accurate, and fool proof. The brace is held stationary against the soundboard while a strip of sandpaper is moved under it.

Arched Plate Carving, Part One: Establishing the Outside Surface

2005
AL#84 p.36               read this article
Chris Burt                                                                                           

▪ This is an in-depth look at the tools and procedures used in carving the plates of an archtop instrument. The first article in this series appeared in AL#83, and subsequent articles will follow.

This article has been nominated as one of the Guild’s best articles published before 2010.

Measuring Archtop Musical Instruments

2005
AL#83 p.6               read this article
Chris Burt                                                                                           

▪ Do you own or have access to archtop instruments that you’d like to duplicate? Ever wonder why they sound so good, or why they don’t? Use this article to map out the plate thicknesses, arch heights, and neck angles. Measure everything you can get your hands on. Become an expert. Tell your friends how they’re going wrong. Be the hero of your lutherie group.With 6 photos.

Letter to the Editor: NMM Opens Gudelsky Gallery

2005
AL#82 p.5               read this article
National-Music-Museum                                                                                           

▪ After his untimely death, Paul Gudelsky’s wonderful collection of archtop guitars by James D’Aquisto became the basis of a new collection permanent exhibit at the National Music Museum. Paul had previously shown this collection at the 1995 GAL Convention where luthiers were invited to examine and play the instruments.

Meet the Maker: Steve Grimes

2003
AL#74 p.20   BRB7 p.48            
Jonathon Peterson   Steve Grimes                                                                                       

▪ Grimes is one of the premier archtop builders of our times. His flattops aren’t bad, either. He worked for years in the Northwest before moving to Hawaii, where the slack-key guitar scene has impacted his flattop designs.

Forces on Archtop Guitars

2003
AL#74 p.30   BRB7 p.56            
Franz Elferink                                                                                           

▪ A variety of forces begun by simple string tension not only make our instruments function but may eventually tear them apart. With a little math we can determine what those forces are and sort of decide if our archtops are beefy enough to withstand them. With 3 drawings.

Ted’s Excellent Adventures

2003
AL#73 p.46   BRB7 p.18            
Steve Regimbal                                                                                           

▪ Take a quick look at three adventurous instruments by archtop builder Ted Berringer. They are a 12-string octave guitar, a 5-string mandolin, and a 6-string archtop made entirely of spruce. With 12 photos.

Tuning in Thirds

2002
AL#72 p.36   BRB6 p.410            
Jonathon Peterson   Saul Koll   Ralph Patt                                                                                   

▪ Jazz guitarist Ralph Patt and luthier Saul Koll have teamed up to make archtop 8-string electric guitars that are tuned in thirds rather than standard tuning. The guitars look a little strange because there is no taper to the fingerboards. You’ll have to read the article to understand the thinking behind them. Watching Patt play must confuse the heck out of other guitarists. With 14 photos.

A Method for Specifying Contours of an Arched Plate

2002
AL#69 p.40   BRB6 p.301            
R.M. Mottola                                                                                           

▪ Not really a computer article, the author uses a CAD-like system of plotting the contours of an arched plate. The result is sort of a topo map of the plate that is used to rout the plate into terraces that are then faired into a finished plate. Mottola explains the drawing, not the machining. With 13 drawings.

Meet the Maker: Bob Benedetto

2001
AL#68 p.8   BRB6 p.242            
Jonathon Peterson   Bob Benedetto                                                                                       

▪ Benedetto has had as large an impact on the modern archtop guitar as anyone. He’s also a really nice guy, unpretentious and level-headed. You’re gonna like him. With 11 photos.

This article has been nominated as one of the Guild’s best articles published before 2010.

Archtop Guitars: It All Creates Music

2001
AL#68 p.16   BRB6 p.250            
Bob Benedetto                                                                                           

▪ For a builder of orthodox archtop guitars Benedetto certainly has some iconoclastic ideas. His opinions about bridges, tailpieces, guitar setup, and tonewood may turn your head around. With 9 photos.

This article has been nominated as one of the Guild’s best articles published before 2010.

Meet the Maker: Taku Sakashta

2001
AL#66 p.32   BRB6 p.238            
Jonathon Peterson   Taku Sakashta                                                                                       

▪ Sakashta left Japan to build both archtop and flattop guitars in California. He is definitely not afraid to design away from tradition. With 8 photos.

Review: Archtop Guitar Master Class Series Part 1: Focusing on Bridges and Tailpieces by Bob Benedetto

2000
AL#64 p.56   BRB6 p.534            read this article
John Calkin                                                                                           

▪ The reviewer finds this video to be more opinion than explanation, and that the limited amount of information included doesn’t justify its purchase.

Designing the Archtop Guitar for Sound

2000
AL#62 p.6   BRB6 p.32            
John Monteleone                                                                                           

▪ No one in the field of archtop guitars is more respected than Monteleone. This article represents his full thoughts on the instrument as of 1998. With 12 photos and 4 drawings.

This article has been nominated as one of the Guild’s best articles published before 2010.

Review: Acquired of the Angels by Paul William Schmidt

1999
AL#59 p.62   BRB5 p.482            read this article
Linda Manzer                                                                                           

▪ The reviewer finds this book about the life and work of John D’Angelico and James D’Aquisto “is a wonderful and carefully prepared book,” though perhaps not free of errors.

The Chainsaw Lutherie of Tom Ribbecke, Part 2

1999
AL#57 p.24   BRB5 p.262            
Jay Hargreaves                                                                                           

▪ In this installment the top plate is carved and braced. Ribbecke roughs out the plates in a unique vacuum cage that goes a long way toward keeping his shop clean. The chainsaw wheel he attaches to his grinder gives this series its name, and speeds the carving process dramatically. Tuning the top isn’t completed until the guitar is assembled in the next segment. Part 1 was in AL#56. Includes 20 photos.

This article has been nominated as one of the Guild’s best articles published before 2010.

The Chainsaw Lutherie of Tom Ribbecke, Part 3

1999
AL#58 p.6   BRB5 p.262            
Jay Hargreaves                                                                                           

▪ The final installment in the series, parts 1 & 2 were in AL#56 and #57, respectively. In this segment the sides are bent, the body is assembled and bound, the neck is fitted to the body, and attention is given to tuning the plates. Special consideration is given to making the adjustable bridges as well as Tom’s elegant ebony/graphite tailpiece. With 36 photos and a drawing.

This article has been nominated as one of the Guild’s best articles published before 2010.

Meet the Maker: Linda Manzer

1998
AL#56 p.16   BRB5 p.256            
Cyndy Burton   Linda Manzer                                                                                       

▪ Through her artistic merit, dogged determination, and sheer grit, Manzer has risen to the top ranks of her profession. This interview covers her background and training, work ethic, favorite woods, and other lutherie intimacies. With 10 photos.

This article has been nominated as one of the Guild’s best articles published before 2010.

The Chainsaw Lutherie of Tom Ribbecke, Part One: The Neck

1998
AL#56 p.36   BRB5 p.262            
Jay Hargreaves                                                                                           

▪ Ribbecke is a renowned maker of archtop guitars. He also opens his shop periodically to small classes that wish to learn his formula for successful and graceful guitars. Hargreaves attended one such week-long session and brought back the straight skinny for American Lutherie readers. Part 1 details the construction of a laminated maple neck and associated details. Part 2 follows in AL#57. With 29 photos.

This article has been nominated as one of the Guild’s best articles published before 2010.

Searching for Blue Significance

1998
AL#56 p.50               read this article
John Calkin                                                                                           

▪ Scott Chinery had 22 luthiers build 22 archtop guitars, all of them blue. Why? And why did the Smithsonian Institute decide to display them? And then throw in a big shindig for luthiers and guitar nuts alike? Calkin treks to Washington D.C. in the name of the Guild to figure out what all the fuss is about and discovers that hardly anything is what it seems. With 3 photos.

Review: Archtop Guitar Design and Construction by Robert Benedetto

1998
AL#54 p.56   BRB5 p.476            
John Calkin                                                                                           

▪ The reviewer finds this set of 5 videos to be useful and complete for those who wish to build an archtop guitar, but that those who lack previous lutherie experience should also have the book by Benedetto.

Product Reviews: Wood Thickness Indicator, Nut Files, Fret Slot Cleaning Tool

1998
AL#54 p.58   BRB5 p.444            
Harry Fleishman                                                                                           

▪ Fleishman tries out a tool for puncturing archtop plates to establish depth of cut, likes it, but finds that the standard size tool is for violin makers and guitar makers must special order; the nut files of a lifetime come into his shop; a good tool that Everyman can afford turns out to be nice fret slot cleaning tool.

It Worked for Me: Rough Carving Device

1998
AL#54 p.50   BRB5 p.495            
Nathan-D. Missel                                                                                           

▪ Saving time carving the top and back plates of archtop guitars by power carving them into rough form before final graduation using this custom carver.

Review: Tom Ribbecke’s Archtop Building Course

1997
AL#52 p.60   BRB5 p.473            
C.F. Casey                                                                                           

▪ The reviewer came away from Ribbecke’s seminar not only feeling that he now had the foundation needed to build archtops, but felt that his lutherie skills in general had been boosted by his experience.

D’Aquisto’s Design Development

1998
AL#53 p.8   BRB5 p.168            
Paul Gudelsky                                                                                           

▪ An overview of D’Aquisto’s career by a man who studied guitar construction with Jimmy and collected a number of his instruments. It becomes clear how complex an individual D’Aquisto really was. Lots of generalized talk about wood and archtop design, too, but nothing scientific. More of a tribute to a man who died way too soon. With 5 photos.

This article has been nominated as one of the Guild’s best articles published before 2010.

Remembering Jimmy

1998
AL#53 p.9   BRB5 p.172            
Paul Schmidt                                                                                           

▪ D’Aquisto’s biographer bids farewell to the man who was called by some the world’s greatest luthier of our time. A touching and very real-world story. With 2 photos.

Three Decades of Innovation captions

1998
AL#53 p.14   BRB5 p.172            
John Monteleone                                                                                           

▪ A photo-essay of 8 D’Aquisto archtops formerly owned by Paul Gudelsky, set up to show the progression of Jimmy’s designs. With 8 photos.

This article has been nominated as one of the Guild’s best articles published before 2010.

D’Aquisto’s Design Development: Another View

1998
AL#53 p.18   BRB5 p.176            
John Monteleone                                                                                           

▪ A world-renowned maker of archtops who knew D’Aquisto well offers a more technical examination of Jimmy’s design evolution. With 3 photos and a drawing.

This article has been nominated as one of the Guild’s fifty best articles published before 2010.

It Worked for Me: Laminated Wood Tailpiece

1997
AL#51 p.52   BRB5 p.491            
Buzz Vineyard                                                                                           

▪ A laminated all wood tailpiece to gain more control over the dimensions, weight, and aesthetics of the tailpiece.

Review: Acoustic Guitars and Other Fretted Instruments: A Photographic History by George Gruhn and Walter Carter

1996
AL#45 p.59   BRB4 p.469            
Robert Lundberg                                                                                           

▪ This is a thorough and glowing review of an important book, by a reviewer who is best known for his work in early instruments.

Alternative Archtop Considerations

1996
AL#46 p.42   BRB4 p.326            
Jonathon Peterson                                                                                           

▪ Buzz Vineyard builds archtop guitars with pin bridges and strange bracing, and rosewood backs and sides. What’s the result? He tells all to Peterson.

It Worked for Me: Hollow Radius Forms

1996
AL#45 p.56   BRB4 p.500            
John Jordan                                                                                           

▪ A second set of hollow radius forms lined with sandpaper for fitting the sides to the top and back radii when binding acoustic instruments with tops and backs made in hollow-radiused forms.

Meet the Maker: Saul Koll

1995
AL#44 p.32   BRB4 p.242            
Jonathon Peterson   Saul Koll                                                                                       

▪ Koll has fashioned a living by creating unique, often bizarre, guitars, both acoustic and electric. For many, ideas often come easy, it’s selling them that’s hard. Koll has found a niche. With 23 photos.

Review: Making an Archtop Guitar by Bob Benedetto

1995
AL#41 p.52   BRB4 p.463            
Tom Ribbecke                                                                                           

▪ The reviewer finds that this book sets a new standard for guitarmaking books in general, and that it should affect the evolution of the archtop guitar for many years to come.

This article has been nominated as one of the Guild’s best articles published before 2010.

At the Workbench of the Twelfth Fret

1993
AL#36 p.52   BRB3 p.422            
Jonathon Peterson                                                                                           

▪ Four repairmen offer a variety of tips about altering mechanical archtop bridges, adding more “pop” to fretless bass necks, soldering and shielding electrics, carbide bandsaw blades, abrasive cord, superglue, cutting saddle slots, double-stick tape, bending plastic binding, beveling pickguard stock, replacing bar frets with T-frets, and restoring headstocks to look old.

James L. D’Aquisto: Building the Archtop Guitar. A Brief Overview

1994
AL#37 p.6   BRB4 p.2            
Tim Olsen                                                                                           

▪ Nobody built a better archtop than D’Aquisto did. Olsen outlines the procedures and peculiarities of a famous luthier’s work.

This article has been nominated as one of the Guild’s fifty best articles published before 2010.

James L. D’Aquisto: Building the Archtop Guitar. The Soundboard

1994
AL#37 p.10   BRB4 p.6            
Tim Olsen                                                                                           

▪ Olsen travels from the general (in the preceding article) to the specific. He zeros in on D’Aquisto’s soundboard work for a detailed examination. With 47 photos.

This article has been nominated as one of the Guild’s fifty best articles published before 2010.

Meet the Maker: Tom Ribbecke

1993
AL#35 p.24   BRB3 p.370            
Nicholas-Von Robison   Tom Ribbecke                                                                                       

▪ As an adviser to the trade, a builder of high quality guitars, and teacher, Ribbecke has had a strong influence on the work of many luthiers. This interview sketches his beginnings in lutherie.

This article has been nominated as one of the Guild’s best articles published before 2010.

Free Plate Tuning, Part Three: Guitars

1992
AL#30 p.16   BRB3 p.136            read this article
Alan Carruth                                                                                           

▪ Accessibility and usefulness are the keys to this segment of Carruth’s study. He addresses the archtop, flattop, and classical guitars, and even builds a flattop out of oak to compare its tuning modes to conventional tonewoods. With many mode diagrams and plate graduation charts. Too many scientific studies leave the luthier asking, “So what do you want me to do?” Carruth offers some real-world suggestions. Parts One and Two were in AL#28 and AL#29.

This article has been nominated as one of the Guild’s fifty best articles published before 2010.

Review: The Gibson Guitar (Volumes 1 & 2) by Ian C. Bishop

1991
AL#28 p.60   BRB3 p.466            read this article
Gary Frisbie                                                                                           

▪ Books from the 70s written by an Englishman and intended to provide a wealth of info on Gibson guitars built from 1950 to the end of the 70s. Book 1 covers all the major lines of solidbody and hollowbody electrics, jazz and flattop acoustics. Book 2 covers omissions and inaccuracies in book 1, plus Epiphones, Kalamazoos, and Dwight guitars

Free Plate Tuning, Part Two: Violins

1992
AL#29 p.42   BRB3 p.136            read this article
Alan Carruth                                                                                           

▪ Carruth tries to keep it light as he describes the glitter dances that should improve your violins, and even sheds light on cello plate tuning. If you feel threatened by the dryness of science just relax and give it a try. Carruth is on your side. Really. With a whole bunch of drawings. Part One was in AL#28. Part Three follows in AL#30. The entire series appears in BRB3.

This article has been nominated as one of the Guild’s best articles published before 2010.

Review: Steel-String Guitar Construction by Irving R. Sloane

1991
AL#26 p.58   BRB3 p.463            read this article
David Riggs                                                                                           

▪ The reviewer finds that this book offers good, solid instruction to the person building their first guitar.

Talk about Archtops

1990
AL#24 p.6   BRB2 p.422            
Steve Andersen   Steve Grimes   Ted Beringer   Jonathon Peterson                                                                               

▪ This informal roundtable discussion delves deeply into the background, influences, and work of three builders at a time when the archtop guitar was just coming into its own for the second time. With 7 photos.

1948 D’Angelico New Yorker; An Instrument Plan

1988
AL#16 p.29   BRB2 p.139            
Steve Andersen                                                                                           

▪ This is a reduced version of our Plan #24. The article also provides an introduction to the particular guitar that was copied for the plans, and 3 photos. Jazzer nirvana on paper.

This article has been nominated as one of the Guild’s best articles published before 2010.

Steve Andersen’s Precision Pantograph

1988
AL#16 p.8   BRB2 p.115            
Jonathon Peterson                                                                                           

▪ This is 9 photos and a small description of the machine that might be the production archtop maker’s best friend.

Archtop Guitars: Is Bigger Better?

1988
AL#14 p.18   BRB2 p.58            
Steve Grimes                                                                                           

▪ A noted maker of archtop guitars offers a detailed description of the method he uses to adjust the tone of his instruments during the carving process. He finds he is willing to sacrifice a little volume in order to attain a precise tonal character.

Review: The New Yorker Special by Frederick Cohen

1987
AL#9 p.57   BRB1 p.500            read this article
Tim Olsen                                                                                           

▪ The reviewer has high praise for this 28-minute film about famed archtop builder Jimmy D’Aquisto. As well as being a “valentine” to D’Aquisto, this film offers a tasty repast for information-hungry luthiers. (AL#9 p.57).

Arched Plate Copier

1987
AL#9 p.14   BRB1 p.312            
Steve Grimes                                                                                           

▪ Grimes’ pantograph for routing archtop plates is heavy duty and not real cheap if you have to job out the welding, but it accurately removes 90% of the excess wood. Several drawings accompany the detailed description.

Simple Carving Machine

1987
AL#9 p.18   BRB1 p.316            
Richard Ennis                                                                                           

▪ Ennis’ carving machine is not as straight forward in use as Grimes’, but its construction should be within the reach of most luthiers. A router mounted in a carriage rides over template rails to cut the contours into the plates of an archtop instrument.

1932 Martin C-3 Archtop Guitar

1986
AL#6 p.27   BRB1 p.103            
Ted Davis                                                                                           

▪ Davis gives a compact history of Martin archtops and offers a blueprint of the C-3 model, then goes on to have a mock interview with Steve Kauffman’s C-3, Suzie. The plan is a reduced version of our full-scale Plan #10.

A Modern Builder Interprets the Archtop

1986
AL#6 p.34   BRB1 p.227            
John Monteleone                                                                                           

▪ Monteleone’s lecture covers personal background, after which a question/answer segment gets to the specifics of archtop design and construction.

This article has been nominated as one of the Guild’s fifty best articles published before 2010.

Monteleone: The Artist Behind the “Grand Artist”

1986
AL#6 p.38   BRB1 p.222            
Ted Davis   John Monteleone                                                                                       

▪ This lengthy interview sheds more light on the archtop maker’s background and furnishes information about his mandolins.

This article has been nominated as one of the Guild’s best articles published before 2010.

Three Helpful Tools

1985
AL#2 p.54   BRB1 p.77            
Brian Mascarin                                                                                           

▪ They are: an archtop guitar brace jack, a modified 1/4″ phone plug to position an output jack, and a clear plastic square for scribing fret positions on a fretless bass.

Archtop Routing Jig

1981
DS#186   LT p.65            
Rion Dudley                                                                                           

▪ This guide registers on the sides of the guitar rather than the plates. It is intended for the Dremel tool, but will work with a larger router.

Variables in Archtop Design

1979
DS#131   LW p.50            
Jimmy D’Aquisto                                                                                           

▪ D’Aquisto pioneered the maturation of the archtop guitar into a versatile instrument. Here he runs down a list of design factors and what they do for the sound.

This article has been nominated as one of the Guild’s best articles published before 2010.