1986
AL#6 p.44 BRB1 p.177
Dana Bourgeois
▪ Bourgeois shares a method of making properly arched top braces for the contemporary “flattop” guitar.
1986
AL#6 p.46 BRB1 p.230
Dick Boak
▪ Boak shares a Martin company fixture used for gluing bridges on flattop guitars.
1986
AL#5 p.22 BRB1 p.168
Ken Donnell
▪ Donnell gives a thorough description of his methods of bridge removal and regluing. Both classical and steel string guitars are covered.
1986
AL#5 p.34 BRB1 p.182 read this article
Robert Cooper
▪ Cooper describes his method of making ribs for a “half round” lute, in which all the ribs are the same.
1986
AL#5 p.42 BRB1 p.188
Richard Ennis
▪ Ennis describes how to cut fret slots on a table saw using notches in a fixed bar as depth stops to regulate the fret spacing.
1985
AL#4 p.16 BRB1 p.108 read this article
Ted Davis
▪ In this lecture Davis describes his method of making instrument plans from a guitar, then fields questions and takes suggestions.
1985
AL#4 p.43 BRB1 p.136
William Conrad
▪ Conrad explains how he converted his Dremel moto-lathe into a miniature table saw.
1985
AL#3 p.24 BRB1 p.88 read this article
Thomas Snyder
▪ Measured drawings are presented for building a jig to facilitate rehairing bows. A detailed method for using the jig is also presented.
1985
AL#3 p.46
Bill Hultgren
▪ A question/answer format offers sources for micarta, pearloid inlay materials, and small files.
1985
AL#4 p.3 BRB1 p.147
Patrick W. Coffey
▪ Coffey describes how to make a small electric glue pot for under $13.
1985
AL#2 p.44
Richard Ennis
▪ Ennis kerfs wide boards on the table saw, then rips them to twice the desired width. He then rips each of these at an angle with a bandsaw to produce (after they are sliced lengthwise) two lining strips.
1985
AL#2 p.46 read this article
Topher Gayle
▪ A jig for holding a natural-skin head at tension while it is being glued to a drum.
1985
AL#2 p.48
Mark Goulet
▪ A thickness sander drum is produced from scrap lumber without the use of a lathe.
1985
AL#2 p.49 BRB1 p.72
Ted Kellison
▪ Kellison presents a safe method for preheating lacquer before spraying, and recommends an anti-static gun.
1985
AL#2 p.49
C.F. Casey
▪ Casey prefers laminate trimmers to Dremels.
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.
1985
AL#1 p.53
William McCaw
▪ McCaw ruined a classic peghead when the cheap collar of his router gave way.
1985
AL#2 p.7 BRB1 p.47
Ron Lira
▪ Lira recommends specific routers and bits.
1985
AL#1 p.50 BRB1 p.73
John Jordan
▪ Jordan describes two incandescent lights designed for use inside guitars. One uses a 7½-watt bulb on a standard power cord. The other uses tiny low-voltage bulbs and a step-down transformer.
1985
AL#1 p.51 BRB1 p.29
Joel Ivan Hawley
▪ Hawley describes a method of sawing part way into a 4×4, then clamping it to the bandsaw table and using it as a table for sawing the outline of a guitar or banjo peghead.
1985
AL#1 p.52
Ervin Somogyi
▪ Somogyi comments briefly on the relative merits of oil stones and water stones.
1985
AL#1 p.3
Michael Dresdner
▪ Dresdner discusses the availability of files suitable for nut slotting, and supplies an address for the Grobet Company.
1985
AL#1 p.42 BRB1 p.13
Ted Davis
▪ Davis presents a drawing of a jig for properly forming the sides and lining of a guitar to accept a domed back. The sides are held in a mold while a sanding stick, held by a central post, is passed over them.
1985
AL#1 p.44 BRB1 p.44
Gregory Jackson
▪ Jackson comments on the basic principle upon which electronic moisture meters work, use of the meters, and why you should not try to cobble together your own.
1985
AL#1 p.45 BRB1 p.45
Elliott Burch
▪ Burch describes modifying an automotive part-retrieving claw into a device for positioning small crack-reinforcing studs.
1985
AL#1 p.46 BRB1 p.26
Michael Jacobson-Hardy
▪ Jacobson-Hardy describes devices based on pneumatic cylinders for bending sides, clamping braces to plates, clamping plates to sides, and holding neck blanks in a lathe.
1985
AL#1 p.49 BRB1 p.17
C.F. Casey
▪ Casey briefly describes the construction and use of a long-handled knife designed to be used with two hands.
1984
DS#286 LT p.47
Elliott Burch
▪ Simple steamer rejuvenates gelled glue after it’s been applied and the clamps are in place.
This article has been nominated as one of the Guild’s best articles published before 2010.
1984
DS#288 LW p.98
Tim Earls
▪ Here’s a simple trick to keep slack strings out of the way while you work on the saddle. Especially helpful on 12-strings.
1984
DS#288 LW p.111 read this article
Michael Dresdner
▪ Dresdner steals yet another tool from another discipline, this time for polishing frets after they’ve been shaped with a file.
1984
DS#291 LT p.16
Alan Carruth
▪ General process of identifying and heat treating steel for use in edge tools.
This article has been nominated as one of the Guild’s best articles published before 2010.
1984
DS#292 LT p.36
Alan Carruth
▪ Diagram gives dimensions to make a lute peg reamer.
1984
DS#295 LT p.40
J.R. Weene
▪ Wooden C-clamp for special uses.
1984
DS#300 LT p.101
Duane Waterman
▪ Simple table saw uses a 3″ blade mounted directly on the shaft of a small motor.
1984
DS#272 LT p.50
Duane Waterman
▪ Uses pipe clamp screws.
1984
DS#274 LT p.67
George Gawlik
▪ Jointing the center seam of instrument plates with a router.
1984
DS#285 LW p.106
Michael Dresdner
▪ In the “old days” you couldn’t buy a set of nut slotting files. They didn’t exist. The author used pattern makers files with parallel safety sides. He recommends learning about and adapting the tools from every trade that crosses your path.
1983
DS#256 LT p.58
Robert Steinegger
▪ Wedges to drive pressed-on plastic tuner knobs off the shafts.
1983
DS#258 LT p.102
Ron Lira
▪ Swinging a fretboard over the table saw blade cuts the radius.
1983
DS#261 LT p.49
J.C. Nelson
▪ Saw two layers at an angle and the pieces fit together with no gaps.
1983
DS#263 LT p.48
Joyce Westphal
▪ Cuts 2-liter anesthesia bags into big rubber bands.
1983
DS#250 LT p.29
Donald L. Brown
▪ Made from a Blitz saw blade and used to clean out fret slots on a bound neck.
1983
DS#250 LT p.31
Donald L. Brown
▪ Saw frame with one-inch throat for tight places.
1983
DS#251 LT p.7
Tom Mathis
▪ Mike stand, a gooseneck, and a swivel lamp.
1983
DS#252 LT p.3
Frederick C. Lyman Jr.
▪ Lyman was the GAL’s bass guru for years.
This article has been nominated as one of the Guild’s best articles published before 2010.
1983
DS#253 LT p.49
Phillip W. Walker
▪ Simple devise makes it easy to glue an overlay on the tip of a bow.
1983
DS#254 LT p.46
Wesley Wadsworth
▪ A baby bottle warmer makes a good heater for hide glue.
This article has been nominated as one of the Guild’s best articles published before 2010.
1983
DS#255 LT p.5
Donald L. Brown
▪ Simple tool for marking lines square to the centerline of a flattop instrument.
1983
DS#255 LT p.11
Tom Mathis
▪ Heat small pieces of binding on a laundry iron.
1983
DS#255 LT p.40
Phillip W. Walker
▪ A kidney-shaped chunk of plywood rotated inside a guitar body until it jams a brace back into place.
1983
DS#245 LT p.86
Al Leis
▪ Customized bandsaw from a kit.
1983
DS#248 LT p.48
John M. Colombini
▪ Brass block on a C-shaped handle is heated and placed inside the guitar against the bridge plate.
1983
DS#232 LT p.54
Duane Waterman
▪ Side-bending form is made from the waste of the mold.
1982
DS#219 LT p.82
James Cassidy
▪ Adjustable work surface for an edge-mounted belt sander assures perpendicularity.
1982
DS#221 LT p.61
Don Alfieri
▪ Adds nylon bolts to the bottom corners of a Dremel base. The tool rides on the bolt heads, raising the router above the level of the bridge.
1982
DS#222 LT p.26
Nicholas Von Robison
▪ Traditional native American knife cuts on the pull stroke.
1982
DS#225 LT p.7
C.F. Casey
▪ This inspection light will even fit through a mandolin f-hole.
1982
DS#225 LT p.7
C.F. Casey
▪ Uses a night light bulb.
1982
DS#227 LW p.88
Al Leis
▪ Bending sides can be an intimidating process. It was especially so before the advent of the Fox bender. The author found a new method of applying heat to the wood to coerce the bend. With 6 photos to prove it works.
1982
DS#228 LT p.66
J.V. Buehrer
▪ Uses an oversize template to index of the outsides of the router base.
1982
DS#242 LT p.53
Bo Walker
▪ A deep plywood frame with a guitar-shaped hole in it. Uses no hardware other than a few screws.
1982
DS#212 LT p.83
John Zuis
▪ Make a peghead splice with a disk sander.
1982
DS#213 LT p.8
Ted Davis
▪ Uses a hot water heater element. A bit of the work is jobbed out to a machine shop.
1982
DS#215 LT p.28
Louis DeGrazia
▪ Made from table knives.
1982
DS#216 LT p.96
Robert Lenhardt
▪ Cut the taper on a fretboard using a table saw or bandsaw.
1982
DS#218 LT p.41
Bob Gleason
▪ Caul for clamping frets into slots before supergluing.
1982
DS#201 LT p.88
Brian Derber
▪ Bandsaw jig cuts the facets on a neck block to which the ribs of a lute are glued.
1982
DS#204 BRB2 p.289
Kent Rayman
▪ The author uses a table saw and no jigs to help speed up the creation of classical guitar bridges. With 5 drawings.
1982
DS#206 LT p.30
Frederick C. Lyman Jr.
▪ Electric chainsaw, cheap block plane, and Japanese saw rasp.
1982
DS#207 LT p.57
John M. Colombini
▪ Seat a tapered tuning gear with a C-clamp, rather than a hammer.
1982
DS#208 LW p.106
Michael Trietsch
▪ The cheapo way to cut perfect nut slots is to use the wound string that will sit in the groove as a saw. It doesn’t work while the nut is mounted on the guitar, though. The unwound string slots are cut with an X-acto saw. With 1 drawing.
1982
DS#209 LT p.60
Ted Davis
▪ Adjustable pin on the router base registers to a center hole.
1982
DS#210 LW p.99
Jim Williams
▪ Clean bridge removal is almost an art, but the right heat source and the proper tools can give even the first-timer a fighting chance. Williams offers a dedicated lamp setup for heat and a modified cabinet scraper to slide through the glue joint. With 3 drawings.
1981
GALQ Vol.9#2 p.10 LW p.70
Rick Turner
▪ Turner started his lutherie life as part of the Grateful Dead’s clan of artists, engineers, and craftsmen, but ended up with his own company which built distinctive electric guitars. This shop tour includes 11 photos.
1981
DS#185 LT p.2
T.E. Owen
▪ Aluminum frame, dial indicator.
This article has been nominated as one of the Guild’s best articles published before 2010.
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.
1981
DS#189 LT p.17
David W. Shell
▪ Knife maker describes a simple forge.
1981
DS#191 LT p.34
Brian Watkins
▪ Before there were fret nippers on the market.
1981
DS#192 LT p.25
David W. Shell
▪ Make a chisel from a file. You’ll need a forge.
1981
DS#194 LW p.45
James E. Patterson
▪ Convert a Sears 12″ bandsaw to cut guitar sets.
1981
DS#196 LT p.77
Art Smith
▪ Uses a 10″ sanding drum. With 3 drawings.
1981
DS#199 LW p.95
Alan Carruth
▪ The author offers a simple trick for making flat-bottom sanding blocks. Includes a drawing.
1981
DS#184 LT p.36
Henry Aitchison
▪ You must first have a reamer. The shaper blade is a reground hacksaw blade.
1981
DS#167 LT p.38
James Cassidy
▪ Light duty deep throat clamps.
1981
DS#169 LT p.108
John Judge
▪ From the Guild factory in the ’60s: a power-sanding table and a huge pin router.
1981
DS#170 LT p.95
Glenn Markel
▪ Uses a drill press and an index point.
1981
DS#178 LT p.78
Al Leis
▪ Open-sided sander utilizes a 6″ drum arbor-mounted on an electric motor and covered with a dust collection system.
1981
DS#180 LT p.94
Brian Watkins
▪ Bends individual frets by using a drill press as an arbor press.
1980
DS#164 LT p.62
J.D. Mackenzie
▪ One is a Dremel base for cutting binding channels. The second is another base used to inlay decorative stringing of the face of headstocks.
1980
DS#164 LT p.62
J.D. Mackenzie
▪ Another design for routing rosette slots, this one uses a full-size router.
1980
DS#148 LT p.2
Mark Rische
▪ A simple wood-frame gauge.
1980
DS#149 LT p.61
Bruce Scotten
▪ Try end mill cutters to machine channels for rosettes and binding.
1980
DS#151 LT p.68
Jim Williams
▪ With a router and this jig, splines can be added on either side of the truss rod.
1980
DS#152 LT p.68
James Cassidy
▪ Templates of this kind use oversized bushings on the router base as a cutting guide.
1980
DS#153 LT p.52
Glenn Markel
▪ Basic mold holds the developing instrument body inside a frame of layered wood.
1980
DS#157 LT p.4
Tom Peterson
▪ copy fretboards with a miter box.
1980
DS#161 LW p.46
Tim Olsen
▪ Pretty big saw for a little shop.
1980
DS#163 LT p.42
Bruce Scotten
▪ Modify clothespins.
1980
DS#147 LT p.76
Peter Estes
▪ All-wood thickness sander.
1980
DS#139 LT p.44
David B. Sheppard
▪ Simple system is cheap and easy to make.
This article has been nominated as one of the Guild’s best articles published before 2010.
1980
DS#140 LW p.80
Larry Stevens
▪ A drill press only wants to make holes, but you can train it to do a lot of tricks. For instance, why not use it to mill the slots for rosette rings to snuggle into? Groovy! With diagrams of the cutting bits.
1980
DS#140 LW p.111
Marvin Tench
▪ Yet another substitute for messy steel wool on your bench (not to mention your pickups). Doodlebug pads are a 3M scouring pad made of nylon. Polish your frets with impunity.
1980
DS#143 LW p.97
John M. Colombini
▪ The author couldn’t reach through the small soundhole of a guitar to bolt the bridge on, so he devised a nifty cam clamp that not only holds the socket but aids in lining up all the pieces during the operation. With 3 diagrams.
1980
DS#146 LT p.50
Charles Wearden Robert Lenhardt
▪ Foot-operated, spring-loaded vise.
1979
DS#118 LT p.43
Leo Anway
▪ Uses a guitar string and tuner.
1979
DS#119 LT p.6
Kent Rayman
▪ This lamp even fits through f-holes.
1979
DS#120 LT p.21
Bill McCall
▪ Sharpen the blades while they are mounted in the machine.
1979
DS#122 BRB2 p.108
Dick DeNeve
▪ A method for coping with grain irregularities in curly maple which cause small radius bends.
1979
DS#126 LW p.98 read this article
Tim Olsen
▪ How to use bolts and wing nuts to align a bridge through the pin holes and form part of the clamping force. With 1 drawing.
1979
DS#127 LT p.84
Boyd Butler
▪ A tool that aids in tearing sandpaper sheets into useful sizes, and a sanding board for close places.
1979
DS#128 LT p.92
Tim Olsen
▪ Use a Dremel and a drill press to put brad points on standard bits.
1979
DS#113 LT p.41
Frederick Battershell
▪ Humongous spool clamp.
1979
DS#116 LW p.95
Al Leis
▪ So how does one reach w-a-y back there to reinforce top crack repairs? By making a special clamp, and by evolving a slick method of using it. Here’s how it’s done. Includes 2 photos.
1979
DS#117 LT p.12
Hugh Manhart
▪ Bend sides on a cold form after boiling them, but add heat to the form to dry them quickly.
1979
DS#105 LT p.23
Dick DeNeve
▪ Belts that are already worn by wood may have a life left for grinding metals.
1979
DS#105 LT p.27
Dick DeNeve
▪ Recycle worn bandsaw blades into scrapers, handsaws, and knives.
1979
DS#105 LT p.87
Tim Olsen
▪ Extend the life of your bandsaw blades by five of six times using a Dremel tool.
1979
DS#107 LW p.93
Boyd Butler
▪ How to jig up a bandsaw to kerf linings one strip at a time. With 1 diagram.
1979
DS#110 LW p.46
Peggy Stuart
▪ Set up a Rockwell bandsaw for best resawing performance.
1979
DS#111 LT p.32
Al Leis
▪ Four shop-made planes.
1978
GALQ Vol.6#3 p.8 LT p.104
H.E. Huttig
▪ A tribute to the late George Vogl of Bubenreuth, Germany, maker of special luthier’s tools.
1978
DS#87 LT p.45
Reagan Cole
▪ Old refrigerator compressor and a shower curtain.
1978
DS#88 LW p.78
Tim Olsen
▪ Are you tired of rosettes that are just rings around the soundhole? Here’s a jumping off point if you want to take the plunge. The next step is to get rid of the round soundhole. With 3 diagrams.
1978
DS#92 LT p.92
Thomas Rein
▪ Jig uses and end mill in a drill press.
1978
DS#95 LW p.90
Don Musser
▪ Some wood ripples when it is wetted for bending. Musser describes how to remove the ripples, but you’ll have to have a metal bending form to use his method. With 2 photos.
1978
DS#99 LW p.101
Tim Olsen
▪ Build a simple shooting board to make plate joints with a plane, then use one of 3 tried-and-true forms of clamping workboards to glue them together.
1978
DS#77 LT p.101
Tim Olsen
▪ Table saw jig to evenly cut kerfs in rectangular strips of lining.
1978
DS#78 LT p.63
Al Leis
▪ Close-tolerance adjustability with a full-size router to create binding and rosette slots.
1978
DS#81 LT p.82
Rolfe Gerhardt
▪ Remount a 6×48 belt sander on edge to find a variety of new uses.
1978
DS#84 LT p.29
Tim Olsen
▪ Regrind single-edged razor blades into good little scrapers.
This article has been nominated as one of the Guild’s best articles published before 2010.
1978
DS#68 LT p.91
William Spigelsky
▪ Binding cutter is comprised of a stack of small slitting saw blades mounted in the drill press.
1978
DS#68 LT p.99
William Spigelsky
▪ Jig for a radial arm saw.
1978
DS#69 LT p.61
John Spence
▪ Spence uses sub-bases for his router to make rosette cavities. The sub-bases are drilled with holes that fit over a pin mounted in the center of what will be the soundhole.
1978
DS#70 LT p.42
Tony Pizzo
▪ Adjustable-shape mold for dulcimer assembly.
1978
DS#72 LT p.98
Des Anthony
▪ Combination tool is useful in a lutherie shop.
1978
DS#74 LW p.31
Anonymous
▪ Make a wooden humidity gauge. But you’ll need a hygrometer to build it by.
1978
DS#61 LT p.24
Chris Burt
▪ Violin maker’s knife made from a straight razor.
1978
DS#63 LT p.41
Charles A. Palis
▪ Spool clamp for violins and a handscrew.
1978
DS#65 LT p.88
Tim Olsen
▪ Machine manufacturers have become hip to the health problems that accompany the use of their equipment, and most incorporate dust collection ports into their new machines. This was hardly the case in the old days, and there are still tons of old machines in use. If you have one you are responsible for your own health, and thus the modification of your machine. The author’s ideas can be adapted to almost any bandsaw.
1978
DS#66 LT p.74
Hank Schrieber
▪ The power feed for this drum sander uses a separate motor.
1978
DS#67 LT p.100
James Gilbert
▪ Radial arm saw jig will radius the face of a banjo neck to 10″ and cut it to the desired angle.
1978
DS#68 LT p.88
William Spigelsky
▪ Use this bandsaw jig to cut rectangular stock into triangular unkerfed lining blanks. This tip is confusing until you realize that the box is a permanent part of the jig, and that the jig should be clamped to the saw table. The binding stock is fed through, and supported by, the box.
1977
DS#55 BRB1 p.36 read this article
Jeffrey R. Elliott
▪ Various chemicals have been used for centuries to color (or de-color) wood. Fiddle makers are hip to tons of these, but Elliott describes a couple that he finds useful on his guitars. He also advocates lubricating tools and work surfaces with carnauba wax, which will not contaminate your wood.
This article has been nominated as one of the Guild’s best articles published before 2010.
1977
DS#57 LT p.20
Shelly Sax
▪ Get the right wheels for your grinder.
1977
DS#59 LT p.33
Paul Estenson
▪ The form of construction will lend itself to any type of wooden plane.
1977
DS#60 LT p.58
James Gilbert
▪ Uses toggle clamps.
1977
DS#47 LT p.59
Kent Rayman
▪ Used inside the guitar while gluing braces or to support the top for bridge work.
1977
DS#48 LT p.73
Kent Rayman
▪ Again, this is a variation in the Ruck-Brune sander. You need to read all these articles before beginning construction of your sander in order to avoid mistakes that others have already made.
1977
DS#41 LT p.72
Tim Olsen
▪ Variation on the Ruck-Brune sander, that is.
1977
DS#47 LT p.59
Kent Rayman
▪ Taper attachment and protective jaws.
1976
DS#25 LT p.10
Tim Olsen
▪ Four variations on the propane torch and water pipe.
This article has been nominated as one of the Guild’s best articles published before 2010.
1976
DS#25 LT p.11
Dick DeNeve
▪ The best thing you can do with a beer can is empty it. The next best thing might be to put a heating element in the empty can and then fill it with lead to make a bending iron.
1976
DS#25 LT p.12
Tim Olsen
▪ There is probably a heat element that you can find locally and adapt for the purpose.
1976
DS#26 LT p.91
Derek Iverson
▪ Jig for drilling tuner holes in the headstocks of classical guitars.
1976
DS#27 LT p.4
Tom Peterson
▪ Lay out one fret scale accurately, then very quickly plot the fret positions for any larger scale length with no math or measuring tools.
1976
DS#32 LT p.14
H.E. Huttig
▪ Short history of steel and its principal alloys, plus a description of sharpening stones, and how to use and maintain them.
This article has been nominated as one of the Guild’s best articles published before 2010.
1976
DS#33 LT p.11
Lawrence Lundy W. Daum
▪ Roll up a thick tube of copper and shoot a propane torch into the back of it. that’s yet another way to make a bending iron.
1976
DS#37 LT p.70
Derek Iverson
▪ Iverson’s was the first report on a truly useful shop-made thickness sander at a time when there were no inexpensive commercial units to be had.
This article has been nominated as one of the Guild’s best articles published before 2010.
1976
DS#22 LT p.7
Tim Olsen
▪ Tape a tiny flashlight to your inspection mirror.
1976
DS#23 LT p.37
Hank Schrieber
▪ A file mounted in a wooden block.