1993
AL#33 p.12 BRB3 p.278 read this article
Roberto Gomes
▪ Gomes offers a list and short description of some current Brazilian builders.
1993
AL#33 p.22 BRB3 p.173 read this article
John Boser
▪ Gathering one’s own tonewood can be a tiresome pursuit. Boser takes a humorous look at one of his futile expeditions.
1993
AL#33 p.39 BRB3 p.309 read this article
Harold Turner
▪ Turner thinks you might like to try white pine as a tonewood. But you’ll have to harvest it yourself. Here are some suggestions about how to go about it.
1993
AL#33 p.40 BRB3 p.298 read this article
John Curtis
▪ Curtis is a wood dealer and a founder of WARP (Woodworkers Alliance for Rainforest Protection). Here he examines international law, species extinction, conservation, and local economies in the Third World. Oh yeah, and the American luthier’s place in this scheme.
This article has been nominated as one of the Guild’s best articles published before 2010.
1993
AL#33 p.46 BRB3 p.310 read this article
David Golber
▪ If stock tuners stick up too far from the top of your headstock you can fix them, but it requires a machinist’s lathe.
1992
AL#32 p.44 BRB3 p.266 read this article
Michael Darnton
▪ Nothing is easy for fiddle people. When they aren’t tweaking and gluing wood they are stirring up a witch’s brew in their home chem labs. Darn if Darnton doesn’t sound like he likes it, though. Buy some fancy wood. Trick it into changing color.
This article has been nominated as one of the Guild’s best articles published before 2010.
1992
AL#32 p.47 BRB3 p.257 read this article
Harold Turner
▪ Build a banjo and scare the congregation, and not with music. Luthier humor, and more good local color. Turner was there when the banjo bomb was invented. A shrinking calf skin head was the culprit.
1992
AL#32 p.52 BRB3 p.268 read this article
Tim Olsen Guy Rabut
▪ A long-time Guild member makes it as a violinmaker in the Big Apple after a twenty-year run. Mentions Ed Campbell, Peter Prier, Rene Morel.
This article has been nominated as one of the Guild’s best articles published before 2010.
1992
AL#32 p.62 BRB3 p.470 read this article
Robert Lundberg
▪ This marvelous book of workbenches will fill you with ideas of how to improve the ‘heart’ of your own shop.
This article has been nominated as one of the Guild’s best articles published before 2010.
1992
AL#32 p.69 read this article
George Rizsanyi
▪ A source for sandolin varnish.
1992
AL#31 p.58 BRB3 p.222 read this article
Jonathon Peterson Byron Will
▪ Will talks primarily about the business end of being a harpsichord maker.
1992
AL#31 p.62 BRB3 p.426 read this article
Rick Turner
▪ Turner goes deep with information about the effect of wire insulation size on the character of a pickup, and explains the construction of guitar capacitors.
1992
AL#31 p.67 BRB3 p.501 read this article
R.E. Brune
▪ Remembering Hart Hutting II, an avid aficionado of flamenco and selfless contributor to the GAL since it’s inception.
1992
AL#32 p.2 BRB3 p.307 read this article
Michael Cone
▪ Writes of soundboard graduation and using a glass capillary tube for plate excitation.
1992
AL#32 p.4 BRB3 p.238 read this article
Ken Sribnick Gayle Miller
▪ A one-of-a-kind, almost fabled instrument.
1992
AL#32 p.6 BRB3 p.240 read this article
Ken Sribnick Gayle Miller
▪ The lute photographers relate a wonderful anecdote about their pilgrimage to the London shop of Charles Beare to shoot the unicorn, er, no, the great white lute. With 3 more photos.
1992
AL#32 p.7 BRB3 p.241 read this article
Robert Lundberg
▪ It seems that there is real doubt about the authenticity of this very same lute. American Lutherie’s lute meister looks at the photos and thinks, “Hmm, maybe it is real.” With one more photo of Moby Lute.
1992
AL#31 p.18 BRB3 p.226 read this article
Ted Davis Bruce Harvie Steve McMinn Byron Will David Wilson
▪ As the large stands of old growth timber are harvested it is likely that quality tonewoods will come more and more from men who can take the time to harvest and pack out individual trees. Who are they, how do they work, and what’s their prognosis for the future? The discussion also introduces species that you probably never considered for top wood until now. With photos and range maps.
This article has been nominated as one of the Guild’s best articles published before 2010.
1992
AL#31 p.23 BRB3 p.231 read this article
Nicholas Von Robison
▪ Whadija call that tree? An introduction to Latin pronunciations.
1992
AL#31 p.27 BRB3 p.235 read this article
Nicholas Von Robison
▪ Those Latin tongue twisters actually mean something. Scholars actually find joy and amusement in many of the scientific names. You might, too.
1992
AL#31 p.30 BRB3 p.224 read this article
John Decker
▪ This alternative to wood is outside the reach of most luthiers. It’s interesting to know how hard some are working to make graphite sound like wood. Graphite might have its own sound to offer, but once again inventors have to deal with what humans are used to, rather than with what they might have if they were more open minded. With 7 photos.
1992
AL#31 p.55 BRB3 p.237 read this article
John Bromka
▪ Bromka examines a French member of the lap dulcimer family. With 2 photos.
1992
AL#30 p.44 BRB3 p.204 read this article
Tim Earls
▪ Multiple radius fingerboards revisited. Also called conical fretboards. Earls strives to put the design process into the hands of Joe Guitar maker using “barnyard” geometry. Seems to work. The article also contains a description of the Warmoth multiradius fretboard, which has become sort of the industry leader.
1992
AL#30 p.46 BRB3 p.210 read this article
Don Musser
▪ Musser tries to get the guitar to play in tune with itself by laying out the frets for just intonation, rather than equal temperament. Interchangeable fretboards allow the changing of keys and tunings. Pretty interesting, and the new fret pattern looks very bewildering and cool. Based on the work of Mark Rankin.
1992
AL#30 p.51 BRB3 p.426 read this article
Rick Turner
▪ Turner explains how to help quiet a buzzy Silvertone, quick-check pickup phase, and the different characteristics of high and low impedance pickups.
1992
AL#30 p.56 BRB3 p.469 read this article
Lloyd Zsiros
▪ The reviewer finds that although the book offers no information on playing or building guitars, it is otherwise an excellent resource and a pleasure to read. The photos are excellent and the book covers a lot of ground.
1992
AL#29 p.57 BRB3 p.485 read this article
Gerhart Schmeltekopf
▪ Rigging up a temporary reciprocating or ‘pole’ lathe.
1992
AL#29 p.58 BRB3 p.467 read this article
Cyndy Burton
▪ Seldom does a new catalog cause so much excitement. The reviewer especially likes it for bedtime reading.
1992
AL#29 p.58 BRB3 p.467 read this article
Nicholas Von Robison
▪ The reviewer decides this book isn’t perfect for the DIY wood analyzer, but it will do, especially since it’s the only game in town.
1992
AL#29 p.59 BRB3 p.468 read this article
Lloyd Zsiros
▪ The reviewer likes this video at first, but after repeated viewing finds it comes up short. If you have all the books and still can’t get motivated, perhaps this tape will help.
1992
AL#30 p.3 read this article
Lloyd Zsiros
▪ These are the boards left over from commercial veneer slicing. Still some good wood in there.
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.
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
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.
1992
AL#29 p.54 BRB3 p.426 read this article
Rick Turner
▪ A new column is born. What is pickup phase and polarity? Why do positions 2 and 4 on a 5-way Strat switch sound funky? Turner knows and tells all.
1991
AL#28 p.59 read this article
David Riggs
▪ A luthier volunteers for the space program in this humorous piece.
1991
AL#27 p.60 BRB3 p.465 read this article
Kevin Kobie
▪ The reviewer finds that this book is a well-written, useful reference about all Fender guitars.
1991
AL#27 p.60 BRB3 p.465 read this article
C.F. Casey
▪ The reviewer finds this book to be mostly a rehash of Irving Sloane’s Classic Guitar Construction.
1991
AL#28 p.18 BRB3 p.136 read this article
Alan Carruth
▪ Most acoustic scientists are not prepared to reduce their work to a plane-by-the-numbers chart of an instrument top.Neither is Carruth. It remains to be seen what improvements free plate tuning will offer to the average guitar, but there is every chance that luthiers who ignore the work as an inartistic invasion of their craft and art will be left in the dust. Carruth invites you to get on board right now. Parts Two and Three are in AL#29 and AL#30. The entire series apperas together in BRB3.
This article has been nominated as one of the Guild’s fifty best articles published before 2010.
1991
AL#28 p.32 read this article
Ralph Novak
▪ If you build instruments for money you should learn about running a business. Novak relates his good experiences at a college workshop for entrepreneurs.
1991
AL#26 p.42 BRB3 p.32 read this article
Cyndy Burton Donald Warnock
▪ It’s wonderful that this interview is in the same issue as interviews with Larrivee and Warmoth, since they are opposites. The first two are sort of factory moguls, and Warnock is the gentlemanly craftsman/artist. All have forged a successful life on their own terms, and the contrast is delicious.
1991
AL#26 p.58 BRB3 p.463 read this article
Manny Bettencourt
▪ The reviewer finds that this book is an invaluable resource for the professional repairman and will let the amateur evaluate a potential repair and decide whether or not he has the skill to tackle it.
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.
1991
AL#26 p.59 BRB3 p.464 read this article
Harry Fleishman
▪ The reviewer admires the beauty of the book’s photography, but seems hesitant to recommend it since so little of it is dedicated to musical instruments.
1991
AL#26 p.60 BRB3 p.464 read this article
C.F. Casey
▪ This British D.I.Y. book offers alternative diction, syntax, and approach to the material.
1991
AL#27 p.26 BRB3 p.100 read this article
James Flynn
▪ This instrument is a unique and graceful-looking Russian folk psaltery, a sophisticated version of the lap harp grade schoolers play by sliding numbered sheet music under the strings.
1991
AL#27 p.34 BRB3 p.108 read this article
Ronald Louis Fernandez
▪ This instrument is a lovely looking cittern, sort of a big mandolin with 12 strings. The traditional tuners are unique, compact, and distinctly ungraceful, but they allow—indeed, encourage—the use of a wonderfully distinctive headstock. With 16 photos.
1991
AL#25 p.52 BRB3 p.30 read this article
Michael Keller
▪ Silicon heat blankets are good for more than bending sides. Keller touches upon other uses, but his instructions for making forms and putting them to use is the focus here, and they cover about all you need to know. Once you have the blanket, the forms are cheap to make.
This article has been nominated as one of the Guild’s best articles published before 2010.
1991
AL#25 p.59 read this article
John Decker
▪ Guitarron strings are available from Pimentel Guitars.
1991
AL#25 p.59 read this article
John Kitakis
▪ Unified repair price list including bridge reglue, bone nut or saddle, refret, dress frets, cracks, and refinishing.
1991
AL#25 p.60 BRB3 p.462 read this article
David Riggs
▪ A useful how-to book with clear, concise directions on bow making and other lutherie practices.
1991
AL#26 p.3 read this article
John Calkin
▪ When his Dremel died, he got a Bosch laminate trimmer to replace it. He loves the Bosch and does not miss the Dremel.
1991
AL#26 p.22 BRB3 p.72 read this article
Rick Turner
▪ Time management advise from a guy who has done a lot of business.
1991
AL#25 p.3 read this article
James Flynn
▪ Flynn reports that improving U.S. relations with Russia are a good thing for balalaika and domra players.
1991
AL#25 p.4 read this article
John Calkin
▪ Wood is not magic. It is wood. Widen your view of what would be suitable material for your next guitar.
1991
AL#25 p.5 BRB3 p.505 read this article
Chris Hanlin
▪ Announcing the passing of luthier and mentor Bob Mattingly.
1991
AL#25 p.42 BRB3 p.22 read this article
Michael Darnton
▪ Why are some fiddles worth so much? Which ones might you find that will provide good investments? Which sleepers should you look for if you want a really good inexpensive violin for playing? Darnton doesn’t offer the last word, but his advice is worth heeding. Mentions Stradivari, Guarnari.
1991
AL#25 p.47 BRB3 p.28 read this article
George Gorodnitsky
▪ Gorodnitski fled Russia for an unknown fate in the USA. This article is only one column long, but it’s pretty striking. You may never think the same way about the Rose Parade again.
1990
AL#24 p.5 read this article
John Calkin
▪ Calkin warns about being too precious about making a first guitar from fine wood. He says grab any old wood and build a mountain dulcimer.
1990
AL#21 p.31 read this article
Ed Beylerian
▪ Luthiers try lute molds of a new synthetic material. Its stability is pleasing but its strength may make it of limited use for some.
1990
AL#21 p.59 read this article
Bob Banghart
▪ Lutherie humor. We’ve heard of guitars in a museum, but a museum inside a guitar?
1989
AL#20 p.56 read this article
Francis Kosheleff
▪ The reviewer finds this little Canadian magazine put out by a lutherie school to be “interesting but not too deep.”
1989
AL#19 p.5 read this article
Anthony D. Blokzyi
▪ Blokzyi furnishes a description of the Gittler guitar, an all stainless steel, skeletonized instrument.
1989
AL#19 p.23 read this article
H.E. Huttig
▪ Farewell to a jazz guitarist/repairman.
1989
AL#18 p.36 read this article
Frederick C. Lyman Jr.
▪ Lyman not only comes up with a new instrument, but also writes the article as a lesson in problem solving as he worked toward an uncertain goal.
1989
AL#18 p.38 read this article
Phil Banks
▪ Banks, like many before him, attempts to display on paper the movements of an excited guitar top.He is uncertain of his results, but his illustrations are certainly foxier than a normal graph or oscilloscope printout.
1989
AL#17 p.52 read this article
Tim Olsen
▪ The reviewer enjoys the premier issue of a magazine for bottom end kind of people.
1988
AL#16 p.33 read this article
Nicholas Von Robison Perry Thomas
▪ Only 6% of the rain forest harvest is exported, only 20% is used for timber, and 80% of the trees cut are burned. Pollution may ultimately represent as much of a threat as the chain saw. This article tries to get a handle on the situation.
1989
AL#17 p.3 read this article
Richard Schneider
▪ Schneder really liked this book, and he writes to say that Stewart Brand agres with him about it.
1988
AL#15 p.65 read this article
Peggy Stuart
▪ Anyone can dance to a fiddle. In Oregon they can dance on a fiddle. With 1 photo.
1988
AL#15 p.66 read this article
Keith Davis
▪ A natural gas explosion blows up the instruments of an entire school orchestra. Davis comes to the rescue, but wonders what the long-term ramifications will be for the fiddles and bass viols.
1988
AL#14 p.57 read this article
Jeffrey R. Elliott
▪ Elliott observes that one of the best ways to ensure the safety of a guitar is to make sure it is a good fit in its case.
This article has been nominated as one of the Guild’s best articles published before 2010.
1987
AL#12 p.18 BRB1 p.452 read this article
Nicholas Von Robison
▪ Robison offers description, anecdotes, 4 photos, and a drawing of an instrument that might be crudely described as a Japanese 3-string banjo. The plans are a shrunken version of our full-scale Plan #16.
1987
AL#12 p.50 read this article
George Manno
▪ Manno examines the Zeta JV-205 and the EV-5 Barrett electric violins and finds them exceptional. High marks go to both, but especially to the Zeta.
1987
AL#12 p.64 BRB1 p.503 read this article
David Macias
▪ The reviewer encourages all students of the guitar to read this book, regardless of their special interests.
1987
AL#11 p.22 BRB1 p.428 read this article
Gulab Gidwani
▪ A well-known importer and dealer of tonewoods relates some of the difficulties of doing business with third-world nations, such as getting a sawyer of railroad ties to cut fretboards.
1987
AL#11 p.40 BRB1 p.436 read this article
James Garber Roy Smeck
▪ This is an interview with the man who may have been the best known instrumentalist of his time, the Chet Atkins of vaudeville, if you will. The conversation is mostly about his instruments.
1987
AL#11 p.50 BRB1 p.502 read this article
George Manno
▪ The reviewer finds this video to be a wise investment, especially for one new to the craft.
1987
AL#11 p.50 BRB1 p.502 read this article
Don Overstreet
▪ The reviewer finds the book to be of mild interest for the violin historian, but seems to have been generally disappointed in its usefulness to the luthier.
1987
AL#11 p.51 BRB1 p.502 read this article
George Manno
▪ The reviewer finds this to be the one book that every violin shop and instrument appraiser should own. ‘Nuff said.
1987
AL#11 p.51 BRB1 p.501 read this article
Ernest Nussbaum
▪
1987
AL#12 p.5 BRB1 p.481 read this article
William T. Walls
▪ Walls offers tips about cleaning and polishing violins and bows.
1987
AL#12 p.8 BRB1 p.448 read this article
Joseph R. Johnson
▪ Johnson examines a Stradivarius guitar from the Shrine to Music collection. With 8 photos.
1987
AL#12 p.12 BRB1 p.451 read this article
George Manno
▪ This is a recipe for a touchup violin varnish, with instructions for adding colors.
This article has been nominated as one of the Guild’s best articles published before 2010.
1987
AL#10 p.36 BRB1 p.390 read this article
Jeff Feltman Jack Batts
▪ Intelligent questions and no-holds-barred answers make this long interview with a veteran builder seem too short. All violin articles should be this interesting. Forty-nine years dedicated to wood, glue, and varnish have to teach one a great deal. With 8 photos. Mentions Sacconi, Stradivari, Guarneri, and Amati.
1987
AL#10 p.53 BRB1 p.412 read this article
John Curtis
▪ A wood merchant relates the difficulties of getting lumber out of the jungle, and why the rain forest isn’t being replanted.
1987
AL#10 p.55 BRB1 p.409 read this article
Russ Carlisle
▪ These hammers sport a shaft of bamboo. They can be quickly flipped to offer hard or padded hammer surfaces. Make a set. Throw a dance.
1987
AL#10 p.56 BRB1 p.414 read this article
Dave Schneider
▪ A dream comes true. Schneider relates his growth toward a successful lutherie career. He begins with a high school shop program, travels through various repair and furniture jobs, apprentices as a lute maker, and ends up self-employed.
1987
AL#10 p.60 BRB1 p.202 read this article
Frederick C. Lyman Jr.
▪ Lyman’s quest is to build an inexpensive but musically useful string bass. In this episode he tries to improve a Kay plywood bass. The results leave him ambivalent but hopeful.
1987
AL#10 p.62 BRB1 p.500 read this article
Cyndy Burton
▪ Workbook format, large, 160 photos and diagrams, and spiral binding are great advantages of this nuts and bolts straight method book.
1987
AL#11 p.3 BRB1 p.297 read this article
Lloyd Scott Ogelsby
▪ An analytical chemist offers some fascinating information about hide glue. It turns out that formaldehyde makes hide glue waterproof. Jump ahead to AL#15 for Oglesby’s how-to article about hide glue.
1987
AL#11 p.10 BRB1 p.419 read this article
Susan Norris
▪ Norris offers no details about her asymmetric 10-string fiddle, but the one good photo adds much to a delightful little article.
1987
AL#11 p.30 BRB1 p.485 read this article
George Manno
▪
1987
AL#11 p.30 BRB1 p.485 read this article
George Manno
▪
1987
AL#9 p.46 BRB1 p.338 read this article
John Jordan
▪ Jordan catalogs and describes nine rosewoods from Africa, and nine false rosewoods. Some max out too small for instruments but are of interest to wood collectors. Others should interest the open-minded luthier.
1987
AL#9 p.56 BRB1 p.500 read this article
Tim Olsen
▪ The reviewer is enthusiastic about the mind-opening possibilities of this booklet/cassette combination.
1987
AL#9 p.56 BRB1 p.499 read this article
Joseph R. Johnson
▪ The reviewer finds that the book “falls short of being a thorough international bibliography, but will prove valuable to guitar and vihuela teachers, students, and luthiers.”
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).
1987
AL#10 p.8 BRB1 p.360 read this article
Fred Calland
▪ LeBovit was an aficionado of the violin all his life, a maker of fine violins, and a self-made recording engineer, all of which he did on his own time while working for the US government. Calland recalls a dynamic individual who touched many important lives.
1987
AL#10 p.20 BRB1 p.374 read this article
Sam Rizzetta
▪ Rizzetta is often called the father of the modern hammered dulcimer. This lengthy lecture transcription from the 1984 GAL convention covers the 19th century dulcimer as made in America as well as Rizzetta’s entry into field in the 1960s. He carefully explains his own innovations, material choices, and construction techniques. With 18 photos.
1987
AL#10 p.28 BRB1 p.482 read this article
George Manno
▪ Manno fields 2 pages of questions about building and repairing the fiddle family, from the basic “What kinda glue?” to “What kind of cello bridge to aid projection?”
1987
AL#10 p.30 BRB1 p.382 read this article
Nasser Shirazi
▪ The tar (or Persian banjo) is a classical Iranian instrument, the body of which is carved from a mulberry log and covered in lambskin. The neck traditionally incorporates rams horn and camel bone. Exotic, fascinating, wonderfully politically incorrect. Some alternate materials are listed for those who can’t wait for their camel to die. With 6 photos, 2 sketches, and a scaled down version of GAL Plan #14.
1987
AL#9 p.36 BRB1 p.334 read this article
H.E. Huttig
▪ Have you ever wondered how cat gut strings were named? This article suggests an answer as it delves into some string facts and fictions.
1987
AL#9 p.39 BRB1 p.196 read this article
Frederick C. Lyman Jr.
▪ When an articulate violin-family maker discusses his craft he sounds much like a professional wine taster. Lyman is articulate. This segment of his series deals with plate tuning.
1987
AL#9 p.45 BRB1 p.482 read this article
George Manno
▪ The GAL’s resident violin expert of the time answers questions about cleaning violins, top reinstallation, domestic tool sources, domestic wood, and treating potassium silicate (a wood sealer) with tea to keep it from staining spruce green.
1987
AL#9 p.45 BRB1 p.482 read this article
George Manno
▪
1987
AL#10 p.28 BRB1 p.483 read this article
George Manno
▪
1987
AL#10 p.28 BRB1 p.483 read this article
George Manno
▪
1987
AL#10 p.29 BRB1 p.484 read this article
George Manno
▪
1987
AL#10 p.29 BRB1 p.484 read this article
George Manno
▪
1987
AL#10 p.29 BRB1 p.484 read this article
George Manno
▪
1987
AL#11 p.30 BRB1 p.484 read this article
George Manno
▪
1986
AL#8 p.46 BRB1 p.295 read this article
Dick Kenfield
▪ Kenfield’s instrument stand is cheap and easy to build.
1986
AL#8 p.47 BRB1 p.296 read this article
Al Stancel
▪ Stancel offers an interesting potpourri of violin information concerning steel wool, bow bugs, tuning pegs, appraisers and the IRS, appraiser scams, and the dangers of steel strings to old fiddles.
1987
AL#9 p.3 read this article
Ernest Nussbaum
▪ Nussbaum offers corrections to the “Fiddle Facts” article found in AL#8.
1987
AL#9 p.6 BRB1 p.304 read this article
Paul Schuback
▪ In this fascinating lecture from the 1986 GAL convention Schuback speaks of his apprenticeship to a French violin maker in 1962, then goes on to offer details about instrument construction, wood, and a Q&A session.
1986
AL#7 p.60 BRB1 p.497 read this article
James Flynn
▪ The reviewer doubts the book’s conclusions and finds it of no value to the serious luthier. He states, however, that dulcimer enthusiasts may find it interesting.
1986
AL#7 p.60 BRB1 p.498 read this article
George Manno
▪ The reviewer finds the book to be a worthwhile investment for anyone seriously trying to duplicate antique violin finishes.
1986
AL#7 p.61 BRB1 p.498 read this article
Tom Rossing
▪ The reviewer is enthusiastic about this booklet for the nonscientist, finding it useful and accurate.
1986
AL#8 p.5 read this article
George Manno
▪ Manno makes various points about violinmakers as a society and urges the creation of an information-sharing guild just for violin people.
1986
AL#8 p.7 read this article
Loretta Kelley
▪ Kelley adds to the information fund concerning the Hardanger fiddle (see AL#7).
1986
AL#6 p.52 BRB1 p.496 read this article
Tom Rossing
▪ The reviewer finds that this collection of scientific papers will be of value to instrument builders, though it offers no “how to” advice.
1986
AL#7 p.26 BRB1 p.250 read this article
Paul Wyszkowski
▪ Wyszkowski describes his visit to H. L. Wild and provides some background information about the legendary tonewood dealer.
1986
AL#7 p.43 BRB1 p.196 read this article
Frederick C. Lyman Jr.
▪ Lyman offers another philosophical look at lutherie and acoustical physics.
1986
AL#7 p.45 read this article
Nicholas Von Robison
▪ Things look bleaker for the world’s forests.
1986
AL#5 p.53 BRB1 p.495 read this article
Christopher Allworth
▪ The reviewer finds the book to be “important and useful” to builders who wish to pursue the early viols.
1986
AL#5 p.53 BRB1 p.496 read this article
Gila Eban
▪ The reviewer finds the book to be of interest to the luthier, even though it offers little technical information about guitars.
1986
AL#6 p.14 BRB1 p.190 read this article
William Cumpiano
▪ Cumpiano goes to some length telling of the travails and trials of producing the book, Guitarmaking: Tradition and Technology.
1986
AL#6 p.19 BRB1 p.196 read this article
Frederick C. Lyman Jr.
▪ Lyman likens the physical properties of a stringed instrument to those of the earth’s atmosphere (our great spherical friend), and advises us that an understanding of science should underlay our intuitional sensitivities.
1986
AL#6 p.22 read this article
Ted Davis
▪ Davis interviews the great flatpicker about (mostly) nontechnical matters.
1986
AL#5 p.14 BRB1 p.154 read this article
Bobby Wolfe
▪ Wolfe explains some history of the Dobro-style resonator guitar and mentions John Dopera, then details its construction and lists some commonly seen repairs and how to deal with them. The article is completed by 8 good photos.
1986
AL#5 p.32 BRB1 p.180 read this article
Ernest Nussbaum
▪ Nussbaum describes his “travel cello,” a takedown frame-body/neck which uses a transducer to produce full sound.
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.36 BRB1 p.184 read this article
Frederick C. Lyman Jr.
▪ Lyman compares different makes of strings for the bass viol.
1986
AL#5 p.38 BRB1 p.186 read this article
Alexander I. Eppler
▪ Eppler describes the most sophisticated member of the hammered dulcimer family, but offers no construction information.
1986
AL#5 p.40 BRB1 p.153 read this article
George Manno
▪ Manno describes a method of removing violin tops that have been improperly attached with contemporary glues.
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.22 BRB1 p.116 read this article
Robert Cooper
▪ Cooper’s lecture tracks his own development as a lute maker and the instrument’s return to historically accurate models. Mentions Hermann Hauser II, a number of performers, which designs and glues are preferable, how to remove a neck when necessary, and briefly discusses strings.
1985
AL#4 p.27 BRB1 p.126 read this article
Nasser Shirazi
▪ Shirazi offers a history of the Persian bowed instrument as well as plans and construction advice. The kamanche is a four-stringed neck attached to a gourd. The plans are a reduced version of our full-scale Plan #9.
1985
AL#4 p.31 BRB1 p.132 read this article
John Jordan
▪ Jordan describes 14 varieties of rosewood, and 14 varieties of false rosewood. Some max out as large shrubs, and only offer interest to wood collectors. Others are of high interest to luthiers, or should be.
This article has been nominated as one of the Guild’s best articles published before 2010.
1985
AL#4 p.48 BRB1 p.148 read this article
Frederick C. Lyman Jr.
▪ Lyman champions the use of common materials and low sophistication in the production of serviceable, affordable bass fiddles. Mentions Kay basses and the Richard Ennis design in AL#3.
1985
AL#4 p.52 BRB1 p.492 read this article
Frederick Battershell
▪ The reviewer examines what has become one of the main-stay catalogs of lutherie and finds that it’s not only chock full of wood, supplies, and tools, it’s a nearly encyclopedic source of lutherie information.
1985
AL#4 p.52 BRB1 p.494 read this article
Kirk A. Janowiak
▪ The reviewer finds that this book is a necessary addition to any luthier’s library, but especially to one who may not yet be equipped with power tools.
1985
AL#4 p.53 BRB1 p.492 read this article
R.E. Brune
▪ The reviewer finds that this book about Renaissance and Baroque stringed instruments is “the most intense 178 pages of treatise on the art of lutherie. . . . Lots of math, and “exquisite” drawings of 33 instruments.
1985
AL#3 p.22 read this article
Lawrence D. Brown
▪ Brown comments on trends in lute making toward Baroque instruments, all-gut stringing, larger body sizes, and lower pitches.
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.42 BRB1 p.92 read this article
Richard Ennis
▪ Rough sketches help describe a fast and cheap substitute for a bass viol. It has no scroll or waist, and a flat top and back.
1985
AL#3 p.48 BRB1 p.489 read this article
Frederick Battershell
▪ The reviewer finds the book to be poorly organized and under-illustrated, making it a poor text for the beginning violinmaker.
1985
AL#3 p.48 BRB1 p.491 read this article
Paul Wyszkowski
▪ The reviewer finds the book to be a complete text on the basics of acoustics that is relatively free of math and technical jargon.
1985
AL#3 p.49 BRB1 p.490 read this article
Edward Kottick
▪ The reviewer finds the journal interesting, yet is nevertheless critical of its informational accuracy.
1985
AL#3 p.50 BRB1 p.490 read this article
Fred Carlson
▪ The reviewer finds the newsletter “thin”, but is enthusiastic about its future.
1985
AL#2 p.45 BRB1 p.135 read this article
Don Musser
▪ Musser describes two Amazon woods with properties similar to Dalbergia nigra.
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.51 BRB1 p.487 read this article
John Bromka Ron Lira
▪ Positive reviews praise the text, photos, and ad reproductions in this book about the Larson brothers, who made instruments from the 1880s to 1944.
1985
AL#2 p.52 BRB1 p.488 read this article
Edward Kottick
▪ The reviewer calls the book a brilliant overview and analysis of all that can be said about the complex issue of temperament on string instruments between 1520 and 1740.
1985
AL#2 p.53 BRB1 p.488 read this article
C.F. Casey
▪ The reviewer calls this the best of the popular (as opposed to scholarly) histories of the guitar.
1985
AL#3 p.2 BRB1 p.79 read this article
Bob Benedetto
▪ Benedetto offers advice on making a living as a luthier.
This article has been nominated as one of the Guild’s best articles published before 2010.
1985
AL#3 p.16 BRB1 p.83 read this article
Michael Dresdner
▪ Dresdner relates a story from his early days which illustrates the fact that only the ill informed believe in trade secrets.
1985
AL#1 p.54 BRB1 p.486 read this article
Peter Estes
▪ The reviewer praises the book in general, and especially the quality of the diagrams.
1985
AL#2 p.3 read this article
Tony Pizzo
▪ Where to get gourds and gourd seeds for building ethnic instruments.
1985
AL#2 p.8 BRB1 p.58 read this article
Ted Davis Steve Grimes Bob Meltz Matt Umanov
▪ This panel discussion from the 1984 GAL Convention features Bob Meltz, Matt Umanov, David Sheppard, Ted Davis, and Steve Grimes. Straight talk on the realities of being a one-man lutherie shop.
1985
AL#2 p.13 BRB1 p.56 read this article
Tim Olsen
▪ An update of the 1980 Lutherie Business panel discussion, featuring George Gruhn, Max Krimmel, Steve Klein, Robert Lundberg, and R.E. Brune.
1985
AL#2 p.41 BRB1 p.46 read this article
Ted Davis
▪ Davis tells of his long, difficult, and ultimately successful quest to obtain logs of red spruce (Picea rubens).
1985
AL#1 p.16 BRB1 p.8 read this article
W.D. Allen
▪ Allen attempts to introduce the nonphysicist to useful concepts of resonance including standing waves, captured air mass, and soundhole size. Illustrated with the author’s own sometimes-whimsical drawings, the article aims at preparing luthiers to understand heavier fare on the physics of musical instruments.
This article has been nominated as one of the Guild’s best articles published before 2010.
1985
AL#1 p.21 BRB1 p.30 read this article
Keith Hill
▪ Hill theorizes that the violinmakers of the classical period tuned tap tones of certain areas of their instruments to desired pitch relationships. He finds these to be consistent within the work the individual makers, and suggests that the natural resonances of the human body may be a model for this idea. Specific techniques and tools are described.
This article has been nominated as one of the Guild’s best articles published before 2010.
1985
AL#1 p.32 BRB1 p.14 read this article
William Cumpiano Bruce Hoadley
▪ In this interview with well-known author and wood expert Bruce Hoadley, Cumpiano seeks to clear up certain questions about Brazilian rosewood relating to identification and confusion with other Dalbergias and so-called rosewoods.
This article has been nominated as one of the Guild’s best articles published before 2010.
1985
AL#1 p.38 read this article
R.E. Brune
▪ Brune criticizes the theoretical design work of Dr. Michael Kasha, concluding that it is in fact less scientific than the empirical work of luthiers untrained in physics.
This article has been nominated as one of the Guild’s best articles published before 2010.
1984
GALQ Vol.12#2 p.10 BRB1p.386 read this article
Edward Kottick
▪ Nearly every person alive in the western world has grown up with music that sounds the same in every key, but there was once a time when music had no keys, and later a time when each key had its own particular sound. We are perfectly comfortable with how our music sounds, but are we richer for it? More importantly, people once had different concepts of music, and perhaps different expectations. They thought differently. And if they thought differently about music perhaps they thought differently about everything. How can we understand their times if we can’t understand the way they thought? Kottick doesn’t delve into this, but you might be tempted to after reading this article.
This article has been nominated as one of the Guild’s best articles published before 2010.
1984
GALQ Vol.12#4 p.10 read this article
Tom Morgan
▪ From his 1984 GAL convention lecture.
1984
GALQ Vol.12#4 p.28 LW p.41 read this article
Ted Davis
▪ Hard North American wood also called bois d’arc.
1984
DS#287 BRB1 p.25 read this article
John Meng
▪ Meng suggests bending violin ribs using a backer of sheet aluminum to prevent shattering the wood, then goes on to suggest that tensions in the wood are often inadvertently built into instruments. Given time, the wood relaxes into its new shape, and the tone of the instrument improves at the same rate.
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#296 LW p.29 read this article
Gregory Jackson
▪ The lowdown on chemically bound water and free water in wood.
1984
GALQ Vol.12#1 p.10 LW p.31 read this article
Nicholas Von Robison Perry Thomas
▪ In 1984 we were already in trouble. What are the odds that things have gotten better?
1984
DS#273 BRB1 p.254 read this article
Frederick C. Lyman Jr.
▪ Lyman created a shipping crate for the bass viol that will take abuse without damaging the bass, which is suspended in the crate without touching any of the walls. With 5 good drawings of crate details. It’s not lutherie, but it might save your instrument.
1984
DS#276 BRB1 p.262 read this article
Graham Caldersmith
▪ The Sacconi technique of sealing fiddles with silicates has not been widely accepted. Nevertheless, the author explains how he has successfully used silicates to seal and harden violin wood before varnishing, as well as the use of vernice bianca (basically whipped egg whites) to act as an interface between the silicate and the varnish.
This article has been nominated as one of the Guild’s best articles published before 2010.
1984
DS#280 LW p.86 read this article
Michael Dresdner
▪ There are several ways to lay out an inlay pattern before routing, but this one might be the most accurate.
1984
DS#283 BRB1 p.20 read this article
Keith Hill
▪ Hill advocates tuning different portions of the plates to segments of the overtone system, using various tonic notes to suit the particular wood before you. No measuring tools are necessary during tuning since the actual thickness of the plate portions is of no consequence. He maintains that this is the tuning system used by the Italian masters.
This article has been nominated as one of the Guild’s best articles published before 2010.
1983
GALQ Vol.11#4 p.20 read this article
Frederick C. Lyman Jr.
▪ Gary Karr’s great achievement: performing a solo classical concert on the double bass.
1983
GALQ Vol.11#4 p.30 LW p.127 read this article
Nicholas Von Robison
▪ Amateurs, by definition, love what they do. Professionals may start out that way and then find out that it’s not so hunky-dory. Amateurs are free to discover, but professionals are locked into the expectations of their clientele. Are we building instruments or are we building a life? Just something to think about.
This article has been nominated as one of the Guild’s best articles published before 2010.
1984
DS#268 LW p.42 read this article
Roger Sperline
▪ This is one of the first descriptions of this fine wood as a tonewood.
1983
DS#262 BRB1 p.37 read this article
Ron Lira
▪ How to deal with lacquer in less than one page. Heavy on Sherwin-Williams products and short on details, it is nevertheless interesting for his use of heated lacquer.
1983
DS#263 read this article
S.L. Mossman
▪ Mossman guitar truss rod adjustment.
1983
DS#236 BRB1 p.210 read this article
Nicholas Von Robison
▪ The dyestuffs are from bugs, flowers, and tree parts. Mordants are chemicals that set the colors and may shift the hue. Dyers’ hip talk is a lot of fun, and the bits of dye history Robison includes add sparkle to a colorful article. Working with these materials could add mountains of snob appeal to a guitar. Rather than describe a three-color ‘burst as yellow/red/brown it might be described as fustic/madder/walnut hull. Be the first on your block to give it a go.
This article has been nominated as one of the Guild’s fifty best articles published before 2010.
1982
GALQ Vol.10#3 p.33 LW p.37 read this article
Jan Callister
▪ Another example of what a small specialty lumber company has to go through.
1982
GALQ Vol.10#3 p.35 read this article
H.E. Huttig
▪ Huttig visits 3 fine craftsmen: Allen Chester, Robert S. Cooper, and George Wilson.
1982
GALQ Vol.10#4 p.8 BRB1p.346 read this article
Graham Caldersmith
▪ Caldersmith loves the scientific aspects of instrument design, and offers this primer to help explain what’s going on in an excited classical or steel string guitar without going off the scientific deep end. The most interesting part is that in his update (17 years later) he has reversed is position on how to use this information. Information doesn’t change as much as how we use it, and we can’t use it if we don’t understand it. That, in a nutshell, is the acoustician’s tenant.
1982
GALQ Vol.10#4 p.17 read this article
H.E. Huttig
▪ It wasn’t easy being a lutherie wood dealer back when there were hardly any luthiers and they were mostly broke hippies.
1982
DS#226 BRB1 p.167 read this article
Louis DeGrazia
▪ Rosin varnishes preceded the varnishes developed by the Cremonese violin masters. Though they are often scorned by experienced luthiers, DeGrazia maintains that the ease with which they can be mixed and applied makes them a good starting point for the budding violin builder.
1982
DS#229 BRB1 p.265 read this article
Lawrence D. Brown
▪ Historically, lute soundboards were left unfinished in order to produce the best sound. However, the raw wood collected dirt at a rate that is unacceptable to contemporary musicians. Brown has found a compromise using lacquer that doesn’t affect the sound production of the instrument.
1982
GALQ Vol.10#1 p.18 LW p.34 read this article
Dennis Coon
▪ Tonewoods are required to be nearly perfect, but first perfect trees must be found, felled, and hauled.
1982
GALQ Vol.10#1 p.26 read this article
H.E. Huttig
▪ Huttig’s introduction to the mystery of beauty of musical instruments.
1982
DS#203 read this article
Daniel P. Coyle
▪ The use of dual-coil or ‘humbucking’ pickups enables a wide range of samples of string sounds, along with a heightened complexity of switching problems.
1981
DS#200 read this article
Paul Wyszkowski
▪
1981
GALQ Vol.9#2 p.20 LW p.56 read this article
Francis Kosheleff
▪ A dozen ways to hinge or detach the guitar neck in order to make it travel-friendly.
1981
GALQ Vol.9#3 p.26 read this article
Rachael Brent Roger McGuinn
▪ Anyone that has ever seen Roger perform knows that unlike many other musicians, he will never disappoint an audience.
1981
GALQ Vol.9#3 p.36 LW p.122 read this article
Raphael Weisman
▪ Build your Self while you build your instruments. Without the one, the other would be a pretty empty achievement.
1981
GALQ Vol.9#4 p.10 BRB1 p.48 read this article
R.E. Brune George Gruhn Steve Klein Max Krimmel Robert Lundberg
▪ The economic atmosphere surrounding lutherie has changed a lot since this 1980 panel discussion, but tapping into the lutherie boom is no easier than it ever was. Max Krimmel followed his genius out of guitarmaking many years ago, but the rest of these gentlemen are still active, and their longevity suggests that they knew what they were talking about so long ago. Panel discussions aren’t often as much fun as this one.
This article has been nominated as one of the Guild’s fifty best articles published before 2010.
1981
GALQ Vol.9#4 p.22 read this article
Gregory Smith
▪ The collective power and influence of a large group of craftsmen or businessmen could wield enough force to effectively combat the oppression of the feudal lords in the Europe of the middle ages.
1981
DS#190 LW p.107 read this article
Larry Robinson
▪ Put a hinge on your guitar neck and change the angle any time you please. Really. The design leaves the fingerboard floating over the body, though. With a pair of illustrations.
1981
DS#172 LW p.100 read this article
Don Musser
▪ Get rid of those scalloped braces and the bulge in the top of the guitar in one operation. Musser’s design is asymmetrical and pretty radical from a “vintage” view point, but a number of luthiers have confessed that it has improved their guitars.
1981
DS#173 read this article
A.F. Standing
▪ The results of the author’s cogitations are presented in the hope that a different and unbiased viewpoint will aid in the understanding of the violin, its operation and adjustment.
1981
DS#174 BRB1 p.162 read this article
Lawrence D. Brown
▪ Brown urges luthiers not to use white glue, to be careful where we use yellow glue, and to explore the possibilities of hide glue. As a maker of instruments that are commonly disassembled during repair, his stilt is natural. His advice is well grounded, though, and you’ll do well to examine his arguments before you build anything.
1980
GALQ Vol.8#1 p.36 read this article
Frederick C. Lyman Jr.
▪ A new instrument which fills the gap between the bass and the cello and which can be used in the melodic register but with the tonal density of the bass, rather than cello.
1980
GALQ Vol.8#2 p.16 read this article
David B. Sheppard Donald Warnock
▪ Instrument maker Donald Warnock was a major figure in the early-music revival of the 1960s and ’70s.
1980
GALQ Vol.8#3 p.8 BRB1 p.300 read this article
Carleen Hutchins
▪ Carleen Hutchins gives an introduction to the work of the Catgut Acoustical Society at the GAL’s 1979 Convention in Boston.
1980
GALQ Vol.8#3 p.36 read this article
Wally Eubanks
▪ The vihuela (Spanish name for a stringed instrument of the renaissance age) is a guitar-like instrument and was used in Italy and Western Europe in the late 1400s to the early 1600s.
1980
GALQ Vol.8#4 p.14 read this article
David Fisher David Tanenbaum
▪ 24 year old virtuoso David Tanenbaum of Oakland, CA is already a veteran of New York solo recitals and concerts and tours with the Jeffrey ballet.
1980
GALQ Vol.8#4 p.18 read this article
R.L. Robinson
▪ From his 1980 convention lecture.
1980
DS#150 BRB1 p.121 read this article
Nicholas Von Robison
▪ Robison insists that as an instrument finish seedlac is superior to shellac in every sense. You never heard of seedlac? Jeez, you better get on the bus! If French polish thrills you but it’s fragility gets up your nose, seedlac could make your day.
This article has been nominated as one of the Guild’s best articles published before 2010.
1980
DS#154 BRB1 p.411 read this article
Ken Cartwright
▪ This solution paints on easily, dries quickly, and is an effective sealer.
1980
DS#135 read this article
James Gilbert
▪ This attachment plate is used on the Dremel moto tool in place of the regular router base plate.
1980
DS#144 LW p.106 read this article
Max Krimmel
▪ To use this article you’ll need a gram scale, a Hz frequency chart, and a calculator. You can figure for yourself what some of the string makers won’t tell you.
This article has been nominated as one of the Guild’s best articles published before 2010.
1979
GALQ Vol.7#2 p.17 LW p.111 read this article
Randy Stockwell
▪ Once again finesse in refretting is used to match the shape of the fingerboard to the arc of the plucked strings. Stockwell’s method calls for experience rather than formulae, however. Compare this to the method on p.108.
1979
GALQ Vol.7#3 p.8 LW p.21 read this article
Michael Gurian
▪ Gurian’s 1979 forecast for the future of lutherie woods was pretty much on the money.
1979
GALQ Vol.7#4 p.20 read this article
David Macias
▪ Macias on authentic flamenco guitar and the art of lutherie.
1979
DS#124 LW p.108 read this article
Phillip Mayes
▪ The arc of a plucked string can be calculated. Therefore, it stands to reason that that arc could be built into the neck relief, giving the lowest possible buzz-free action. Yup, but it’s tough to make such minute adjustments to a flexible stick like a guitar neck. Still, the concept is interesting, and on a graphite neck might be entirely practical. With 4 illustrations and a pair of charts.
1979
DS#125 LW p.86 read this article
Robert Steinegger
▪ The author keeps a comprehensive file of all the cool patterns that cross his bench, and here’s how he does it. It’s not quite as easy and obvious as you might think.
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#129 LW p.86 read this article
Tim Shaw
▪ Sometimes a little finesse in the way we work can be as important as the basic job. In fact, lutherie is all about finesse. If you glue your pearl pieces in place before tracing them Shaw’s bit of finesse may save you some broken shell.
1979
GALQ Vol.7#1 p.29 LW p.39 read this article
Lindsay Hewson
▪ If guitars had been invented in Australia, we’d be struggling to get Sitka to sound like celery top pine.
1979
DS#102 LW p.87 read this article
Nicholas Von Robison
▪ Traditional ways of decorating instruments follow a narrow path. The author uses gold leaf to enhance his inlays. The path grows a little bit wider. Includes 3 illustrations of the steps involved.
1979
DS#104 LW p.87 read this article
Steve Goodale
▪ The author offers a way to attach the pattern to the pearl, and a method of coloring the pearl.
1978
GALQ Vol.6#1 p.34 LW p.125 read this article
Harry Coleman
▪ Coleman built knives around 1968 and 1969 which led naturally to an interest in guitar building.
1978
GALQ Vol.6#1 p.35 read this article
Theron McClure
▪ All the viols made and played today are copied from those made during the final 75 years of the 3 century span of viol playing.
1978
GALQ Vol.6#2 p.14 read this article
Lawrence Lundy
▪ Warranties, delivery deadlines, return of instruments, care and feeding, payments and pricing, customer info, and happy transactions.
1978
GALQ Vol.6#2 p.26 read this article
Phil Boulding
▪ Philip Boulding on his love for the harp.
1978
GALQ Vol.6#2 p.28 LW p.38 read this article
Des Anthony
▪ Tonewood is where you find it, even if you find it in another instrument.
1978
DS#86 LW p.110 read this article
Tim Olsen
▪ No, you don’t press a neck to take the wrinkles out. Sometimes it’s necessary to heat a crooked neck, overbend it with clamps, then hope it cools and relaxes into some semblance of straightness. This sort of caveman lutherie is still called upon from time to time, and you probably won’t find a more detailed description of the operation than this one. With 5 illustrations.
1978
DS#89 BRB1 p.284 read this article
David Rolfe
▪ Violinmakers can (and do) talk at length about varnish formulas. Rolfe leaves that to others, and instead describes at length the process of getting the varnish onto the instrument with a minimum of fuss and a maximum of cleanliness. Included is a discussion of brushes, rags, rubbing down and polishing materials, drying boxes, and where in your shop to varnish.
This article has been nominated as one of the Guild’s best articles published before 2010.
1978
DS#90 BRB1 p.353 read this article
Paul Jacobson
▪ There is a small but vocal movement afoot to return lutherie to a “purer” state by (among other things) reverting to hide glue and French polish. Don’t be too quick to sign on until you’ve read this thought-provoking article. There is no such thing as “pure” lutherie, and you should understand what you’re surrendering before you relinquish modern techniques. Epoxies have advanced since this was written in 1978, but the reasons for using them remain the same.
1978
DS#91 read this article
Tim Olsen
▪ Substituting glass jars for aluminum cans for commercial spray guns, many advantages can be realized, and they’re cheap.
1978
DS#91 read this article
Jimmie Van
▪ Substituting glass jars for aluminum cans for commercial spray guns, many advantages can be realized, and they’re cheap.
1978
DS#97 BRB1 p.352 read this article
Jimmie Van
▪ Discusses the advantages of cleaning instruments with lemon oil and resealing the finish with carnauba wax.
1978
DS#100 read this article
Dan Neil McCrimmon
▪ The basic idea behind this geometry jazz is to have the elements of design organized in such a way as to give a sense of cohesion to the total design.
1978
DS#71 LW p.92 read this article
Rolfe Gerhardt
▪ The author uses a gang saw to produce kerfed lining strips in quick fashion. With a drawing and a photo.
1978
DS#74 LW p.121 read this article
Garth Fleming
▪ How about a locking mortise-and-tenon joint? Works like a dovetail with only half the hassle. With 2 drawings.
1978
DS#79 read this article
Leo Bidne
▪ The determining factors besides the obvious ones for making a guitar the shape that it is and a possible formula that produces an ideal outline.
1978
DS#80 read this article
Reagan Cole
▪ The plug mold is the best method of fabricating a vaulted back when one is building a number of identical instruments.
1977
GALQ Vol.5#3 p.28 read this article
Vicki Runnion
▪ The first of many annual dulcimer conventions held at the Folklife Center of the Smokies in Cosby, Tennessee.
1977
GALQ Vol.5#3 p.29 read this article
Donald Curry
▪ The final step in the making of an instrument is the finish, which includes preparation of the wood, applying material, and final polishing.
1977
GALQ Vol.5#4 p.8 read this article
Dake Traphagen
▪ Traphagen’s European experience.
1977
GALQ Vol.5#4 p.29 read this article
Byron Will
▪ The music of the renaissance and baroque has undergone a rebirth in the 20th century, with musicians and makers attempting to rediscover the high level of art that was reached.
1978
DS#62 read this article
Reagan Cole
▪ These paper-styrene laminates are very strong and make good forms for laminating forms in vacuum presses.
1977
DS#50 LW p.112 read this article
Tim Olsen
▪ Necks fashioned from one hunk of wood are beautiful but wasteful. Laminated designs intended to conserve the most wood are often considered unsightly, so Olsen tackled the problem with a laminated design that offers the prettiest wood, the highest strength, and that makes the installation of a curved truss rod a snap.Pretty cool. With 7 drawings.
1977
DS#54 read this article
Reagan Cole
▪ One man’s opinion about the theoretical whys and wherefores of the transducer for acoustic instruments.
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#56 BRB1 p.288 read this article
Ian Noyce
▪
1976
GALQ Vol.4#2 p.23 read this article
Theron McClure
▪ How the English luthiers created and developed a healthy market for stringed instruments.
1976
GALQ Vol.4#3 p.14 read this article
Donald Curry
▪
1976
GALQ Vol.4#4 p.9 read this article
Donald Curry
▪
1976
GALQ Vol.4#4 p.11 read this article
Bonnie Carol
▪ A report on the “In Search of the Wild Dulcimer, Kindred Gathering II”, held August 13, 14,15 1976.
1976
DS#29 read this article
John Thierman
▪ Inlay is the process by which one substance is inserted into a background, then sanded off flush, creating a pattern within the background substance.
1976
DS#35 read this article
H.E. Huttig
▪ PEG is a chemical that resembles Paraffin, is non-toxic, non-corrosive, colorless and odorless, and when applied to wood, greatly improves the dimensional stability and eliminates splitting and warp problems.
1976
DS#38 read this article
Tony Pizzo
▪ Plans for a small, simple bow with a shape adapted from an illustration in Lynn Elder’s, ‘How to Play the Bowed Psaltery’.
1975
DS#18 read this article
Nick Hayden
▪ A rundown on the Tamuritza family, which came first from Yugoslavia, from the smallest Prim (transposing instrument) to the Brach (alto member) to the Berda (bass member).
1975
DS#19 LW p.5 read this article
H.E. Huttig
▪ Terminology of lumber biz.
This article has been nominated as one of the Guild’s best articles published before 2010.
1975
GALNL Vol.3#5,6 p.17 read this article
Frederick Battershell
▪ The Successful Craftsman: Making Your Craft Your Business by Alex Bealer, is a book that promises a great deal and delivers nothing of lasting value, thus betraying its author’s profession, advertising.
1975
GALNL Vol.3#5,6 p.26 read this article
Theron McClure
▪
1974
GALNL Vol.2#3 p.9 read this article
Robert S. Anderson
▪
1974
GALNL Vol.2#6 p.8 read this article
R.E. Brune
▪ If anyone can be said to be a successful luthier, it’s R.E. Brune. Here’s what he said about the subject in 1974.
1975
DS#6 LW p.16 read this article
David Sturgill
▪ Centuries ago, the selection and cutting of musical instrument wood was a specialized profession, and still is to some extent today.
1975
DS#7 read this article
Nick Hayden
▪ Tips, methods, and procedures for separating glued joints.
1975
DS#7 read this article
Eric Henderson
▪ Bridge positioning.
1975
DS#9 LW p.16 read this article
David Sturgill
▪ The function of the soundboard in any musical instrument is to convert the mechanical energy produced by the strings to sound waves in the atmosphere.
1975
DS#10 read this article
R.W. Burhans
▪ Information and resources for string-sound transducers, low power audio, amplifiers, electronic filters, resonant boxes, and parts and supplies.
1975
DS#11 read this article
Scott Antes
▪ A quick, accurate method of locating any fret on any string length using figures in this table.
1973
GALNL Vol.1#1 p.1 read this article
J.R. Beall
▪ A growing number of intelligent people are looking for work that is individual, creative, challenging, and fulfilling in the stringed instrument world.
1973
GALNL Vol.1#2 p.1 read this article
J.R. Beall
▪ Beall gives here the sum of what information he has found on the subject.
1973
GALNL Vol.1#1 p.4 read this article
J.R. Beall
▪ The Modern Harpsichord by Wolfgang Joachim Zuckermann is a large, well illustrated, intelligently written and edited volume that lists and comments of most of the known makers of today.
1974
DS#2 LW p.16 read this article
David Sturgill
▪ Why certain varieties are most often chosen. Harvesting and processing info.
1974
DS#3 read this article
R.E. Brune
▪ As a hobby, Brune has collected many obscure and archaic recipies for varnishes and other potions, which he discusses here.
1974
DS#4 LW p.104 read this article
Bob Petrulis
▪ The author gives you the math to lay out the frets for any scale length and demonstrates how to use a computer spread sheet to do the same operation a lot faster. With a drawing and two charts.
This article has been nominated as one of the Guild’s best articles published before 2010.
1974
GALNL Vol.2#1 p.11 LW p.16 read this article
David Sturgill
▪
1974
GALNL Vol.2#2 p.12 LW p.16 read this article
David Sturgill
▪ Sturgill expounds on his knowledge of wood and the influence of luthier Herman Weaver on his thinking.
1974
GALNL Vol.2#2 p.14 read this article
Leo Bidne
▪