(circa 1999)
I am fortunate enough to be able to spend a large portion of my time doing something that I truly love. From the time I built my first guitar while in high school, I knew that this was what I wanted to do with my life, though I wasn't sure it was possible. Of course, at the time I had a rather naive view of how to go about it. Something like "just build great guitars and people will beat a path to your door to get them."
(circa 1981)
I never would have imagined the breadth of skills I've had to learn (and am still learning) along the way. Photography, bookkeeping, tool design and construction, metalworking, advertising, customer relations, computer skills, tonewood harvesting and processing, carbon graphite composites and electronics are all skills I've acquired over the years. Of course, learning such things has improved my instruments, but if I'd had a clue when I first ventured into guitarmaking, I might have opted for something a bit "easier."
One element of my work that I continually strive to improve upon is relationships with customers. For me, the process of building an instrument starts with talking to the customer, making sure I have a clear idea of what is desired. Also, the customer should have a clear idea of choices and options. If I've communicated well up to this point, the actual building process is fairly straightforward. When it comes time to build that particular instrument, the key is bringing to bear a keen intuitive sense based on over 30 years of guitarmaking experience. I consider the process of building an instrument incomplete until the finished instrument is in the player's hand.
An important first step in working with you is developing a relationship based on fairness and honesty. I maintain fair and consistent pricing across all of the instruments I build - and I'm very particular about quoting an accurate and realistic delivery schedule. Based on the lead time some of my instruments require, I'm proud of the fact that I can consistently hit my quoted delivery date, usually within just a few days.
Model 14 neck dovetail
WOOD CHOICE CONSIDERATIONS
The selection of the soundboard is by far the most important choice to be made when building a guitar. Of the various species of spruce I use for tops, I generally prefer Engelmann because of its tendency to produce a warm sound with lots of overtones. Most players today favor this response from an archtop, which I tend to think of as a “modern” sound. Adirondack spruce offers a very “big” sound, slightly brighter that Engelmann. European spruce can be prettier, very lush, very well balanced. When an order is placed, I try and work with the customer in determining the best wood choice.
The Pacific Northwest has long been recognized as the source of the finest tonewoods in North America. For a number of years I have taken advantage of my location to search out high quality wood. These include Engelmann spruce from Idaho, Colorado and Canada, and Western maple from Washington and Oregon. I personally select rough billets of maple and spruce directly from the woodcutter who harvested the tree. Or, on several occasions I have obtained whole logs and split them into billets myself. These pieces are then sawn into guitar tops, backs, sides and necks, and stored in my shop to air dry for several years. I maintain an inventory of several hundred sets of wood for guitar and mandolin.
By the time I actually select a piece of wood for an instrument, I know its history (where it grew, when it was cut, etc.) Obtaining my wood in this manner insures that it is properly cut, properly seasoned, and gives me more control in the resulting instrument.
FINDING THE TONE
It is useful to recognize that the archtop is, by design, an inherently bright, punchy instrument. This was an important attribute earlier in the history of the archtop, when its musical role was primarily as a rhythm instrument in jazz bands. Over the years, as players put the instrument to new uses, other tonal possibilities have opened up. For example, I like to build guitars with more warmth and character than is found on guitars built in the 1930’s 40’s and 50’s. I find that most of today’s players prefer this sound, as well. To achieve a warmer, bigger tone, a number of factors must be considered. These include the woods used, the thickness of the top, how “tall” or flat the top is, the soundhole(s), and a number of design elements such as the height of the bridge, neck angle, and tailpiece design.