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You are here: Home / Building A Monarch / Building a Monarch: Binding

Building a Monarch: Binding

The quality of the binding and purfling work is one of the factors that makes a guitar a true work of art. Some builders install bindings and purflings in one step, and this can lead to less-than-perfect results. Dogwood guitars are bound using a multi-step process that ensures a tight, no-gap installation of the purflings and bindings, especially in the waist and shoulder areas where the curvature of the body can make installation challenging. The selection of purflings and bindings are a big part of the artistic design process and many colors and combinations can be used. Abalone shell has been used to dress the finest guitars for decades and is one of most visually stunning ways to add flair to a guitar. The images below show the process of installing purflings and solid wood bindings on a Monarch body.

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Customer Testimonials: Monarch 12 String

"Greg Maxwell's 12-string Monarch guitar is the product of an artist. I played the guitar among a small of group of rock-climbing paramedics during my interim stay in Richmond, Kentucky, before returning to Kailua, Hawaii, and the comments about the … [Read More...]

Exceptional Tonewoods

Fine wood is the heart of every Dogwood guitar. Greg has been collecting rare and highly figured wood for over three decades, and he is always on the lookout for the best sets of both top and back/side wood for his custom guitars. Exotic wood of the … [Read More...]

Exploring Common Guitar Myths

I am going to divide this article into two sections: Myths and misunderstandings about playability and care; and myths about tone. We will take these two topics in order. Playability and Care So, your guitar is a little hard to play, the … [Read More...]

Customer Testimonial: Gibson Setup

"I thought my new Gibson acoustic played pretty well until I had Greg set it up for me. Wow! I could tell a real difference in the action. Based on that experience I had him do a fret dress on an older Ibanez and again, I was surprised at how much … [Read More...]

The Eminence

The Eminence is a Grand Auditorium sized guitar that I designed to provide a slight boost to the treble response, along with the clear and balanced tone that all Dogwood models are known for. A slightly smaller body depth and a more narrow waist … [Read More...]

Lutherie Classes: Acoustic Guitar Building Class

Guitar Building Class Please Note: Due to my heavy repair and restoration schedule, I am no longer able to offer the build class. This is an archive page. Have you ever wanted to build your own high quality acoustic guitar, but were intimidated … [Read More...]

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Technical Articles

Why do old guitars sound better?

Why do some old guitars sound so good? Even inexpensive guitars can age into really good sounding instruments, and some old guitars attain legendary tone. Why is this? The answer can be found in one of three factors and the best … [Read More...]

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Viewpoint Articles

Exploring Common Guitar Myths

I am going to divide this article into two sections: Myths and misunderstandings about playability and care; and myths about tone. We will take these two topics in order. Playability and Care So, your guitar is a little hard to play, the … [Read More...]

More Viewpoint Articles

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