Voicing and tuning are important elements of great tone. A great guitar has great tone, great playability, and great appearance, in that order. Fancy wood, a high gloss finish, and lots of Abalone inlay are visually beautiful but have nothing to do with making a great sounding guitar. What is voicing and tuning? In a nutshell, voicing is the […]
Bolt-On Necks: High Tongue Frets
I am including this article as a special page in the Services Menu because of the frequency with which the issue of high tongue frets arises. The tongue is the part of the fretboard that extends into the body of the guitar. On acoustic guitars, the tongue extends past the heel of the neck and […]
How to Correctly String a Guitar
When I went to lutherie school I discovered that, like many guitarists, I was stringing my guitars incorrectly. And judging from the inspections that I give to all the guitars that come into my shop, this is a very common problem. I can hear some players saying, “You’ve got to be kidding! I’ve been stringing […]
The Three Elements of a Great Guitar
Guitar players and collectors have so many choices available to them. New, used, factory brands, hand built…how do you narrow down the choices to the best option for you? In my opinion, any guitar should be measured by three characteristics: Tone, playability, and appearance. I list these in order of priority. While all three should […]
My Building Philosophy
As a craftsman who has worked in wood for the better part of 40 years, I’ve developed a way of approaching fine woodworking that suits my style, pace, and dedication to excellence. I work by myself, alone with my tools and carefully selected woods. I enjoy the break when customers stop in the shop to […]