Dogwood Guitars

  • Home
  • About
  • Guitars
    • Dogwood Models
    • Guitar Galleries
    • Ordering your Dogwood Guitar
    • FAQ’s
  • Services
  • Lutherie Classes
  • Pictorials
    • Repairs
    • How to Correctly String a Guitar
    • Building A Monarch
    • Making a Spalted Maple Rosette
    • Pearl and Abalone Inlay
  • Articles
    • Technical
    • Viewpoint
  • Testimonials
  • YouTube
  • Contact

The Importance of a Good Setup, Part One

I’ve played guitar since I was in high school, which was longer ago than I care to dwell on! I am also the sort of person who lives by the axiom, “If it ain’t broke don’t fix it!” Because of this, I did not understand the benefits of having my guitars setup and serviced by […]

The Importance of a Good Setup, Part Two

In the first part of this article, I discussed the elements of a basic setup. These include checking the neck relief and the action at the first and twelfth frets, as well as installing new strings and performing a few other basic adjustments. In part two, I will explain some relatively inexpensive improvements that you […]

The Importance of a Good Setup, Part Three

In the first two parts of this article, we have looked at basic setup services, which include setting the neck relief and string action, as well as new string installation and other basic adjustments. We have also discussed some improvements and repairs that can greatly increase the tone and playability of your guitar, such as […]

1968 Fender Jazz Bass Neck Work

A customer brought me a very cool 1968 Fender Jazz Bass neck. The neck is fretless and- as the Beatles would say, "very strange"- it had no nut slot. There was also a piece of binding missing at the heel. The customer was interested in having the … [Read More...]

Voicing and Tap Tuning of Acoustic Guitars

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 … [Read More...]

About Greg Maxwell

I've lived in central Ohio my entire life, and I've built things for as long as I can remember. I cut my teeth as a woodworker doing fancy interior wood trim for a custom home builder in the early 80's after deciding that performing music for a … [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...]

Why Buy a Handmade Guitar?

There are a lot of choices out there for the prospective buyer of a fine guitar. It's no secret; a handmade instrument can cost a lot. For that matter, any of the better guitars purchased from a quality manufacturer is going to command what most … [Read More...]

Guitar Building, Voicing, and Repair Classes

Greg loves teaching guitar building and repair as much as he loves building guitars himself. Although not currently taking on an apprentice, Greg is offering individual classes in three areas: Acoustic and Electric Guitar Setup and Repair, Guitar … [Read More...]

Visit us on YouTube…

Follow Dogwood Guitars

  • Email
  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • YouTube

Technical Articles

The Science and Theory of Tonewoods

Search out any discussion about tone and tonewoods on the internet and you will quickly find a wide variation of opinions among players and builders alike. However, the majority will almost always list "tonewoods" and/or specific species of Spruce … [Read More...]

More Technical Articles

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

Copyright © 2025 Dogwood Guitars