Thread: Stewmac Kit

Hi Greg,

If youre working in a workshop then storing the wood for a while in same is never a bad idea...my wood sits in my workshop for at least 6 months before I use it. For short term storage just stack the stack the back and sides with Masonite stickers in between (I use at least 3 stickers per layer making sure sticker width is at least same as top/back piece width). If the back is rosewood then definitely have stickers between it and the spruce top to avoid discolouring the latter. Also make sure the stickers are lined up vertically. On top of the stack place a sheet of MDF and then put a few bricks or some other heavy items on same making sure weight is roughly evenly distributed over the MDF sheet. If I run out of bricks I use some of my planes as weights.

The sides will probably be of different dimensions to the top and back so make up a seperate pile for these following same procedure as above. Pic below shows a pile of Englemann Spruce I received last week but havent had time to stack properly on the shelves. Because its all spruce I havent stickered the top few pieces. The MDF sheet on top is actually one of my sanding boards.

The above procedure is basically the one I follow when I get a new shipment of wood in and I havent got time to properly store it.

Hi Martin,

The sides in the kit I am going to get are pre bent.I am a bit concerned that they might twist or relax .

Do you store any bent sides and if so how.

Regards

Greg

Okay Im with you Greg.

Probably the easiest thing you can do is tie up the sides with string so they fit roughly to a pattern of the top/bottom of the instrument. I assume you dont have a bending iron. If you do then you could just leave the sides stored upright on a flat surface and then give them a quick run over the bending iron if theyre badly out of shape when you come to fit them.

When I need to store bent sides for a period of time I store them clamped to an MDF form but for your intents and purposes thats probably going a bit overboard.

Cheers Martin

Thanks Martin,

I am going to make a bending iron,or maybe even a Fox style bender, but in saying that,I have never tried to bend timber before so I would be a bit wary about trying adjust them at this stage.

(As you can probably tell I am a complete amature with all this )

I was going to make up a form /mold out of some Polystyrene or MDF and sandwich them between them .

Hopefully I will get time to start in the next 4-6 weeks !!

I appreciate your help.

Regards

Greg

There are alot of philosophies on bending guitar sides. The Fox style bending machines are the easy way to go but if youre old fashioned like me and enjoy a challenge then slaving over a hot bending iron is the way to go. I use an electric iron bought from Stewmac. Different luthiers have different ways ofworking the wood on the bending iron...my technique is basically as in Campiano's book but over time Ive developed a few of my own refinements. One thing Ive found is that you soon learn to tune in to the sound and the feel of the wood as you work it on the iron. You also learn very quickly to avoid getting burnt!!

All that aside...a Stewmac kit is the best way to get started IMO.