Acoustic Instruments
In addition to electric guitars I've been making some acoustic guitars and other instruments. Here is a list.
El Gato Guitar
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El Gato was my first acoustic guitar. Since I wasn't confident at making guitar necks at the time, it has a bolt-on neck (made by all-parts). I also didn't understand the need to keep the bridge light and instead used a metal bridge from an electric guitar. This makes the guitar quieter than it needs to be. The sides are also thicker (about an inch) as I wasn't sure how thin I could make them. So the guitar is also quite heavy.
My daughter owns this guitar. Maybe I'll replace the bridge some day. |
El Oso Classico
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This was my second acoustic guitar and was much more successful. This is a classical nylon string guitar with a full 25 inch scale but a shorter body and still has a nice sound. It also has double-cutaways to access the higher frets.
All mahogany with a cedar soundboard. The neck has a titanium rod for support and it also seems to help it resonate the sound into the sound box. I called it "El Oso" (the bear) because it kind of looks like a bear face when you look at it. This is my favorite acoustic guitar and I will probably never part with it. |
Apollo Lyre
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This is a 19 string lyre. It has a small sound box which helps to amplify the sound. Made of mahogany with a spruce soundboard.
I still own it.. haven't decided to sell it yet but I'm thinking about it. |
La Piña Tenor Ukulele
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This is a tenor ukulele with a pineapple carved back made from a piece of mahogany with a spruce soundboard. I played it for a summer then decided to sell it. Hopefully the new owner is enjoying it.
I used a Merlin 2 mini-angle grinder to do the carving. (If you get one of these, throw away the mini-chain saw. It is too dangerous to use.) |
La Rosa Guitar
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This is a smaller, parlor sized guitar with a string-through bridge that reduces the tension on the soundboard. I had fun with epoxy on this guitar and used it to make a rose vine running down the fretboard and around the sound hole.
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La Rosa Grande Guitar
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This is a full-sized version of La Rosa acoustic guitar, meant to provide a deeper volume to the bass strings.
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Infinito Tenor Guitar
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This is a four nylon string acoustic guitar with a 21 inch scale length. It is slightly longer than a baritone ukulele and is tuned the same as the high four strings of a standard guitar. I've built two of these, one with a cedar soundboard and the other with a spruce soundboard.
This is called "Infinito" because if you look at it you will see the infinity curve in a few locations. |
Infinito Classico
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This is a (near) full size six string version of the Infinito design. Even though this is a nylon string guitar, the tuners on the headstock are steel-string versions. The neck is also narrower, like a steel string guitar.
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El Oso 12 String
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This is a 12 string version of the El Oso design. It also has a 26.5 inch scale length and a "C" tuning. The soundboard is cedar which is soft so it bent slightly under the pressure of the strings, but otherwise seems to be handling the stress. It has a really nice sound.
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Prima Balalaika (in design)
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This is my interpretation of the Russian folk classic. The body is made of alternating walnut and maple, with a walnut neck, spruce soundboard and rosewood fretboard. The wood for the body is carved rather than bent.
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