The Build Process

Building stringed instruments (with necks and fingerboards) is generally a well-defined process, but each luthier approaches the individual steps in their own way. Even the simple matter of joining bookmatched pieces together for a back or top can be done several ways, each with advantages and disadvantages. As the credo for the PERL computer language states; “There is more than one way to do it”. Some of the approaches are suitable for small shops or amateurs, while others, requiring a certain investment, bring advantages such as speed and repeatability to larger-scale operations. What I attempt to do here is list the various steps, and show the differing approaches that may be taken, identifying which I have tested personally and noting my experience as to the efficacy for the amateur luthier. Where possible, I will link in Youtube videos and references to websites and books.

We start by breaking down the various components into assemblies/processes and subassemblies, and finally to individual components. Eventually I’ll create sub-pages for each component, so that this page doesn’t get top-heavy – some of the topics can be quite involved, and have a large amount of flexibility in implementation approaches. The listings below are more-or-less in order of the process that would normally be followed in building an instrument.

Note that building an instrument doesn’t always proceed in the same manner – necks can be done first, while or after the body is being built. Inlay can be added at various points during neck builds. Nevertheless, most assemblies are usually done with a more-or-less consistent process. You can’t do finishing until a body is made, tops and backs can’t be attached to sides until the sides are bent, etc. In some cases some steps are mutable (top before back, vs. back before top). This example is actually important, because it affects, for instance, how a neck is attached (especially for a bolt-on neck).

Subjects/Assemblies/Processes

  • Bodies
    • Sides
    • Tops
    • Backs
  • Necks
    • Necks
    • Headstock
    • Fingerboards
  • Assembly
    • Neck Joints
  • Finishing
    • Filling
    • Finish
    • Final Prep

Bodies

Sides

Linings

Linings can be either simply bent or can be kerfed.

Charles Fox Kerfing

Here’s the Charles Fox Kerfing – given the size, it probably is more suited for guitars. Note also that the kerf is slightly larger than that produced by a bandsaw. They make them en masse, using a converted radial arm saw fitted with an arbor and a stack of five blades. One pull across the tray, and you get five cuts in a couple dozen strips. The strips are milled ahead of time with a roundover on one edge, and rabbeted to receive a thin filler strip. When the kerfed strip is bent to shape, the thin filler fits precisely into place. It may seem as though this is a lot of effort to waste making the kerfed lining look pretty, but that’s not what’s important here. Glued in place, the filler strip acts as a cap preventing the kerfed strip from bending. That means the rim becomes incredibly rigid as soon as the lining is applied.)

Tops

Backs

Finishing

Filling

Finish

Final Prep

Necks

Fingerboards

Necks

Headstock

Assembly

Neck Joints