The art and science of an acoustic guitar construction is much simpler than the construction of a vehicle or a cellphone. It seems complicated at first, because of the beautiful music that comes out from even the less expensive guitars. In fact, it does not require an engineer or an accomplished artist to create one. Ordinary individuals are now able to make guitars, especially those that have access to computer software that can help them create the correct design.
One of the best examples of this type of tool is the world-renowned AutoCAD, a type of computer-aided design software (Sevy 1). Non-experts are now able to make their own guitar without the need to spend a great deal of money buying a brand new stringed instrument in a music store, however, the best sounding guitars are still made by experienced craftsmen.
Solid wood compared with Laminated wood
The instrument’s top is the most important part of the guitar. It is at the front part of the guitar, and it is the most critical part of the instrument, because the back part and the sides of the guitar reflects the sound back to the top (Wolfe 1). Therefore, there are two types of guitar in terms of the wood materials used to build them. The first group is made up of those that are made from solid wood. The second group is made up of laminated wood.
It is easy to understand that guitars made from solid wood are more expensive. However, there is a good reason why musicians pay good money to buy guitars made from solid wood. This type of stringed instrument produces high quality sound. Nevertheless, this type of guitar is expensive and only a few people can afford to buy this type of guitar.
The less expensive guitar is the one that is made from laminated wood. In this type of guitar construction, the craftsman uses several layers of inexpensive wood “pressed together and covered with a veneer (Wolfe 1). This type of inexpensive construction technique produces guitars that are priced cheap. Nonetheless, there is a way to buy quality guitars without spending a great deal of money. The solution is to buy a guitar with a solid top, but the back part and the sides are made of laminated wood (Wolfe 1).
Tools and Materials
One of the most important equipment is the machine to cut wood (Instructables 1). Some examples are automated machines like laser cutters and machines that can cut plywood or solid wood in the most precise way. Craftsmen also use coarse file or fine files to shape the neck of the guitar. They also use a sandpaper to provide a smooth finish to the neck and other areas. They also use drill press for drilling out the holes in the guitar, such as in the bridge and the tuning pegs (Instructables 1).
Important Steps in Guitar Construction
The following steps describes the critical processes in the construction of the guitar and these are listed as:
- Bookmatching;
- Strutting;
- Construction of the sides;
- the construction of the neck and fingerboard;
- the construction of the bridge and saddle
- Fitting the tuning machine to the guitar head (Acton 1).
Bookmatching ensures that the top of the guitar has a symmetrical grain pattern (Acton 1). Thus, two sheets are made from a single piece of wood and these sheets were matched together to ensure continuity in the grains before these two are glued together (Acton 1). After the top was made ready, the craftsman cuts the sound-hole. Strutting is a process that guitar makers use to brace the top of the instrument when the strings are being pulled. At the same time, it helps control the vibration of the guitar’s top part. The next important step is the construction of the sides. The wood is softened in water, and the desired shape is made possible through the use of molds.
The Construction of the Guitar’s Neck
There are three different types of neck construction, and the least expensive is the bolt-on technique. In this technique, the instrument’s neck is bolted into the back of the instrument. The second common technique is the set-in or glued-in style. In this type of construction, the neck looks like it has a seamless connection with the body, but in reality, the neck joins the body, because these two parts were glued together. The most expensive technique is the neck-through-the-body style of construction (Wolfe 1). In this type of construction, the neck is “one long unit and it continues all the way through to the tail of the guitar” (Wolfe 1). Thus, it is not common to find guitars made using more expensive construction methods.
After completing the neck construction part of the building process, the fingerboard is glued and set in place (Acton 1). After making precise measurements the craftsman cuts into the fingerboard to make fret slots (Koch 1). At the end of this step, steel-wired frets are inserted into the said fret slots.
A component called a bridge is attached at the bottom part of the instrument. This component sits below the sound-hole. The second to the last step calls for the installation of the tuning machine to the guitar head (Summerford 1). The final step calls for the stringing of the guitar.
Works Cited
Acton, Jim. Guitar. 2016. Web.
Instructables. (2016). Build an Acoustic Guitar. Web.
Koch, Martin. Building an Acoustic Guitar. 2016. Web.
Sevy, Jon. Building an Acoustic Steel String Guitar. 2015. Web.
Summerford, Steve. Building an Acoustic Guitar in Your Kitchen. 2016. Web.
Wolfe, Joe. Acoustically Important Construction Features. 2016. Web.