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 Dear Luthiers,
Into the summer...
I hope your summer is off to a good start and that you have a few building projects on your workbench.
Additional information...
One of the disadvantages of printed books is that the information is static; its structure doesn't lend itself to regular updates between editions or re-runs. By contrast, one of the great advantages of the worldwide web is that it is a dynamic environment that enables updates and changes at any point in time. To extend the longevity of my books, I have prepared a "virtual editorial page" on our web site for each of my published books. These virtual editorial pages have editorial corrections, updates, and additional information that did not get included in my printed books. To find this information, click here, go to the book of your choice, and then click on the link to the "virtual editorial page."
Luthierie classes...
Thanks to those of you who have already submitted your registration forms for Siminoff's Luthierie Camp. This program is an intense 5-day event that will be held in our shop during the week of October 4-9, 2009. Attendees will be taken through all of the phases of mandolin construction and will leave the class with an assembled F5 mandolin (less binding, fretting, inlay, and finish). To ensure a high level of one-on-one focus time, the camp is limited to six attendees. If you did not see our previous announcements about this class and are interested in attending, please send an email to Kali Nowakowski (kali@siminoff.net) with your mailing address, and she will send you an info packet, or give me a call if you want to talk about any aspects of the camp program (805.365.7111).
Roger
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Picking the best glue...
There are many glues on the market, and one question that keeps coming up is "which is the best glue to use for joining wood parts?" Luthiers will then go on to include comments about one or two of six popular products: Franklin Titebond, Franklin Titebond II, Franklin Titebond III, Franklin Hide Glue, Gorilla Glue, and hot hide glue.
From my experience, Franklin's Titebond® is the most practical wood glue. It has excellent shelf life, short clamping time, and minimal shrinkage after it sets. More properly known at Titebond Original Wood Glue (the red label), Titebond is an aliphatic resin emulsion that sets hard, provides excellent holding power, and can be softened with water, heat, or both. Titebond cures to a brittle form, second only to hot hide glue in this list of wood-bonding adhesives.
While the brand names Titebond II and Titebond III seem to suggest that these higher numbered glues are better than regular Titebond, they are different types of adhesives, and both are intended for exterior purposes such as gluing outdoor furniture, fences, and similar structures. These woods do not set as hard as regular Titebond, and unlike regular Titebond, they are both waterproof and cannot be easily taken apart - an important attribute for an adhesive used in outdoor situations.
Franklin Hide Glue® is a natural protein emulsion that has a long setting time enabling joints to be realigned or adjusted. It also is susceptible to water, which means that joints can be wetted and taken apart. While it is conveniently available in a plastic bottle in a ready-to-use liquid form, it is slightly less strong than Titebond, crazes when it cures (making the bond susceptible to cracking), and is not to be confused with hot hide glue.
Gorilla Glue® is a polyvinyl acetate compound that provides a very strong bond. However, the glue expands as it cures and requires additional clean up before the glued surface can be processed. The glue also leaves a yellowish residue in the joints. Joints glued with Gorilla Glue cannot be taken apart.
All of these preceding adhesives are available in a ready-to-use liquid form. By contrast, hot hide glue is an adhesive that is made from dried ground horse hooves, skin, bones, and tendons, and comes in granular form. When mixed with water and heated to 180° the granules dissolve and form into a tacky paste that is an excellent adhesive for wood parts - especially those used in musical instruments. And, hide glue cures to the most brittle state of adhesives mentioned above. Hide glue can be softened with water and heat, and joints are rather easily taken apart. However, preparing hot hide glue takes time, it must be worked quickly (the clamp time is a matter of seconds before the glue begins to congeal), and learning how to work with this material efficiently and properly takes practice.
The above adhesives are all too soft to be tested on a Rockwell Hardness test device to derive empirical hardness numbers, but a simple evaluation with hand tools reveals that hot hide glue is the hardest, with Titebond Original Wood Glue being the second hardest.
Simply stated, while I prefer the hardness properties of hot hide glue and recommend it for folks who want to learn to use the ideal adhesive for building single instruments, Titebond Original Wood Glue is a better production adhesive from a standpoint of preparation and application. For luthierie purposes, I only use Titebone Original Wood Glue or hot hide glue for wood-to-wood bonding.
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Product Highlights
 · White-black-white (side) binding Our real grained celluloid ("ivroid") binding is available with a thin black line on the side as used for edge binding on some of the original loar-signed F5 mandolins and on many of Gibson's Mastertone banjos. The binding is available in four sizes: 3/16" high by .040˝ thick by 26˝ long (#409, $9.75), 3/16" high by .040˝ thick by 54˝ long (#409-A, $16.50), 1/4˝ high by .060˝ thick by 54" long (#409-B, $19.10), and 3/16˝ high by .060˝ by 26" long (#409-C, $10.20). For more information on our real celluloid bindings, please visit our website here.  · Body templatesWe are proud of our excellent line of body and peghead templates. These templates are laser cut from luminescent 1/8˝ plastic and match the original instruments with great accuracy. All templates provide centerlines, peghole locations (peghead templates), and f-holes (body templates). For details of our many templates - and those soon to be added - please continue to monitor here.  · Ebony fretboard extendersAlthough most builders use fretboard extenders made of maple, the extenders on original Loar-signed F5 mandolins were made of ebony. The ebony extender provides greater mass and stiffness at the end of the fretboard and inhibits energy from being wicked off (damped) from the free end of the fretboard. Part number is #338 and the unit price is $44.00 plus P&H. NOTE: Please consult the Shipping & Returns page on our website for a P&H table. |
Luthier's Tip: Selecting wood for braces and tone bars
The strength of a brace or tone bars is highly dependent on the direction of the grain through the wood. There are three possibilities: vertical grain, grain on the quarter*, or flat grain.
Vertical grain (grain going up and down) is strongest, but is also much too stiff for braces and tone bars. However, one good feature of vertical grain is that braces and bars can be very easily and consistently shaped without slicing or cracking through the grain.
Flat grain (grain going side to side) is the stiffest, but it is also very brittle and prone to checking or cracking through the grain (something you don't want to happen to a brace or tone bar inside the instrument). (Note that it is stiffer than vertical grain, but not as strong from a reliability standpoint.) Also, shaping braces with flat grain can be problematic in that the wood often does not cut with similar ease in both directions.
Grain on the quarter is ideal and is the best compromise between flat and vertical. As shown in this photo of the intersection of X-braces in a Martin guitar, the grain on these braces is on the quarter.
*Note that wood cut "on the quarter" is different from "quarter sawn." Cut on the quarter is a grain direction. Quarter sawn is a log cutting method.
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Product of the Month Peterson Strobosoft® Suite Strobosoft® is a software application that turns your computer (PC or Mac) into a strobetuner. Peterson's StroboSoft Suite is a shrink-wrapped set of valuable tools  for luthiers. Included is a CD with the StroboSoft application, and a DVD that demonstrates various ways to use strobetuners for setting up intonation and making other adjustments to string musical instruments. The package includes a 1/4˝ phono to 1/8˝ phono adapter cable for connecting a microphone to your computer. The purchase also includes a FREE upgrade to StroboSoft V2 that has a special built-in function for tap tuning (once you install the version in the package, you can go on-line to Peterson's site and download the free upgrade of V2). For the month of June 2009 only, we're offering a special Strobosoft Suite discount of $10.00 (limit one application per customer). Part #815 is $129.95 ($119.95 with this offer). To take advantage of this special offer, use promotion code tenstrobo when ordering online.
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