Wednesday, October 9, 2013

Kipp Krusa - USA

Hello, great to back, here is a new video of a luthier Kipp Krusa, the video shows the birth of a guitar from beginning to end as if it all happens in one day, well done, very nice space for the workshop, well organized tools, wall racks and wall tool panels, I like this workshop,

http://www.krusaguitars.com/



Kipp's site has a great fetcher, it lists and explains the various materials and woods that can be used to build your guitar, with some stunning pictures of the woods, this is really helpful for those are not sure of what they want in their guitar.

from Kruse's web site Musings section:


Guitar building is meticulous work and a clean workbench is essential. Every step of the process  however,  creates its own mess -  either shavings, chips or dust.  As a result of this my shop goes back and forth between meticulous and chaotic several times a day.  
work for a period of time, and I examine the shavings as they are cast off of the tools. Then I brush them off the workbench, sweep them up from the floor and move on to the next step in the process.  Although they are a nuisance,  it is  important to study these little artifacts and to maintain awareness of the lessons that can be learned from having done so. 
A wood shaving will tell me about the state of the tool that produced it,  but also about the manner in which I have used the tool.
Assuming that the material being planed is flat to begin with, a well sharpened and true hand plane will produce a shaving that is the length of the stroke that produced it.  Such a shaving should be an even thickness throughout its length. I occasionally measure a shaving's  thickness with a digital caliper. My goal in doing this is to check for constancy. These shavings are often only .001 of an inch.  It is more common for me to slide a shaving through my fingers and view its transparency in front of a light. If I 'm not satisfied with what I have either measured or seen I immediately blame the tool, usually with language that spirals downward.
   After addressing  the tool's edge, I am often forced to turn my attention to another component in the equation - myself. Although this is harder, it can be more rewarding than the experience of sharpening a beloved tool. True craftsmanship demands self awareness and self discipline from moment to moment. The building of a fine instrument requires a sustained attention to all of the tangible variables inherent in the process. Realizing that I am one of those variables has been one of my most resonant lessons. In the shop I have to let go of whatever may hinder my ability to do my best work. Each pass of the tool is a little personal test, one that requires me to accept and to resolve even the smallest of issues as they arise. It is a little like therapy when "What did that shaving look like?" translates into "How are you doing, right now? Are you focused on what you are doing?"
Townes Van Zandt said,  "I don't think you can ever do your best.  Doing your best is a process of trying to do your best."  Thank you Townes, if for nothing else, for trying!
     The shavings that affect me the most are produced by a chisel as I taper the ends of braces. These shavings exhibit an evenly spaced series of fractures that create a lovely spiraling curl.  I pay attention to each of these as they are produced. They let me know whether or not the angle of my chisel is consistent with it's previous pass. They also remind me that life's most beautiful gifts often come in the form of small things. These spiraling shavings illustrate to me that my work is, in some mystical way, guided by the structural and physical laws of the universe. The spiral is one of the natural fundamental determinants of the form and structure of living organisms. Botanically, spirals are often defined as whorls. I just love this word, "whorls" - almost worlds; and such a beautiful sounding word for the shavings that are created on my workbench. Whorls... 

Monday, May 13, 2013

Dominic Howman - AU

I r\bumped into a video class about "Guitar fisics" by luthier Dominic Howman, and he intrigured me to look into his web site gallery to see if there were any pictures of his workshop, and here is what I found.
I think this pictures illustrates the essential guitar bench setup, for a professional guitar builder, you can see tools are all hanged, only one bench plane and one block plane, the table is not a woodworkers bench but a conventional table with metal frame, and a vice on the front left corner.

here is the video he did about guitar Fisics:


Sunday, April 21, 2013

Fabio Zontin - ITALY

Here is another Italian Luthier, the video illustrates his calmfull life, and this is very nice, the images are not focused on the workshop, but on the production iter, there are some parts that I wouldn't have accepted to this video, but its his choice.
enjoy


a misura d'uomo from Luigi Coppola - visuals on Vimeo.

Tuesday, April 2, 2013

Matthias Griewisch - Germany

Matthias is not a Luthier, but a cambalo builder, the connection is somewhat scarce, even so the images are fascinating, take a look at the pictures below and prepare yourself for an incredible journy, this workshop is amazing, espcially for the hand tools involved, the fine planes and chisels are all aligned in rows of pure german tydiness.

the workshop from outside, you can see the timbers drying outside


one of his workbenches with his best tools exposed
the many knives involved
and the chisel-gouge rack
the plane rack, the lower shelfe is packed with mitre planes and infill planes, this lot is worth many thousands of pounds
there are some similarities with the luthiers work here and there

Thursday, March 21, 2013

David Whiteman - UK







from Davids blog:
New tools, old tools...
The acquisition of fine woodworking tools has always been a passion of mine and there are some tools that I simply would not be without. In the centre of the picture is one of my two trusted cabinet scrapers. There is not one part of the guitar that isn't touched by this tool at some point or other. When I was first making guitars I used to get terrible blisters from using the scraper but my thumbs soon got used to it.
To the right of the scraper is my small thumb plane, whose main function is to shape the top and back braces, although it gets called into use for other tasks as well. This particular plane is no longer made I believe. I got it originally from Sidney Evans Violin making supplies in Birmingham.
At the top of the photograph is the newest tool in the workshop, a Lie-Nielsen block plane all the way from the USA. This really is a wonderfully made tool and is a pleasure to use. (Thanks Frank)
And finally the awl at at the bottom of the picture. This is a tool I use all the time and is one of those things I would be quick to save if a fire or flood threatened. When I was at college there was a great hunt to find Brazilian rosewood which was getting very scarce at the time (1985ish).
One of my tutors, Michael Gee, had just uncovered a huge pile of sumptuous material in Millers Dale, Derbyshire and I was determined to spend the summer vacation trying to track down some more. I wastool hunting in Brighton's Gardener Street market one Saturday when I found this awl, for 10p as I remember. The Gardener Street market was like a scene out of Brighton Rock, crawling with dubious antique dealers and fly-by-night chancers. You kept your hand firmly on your wallet as the place was the haunt of snatch purses. The handle of this little awl is exquisite rosewood and stamped with the name of its previous owner, F Monk.
I took the discovery of this tool as a good omen and looked forward to finding a lot more Brazilian rosewood but as it turned out this was the last I found that summer....


Lara Siedel - Belgium

these pics are from flickr by grepe

A guitar-maker's workshop

Lara's guitar workshop

Tuesday, March 12, 2013

Hancock Guitars - AU

I am happy to see more and more luthiers from all over the world invest time and resources to do fine footages of their work, mainly this is a sign of time, but in relation to this blog these videos are a real treat, here you can see two brothers working in thier workshop, crafting some fantastic looking guitars.




Thursday, February 7, 2013

Lafee Guitars- France

these pictures were taken using a wide angle fish-eye lens, interesting views of a very well organised and fully packed space.




Rural Luthiers Workshops - Anonymus

Herer are pictures i found on flickr, amazing views of shops and workshops, guitars and other instruments stacked, and the incredible confusion of items and woods, tools, and instruments,



Tuesday, January 29, 2013

Ciro Marzio - Italy

here are some outstanding pictures of the workshop of this interesting luthier from Italy