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I built a guitar for my brother last year and yesterday he mentioned that he wished he had had me make it a cutaway.

How big a can of worms are we opening if it is added now? More importantly,how much trouble will I have gettinig the lid back on once it is opened? No time to fish right now so I don't need the worms.

I seek your collective wisdom.TIA

Cecil

I wouldn't do it. But, that's just me. Perhaps a braver soul here would. I'd imagine you'd run into trouble with re shaping your heel block, making sure the new wood you add to make the cutaway matches the rest of the side...along with a host of other issues I can't think of right now. Just my $.02.

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Joe Breault
Merrimack, NH
Perpetual novice

It would probably be faster (and better) to just make a new box. Once you got that far you just might make a new neck while you were at it and then he would have two guitars....lucky guy! .

A cut away requires modified braces in the upper bout, you can do this to the existing braces as the cutaway requires removing brace material but you will need new sides (at least one if you could find a close match for the one that will be left) and you need to remove the linings. The neck block can be reshaped and you could re-use the neck, but you can see that by the time you tore it apart you could have put together a new box...see ...two guitars!

Good luck with it and let us know what you decide.

ShaneShane Neifer38973.7573032407

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Canada

Just wait till Sylvan chimes in

Take a look at his way of making a cutaway and you'll be just fine to use the existing, finished box.

Here it is, very cool.

I'm sure he would help you out over the forum here if you ask him.

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This used to be a common operation on non-cutaway archtops back in the day, before preserving everything in its original condition became a fetish. Yeah, you can do it if you want to. Saw, install liners, add side section, bind, finish. Not easy but not the hardest thing to do.

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Howard Klepper
http://www.klepperguitars.com

When all else fails, clean the shop.

Ahh this suits my mantra perfectly....

If in doubt?


bung it through the bandsaw!!!!

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Ugg...it just seems...so barbaric!!!

I would be worried about accuracy issues... the new material matching the existing sides, purfling, binding etc, finishing. It'll be a much harder job than making one from scratch.

hehe, if you succeed, you could always ask Frank at FRETS.come to write an article on it!! He always finds a way!!!Sam Price38974.5004050926

You see I was thinking Venetian Cutaway.....if you go Florentine then Sylvan's description makes a whole lot of sence as a viable method...once you get the neck off!

Shane

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Canada

I stand corrected...Althoug, I have to agree with Sam, it dooes seem barbaric.

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Joe Breault
Merrimack, NH
Perpetual novice