Official Luthiers Forum!

I only post a completed guitar once a year so here's the latest (#5). This one is for me since I ran out of sons and brothers to build for.

Since I name all of my guitars, this one was christened "Tippie" in honor of our John Hall who gave me the vampire bite 4 years ago and helped me in so many ways. It's an OLF-SJ made from Michael P's great plans.

Specs include:
Top...Carpathian Spruce...Zootman
B&S...Waterfall Bubinga...Zootman
Braces...Adi...AdirondackSpruce.com
Binding...BRW...Colonial
Bridge...BRW...Zootman
Headplate...BRW...Zootman
Butt Wedge & Heel Cap...BRW
Neck...Mahogany w/Maple, Bloodwood, Maple laminations
FB...BRW
Tuners...Waverly Gold
Finish...French Polish (Thanks, Michael P. & Alain)

Here are some pics...

_________________
JJ
Napa, CA
http://www.DonohueGuitars.com

OOOOH WOW JJ, What a magnificient guitar my brother!

I saw your guitar unfinished at Bob C's and even then was looking great but with that great FP you put on it, it looks Fantastic, one of a kind, and if it sounds as sweet as it looks, you must be in heaven when you strum it, how's the sound bro?!!!

Excellent craftmanship JJ!

Your bro Serge

Beautiful!

Wow, J.J., that is slick !!!!. Beautiful wood and beautiful workmanship. Really, really nice.

Ron

_________________
OLD MAN formerly (and formally) known as:

Ron Wisdom

Somewhere in the middle of Arkansas......

JJ, that is one fine instrument!

Mike
White Oak, Texas

Oh Yeah! I agree,Just gorgeous JJ.You did yourself proud on this one. I hope my SJ turns out half this nice!

_________________
Anderson Guitars
Clearwater,Fl. 33755

Wow and I though it looked impressive with just the epoxy on it! So with aching elbow after french polishing....it must have started feeling better when you first strummed that beauty.

Congratulations JJ -- well done -- it looks superb!

JJ!!! Wow... That is superb! Top drawer! I couldn't wait to see that gorgeous Bubinga under finish...

I especially like the third pic, where she's lying on her back... those side look like shimmering liquid. I'll bet the photos don't do it justice either.

Very well done, my friend. Your craftsmanship is top drawer as well.   A fantastic instrument in all respects.

So how did you like polishing? And more importantly, how's the sound?

_________________
I'd like to be able to prove, just for once, that money wouldn't make me happy...

    Hi JJ
   Man is it 4 years allready ? Thanks for the honor of having a box named after me . Your skills are outstanding and the guitar is beautiful.I would love to play that one . However you should have made the headplate with a few bald spots and maybe expand the waiste a bit LOL.
Oh yeah maybe add a few winkles in the finish and some gray steaks .
   You can stop by anytime. Let us know and we will see if we can get an apple pie together. Oh yes and I got a new cappuccino machine.
TIPPIE
john hall
Blues Creek Guitars
PS Send me a pic of you holding that thing. I want to ad you to my wall of shametippie5338964.3129398148

WOW! JJ What a fantastic looking guitar. You did that WF Bubinga proud. FP looks awesome. Can't wait to try that baby out. Great name too.

_________________
Beautiful and unusual tone woods at a reasonable price.
http://www.rctonewoods.com/RCT_Store
The Zootman
1109 Military Rd.
Kenmore, NY 14217
(716) 874-1498

Man that Bubinga pops under the French Polish!

Awesome job JJ!

_________________
Joe Breault
Merrimack, NH
Perpetual novice

Yessiree .. that sure did POP under a finish (always amazes me still, students too, what the top coat does) ... looking mighty fine JJ.

_________________
Tony Karol
www.karol-guitars.com
"let my passion .. fulfill yours"

WOW JJ! That turned out great! How does it sound this early?

_________________
Support the OLF! Bookmark our STEWMAC link Today!
Lance@LuthiersForum.com

OOooooooo.....really nice JJ!

_________________
"I want to know what kind of pickups Vince Gill uses in his Tele, because if I had those, as good of a player as I am, I'm sure I could make it sound like that.
Only badly."

great job JJ!!!! Really beautiful shape., and clean lines to boot.

_________________
John Mayes
http://www.mayesluthier.com

Tippie is a beuty!
Nice JJ.
The finish is inspirational!


Wade

_________________
Wade
Nashua, NH
http://www.wadefx.com

That's really nice, JJ! Good for you. I hope that I get to strum this thing sometime!

_________________
Mark Swanson
Swanson Guitars
http://www.MarkSwansonMusic.com

Gorgeous and classy, too! Kudos

_________________
"Building guitars looks hard, but it's actually much harder than it looks." Tom Buck

Wow...THAT'S why I visit so often. To catch a little more inspiration. What a nice guitar.

_________________
Eagles may soar, but weasels don't get sucked into jet engines.

Hi JJ.....
What a great guitar as usual!!!!
You truly are a great craftsman.
I'd give anything to play it....

Thanks so much for sharing your skills with us.
You are a great inspiration to us all.

walterK

JJ -- been thinking....would you care to swap a new TaylorMade R7 Titanium driver with the shaft of your choice for that baby I'll PM you my shipping address

JJ--I'm hearing a call from my wood closet.
Sounds like the sister set to yours asking to be built into something equally beautiful.

So...to stop all the racket, can I just ship the wood to you?

She's a beaut, buddy. You did that Bubinga proud.

Steve

_________________
From Nacogdoches...the oldest town in Texas.

http://www.stephenkinnaird.com

Just returned from 36 holes today ...thanks for the kind words!

Alain...the FP was a great first experience. I know I used a lot more elbow grease than I will on the next one. Fortunatly, this process allows instant correction from technique errors. In general, the gloss is OK but I believe I could have done a better job in surface prep and pore filling on the back. I will end up sanding the back down to bare wood, re-pore filling and redoing the FP. I want the surface sheen to be more like that on the sides and top. This wood must be presented with my best effort!

John...I'll get you that pic. Thanks again for all the help early on...you refused to let me fail! BTW, I just may get back for your spring bash...I'm gonna pick up the Zootman on the way!

Lance...The tip you gave me in Ft. Erie was great. I sanded the perimeter until the sweet spot moved. The sound is more mature than I expected, so I suppose it may have less opening up to do. Time will tell. Right now it's loud and sustains well. The tone is balanced and sweet. I'll bring it to the next MGL meeting.

Tony...Your recommendation on the neck tenon and cheek worked like a charm...the flossing was problem free and I got a very tight fit...thanks!

John Mayes...After watching your DVD, this was the first guitar that I actually voiced. I tapped and chiseled until I actually got a tone that shimmered. Kudos on the Voicing DVD...my favorite of the whole series. BTW...I never did find the secret passage of you buffooning!

Zootman...I was sooo worried for the two years I had your WFB stickered on my shelf. I didn't feel worthy to build something with the pick of the zoot. Thanks to Steve K. he dared me to go first and I took the bait. Now I'm glad I did if only to get him motivated to build with his sister set...then we'll see a master in action!!!

Anthony...I already have the R7 but it misbehaves no matter where the weights are positioned. However, I would consider a trade for one of your archtops

One really weird thing I noticed on this finish/wood combination is that it looks totally different in different light. In fluorescent lighting, the wood looks more brown and somewhat shallow in depth. In incandescant lighting the surface becomes golden-red, somewhat iridescent, 3 dimensional and deep enough to dive into! I'm planning to take more pics in outdoor lighting and see what that shows. I can't say that I've ever seen this before on other woods. Any thoughts?

_________________
JJ
Napa, CA
http://www.DonohueGuitars.com

[QUOTE=JJ Donohue] Just returned from 36 holes today ...thanks for the kind words!


John Mayes...After watching your DVD, this was the first guitar that I actually voiced. I tapped and chiseled until I actually got a tone that shimmered. Kudos on the Voicing DVD...my favorite of the whole series. BTW...I never did find the secret passage of you buffooning!


[/QUOTE]

Ok I'll tip ya off ... On the advnaced voicing DVD if you go to the quiz section there is one question I forget what it is but the picture is a buch of rosettes. ... push to the right, or down past all the answers and a small little place will light up..click that and try not to laugh too hard... ok no laugh a lot that is what it is for.

_________________
John Mayes
http://www.mayesluthier.com