Official Luthiers Forum!

Last September I showed some of my instruments at the first Cheltenham Acoustic Guitar Show. This is the nearest that the UK has to something like Healdsburg and I had an absolute blast. The show was the result of the vision and determination of three individuals who love acoustic guitars and I wanted to do something to help to keep this show as an annual fixture, so I offered to make a guitar that they could use to promote this years show and to be given away to a lucky attendee at the show in September this year. For last years show I made a new model – “Smahain Cheltenham” in Euro spruce and a set of Bob C’s Black limba and decided that this would be an appropriate model to make again. At the same time I got a set of Curly narra from Uncle Bob but ran out of time to turn it into a guitar for last years show – so this year will be it’s year.

So here is the guitar – a Grand Concert with Florentine cutaway and soundport, 13 frets clear of the body, 630mm scale length (24.8”) with a Euro spruce top (supplied by Steve of Guitar Tonewoods For Luthiers here in the UK) and curly narra b/s from Uncle Bob. Bob also kindly found me some curly narra for bridge, headstock veneer/backstrap, fingerboard, custom tuner buttons and neck laminate. Binding and end-graft is maple, and the neck is a five piece laminate of sycamore (maple), willow and curly narra. Tuners are Gotoh SG381’s with handmade curly narra buttons, and the bridgepins are unslotted ebony. The finish is hand rubbed nitro over Z-Poxy on the b/s and the neck is Tru-oil over Z-Poxy. The guitar will eventually be fitted with K&K mini’s. I ran out of inspiration for recording something and so did Davy Graham’s “Anji” again:

Anji

Some pictures – not great quality I’m afraid:

Thanks for looking and listening.

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Dave White
De Faoite Stringed Instruments
". . . the one thing a machine just can't do is give you character and personalities and sometimes that comes with flaws, but it always comes with humanity" Monty Don talking about hand weaving, "Mastercrafts", Weaving, BBC March 2010

Very nice Dave!!
How is Narra to work with?
I like the tapered X also-It produces a sound more balanced than scalloped braces.
What are the tuner handles?
keep up the good work!!!
How's she sound?
mike

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Mike Collins

Mike,

Thanks. Overall Curly narra is fine to work with but certain area's can be more "cracky/fragile" than others - interestingly the area on the sides with the least figure!! It sands and finishes nicely and has a "spicy" smell that remided me of Kingwood I have worked with. It's in the same family as padauk but the dust isn't as red and all pervading as that wood. I haven't made my mind up yet where it sits tone wise - it has a lovely ring to it though. The swirly 3D effect of the curly narra is fabulous though - very hypnotic.

I made the tuner buttons myself with curly narra - it plosihes beautifully with micromesh.

There is a soundclip in my post - just click on Anji and you can hear it yourself!

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Dave White
De Faoite Stringed Instruments
". . . the one thing a machine just can't do is give you character and personalities and sometimes that comes with flaws, but it always comes with humanity" Monty Don talking about hand weaving, "Mastercrafts", Weaving, BBC March 2010

Dave,

This is an incredibly beautiful guitar!! Love the shape of this thing, you've done that curly narra great justice!

Whoever is going to get this guitar is going to be a very lucky person indeed.

What is the willow like to work with? I'd like to get hold of some one day. The only place I have been told is the place that supplies the world's cricket bats (Wright & Sons?)

Sam,

Thanks. Enter the contest the organisers come up with and it could be yours - sorry it's not a left-hander.

I get the willow from Touchstone Tonewoods - they sell it for making linings with but it makes great neck laminations too.

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Dave White
De Faoite Stringed Instruments
". . . the one thing a machine just can't do is give you character and personalities and sometimes that comes with flaws, but it always comes with humanity" Monty Don talking about hand weaving, "Mastercrafts", Weaving, BBC March 2010

Very nice Dave!
Great looking guitar!

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Lance@LuthiersForum.com

Another fine instrument on the tracks from Dave. Nice guitar, Dave. Beautiful sound and playing, even if we have heard the tune before. Someone is really going to be ecstatic.

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Waddy

Photobucket Build Album Library

Sound Clips of most of my guitars

Cool guitar Dave. What a great gift to the show. I trust that you will be rewarded for your generosity.

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Steve Walden
Aspiring Builder,
Bartlesville, OK

even if I did win it, I'd never corrupt such a beauty by converting it to a lefty. Cutaway or no....



Excellent. I am in the process of making an order with them for next month, thanks for the heads up!

Great guitar Dave.I really like your peghead design.
James W B

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James W Bolan
Nashville Tennessee

Beautiful guitar, Dave. I really like Narra. I believe that Michael P. also has a preference for this wood and has always spoken highly of it's beauty and sound. ...and you have certainly done it justice!

Speaking of sound, that's the second time that you have played "Anji"...a great piece for a great sounding guitar.

Good luck at the show!

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

Yet another triumph for the De Faoite stable. Unmistakebly one of yours Dave, should review great. I like the sound she makes as well, your usual high standard of playing. I learned Anji from Bert Jansch so it sounds different, though as Martin Carthy said "Bert plays Anji all wrong".

Now if I could only win this, then at last I'd own a Dave White.

Colin

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I don't believe in anything, I simply make use of a set of reasonable working hypotheses.

I saw Paul Simon play "Anji" in concert for the first time many years ago and have loved the song ever since.

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

Dave mon this is my favorite guitar that I have seen that was created by your very talented hands.

After listening to her and really enjoying the superb tone, balance and playing I found myself staring at the overall guitar in the pictures.

I have watched as your very fine instruments evolved over several years now and IMHO this one in the genesis of all of your unique design elements working in concert to produce a guitar that just looks cool as hell and sounds superb. I know that what a guitar does or should look like is a very subjective and personal thing but the "style" of this guitar from the body shape, head stock, tuner buttons to the cut-away just all looks killer to me.

This is a guitar that I would be very proud to play and own.

I think that it's fair to say my friend that your unique design elements, construction and engineering has really come together into a total offering that is as good as any on the planet.

Very, very well done!

Dave that is a great looking and sounding guitar. You done good.
Whoever wins that will be a very lucky and happy person.

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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

Love your headstock - I don't know why but it makes me thinks of Wallace and Gromit.

Steve

Dave,
As a novice builder I am always interested in the design decisions you more experienced guys are making. Was the decision to go 13 frets to the body made to move the bridge location further down into the lower bout zone due to the larger body size? The sound hole diameter also looks a bit larger than typical. Was this to influence the treble/bass response or to increase the projection? Great looking guitar with a great sound.

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Doug Mills
Chicago, Illinois

Dave, that's superb.
You're capturing a ring in your tone that I really like.
(Indeed, whoever wins this beauty is a lucky dog.)

Like several others, I'm intrigued by the willow.
Do you have a close-up of the neck lams?
And perhaps how you treated the tip of the horn on the cutaway?

Thanks for posting,

Steve

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From Nacogdoches...the oldest town in Texas.

http://www.stephenkinnaird.com

Dave a beautiful guitar that reflects your unique style. Nice to see builders distinguish the look of a guitar and pull it off so nicely. Lucky person that wins this one for sure. I have seen Narra in planks at Bob's even nicer to see it under finish.

Yup, unmistakably a Dave White product, which I like a lot; both the product and the fact that you have such a easily recognizable style, that is. If my trip to London this September is at the same time as the Cheltenham show I might even win it wohooo! Not sure of the dates yet, but I’d love to be able to go there and say hello to you guys.

Do you know where the spruce came from (yes, I know you said 'Euro', but specifically in what part of the continent did it grow)?

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Rian Gitar og Mandolin

Very nice sounding guitar Dave. They always look so fine and this one
does not disappoint. That's Very cool donating it for the show !
Somebody will be thrilled ! Great Job.

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Anderson Guitars
Clearwater,Fl. 33755

Lance, Waddy, SteveW, James, JJ, Anthony and Dave A - many thanks.

Todd - thanks and see my reply to Mike about working the narra.

Colin - Thanks for the encouragement along the way. You should know that I play everything wrong

Hesh - As ususal you are very kind. Actually the body shape is pretty much that of a Taylor 312 but everything else is different. Most of my design elements and features are "borrowed" from builders that I admire but hopefully when I put them together they become my style.

Bob - Thanks. I'm glad I was able do to justice to your fabulous wood.

Steve (Soundman) - I think I see what you mean, I'll have to call it the Stinking Bishop Headstock

Dave (Mills) - 13 frets clear has a long tradition and Paul Hostetter has a good info here on his website. Where the bridge goes is basically a function of your design, but having made a number of shorter scale instruments and being impressed with their playability, sweet trebles and versatility in altered tunings I took my Grand Concert 14 frets clear 655mm scale length design and found that with 13 frets clear and 630mm scale length, the bridge moved a smidgen south. This gives a nice sized body for a shorter scale and I like the way it works. The larger soundhole gives good volume and projection and I place it higher in the upper bout area than most builders.

Arnt - Thank you. Hopefully I'll see you at Cheltenham. I'm afraid I don't know where the Spruce tree grew but wherever it was it made a great guitar top and a very noble sacrifice. The next lot I am getting are from Austria.

Steve K. - Thank you sir. Here's a photo of the neck laminations showing the willow. It looks similar in colour to the sycamore unfinished but comes up slightly more yellow under the Z-poxy and Tru-oil. I jointed the two parts of the narra sides for the cutaway tip as I didn't want anything interrupting the narra. I didn't have a big enough piece of narra to glue on to the tip and shape against butted sides, but this would have been an option if the grain had matched:

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Dave White
De Faoite Stringed Instruments
". . . the one thing a machine just can't do is give you character and personalities and sometimes that comes with flaws, but it always comes with humanity" Monty Don talking about hand weaving, "Mastercrafts", Weaving, BBC March 2010

Hi Dave
That is one sexy beast - stunning!
I'm still new to this forum but a few weeks ago you (and many others) gave me some great advice to help solve a problem I had finishing off a guitar. You also made the very generous offer of having a look at it for me if needed. It wasn't needed but thanks.
Anyway, I was at Cheltenham last year and can't think how I missed you? Were you there on the Sunday?? I obviously didn't know you then and I am incredibly shy but I did speak to a few people. AJ Lucas was great, I enjoyed talking to him.
I will be going again this year (especially now i'm going to win that beauty!) and I'll definitely say 'Hi'.
See you then
Mat.

Hi Mat,

Thanks very much - I'm glad you like it. You are very welcome to come and visit and talk shop any time you like. I was at Cheltenham both days last year - my stand was opposite Andy Manson's so you may have been distracted by his Mermaid guitar Adrian Lucas is a lovely man and has been very helpful to me over the years - he makes lovely instruments too.

See you at Cheltenham if not before.

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Dave White
De Faoite Stringed Instruments
". . . the one thing a machine just can't do is give you character and personalities and sometimes that comes with flaws, but it always comes with humanity" Monty Don talking about hand weaving, "Mastercrafts", Weaving, BBC March 2010

Hey Mat, did you speak to me? I was there last year & I spoke to nearly everyone there.....