Official Luthiers Forum!

Well being still shopless I need a fix and with so very many new members now too I thought that it would be fun to see pictures of everyone's shops.

So folks - give it up let's see where you build your guitars please?

I feel your pain. I just moved. No shop.

But I did start drawing plans up. 34 ft of workbench.

Well, I have a very small shop - about 9 x 5 (large power tools stay in garage), but it is RH controlled, and seems to be working for now .




Glenn

Glenn buddy your shop looks pretty cool to me and way-to-go on the RH control too. It looks pretty clean too!

Zach my friend 34 feet of bench space sounds great! That is one of the things that I am looking forward too with my new shop too - lots of bench space.

Let's see some more shops please?

Here is my shop. At least the best part. The other end has the machinery, a table saw, a bandsaw, drill press and mortising machine. Oh, and lots of bicycles. Not too clean, but it keeps me happy.

Looks great Steve my friend - I dig the vintage radio too.

Tell us about the very cool guitar on the bench please?

Mine hasn't changed too much since the last shop thread-- very cool seeing what everybody is up to. Have a safe holiday!

Storage in the hallway:


Work area in the furnace/utility room:


New(er) power tools:

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Jim Howell
Charlotte, NC

Jim,

This is sort of off topic, but is that a 10" band saw, and how do you like it?

John

Okay...I'm going to come out of lurking mode and contribute something....I have been playing around this summer with my camcorder, and I made this little (actually, it's kind of long -- 20 minutes!) video of my little (12' by 12') guitarmaking room (my power tools are out in a 10' by 12' shed in the back yard). It's very amateurish, as far as videos go, but still I had fun making this little "tour" of my space. It's on this page (down at the bottom) of this summer's project account: http://home.comcast.net/~kathymatsushita/moreprojects/htmlpages/atc2.html

Come and visit my mess!!!

Kathy

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Kathy Matsushita
San Jose, CA USA
http://theamateurluthier.com
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/kathy.matsushita

Hey! Nice to see you again Kathy....

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"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."

Thanks, Don!! I usually do check in here every day, especially when I need some tips or info or ideas when I'm stuck on something. I don't really post much, though, as I don't feel as knowledgeable as you all!

This summer I'm building another Taylor-style Grand Concert cutaway (I made one in summer 2006, for myself, but ended up giving it away to a former student who's now a missionary in Germany) --- hopefully, I'll keep this one! As it'd be somewhat redundant to document the same process, I thought I'd try some different things this summer with the website --- hence, the videos! I know I always love to see other people's workshops, so I thought people might like to see a video of how much stuff I've managed to cram into my little guitarmaking room!!!

Anyway....thanks for the welcome, Don! I'll always be indebted to you for your binding jig!!!

Kathy

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Kathy Matsushita
San Jose, CA USA
http://theamateurluthier.com
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/kathy.matsushita

Jim buddy your shop is looking great and you have much more space too! I'll have to call you free range Jim now....

Hi Kathy! Many thanks from me too for all of your contributions since I have been a visitor to your site too. I enjoyed seeing your shop and I am no stranger to smaller shops.......

I have an idea for you if find this interesting. In my last shop my go-bar deck was also in a corner. I found it difficult to use in as much as I only had access from one side and I mentioned this on the OLF. Another OLFer, Dean, wrote to me and suggested that I install a TV pull-out/swivel to my go-bar deck. So I did.

Now it pulls out of the corner at 45 degrees and rotates 360 degrees making using it and clean-up of glue MUCH easier. These swivels support TVs over 200 pounds so you could continue to store your cigar boxes and nearly anything else on top of the deck.

I thought that you might enjoy seeing some pictures.

Hesh: That's a GREAT idea! Exactly what kind of TV swivel is it? (What do I look for?) And, does it lock or anything, so it doesn't move when you use it? It would be a good solution for me, because a few times I have actually had to lift that whole thing and move it to my center workbench so I could get to it from both sides (for example, when using it to glue on the top or back). I can lift it, but it's not the easiest thing in the world to do!! Your TV swivel idea would be great.

Kathy

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Kathy Matsushita
San Jose, CA USA
http://theamateurluthier.com
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/kathy.matsushita

Kathy, cool space - thanks for the tour and the inspiration. Yours was one of the first sites that I found when I started building.

Hesh - your space is coming along nicely. I am sure that you are anxious to get settled in. I like the pivoting deck idea.

If you like the old tube radio get a gander at this. It is my main stereo amp. Sounds great. And the glowing tubes I just love.

The body is myrtle from Rich and a top from John Hall. Cocobolo backstrip. Binding being bent this weekend and hopefully on the body in the next week or so.

Steve buddy the guitar is looking great!

The amp is very cool too - I really like the amps with exposed tubes.

Unfortunately I am current shopless but that will change this fall when I recover my front yard from the ditch......

Kathy my friend the idea was Deans I just tried it out and it works great. It is very stable, you can slide it and swivel it with very little effort but it stays in place where you want it. I also mounted a little spot light in the roof of mine.

This slide, in the picture below came from Rockler and you can probably find these for less since they are basically the same thing that hotels use.

Here is a link to Rockler and the page for the swivel and a picture will follow: http://www.rockler.com/product.cfm?page=22&cookietest=1

Isn't google satellite great!
-C

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Freeborn Guitars
and home of BeauGuard©

Here's my space.
I'm afraid it's a pretty untidy affair but my little piece of heaven nonetheless.
Oh yeah, and the TV's for watching Robbie O'Brien DVD's whilst I work
- Mat

My shop is a mess!!! There's NO way I can submit photos of it here!

What wonderful shops folks, nice to see you here Kathy

Steve--

This is a tad off-topic, but what an interesting stereo amp! Did you build it yourself? Would schematics and a parts list be available? Just too cool!

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Jim Howell
Charlotte, NC

Nice looking shop Matt.

Sammy I promise to not say anything about the mess, if there even is one.....

Well heres wishing all a happy and safe 4th to everyone!!

Here's my messy Garage shop!!





Mike

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I'm outside looking in, just farther from the window than most.

Jim, yes and no. The basic housing and transformers are from an ST-70 sold by Dynaco. These amps were sold in kit form in the 60's. The first stage is new and from Curcio (the main board). He sells over the internet and it extends the response over the original Dynaco design and also uses more commonly available tubes. The power supply is custom, built by a tube nut here in Chicago that I know personally. I don't know if he still does these mods, but the new supply updates the only part which went bad on a regular basis in the original amps. The bigger caps makes a big difference, too.

You can still pick these amps up for a few hundred dollars, a lot were made in the day, really the first audiophile amp, and there are still lots of people fixing them up to more modern specs. Just Google ST-70 or Dynaco. Cheers.

Well . . . it's cool, but you get the feeling that all your base are belong to them.

That looks like a serious shop, at least from space.

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Howard Klepper
http://www.klepperguitars.com

When all else fails, clean the shop.

My new not quite finished shop. It used to be pat of my carport. It is 13' X 24' and I plan on making an attached shed into a finishing room later.