Official Luthiers Forum!

Lance and I are very very pleased to welcome a new sponsor and a special opportunity for OLFers to learn first hand form two of the finest luthiers you will find anywhere.

Marshall Brune, and R.E. Brune will be teaching a French Polish class on March 23 - March 25th at their Evanston, Illinois shop (suburb of Chicago).

In addition to French Polishing being a traditional finish that many find superior to other alternatives, FP is also a great way for builders who do not have the capacity (and facilities) to do their own spray finishes.

M.E. Brune and R.E. Brune have developed a specialized process whereby they can french polish a guitar in as little as one day... (but to get that proficient, it takes a good deal of practice).

For more information, (costs, accomodations, etc.) please visit http://www.mebrune.com/Frenchpolish.htm or call Marshall directly at 847.275.2983

Also, stay tuned to this thread. Another special announcement regarding this class will be coming very soon.      But for now it is a secret.




Brock Poling38737.5853125

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Brock Poling
Columbus, Ohio
http://www.polingguitars.com

Come on Brock...what is the special announcement? You can tell me...I won't tell Lance...COME ON!

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Dave Bland

remember...

"If it doesn't play in tune...it's just pretty wood"

I just saved 15% on my c....   


Seriously though... it is really really good.

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Brock Poling
Columbus, Ohio
http://www.polingguitars.com

This class is well worth it guys!! You will be learning from the best!

I am There!

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Dave Bland

remember...

"If it doesn't play in tune...it's just pretty wood"

ok... ok...   

We are going to have an auction for one of the spots in the class... but if you are interested I would seriously reserve your spot. As I understand it these always fill up.

If you win the auction and are already signed up I am sure that can be worked out.

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Brock Poling
Columbus, Ohio
http://www.polingguitars.com

I can't make it to this class, but I'm definitely putting it on my schedule for next year. Glad to have you folks as a sponsor.

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Don Atwood
Arlington, VA

I hope this isn't a dumb question but since I haven't yet finished my first two guitars, would this class be appropriate for beginners or are we expected to BYOG*

* Bring your own guitar.

Steve

[QUOTE=sfbrown] I hope this isn't a dumb question but since I haven't yet finished my first two guitars, would this class be appropriate for beginners or are we expected to BYOG*

* Bring your own guitar.

Steve[/QUOTE]

I'm a complete noob to finishing, I took it and learned so much. I think it actually helped that I hadn't FP'd before, I didn't have any preconceived ideas to conflict with what I was being taught, or any old habits to unlearn.

No need to BYOG, you don't want to learn and practice your technique on a guitar anyway, work it out on scrap. I just brought some decent size cutoff scraps of rosewood and spruce and maybe mahogany or something. You'll be learning a couple different pore filling techniques, so you'll need a couple pieces. If I rememeber correctly, Robbie just used a headplate in class, which I think was a little on the small side for him to work with, but it did the job.

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Jonathan Kendall, Siloam Springs AR

Steve,

I'd like to offer an alternative perspective. If I took the class, I would want to work on a guitar. I have pieces of scrap with nice examples of Tru-oil, nitro, and waterborne finishes. On these flat scraps it was easy to apply a great-looking finish, HOWEVER, once I tried to do it on a guitar or F-style mandolin all bets were off. For me, french polishing a flat scrap is a world away from polishing the tight waist on a side or the headplate near the nut.

If you don't want to risk a good guitar, buy a beater and sand off the finish.

Good luck, and if you take the class, let us know how it turns out.

Jon & Bruce,

Thanks for the input. I can understand both perspective. Unfortunately, I looked at the dates again and I doubt that I'll be able to make it this year. I have another commitment. It looks neat though.

I suppose, you could make up some "tight corners" out of scrap to practice on. Just a thought...

Regards, Steve

I agree with Bruce, finishing an instrument (especially an F mando) is much different than a flat piece. You're going to learn different methods of pore filling, hide glue sizing, etc... You don't want to experiment with that on a good instrument in the white. Also, there's not going to be time to finish an instrument in three evenings, and you won't get to take the shellac and/or pore filler home with you.

We did practice some on a neck mockup to work on getting into corners. And even with a flat piece, you start to get an idea how to work to the edge evenly.

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Jonathan Kendall, Siloam Springs AR

I have been F.P. all my guitars. I have bought all the videos/books/etc. and asked many questions from Ron Fernandez, Michael Payne and anyone else who would listen...all very knowledgable and very kind ( hey they put up with my dumb questions). Anyway, what I have found is that it is most definitely a technique. Therefore what works for one will not work as well for another. I have found this concept to be true on many levels/aspects of guitar building. Therefore, IMHO, I think anyone/everyone can learn from someone like Marshall Brune even if it's just another perspective. Not to mention being able to view and examine The Guitar Collection. No matter what level of building you are at you can always learn from someone else...even if it's just another way of doing it. Certainly you will at very least be able to see what a well F.P'd guitar is supposed to look like. I have seen many a F.P.'d guitar that was poorly done simply because the person doing the work didn't know what to expect. A little money spent now can save years of time guessing.

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Dave Bland

remember...

"If it doesn't play in tune...it's just pretty wood"

Thank you all for your interest. As for what to bring, you COULD bring a guitar to work on, I just don't reccomend it very highly. We do a lot of different filling techniques, and you don't want to be mixing them together, and it will give a very odd look to have a paste pour filler on one side, pumice on the back, and rottenstone on the side. I do provide some pieces of wood, if you wish, that are off-cuts, and do have a shape to them (more than just a rectangle). I do encourage bringing your own wood and ideas though. If anybody has any questions, please, feel free to call me at 847-275-2983.

I do spend a bit of time with the collection, and everyone who takes the class is welcome to play anything in the collection, which includes a Soto Y Solares, Segovia's former guitar, several Fletas, and many other instruments. I will also give you the oppertunity to closely examine any guitar in the collection as well. After every night of classes, you are more than welcome to ask Richard or myself any questions about pretty much anything, and I'm sure you'll get a more in-deapth answer than you were expecting (hey, sometimes I even surprise myself)

Marshall Brune

Added note, I apologize for my site. I recently noticed that someone had sent me a message through it, and it was directed to my junk email box, and subsequently has been deleted before I could see who it was sent from. If they could kindly email me at mebrune@hotmail.com with their question, I will gladly answer them. (I'm posting it here, bcause I think it was one of you guys :P )