Official Luthiers Forum!

Hi there - I thought I had better introduce myself - My name is Charlie and I live in BC Canada.
   I just stumbled across this forum by way of Timbre Tonewoods website - I must say Im impressed with the helpful spirit of OLF. I am getting into luthiery now, its a dream thats long overdue, unfortunately.
I had a bad go of it the last few years, which really set me back in this endeavour. In Nov 2001, I returned to my home one day to find a couple young guys robbing my house - when I walked through the door they had my laptop, and all my guitars lined up beside the couch, and were about to cart them out the door.......until I came home and surprised them.
I was 200Lbs then, stomping snorting pissing mad, and I was with a friend who was not a slouch either - we were going to give these young fellows a tuning of thier lifetime, as it were - but sadly, when I approached the guy nearest me he produced a 9mm handgun.
I was almost at him so a struggle ensued and long story short he shot me in the spine point blank, and the shot left me paralysed for life {barring unforesee medical advances}.
   I was a carpenter and a cabinet makers apprentice at the time, and I had been amassing a nice collection of tools, and wood in a little shed out back.
Unfortunately the next several months were spent in the hospital and rehab for my injuries, and had to sell most of my tools for money to make ends meet.
Some kind soul helped themselves to most of my wood too!, wood I had been collecting for 10 years. When we finally returned from the hospital all that was left in my woodshed was a couple scraps of yew, and some mountain juniper branches .
I have much time on my hands now as I cant really work a 9to5 anymore, so I have been stocking up on tools again, and a few pieces of wood for starters, unfortunately I cant get out to the beach or the woods to salvage like I used to, so I find Im buying most of my woods now{which is a real drag because that was one of my favorite things to do}.
Anyhow its nice to see a resource like OLF and there seem to be knowledgeable ppl willing to help - I have woodworking experience and quite a few books and such on luthiery, I have done my share of repairs, but as you know theres no substitute for someone whos been there and knows exactly what to do in any given situation.
I am going to start with a concert size acoustic guitar, and the prospect of finally starting working on an instrument has me pretty excited. Im sure I will have alot of questions for the members here, hopefully I wont be too annoying to you guys - thanks for all the good reads in the archived threads. Looking forward to reading and contributing in the near future.
Cheers
Charlie   

Welcome Charlie, Glad to have you with us helping each other is what we do here. Don't ever be affaid to ask questions. Though you might get several opinions on some topics, but that is what makes this such a great forum. Nobodies hands get held to a fire for having a differnt opinion aroound here. so grab some coffee and jump in the mix.

Hi Charlie, again, welcome to the OLF! What an amazing story you just shared with us, you just got here and man, you already got my admiration for all you've went through. The fact that you are here with all of us now shows that you possess a lot of determination and courage. This entry of yours should perhaps be entered in our bio page, all we'd need is a picture of you smiling! Lance, what do you say?

Your story also tells that when there's a will, there's a way which is the part i admire the most, you are going to live your dream, no matter what difficulty lies ahead!

I am a newbie also, my number of posts only shows that i have a big yap or on a positive note, that i'm a real guitar enthusiast, just like you!

Good to have you here Charlie!

Serge

Hey Charlie,

Welcome to the OLF from a fellow BC'er. There are a few of us here and regular posters include Jason ??, Rod True and Graham Steward from the Lower Mainland and Dan Minard from Powell River. I am up in Terrace. Let us know if any of us can be of help getting you going. You are starting on a journey you are going to enjoy!

Welcome aboard!

Shane

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Canada

Welcome aboard Charlie!

You've come to a wonderful little corner of cyberspace! I've been involved with forums of one kind or another for many years, and can honestly say that this one is the best I have ever been a part of.

Great people, great information!

Again, glad to have you with us!

-Mark

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Pullman, WA

The more I know, the more I know I don't know.

trippguitars.com
OR
Find me on Facebook

Welcome to OLF. There's a lot of good people here from beginners to the best of the best, and all willing to share.

Al

Hey Charlie,
Incredible story and intro!
Welcome and good to see your with us!
Lots of info here as you know.
Enjoy.
I wish you smooth sailing and happy wood from now on!


Wade

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

Serge, You bet!
Charlie! Get us a pic and we'll add you to the Bios section!
What an inspiring story.
Thanks for sharing

Best
LanceKLanceK38806.6787152778

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Lance@LuthiersForum.com

Welcome Charlie

Mike
White Oak, Texas

WTG Lance!

Hey guys - thanks for all the "right back at ya's", I like what I see so far! I am happy to see some folks in BC too - its encouraging to hear there are some folks right near me - thats what initially appealed to me so much was that I might actually get to check out some tonewoods in person before buying perhaps. I will definitely be in touch with you guys about getting some wood >no doubt!
Before I found OLF I saw this fellow on ebay selling spruce tops so I emailed him and he emailed back saying to join a forum he started - so I went there {luthierforum.com} and it wouldnt let me join unless I paid 20 bucks US for a year! I was like huh? anyone here know about this guy and this kermodie spruce he sells? I was skeptical to say the least, when he more of less said he couldnt help me unless I laid out a membership fee????!!?!?!?!. I dont mid donating to forums I am a part of but I dont like being strongarmed into it, although appearantly you get some sort of members discount on tops when you join.
Cheers
Charlie

Oh yeah and I will get a photo together too - I wanna find one of me and a guitar of course.
Cheers
Charlie

Welcome Charlie. What a story and its great to see you getting back to the woodworking. Lots of great advice here and a great bunch of guys. Welcome again

Charlie welcome aboard. Thanks for sharing your story with us. Building guitars will be a great way to keep your mind on something you enjoy. This is a great place to hang out and ask questions, show your work and share info with each other. Good to have you here.

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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

Welcome to the OLF, Charlie. We're here to help!

Glad to have you on board Charlie. You're gonna like it here...and we're gonna like having you here as well.

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

Welcome to the club....a perfect place for someone just starting out!!!
Andy

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Andy Z.
http://www.lazydogguitars.com

Welcome Charlie !,
                        Thanks for sharing your incredible background .It also confirms that life can deal you a hand ,changing your situation forever , all in a split second .None of us should take our own lifestyle for granted and live each day to the full!

You are going to love this place Charlie . Really top blokes (and gals) willing to share all their knowledge . It's become almost family to most of us .

I look forward to sharing any advice I can . Glad to have you aboard !

Regards KiwiCraig

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CRAIG LAWRENCE of AUSTRALIA
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Howdy and Welcome, Charlie! You`re gonna like it here.
Coe

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Give me 50 cents worth of regular.
Check my oil too, if you don`t mind,,,

Hi Charlie,

Welcome to the OLF, nice to see you made it here OK


Cheers

Kim

Hey Charlie welcome here. I am amazed at your story. Wow, it realy sucks that you can't even defend your own castle these days without getting shot. %#@#%$$^%@^

Well, any help I can be I'm more than willing. Where are you located? As Shane mentioned Jason Voth (very nice maple and cedar products as much as you can fathom), Graham Steward and my self are all in the Lower Mainland, (Jason-Chilliwack)(Graham-Coquitlam)(Me-Abbotsford). Feel free to call me with any questions you have or maybe just a visit some time. I love talking shop and guitars (although I'm young in building) Just pm me and I'll shoot you my phone #

Cheers

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My Facebook Guitar Page

"There's really no wrong way, as long as the results are what's desired." Charles Fox

"We have to constantly remind ourselves what we're doing....No Luthier is putting a man on the moon!" Harry Fleishman

"Generosity is always different in the eye of the person who didn't receive anything, but who wanted some." Waddy Thomson

I will send you a PM - I live on the west side of Vancouver Island - so if I ever get over to the mainland I will check you out for sure. Thanks for the offer of advice Im sure I'll need it! I just got the last koa set from Goodman guitars so it looks like a Concert size, with a spruce top of some sort. Jury is out on the neck material.
Cheers
Charlie

II know where you can get a spruce top and neck material . WOW that was pretty blatent wasn't it! Anyway, Charlie if you are in the Port Alberni area I know of a luthier who moved out there, maybe the two of you could link up. I also have a friend who builds in Cedar (near Nanaimo)

Shane

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Canada

Welcome Charlie,

I am sorry to hear of your misfortune and your loss of mobility, tools and wood but admire your spirit and drive to move on. Woodworking and especially guitar building is so enjoyable and to have a place like this to chat is cool

A few things...

I dont mean to be rude but when you say your are paralysed is it from the waist down...do you have the use of your arms? This will affect how you build your tools and work surfaces. I have known a man who sculpted large scale wood sculptures using tools held in his mouth and others that controlled things via mouth control.

If you are mobile then the key will be getting work surfaces at a height that will allow you the leverage needed without causing fatique.

Regarding "another forum"...the membership is a new thing...the wood is very nice but a bit overhyped. I have bought tops from him and they were mostly nice. The great thing to know is that Shane (High Mountain) logs in the same area in Canada (BC) and has access to the same quality and type of wood although he refers to it as Lutz Spruce (not a marketing name) as the scientific name is Picea Lutzii for a hydrid from Sitka and White Spruce. Shane also comes from a woodworking background (as do many other members). His wood is really reasonably priced for top quality spruce, no hype, very responsive, great wood.

Ed Dick of Acoustic Woods (another of the great OLF sponsors) works for Timbre Tonewoods and has an agreement to be the sole source for retail Timber Tonewood. Ed has great wood also...if you are looking for great Englemann, start there. Ed also will separate out unique Western Red Cedar tops that include things like bearclaw which is much more subtle in WRC than Sitka. Ed is another BC'er so you are in good company

Besides being a free forum who will find so many really helpful great guys from all over the world. Off the topic, when members have had health challenges or needed prayer there are many that are here to help. In respect for others this is always marked as Off topic (OT) and optional for all.

One of the things that has made this forum so successful is that Brock and Lance have made it a very inclusive group with a minimum of rules. Even without registering people can lurch freely.

The costs of running and maintaining this site are subsidized and partially underwritten by the sponsors who are all super to deal with although their is an optional membership deal which also includes lots of incentives such as discounts from sponsors and a subscription to Acoustic Guitar and membership in Association of String Instrument Artisans (ASIA) a great member run association for luthiers (both pros and amateurs).

Everything here has a personal touch with everything from the curious to the season master builders chiming in on various topics which I am sure you have already seen.

I used to have to search far and wide for a source of supply for things but the depth and quality of goods from the sponsors is amazing...just ask, one of them is bound to have it

G'day Charlie,

Welcome to the OLF, the most addictive internet experience I have come across. This place has made the words "virtual community" have a real meaning for me.

I am a new member as well, and although I have not posted much I have learnt a great deal. The archives seem to have the answer's to the questions I have come up with so far.

Since starting on this guitar building adventure I have found the luthier community to be very generous with their time and knowledge. Down here in Australia both Graham McDonald and Gerard Gilet have helped me out in different ways. Hopefully you will have a similar experience.