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Yesterday, Friday 31st, a buddy and I went wood shopping in Houston. And since I'd "met" Joshua through the OLF, the plan was to include a visit to his shop. Easy enough to do, since Joshua lives one block from the best hardwood lumberyard in Houston. He was gracious enough to postpone some pressing tasks in town just to entertain a couple of East Texas boys.

I'll be honest, it's a little unnerving for a steel string maker to visit a classical maker. At least it is for me. These are the guys that are doing the glamorous stuff, and one can feel a wee bit out of place in the presence of those who use mainly hand tools in an old-world approach... and build world class instruments! Well, we found Joshua to be such a down-to-earth guy that we felt comfortable immediately. Unassuming, unpretentious, and just plain fun to visit with.

Some of you will already know that he has, I think, a total of 4 power tools. (And boucoups hand tools.) The bulk of his work is done on one bench, with enviable north-facing windows, and I think we saw three guitars in various stages of completion.

One was Cypress, with a good amount of decoration for a classical:



















I have to show his version of Torres' paper-mache experiment. This guitar is being constructed of artist quality cardboard.







Of course, Joshua will put a European spruce top on this experimental box. And, he just "threw together" this elegant rosette for the instrument. Brazilian rosewood with his own herringbone purfling:








Hope I haven't wearied you with all the pix. There's more, but I'll leave you with these.
Many thanks, Joshua, for your hospitality, and the inspiration! Hope to see you in Tacoma in June.

Steve

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From Nacogdoches...the oldest town in Texas.

http://www.stephenkinnaird.com

Wow..you are right...those classical makers do some mighty fine work.
Joshua's rosette and backstrips are unbelievable

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

Yes they do!
And let me point out another detail: notice the grain orientation in the Brazilian rosette (bottom pic). The question was raised in an earlier post which way to orient the grain in wooden rosettes. I feel that Joshua has done it the most logical--and attractive--way. Run the grain in the same direction as that of the top.

Controversial comments now concluded.   

Steve

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

http://www.stephenkinnaird.com

Joshua...You've been holding out on us, you bad boy!!

Steve...Thanks for the photos!!

Yeah, i agree with you Steve that it's a bit unnerving to meet another builder for the first time, when ironicly, every builder is as down to earth as we are! Seems it turned out to be at ease between both of you! I also agree from what i see that Joshua does very impressive work. This will also encourage any newbie to find the courage within themselves to grab the phone and get in touch with a more seasoned luthier or another newbie, to exchange ideas and tips on building!

Thanks for sharing

SergeSerge Poirier38808.7634027778

Steve,

Lucky you! Thanks for sharing the story and pictures. How about a picture of Joshua himself.

I think he is probably the best kept secret in the classical building world. Probably not secret for much longer!

I have got to save the money to get on his waiting list! Soon, before his guitars become out of reach for us workin' folk!

Jeff

Joshua...awesome work as I would expect .

A couple questions...The Cypress with the stacked square mosaic...are you voicing and setting up as a flamenco or a classical? Killer look...when I saw a couple of weeks ago your herringbone everywhere purfling I was wondering if you were doing an homage to FE08 (Torres)...The headstock above is a dead-on match for FE01...nice

I really like that you have used some of the very Torres looking stylistic elements...including the Tornavoz.

While I have seen and really love Tornavoz, I have not attempted one yet.

As many people here know and as I have told Joshua, If I want to be really inspired in my building I take a look at Joshua's site. Not only is he a builder of incredible skill and taste, he also has a feel for wood and the history of the craft that are unmatched as far as my experience goes.

On top of that he is so generous with his time and advice to those of us he has never met but who share his passion. He has over recent months been giving me sage advice on my first faltering steps in building a classical guitar. He has encouraged me and patiently answered all of my 'newbie' questions. A truly great guy indeed.

If I were his agent, I'd double his prices tomorrow, and they would still be cheap. I've seen instrument here selling for the equivalent of $10k that are not a patch on Joshua's. When I win the lottery I'll have a matched set of French guitars, one with and one without tornavoz. I can dream. Oh, and a cypress one and the FE08 copy that he is supposed to be building and........


Colin



Colin S38809.3658564815

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

That is impressive! I love the strip down the back (meandor?). Very
Torresesque.

Tornavoz? Seems some of you have actually heard it. Could you give us a review?

I googlerd tornavoz...I was in the dak, too, and got the French website.

Tonavoz

Thanks for the kind words everybody! Meeting Steve was a great experience - he's enthusiastic, easy to get along with, knowledgable and funny too. I Only wish I could have spared the extra time to have bought him lunch! We had a great time talking guitars and digging through wood at the lumber yard. Steve, don't forget to drop by next time you come into town.

Jeff - nobody here needs to know exactly to what extent I'm just some punk kid... I'm not sure Colin could take it!

Colin - you're too kind. I can't believe I forgot to show Steve the amazing lute plans you sent me. You've been quite generous with your help too, and as soon as I'm done withthe cardboard guitar that lute will be my latest challenge. Then I'll start calling myself a "luthier" instead of a guitarmaker!

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Instagram: @jfrenchluthier
Web: https://www.jfrenchguitars.com/

[QUOTE=Shawn] Joshua...awesome work as I would expect .

A couple questions...The Cypress with the stacked square mosaic...are you voicing and setting up as a flamenco or a classical? Killer look...when I saw a couple of weeks ago your herringbone everywhere purfling I was wondering if you were doing an homage to FE08 (Torres)...The headstock above is a dead-on match for FE01...nice

I really like that you have used some of the very Torres looking stylistic elements...including the Tornavoz.

While I have seen and really love Tornavoz, I have not attempted one yet.

[/QUOTE]

Shawn - thanks. I wanted to reply to this seperately, so my other post doesn't get too long.

The guitar is meant to be a classical, and though all my guitars are lightly constructed this one is not as lightly made as it would be had I approached it as a flamenco. The main difference, besides it carrying my usual dimensions, is that the final thickness of the back is 2.7mm in the center. I've done a couple of these cypress classicals, and they've been everything I've hoped. Cypress is my personal favorite wood (well... European Spruce doesn't count, thats a given!).

One day for fun I'll build one with the intention of it being a flamenco. But with that said, I have orders for cypress guitars that I greatly suspect are for flamenco players...

A Euro Spruce top, Spanish Cypress back/sides, and a Tornavoz is where I start if I am looking to make the absolute best sounding instrument I can. For my guitars, this has proven the best combination yet. Jose Romanillos did some Cypress classicals in the 70s, but he said they were hard to sell despite that being his preferred wood, which was my original inspiration for it.

The guitar pictured, which I won't lie drained an enormous amount of energy from me (I don't have a thickness sander, which would have helped with those inlays immensely!), is something I was inspired to do because of FE08. I did the back center strip over a year ago, and am now just finishing up on the guitar (though I've built 8 or 9 others in this time). I have to have the right inspiration and the right frame of mind to tackle new inlays. And this is basically getting my feet whet in this style of inlay. I have planned a copy of FE17 (Tarrega's first Torres) and then after that an FE08 copy. Because of this guitar, I already know what I need to adjust in my inlays, though this is definitely an interpretation of Torres inlays done kind of "my" way.

An FE08 copy is a monumental task. Right now, looking forward to it - its like building a house with a block plane.

The headstock you see there is incomplete - I was about to do the slots as Steve knocked on my door. Like FE01 and others, I later added the "rope" or "half-herringbone" between the slots and the edges. I'll post pictures of the completed guitar right before I french polish it (and again after) if anyone is curious.

I've always felt a great empathy for Torres, and the closer I get to the simplicity and common sense he made his guitars with, the better they are sounding.

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Instagram: @jfrenchluthier
Web: https://www.jfrenchguitars.com/

Joshua,

That's some great looking work on your guitars there! I'm partial to the Hauser style headstock also. As a fellow classical builder who also builds all his own rosette tiles and ropes, how do you do the herringbone rope? I'd really like to try that someday, but am not sure about the best way to make the pattern. Yours looks really nice.

Cheers!

John

[QUOTE=jfrench] I Only wish I could have spared the extra time to have bought him lunch!
[/QUOTE]

That, my friend, can be arranged for sure!

Let me post a couple more pics, and no, not the one of the two guitarmakers mugging in front of the camera!
You will recognize the tail area of the cypress guitar already pictured:





This next one is of the maple guitar's neck / head joint. A very attractive joint that Joshua makes look easy:





And, a nifty little jig to quickly dimension bindings and purflings. Just a plane iron, set at the angle, with a hook turned on the end of the blade:





Hope you enjoy these as well.

Thanks again Joshua,

Steve

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

http://www.stephenkinnaird.com

Man, those purfling miters are SO nicely done!

No takers for a review of the Tornavoz sound?

Carlton, I wish I could review it for you. However, when we visited, Joshua was between guitars. By that I mean there wasn't a finished instrument in the shop, just several in various stages of completion. He is threatening to bring a guitar or two to the GAL shindig in June, and if so, we'll all have an idea how it sounds.

Steve

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

http://www.stephenkinnaird.com

You know, I've looking looking for an excuse to go to Texas just so I can go vist with Mr. French and check out what he's doing. I haven't found a reason to go to Houston though except to visit. I guess I'll just have to do the Romanillos class next year to see what it is Josh is doing. Funny, go to Spain to see Josh's methods!

Ok, B, let me see if I can make it seem more worth your while.
Texas is closer than Spain. (Unless you're Colin.)
You can meet Joshua in person.
Clark's Hardwoods is one block away.
And, there's a great B-B-Q restaurant right across the street from Joshua's house.
Almost sounds like a vacation, doesn't it?

Come soon before it gets too hot.

Steve

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

http://www.stephenkinnaird.com

Hmm, let's see. Longmont Colorado to Houston Texas, according to mapquest, is a 16 hour 58 minute drive and 1147.30 miles. Or I could fly for about $300-$400 and only about 2 hours. Not bad, but it would seem a little wierd to me. All just to meet a young punk kid like me makin' guitars. Oh, I just thought of something, I could take my Hobie down there and say the trip is for some ocean sailing!

Going to spain on the other hand, is a lot farther, I can't drive, and would cost ALOT more. BUT, it is Spain. And it would be for two weeks, and they put me up, and I get to work on a guitar. BUT, there is probably no good BBQ (and I have a hankerin' for some good BBQ) and I couldn't load up on goodies from Clark's.

Oh, the decisions. BBQ really does sound good right now

There's also 6 bars within a block or two of here, the best tacos in town are made at a bakery right by the bbq joint, you can see Houston's version of CBGB's from my front porch (Seen everybody from Los Lonley Boys to Johnny Winter there, and SRV had a regular tuesday or wednesday night gig there before he made it). There's an overabundance of art cars and a farmers market if you come on a Saturday morning, and happy hour is king around these parts.

Also, and especially during hurricane season, the surf is only about an hour away...

But yeah, the heat is difficult to bear.

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Instagram: @jfrenchluthier
Web: https://www.jfrenchguitars.com/

bebearb - While you're most welcome to come visit my shop anytime (standard disclaimer - its pretty unimpressive), I have to tell you that the Romanillos course is absolutely amazing. If it weren't for that course, it would be a great struggle for me to make a good sounding guitar.

Oh, and the wine is plentiful. Very plentiful. The women there are gorgeous, the people are humble and hospitible, and you'll learn a great deal.

_________________
Instagram: @jfrenchluthier
Web: https://www.jfrenchguitars.com/

[QUOTE=Steve Kinnaird] Carlton, I wish I could review it for you. ...there wasn't a finished instrument in the shop, just several in various stages of completion.[/QUOTE]
Thanks, Steve. I figured you wouldn't have had a chance to really evaluate this guitar's sound. A couple of others, though, have given the impression that they have heard a Tornovoz in action, and I'm just wondering what were their impressions.