Official Luthiers Forum!

With the advent of the internet many of the specialist suppliers are now retailing their products and undercutting the prices of places that aggregate all the tools and supplies in one place. Hopefully Stew Mac will hang in there!.

I've posted this here before but remember this? This was back when LMI and SM were really the only ones doing this. The big two anyway. I never used anyone else because I didn't know of anyone else.

I still get use out of this thing.

I have one just like it!

Am I the only one who thinks of the plastic cover version as the "new one".

I learned so much from this! It was an absolute must have.

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

Do you know what year that one was? On the LMI site they say "Since 1994" but I could have sworn I bought wood from them in '92. I still have my first guitar and I looked at the label and it was dated 1993 and I'm almost certain that was with LMI wood but I guess I could be wrong.

Funny, that was my response when I saw the 1994 too. I think 1993 is about when I first started ordering from them but it sure didn't seem like they just opened. I'd have to dig through old print photos to figure it out.
So little information back then!
I include myself in the group who probably never would have built an instrument without them and that old catalog.

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The original luthier supply company, the one that was bought and the name changed to LMI was Bill Lewis Luthier supplies located in Vancouver, BC. I dealt with Bill in the Seventies before he sold his business.
Just an fyi

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I dealt with Bill Lewis back in the early 70s. I believe Bill sold the business to LMI in the late 70s. The new owners had a falling out (maybe) and one of them started Allied Luthiers. LMI became LMII (LMI International) in 1995. That is, if memory serves me. Or it could be dementia creeping in, lol.

I think Todd Taggart was the name of the LMI guy in the 1990s.

Stewmac appears to have done a pretty good job of diversifying out of the “just pro and serious amateur luthier” niche and adding a lot of products aimed at your average joe tinkerer who want to swap the occasional pickup, learn to do their own setups, or tackle a quick, uncomplicated project. Their wildly popular effects pedal kits are a great example. Their catalogue has lots of stuff like pre-reliced boutique hardware that is clearly targeted at people pimping their own rides rather than running businesses.

They’ve also leveraged their (in my experience) superior grasp of modern packing and shipping practices to expand into overseas markets that LMI has never pursued.

It’s indeed sad that no one is available or able to take the reins at LMI.

I seem to remember Duane Waters moved from Colorado to California to work for LMI in the 80's? Or am I mis-remembering things?

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I remember that too, Chris. I met Duane when I worked at International Luthiers Supply in Tulsa.

*Duane Waterman

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Wow. That's a real blow. They are a top notch company.

I've been buying all my fretboards pre-slotted from them since I started. They are the only ones I know of who custom slot to order.

Any idea if they will be sending this business to other vendors, or if there are other folks doing this?

Thanks

Andy Birko does fretboards - https://birkonium.com


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Oh! I didn't know that Allied had such a connection and has been around so long. I only started using them about ten years ago or so. I do believe I have purchased slotted boards from them as well, though 'custom' I'm not sure.

Yup. That's it.
Haven't talked to Duane since the early 90's.

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"Act your age, not your shoe size" - Prince

Looks like Duane is still building and is living in Tuscon now.

https://www.sonoraguitars.com

I'm still pretty sad about this. I remember getting that catalogue as an 18 year old in the late 90's, super excited about the craft, and no experience whatsoever. I poured over that thing.

This is a huge loss for the community. I've been thinking about all the little things I could order from them and receive within two days. Rosewood sides for laminating, for example, already sanded to .065". And all the great tools and jigs they've made and made affordably...

I was able to place a small order yesterday for a few things I don't want to miss out on even though there's so much more I wish I could grab before it's gone!

I agree. I will definitely miss them. I took advantage of their shop services a lot. I’d get them to thickness back and sides. Saved me hours pushing hardwood through my homemade drum sander. I already proved to myself I could do it the hard way.

We are all super sad to hear the news from LMI. This is a small industry and we have (obviously) known the folks over there forever and think of them as friends. We wish them well in their retirement and recognize the enormous contribution they have made to the craft.

Regarding the flash sales and other things you are seeing happening, StewMac is very healthy. As most of you know, Creston Stewart retired in late 2015 and sold the company to an investment group. They have made substantial investments in StewMac and have provided us with much needed capital and support to explore new segments of the market and drive growth, which we believe helps the industry as a whole. One of those investments was the acquisition of Madinter based in Spain. We bought them roughly a year ago to give us a base of operations in Europe to better support our European customers. We are just beginning that integration project now. Very soon if you are a European customer we will be able to ship your products from our facility in Spain vs. shipping from the U.S. Plus, the Madinter team is also very strong in wood and they and helping the entire SM organization get much stronger in this area of the business.

The flash sales and other promotions you see are really more about us trying to achieve our short term business goals.



That is 100% correct. Part of our growth strategy is to grow the pie. Obviously pros are always going to be our core market, but we want to make the craft more accessible to players, DIYers and other facets of the market that StewMac has not traditionally focused on. The pedal kits are a great example, as are entry priced guitar kits, amp kits, etc. We are also trying to create content that gives players and folks just starting out the confidence they need to take on certain jobs - electronics upgrades, hardware upgrades, etc.



This is also true. SM has always taken a lot of pride in our logistics. Our warehouse and operations teams do a great job and we see this as one of our core strengths. (Hopefully you do too.)

Aside from all of us having to say goodbye to such a great company and resource, this is my main concern as well. I don't mind using my old StewMac miter box and templates to slot fingerboards, but for the extra $8 I usually just buy them pre-slotted by LMI. Now, if I want to make a 640mm scale length, or 655 or anything other than the standard lengths (which is sometimes the case for classical guitars) I've got to break out my calculator and lay it out using the Rule of 18 (17.817).

Hopefully StewMac or someone else will begin offering this service (and on fingerboards wide enough for classical guitars which SM doesn't currently offer).

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

Andy Birko at Birkonium can provide slotted fingerboards, even multi-scales. That's where I get mine.
https://birkonium.com/

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"Music is what feelings sound like"

I’m looking forward to seeing who steps in to fill the market voids left by LMI’s closure. You can buy wood other places; you can buy partially or fully worked instrument parts other places; you can buy instrument making tools other places. But LMI wasn’t redundant. It provided tools, for instance, that many of us find to be valuable, and that are not carried elsewhere. I hope some enterprising folks find new business opportunities in this otherwise sad turn of events.