Official Luthiers Forum!

Hey guys,

I had a quick question on brace positioning. I have a jig from Luthier
Suppliers, I think, and what it does is you put your brace in the jig and the
radius is on the bottom you push your brace down, squeeze it in there
and sand the top flat. And when you let it go the radius is on the top.
Anyway say I radius an X brace. I was wondering where on my top do I
position the biggest part of the radius from my brace when gluing. Do I
put it dead center, or where the X braces meet, etc. Hope I'm somewhat
clear on my question. I'm having a hard time wording it for some reason.
Thanks for your help.

blessings,

Ross

Hi Ross,
I think the tallest part of your x braces should be pretty much where they cross. Am I right guys?

Wade

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

Spot on as usual Wade

Just thinking about that one though if the brace is long enough it would be best to have the highest part on the X, but in many cases you wouldn't be able to as you wouldn't have enough length,as the X is not central, the dome will be the same whereever you put it, but the height bove the soundboard will vary.RussellR38843.6909027778

Thanks guys. So just to be clear where the X braces meet would be ideal for
the deepest part of the radius?

Ideal but not essential, as long as you have enough height at the X for the brace design your using your good as you can carve the top to the profile you desire.

A'ight Russell. Thanks.

Ross

Just keep in mind that a dome is segment of a sphere you can rotate an identical radius sphere segment in any direction and at any angle on the dome and the profiles will match as long as the centers of the two spheres occupy the same position. You obviously cant verify the centers of the spheres but with the brace profile flush against the dome profile you cant get the centers out of sync, so you never have to worry about that.

Yes the Ideal spot for the deepest section of the brace is center of the x brace intersection. On some body shapes the x will be more forward shifted than on others so this is not always possible with a single brace jig,rendering braces 20" long. but being a bit short of the deepest section on the x brace at the center of the intersection is not a killer by any means. Rather just the ideal.

Thanks for the explanation Michael. That helps.

peace,

Ross