Luthier Tips du Jour - Steel String Back Braces

Luthier and Instructor, Robert O'Brien, demonstrates how he radiuses and attaches braces to a steel string guitar back.

Category:

Howto & Style

Tags:

• Luthier Tips du Jour
• guitar building
• back braces
• lutherie
• luthier
• O'Brien Guitars
• guitar back
• LMI
• luthier instruction

[OBrienGuitars]

Actually there is. Take a board about 8 or 9 inches wide X about 36inches and taper it on one edge into a wedge shape that approximates the radius you want to use. Cut this into one inch strips and place the pieces like a pie or pizza on a piece of plywood or MDF. Then place a thin piece of hardboard over the top and suck it down in the middle with a screw. You now have a radius dish. Do the math and figure out what the wedge shape dimensions need to be in order to get the radius you want.

[TomDodsonMusic]

Hey rob, just wondering, how thin do you take your steel string backs roughly? :) thanks

[OBrienGuitars]

@TomDodsonMusic roughly 2.5mm

[TomDodsonMusic]

@OBrienGuitars Are there any advantages in taking it any thinner? My first guitar had maybe a 2.8 mm thick back, more from laziness whilst thicknessing than by design :-P I know that lowden backs and sides are taken thinner than most certainly. My next build will be a baritone, so my logic is that thinner backs and sides will boost bass response, am i right? Thanks :)

[OBrienGuitars]

@TomDodsonMusic When I use dense wood like cocobolo I sometimes go thinner. I also go thinner on my flamenco guitars. Thinner does not necessarily mean an increased bass response. There are many other variables. Good luck.

[exortus]

I was getting ready to make my back bracing today and I wanted to make them with a triangular profile, after a lot of thinking I came to your channel to check out how you make yours, and voile, they are not in a triangular shape, so, I'll do just like you do.

Btw, Brasileirinho gave a nice touch to the video :)

[OBrienGuitars]

@exortus well, they are square when I attach them to the back but I then shape them. Look at 6:15 of the video and you will see they are triangular in shape.

[projekt92]

Hey Rob,

I was just wondering if there is any easy way to make a radius dish?

Thanks,

Pat

[TomDodsonMusic]

@OBrienGuitars Thanks :)

[0adireita]

my guitar looks a piece of shit after this video...