X Rated

It occurs to me that if music is going to be at all competitive, then the playing field ought to be level, at very least. Call me an old radical, but I'm suggesting that there should be an entirely separate chart for singles released by X Factor winners. 

Let's face it, if you promote anything on TV for around 16 weeks, it's going to capture the public's attention and, as such, nothing else can compete. That type of promotion would cost six figures - way out of reach for most artists - and so judging an X Factor single alongside something with a 'normal' amount of PR behind it isn't at all fair.

In fact, I'm surprised that the fair trading people haven't caught onto the scam - but there again, it's only music, isn't it? (And yes, I think Jeff Buckley's version of 'Hallelujah' is much better than... oooh, wass'ername's!)

Dreaming Of A Fylde Christmas...

Here are some more 'work in progress' pictures of my new Fylde Falstaff acoustic guitar which is currently being built for me in Penrith by Roger Bucknall and his team. Last time we had reached the stage where the body was being glued together; now, the first picture shows a rebate being cut into the body to allow the decorative bindings to be fitted.



This picture shows the bindings in place around the perimeter of the body... Which means that this stage of construction is pretty much complete and the next step is to apply the first of around a dozen coats of lacquer.



After a thorough sanding, the body is now placed in the spraying area to await its first coat...



This next shot was taken after the initial coat of lacquer had been applied - you can see from the picture that this has darkened the rosewood down a little - and that it's beginning to look like a real guitar!



The body will now be hand-sanded between subsequent sprayings - Roger tells me that the final coat is left for up to 12 days to harden thoroughly before being buffed to the famous Fylde mirror finish.

So while all that is going on, work starts on the neck. This begins as a single piece of Honduras mahogany which is sliced into three sections before some black lamination is inserted - then it's glued back together.



Once the glue is completely dry, the channel for the truss rod is carved out...



And there we leave it for now. If you're interested in having your own guitar built for you at Fylde - or would like to be kept abreast of developments with the company, why not hike on over to their website at www.fyldeguitars.com and sign up for the email newsletter. Alternatively, take a look around the site - there are bags more pics to look at and many more details regarding how all the instruments are built.
Finally, if you own a Fylde and you've moved since you bought it, drop Roger an email via the site and let him know your new address.

Now I think I'll go and uncork myself a bottle of seasonal yo ho ho... Happy Holidays!

Going Bespoke IV

Photographs from Fylde Guitars continue to flood into my inbox. When the guitar arrives here, I'll probably write the whole thing up into an article - I find the whole subject of acoustic guitar construction fascinating and I hope a few other iTalk Guitar members will, too!

In any case, our latest batch of pics starts pretty much where the last lot left off; we'd got to the stage where the slots for the guitar's inlays around the soundhole had been cut - and here they are being filled in.



The bracing on the underside of a guitar's soundboard is there for two principle reasons: firstly to add strength and secondly to influence the way in which the top vibrates as this has a great effect on the sound of the guitar. Each maker has his own formula for bracing - here we see the classic X brace (pioneered by the Martin guitar company) surrounded by Roger Bucknall's own tried and tested formula for producing a solid, rich tone from the soundboard.



The back of the guitar receives some bracing, too. Two centre reinforcing strips along the 'seam' or joint in the bookmatching, plus horizontal braces to add strength.



Now it's time to begin putting the various elements we've seen constructed together. Here, bracing is being added to the guitar's sides - once again, this is for strength, in order to make the 'box section' of the guitar sturdy enough to withstand the various slings and arrows that we musicians inflict on our treasured instruments!



Once the various components of the guitar's soundbox are ready for final assembly, the top and back are both test fitted to the sides to ensure a good fit. Here, the back is being scrutinised before gluing:



The final stage before the body is finally glued together - test fitting the top:



I'm hugely indebted to Roger Bucknall at Fylde Guitars for sending me these pictures. As many musicians know, it's possible to form a very special bond with an instrument and these images will ensure that I will literally know this acoustic guitar inside and out!

Going Bespoke III

Excitement is rife here at Mead Towers as more pictures are coming in showing the construction of my new handcrafted acoustic guitar - a Fylde Falstaff.

In the first picture, the back of the guitar is being reinforced down the centre joint using spruce strips. The back of an acoustic guitar is usually a piece of bookmatched wood, which means it is a single piece of timber that has been cut in half parallel to the grain and opened out like a book. If you look at the Rio's grain in the pic, you'll see that each half is a mirror image of the other.

Next, the linings are being attached to the sides of the guitar. These are strips of wood that have been partially sawn so that they bend in a flexible strip along the guitar's extremities. The reason for this is that it presents a wider surface for attaching the top and back of the guitar using glue.

In the next photo, Roger Bucknall is cutting the top (or soundboard) of the guitar. This is master grade Engelmann Spruce - very straight, tightly grained wood which is native to Canada.

Lastly, the slots for the rosette or inlays around the guitar's soundhole are cut out.

I can't really describe what it's like to see an instrument being created like this - one that I'm going to be making music with before too long. Obviously I expected to be a little bit excited, but in reality I'm like a kid waiting for Santa!