Making Laminated Guitar Sides

I wanted to make laminated bindings in bulk so i decided to glue a full side that was too thin for a guitar to a resawn billet of curly maple.

Making laminated guitar sides.

Laminating guitar sides and linings has many advantages over traditional bending methods. Nigra to crack when bent. Laminating is also a way to bend otherwise unbendable wood. Martin guitars for instance have widely embraced hpl materials and offer a number of models where some or even all of the back sides or top are made from hpl.

First ramirez did it and he j s cut his guitar teeth on a laminated side ramirez guitar. More guitar builders are making instruments using materials other than wood. That would be like putting walmart brand tires on a porsche. I then ripped it into thin strips and thickness sanded them.

Watch me take a regular piece of wood and thin it down to 2mm thick really easi. Second it makes bending sides easier two thin pieces to bend rather than one thicker piece. As the price gets higher many companies will also make the back and sides solid wood and now the entire body is considered solid. You will never find a guitar with a solid back and sides and laminate top.

Using solid wood for the top is still preferred by most builders because the top plays a major role in translating the initial energy of vibrating guitar strings into rich acoustic sound. This is how i make my guitar sides. Strips of thin veneer are prepared as 100mm strips about a metre long this one is for a parlour 3 4 size guitar. In an effort to offer customers other more affordable options many builders also make guitars featuring laminate back and sides.

This is a new method for making really thin wood boards for a guitar s sides.