|

|
There are many web sites that
have been helpful to me in many ways in developing my knowledge
of guitar building and web-related technologies. I am grateful
for the efforts of the people who developed the how-to-do-it
guides, reference material, graphics files, and all the other
things that I have found useful, and wish to express my thanks.
This web page is a list of many of these helpful web sites--I
am sure that you will find them as useful and educational as
I have.
|

|
The following are links to some
of the online sellers of tonewoods, parts, electronics, and tools
that I have found useful. I'll be adding more to the list as
I think of them.

- Guitarwoods
- Bob Tibbetts is a supplier of tonewoods for acoustic guitars
and mandolins. I recently bought some "Inside the box"
woods for my first acoustic guitar project, and the quality of
the materials and the service were excellent.
- Luthier's
Mercantile International
- A major supplier of tonewoods, tools, and supplies for the
acoustic guitar builder. They do have some solid body stuff as
well. Located in Healdsburg, CA., they also host a guitar festival
every two years.
- Stewart-MacDonald - A major supplier of parts and supplies
for solid body and acoustic instruments, as well as the best
selection of tools for guitar builders I have seen.
- Warmoth - A maker of bodies and necks for solid-body
instruments, Warmoth also has a selection of wood, parts and
electronics, as well as tools. They also make custom pickguards.
- AllParts - Another place to go when you can't
find it anywhere else. They sell everything from bodies and necks
for solid-body instruments to parts for building your own pickups.
- WD
Music - One of the
broadest selections of parts for solid body instruments. They
have some stuff I can't get anywhere else, and everything I've
ordered from them (which is A LOT) has been excellent quality.
- Guitar Parts Online - When I first encountered this site, it was www.guitarpartsonline.com.
Then it was TNT Guitars. Now it's www.guitarpartsonline.com again.
Whatever the name, they are an excellent source of parts for
solid-body guitars. Primary claim to fame: they have great prices
on MighyMite parts, which I find to be good to excellent stuff
for the money.
- Guitar Electronics - The best selection of electronics parts and
pickups I've found so far--they carry all Bartolini, Seymour
Duncan, and Fender among others. They also have an online library
of wiring diagrams for all styles of electric guitars and basses.
- Stewart-MacDonald - A major supplier of parts and supplies
for solid body and acoustic instruments, as well as the best
selection of tools for guitar builders I have seen.
- Luthier's
Mercantile International
- A major supplier of tonewoods, tools, and supplies for the
acoustic guitar builder. They do have some solid body stuff as
well. Located in Healdsburg, CA., they also host a guitar festival
every two years. Their white luthier's glue is excellent.
- Ebay
Resources - a list
of parts and tonewood suppliers on Ebay that I do regular business
with.
- Mr.
Gearhead - This is
Fender's technical support website. They have a library of layout
diagrams and wiring diagrams for all the instruments in their
product line.
- Guitar Electronics - The best selection of electronics parts and
pickups I've found so far--they carry all Bartolini, Seymour
Duncan, and Fender among others. They also have an online library
of wiring diagrams for all styles of electric guitars and basses.
- Frets.com - "The Owner's Manual That Didn't
Come With Your Guitar." Extensive information on maintaining
and taking care of your guitar. Building guidance and advice
from an expert. A section for guitar builders too.
Upright and Double Basses
- Bass Café -
seller of fine acoustic upright basses in the Phoenix AZ area.
- Bruce
Sexauer - seller
of new and used upright basses in Northern California. Bruce
also is an expert in the setup and repair of upright basses,
and he builds acoustic guitars as well.
- Bob
Gollihur - A seller of upright basses, upright
bass parts, and strings in New Jersey. His website has lots of
good information on all kinds of basses too.
Reviews and Other Information
on Musical Instruments
- Harmony Central
- for reviews, test reports, and other information on all sorts
of musical instruments
- MyGuitarWorkshop - Lessons
and other resources for guitar players
|
Maples used in Guitar Building
|
Here's a description of the American
varieties of maple used by luthiers and their characteristics:
Hard Rock
Maple (Sugar Maple, acer saccharum): hard, strong,
generally straight-grained, but can have a tight curly figure
or birdseye figure. It is considered to be the best for use in
electric guitar and bass necks. Most luthiers will say this the
ONLY maple that one should use for these applications. I have
used this maple a lot in the building of electric instruments.
Birdseye maple is quite popular as a fingerboard material for
electric instruments.
Western Bigleaf
Maple (Soft Maple, Acer
Macrophyllum): softer, lighter weight, but flame, tiger,
and quilt figure are common in this species. The figure in this
variety can be spectacular, so it is used as book matched tops
on solid body instruments, and as back and sides on acoustic
instruments as well. Also to make sides, backs, and necks for
the violin family and mandolins. Can have spectacular spalting
in fallen or cut trees, caused by fungi that invade the wood
to begin the decaying process, and the spalted pieces are also
in demand among electric instrument builders.
Red Maple (Acer Rubrum): Another species
that is often referred to as "Soft Maple," this species
can have spectacular curly or tiger figure, but I have found
it to be closer to hard maple in strength and stability than
the other soft maple varieties. I've used it for necks on one
electric bass, one electric guitar, and one electric upright
bass - it performed well on all three instruments. The wood tends
to be whiter in color than Hard (Sugar) maple. Most commonly
used for book matched tops on electric instruments and as backs
and sides on acoustic instruments.
Silver Maple (Acer saccharinum): Another "soft
maple" not commonly used in Luthiery, but I've heard that,
like Bigleaf Maple, it can have spectacular figure. The figured
pieces should be useful for electric instruments as book matched
tops, and as backs and sides for acoustic instruments, but I
have no personal experience with this species. I've also heard
that it is the least resistant to rot and insect infestations
of the species I've discussed here. |
|
If you
would like to more information on Cyr Custom Guitars and Basses,
you can contact us by email at:
stephen <dot>
cyr <at> smctek <dot> com |
This page last updated
on March 6, 2010 |