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jjanssen1
PostPosted: Wed Aug 07, 2013 3:49 pm 
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I have been wondering would 12 be too young to start guitar building.
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the Padma
PostPosted: Wed Aug 07, 2013 3:54 pm 
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NO! Definably not.

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ZekeM
PostPosted: Wed Aug 07, 2013 3:59 pm 
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Are you 12?
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jjanssen1
PostPosted: Wed Aug 07, 2013 4:04 pm 
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ZekeM wrote:
Are you 12?

No
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ZekeM
PostPosted: Wed Aug 07, 2013 4:07 pm 
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Do you know a 12 yr old who wants to build guitars? Just seems like an odd question. Anyhow it would depend on the attention span and maturity of the individual. Some of the tools can be dangerous and aren't toys. But with proper supervision and a mature kid, it's doable. And could be very good for them if they enjoy it. A hobby as a teen is always good to stay out of trouble.
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Bryan Bear
PostPosted: Wed Aug 07, 2013 4:17 pm 
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As my dad used to say "you won't learn any younger."

As Zeke says, if the maturity level is there and a person to supervise safe tool use, it would be a great thing for a youngster to take up. As (s)he gets older, a good hobby can distract from the temptations of higher risk behaviors. Even better if the person supervising is a good teacher (above and beyond teaching woodworking). There are a ton of life lessons that can be learned from the process of building a guitar, especially if someone can guide ou to them without seeming too preachy. Patience and working to a level of pride in workmanship, the need for foresight and planning are the obvious ones, but more subtle are the things like the sereise of compromises between seemingly conflicting goals that go into guitar design and how (like in life) going too far towards one goal can be to the detriment of another.

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Shane Woonton
PostPosted: Wed Aug 07, 2013 4:19 pm 
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The luthier who taught me here in NZ has a son who has already built his first (under supervision) before his 10th birthday. My 7YO daughter loves "helping" in the workshop. I only let her help with the simple (and not sharp) things like sanding, measuring and marking. She also loves being involved with the setup, tuning, setting intonation etc. I hope that she will be building something of her own long before her 12th birthday.

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Nick Royle
PostPosted: Wed Aug 07, 2013 5:18 pm 
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Quote:
Expect to do a lot of work yourself ... at 12 they love being with you ... and you have to remember that being with them is the most important part ... learning to build an instrument at 12 is rather secondary.
Great way to think of it... And if they do want to make guitars later in life, what a head start!
I wish my dad had built guitars!
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Tony_in_NYC
PostPosted: Wed Aug 07, 2013 6:19 pm 
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Filippo Morelli wrote:
I've built guitars with all three of my boys. Glad to share that experience with you.

1. Kits are a great place to start. Building anything is overwhelming the first time.
2. Electric guitars are easier, fwiw.
3. Kids at that age often have very short attention spans. It is important to not push them (force them). It's beyond there attention scope and it will create a negative experience.
4. As a result something where they can progress in 15-20 minute intervals is great. Again ... kits are great for this.

My first son did a violin kit with me. At 15-16 he scratch built his own guitar. He could do one operation a day without losing interest. My other two have done electric guitars, some kits, some scratch built later.

Expect to do a lot of work yourself ... at 12 they love being with you ... and you have to remember that being with them is the most important part ... learning to build an instrument at 12 is rather secondary.

Hope that helps,

Filippo


Ditto what Filippo said. Except I never built with my kids since they are 3 and 6 and a bit to young and they don't care that much about building guitars. They are more interested in putting all of my picks in the sound hole.
A 12 year old will definitely need a lot of help, so you will be showing them the procedures by doing them. If you can build one each, that would be helpful for the kid.

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theguitarwhisperer
PostPosted: Wed Aug 07, 2013 7:22 pm 
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My 3 year old son helps me set clamps by pulling the cam lever.

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JSDenvir
PostPosted: Wed Aug 07, 2013 7:25 pm 
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I'm pretty sure that all of Sergei de Jonge's kids started younger than that.

Steve
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Joe Beaver
PostPosted: Wed Aug 07, 2013 9:44 pm 
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Great Pictures Filippo. Times to remember

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mqbernardo
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Filippo, can you be my dad?

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runamuck
PostPosted: Thu Aug 08, 2013 7:51 am 
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Regardless of all the other reasonable responses - yes, 12 is too young.
The cutoff is 13.
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Barry Daniels
PostPosted: Thu Aug 08, 2013 8:20 am 
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I don't think age should be a reason not to build, but the younger the child, the more the adult should supervise.
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stan thomison
PostPosted: Thu Aug 08, 2013 8:43 am 
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Nope not to young to "learn." and build. What is as important and maybe more as you start to learn and then build is the use and care of the tools. Learn how to safely use all of them, both hand and power. How to keep the really important hand tools sharp.

How to see problems in a project and then a way to come up with a plan to fix it and then carry it through. Learn about woodworking in general and about the materials and how they work. There is a lot to learn than just putting together some wood. Safety, tools, materials etc. But that is a great age to start the process and if have kids wanting to do it, a good time to teach the right way.

Basics are the basics to learn first and get down, then move on. Without the basics, the rest in the end is moot.
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Cocephus
PostPosted: Thu Aug 08, 2013 8:48 am 
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The times have changed since I was a kid in the early 70`s and I still to this day resent the premature defeating comments that were strewn about too carelessly.
Nowadays, the info is there. There are people who will pass on their knowledge. It is affordable.
No, the mere notion is not silly.
By all means get started and let the 12-yr old get a taste.
This could only be a means of experience, whether good or bad. This is real life and you ain`t gonna produce a real project from the couch.
Coe Franklin

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Glen H
PostPosted: Thu Aug 08, 2013 8:50 am 
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I'd let a supervised 12 year old do anything in guitarmaking, except power tool operation.
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the Padma
PostPosted: Thu Aug 08, 2013 10:11 am 
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runamuck wrote:
Regardless of all the other reasonable responses - yes, 12 is too young.
The cutoff is 13.


Dose that mean at 13 your too old ? laughing6-hehe

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Don Williams
PostPosted: Thu Aug 08, 2013 10:31 am 
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A reasonable response would be that it's all dependent on the child in question. In 7th grade, we were taking wood shop and using all the big tools. I'm not sure that all kids have the common sense to do that, but most do. Some kids made great projects, and others faltered to make anything resembling a project at all. I made three things which are all still hanging around my mom's house, except for the chessboard, which I have. I'm not sure I would have had the skills to make a guitar then at all, but as Filippo says, electrics would be great projects for kids. I say go for it if you have a child who is keenly interested.

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Tony_in_NYC
PostPosted: Thu Aug 08, 2013 11:26 am 
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Safety glasses!!

Does the Scarf-o-matic slice and dice as well as scarf the bajeezus out of a neck blank?

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Tony_in_NYC
PostPosted: Thu Aug 08, 2013 6:38 pm 
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Oh yeah. I need that €#%¥&@ thing!!


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Ken Mitchell
PostPosted: Thu Aug 08, 2013 6:47 pm 
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I tried coaching a 12-year old through a build a couple of summers ago. It didn't work out. His attention span was much too limited. Another local luthier had turned him down, and looking back, I think that I was foolish to even try working with him. If it's your son/daughter, and you have unlimited time (and affection, and patience?), then by all means, give it a go! But otherwise, I'd suggest having the student wait a few years.

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Dave Fifield
PostPosted: Thu Aug 08, 2013 10:47 pm 
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Yes.

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Eric Reid
PostPosted: Fri Aug 09, 2013 10:00 am 
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Filippo Morelli wrote:
. Can you tell what's wrong in the first photo (and what got resolved, shown in the second photo)?
Filippo


Safer hand position.

I think it's good to be realistic about a twelve year old's attention span, but I also think that attention span is something that can be developed. Building a guitar or learning to play an instrument are great span expanders. I think four is a good age to start.
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