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What with my surgeries and life and everything else, I just realized I have done just about zilch on my little size 5 koa since mid-October, with the exception of a few build sessions with FP. I've been scratching my head trying to come up with the right "look" for the bamboo inlay I want for the fretboard. I want a certain amount of Japanese look to it, like their traditional woodblock prints from around 100 years ago. I even bought some books on Japanese motifs used for printmaking for ideas on the aesthetics. But I didn't want too much of the Japanese look in it, just "some". So here's what I came up with. This is by no means done. About 2/3 of the leaves in the Photoshop mockup have actually been cut. None of the stem or trunk pieces are cut. They're shown sittin on the actual fretboard I'll be using. I'm planning on using this on 3rd to 5th frets, with little or no other inlays on the fb.

I am a little concerned about the fine cuts I'll be making in EIR and am thinking that I might have more success with such cuts being made in ebony. I really like the look of EIR over ebony on this guitar. But being based on the Martin size 5 scale length (so it's not so easy to have a new one cut and I'm without that capability), plus having bought the neck and fb already glued, I wonder if I'm too attached to the EIR. Any opinions or ideas on the wood selection, design, whatever?

burbank39038.5422800926

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now known around here as Pat Foster
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http://www.patfosterguitars.com

Love it Pat! That is a great design.
I would love to see it with the whole guitar to get a better feal for it.

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Lance@LuthiersForum.com

Yes please can we see the guitar? I just love those little devils!
Cheers
Charliewood
PS very nice very tasteful inlay BTW!charliewood39038.5846527778

Pat, what if you were to flood the area with CA before you routed out the pattern? Do you think that would help prevent any chip out? I bet Craig or Paul could give you some advice I'm sure they done intricate thins in EIR before.

BTW, I like the design.JBreault39038.5980555556

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Joe Breault
Merrimack, NH
Perpetual novice

I like it, Pat! From your description, it looks like you achieved exactly what you intended.

Gosh, thanks, guys!

Carlton, I feel like I'm close, at least. I might be there, and maybe I just don't know it yet. The month that I've been away from it gave me a new perspective when I first looked at it this morning (so THAT'S why I had to have those surgeries! .

Joe, I'll ask around about that CA idea.

Lance and charliewood, a pic of the whole guitar. That's exactly what I need to do. A bit of a distraction that won't hamper my recovery and that I can handle without too much grief.

Thanks for the great feedback!

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now known around here as Pat Foster
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http://www.patfosterguitars.com

I really like it. I also really like woodcuts. What would you think of
splying the right branch out a bit, and the left branch half of a bit?

Well, I spent a good part of the day doodling around in Photoshop and another good part catching up friends on my latest activities and another part napping. It has been a good day for recovering.

Here are some photos of the whole guitar with the proposed inlay overlaid on the fretboard. The color on some of them is pretty poor. Sorry, wish I'd had better ones. I wonder if I'm going to get "austere" instead of "elegant in its simplicity," which is what I'd like. I'd appreciate any thoughts.

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now known around here as Pat Foster
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http://www.patfosterguitars.com

Your photoshop work is really good. Would you tease me and move it
down a half fret?

I love that inlay Pat, simply beautiful! And so is that guitar, awesome!

Continue healing my friend, fun in the shop soon!

Cheers

James,

Thanks for the input. I think it could all use a little tweaking, which is why I'm trying out ideas in PS. It doesn't seem to look "settled" just where it is right now. By “down half a fret, do you mean toward the nut, or away?

My PS skill level really is just functional and ought to be a lot higher considering that I've been using it since about vers 1.5. Now Hesh, he's a master!

Hesh,

If you're asking to use this bridge design, please go ahead. I certainly can't lay any claim to it. It was based on my old Gibson L-00 anyway, with the ridges smoothed down on a belt sander. I'll probably use it on the L-00 I'm planning. One thing I recall about that old L-00 was that you could sort of breathe on it and music came out, owing perhaps to its light construction, including the bridge. So please, feel free!

Gee, I’ve never been compared to Marlon Brando before! Or is the comparison with Kurtz? Thanks, I think!

Serge,

Thanks! I'm healing a bit every day, but without the pain killers, I probably wouldn't think so. They really make a difference. If only they didn't mess up my already shaky thinking! This reply has taken me hours. I'll write a sentence, and by the time I'm done with it, either it's incomprehensible, or I forgot what I was trying to say, or both. And then there's the nodding off mid-sentence. And repeating myself. And repeating myself. It's really heavy duty stuff, but it sure works!

So the shop still looks so far away, even though it's only ten feet from the back door, down three steps. I'm hoping a week, when I'm off the pain meds.

Thanks for the thoughts!

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now known around here as Pat Foster
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http://www.patfosterguitars.com

Hey Pat

I agree. I like the inlay a lot, but it doesn't seem completely settled to me
either. Maybe down half a fret or even a whole fret?

Pat,

Glad the surgery went OK and you are back in harness.

That Terz is gorgeous.

Purely my personal view, but I think that inlay (which looks really nice by the way) would look better on the fretboard coming out of the body and centred on the 12th fret (or thereabouts). To me where it is detracts from the elegant long neck of the lovely little guitar. Maybe play about in photoshop and see how that looks.

I've no real experience of inlay but would have thoght that rosewood would be fine - Craig and Paul will be the experts here though.

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Dave White
De Faoite Stringed Instruments
". . . the one thing a machine just can't do is give you character and personalities and sometimes that comes with flaws, but it always comes with humanity" Monty Don talking about hand weaving, "Mastercrafts", Weaving, BBC March 2010

COOL.......
I love size 5's. I have several of them planned!

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"I want to know what kind of pickups Vince Gill uses in his Tele, because if I had those, as good of a player as I am, I'm sure I could make it sound like that.
Only badly."

I agree with Dave. Try centering it on the 12th fret. It looks a little crowded where it is. I still like the design, BTW; and your guitar is sweet!

Pat, I really like the inlay!   It has a very peaceful vibe to it. It seems the
positioning of the bamboo will look different when the shiney bits at the
HS are a part of the picture. The inlay (where it is now) may make the
overall design kind of top heavy when the tuners and HS inlay are in
place. (If it will have a HS inlay). I like dave's idea of the 12th. fret. That
might seem more balanced.   Just some thoughts for what it's worth,
Hope you get feelin' better!

long

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"No man ever steps in the same river twice, for it's not the same river and he's not the same man.” -Heraclitus of Ephesus

I like it a lot Pat, Just the right size and you've chosen your appointments very well. Cool stuff, be sure and show us when your done.John How39039.6634143519

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Tickle your guitar daily, and it'll tickle you back.

Fabulous little guitar, so much character, and they always seem to sound so sweet.

As far as the inlay goes, can I be a little different? I'd move it to the headstock and leave the fingerboard clear. Just personal, as I like my fingerboards completely naked, no dots or anything. Mind you I pretty much like my headstocks like that as well. Just ignore me!

Colin

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I don't believe in anything, I simply make use of a set of reasonable working hypotheses.

I like the inlay - what I think would look realy cool would be adding a longer one /same style - going in the opposite direction starting at about the 7th fret.
I think that would look sweet when seated in the lap when its being played.
Cheers
Charliewood

[QUOTE=Hesh1956] Kurtz was your doc...... [/QUOTE]    Ack!!!

Thanks guys for the great ideas! I like having it near the body join too. My wife Maggie, who has an art background, has a great eye for proportion stuff. She took one look at it and said it needed to be closer to the body join, with some below the 12th fret. I'll post pics after I get it cleaned up in Photoshop, maybe with some pasted-on tuners.

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now known around here as Pat Foster
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http://www.patfosterguitars.com

OK, here is a rendition for each suggestion. I've also faked in some tuners, (faked the bridge too, awhile ago, though it's the real one), a small headstock logo, and a hs inlay. If I use a logo, it will be my sylized f, wispy, tall and thin, in gold MOP.



burbank39040.0417013889

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now known around here as Pat Foster
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http://www.patfosterguitars.com

Amazing what photoshop will do...take note Billy/Hesh

Pat - I like the look of the top left hand corner best. That's looking really sweet.

Glad to see that you are up and about.