Confessions of a Luthier

[Mark Bracewell]

The other day I helped a guy cut 3 b**jo rims on the CNC, I know this is unforgivable, I promise to flog myself later....



then I voided the warranty on a Lollar pickup by making it oval...



so to purge my sins, from the great feedback I got from forum members on what a tone control should do, I invented the hack-o-tone control - 11 different tone controls on one lap steel...



but it wasn't enough, so I'm happy to introduce the first just-maybe intonation (patent depending), scientifically vibrato corrected fretboard for lap steels...



Apologies in advance - wife is out of town and nobody to share my birthday bottle of old-vine zinfandel with but the computer and Steinars' amazing Angel...

[Dennis Brooker]

Mark - It is is good you have confessed - Now, what to do about your punishment - I think the forum members will have to submit some suggestions - I will have to give some serious thought about these grievous acts against your steel guitar luthier brethren before I can offer my personal comments - Sometimes once a person starts down this dark road it's very difficult to pull them back off of it - DB

[Steinar Gregertsen]

Those frets are hilarious, I LOVE them!!

[Don McGregor]

Mark,
You are obviously not a well person, but I, too LOVE those squiggle frets.
Did you do them with the CNC?
Are they routed and then filled?
What?
I am trying to picture how I could possibly replicate this with some sort of tiny router templates and a Dremel, but yours appear to have a wider vibrato as they near the nut end, so it would take a custom template for each fret. Yikes!
Is it possible you might make some fretboards similar to this for sale? I'm contemplating a couple of builds, that could look magnificent with squiggle frets.
Anyway, keep up the fine work. Love your stuff.

[Jason Lollar]

I love the pickup cover and am thinking about stealing your idea- is that OK?

[Randy Reeves]

the fret board is wonderful.
I like the fearless creativity of the whole project.

[Alan Brookes]

The other day I helped a guy cut 3 b**jo rims on the CNC...

I'm always happy to see someone use his ingenuity. Well, we've seen pedal steels with a resonator, now what about a pedal steel with a banjo pot ?

[Don Kona Woods]

I....LOVE those squiggle frets.

These squiggles are designed to guide your oscillation experience.
If you will notice the wider squiggles at frets closer to the nut are for the purpose
of guiding you to a wider oscillation, and the more narrow squiggles moving toward
the pickup are to guiding you to a more narrow oscillation.

Aloha,
Don

[Gary Stevenson]

I like the copper lined cavity and that little clip attached to the side that comes down in contact with the pot. Do you have any wiring diagrams of the tone control pot and how you wired it? I always seem to have ground issues with my builds.

[Leroy Beal]

I'm fortunate to have Mark as a friend and lutherie cohort. He knows stuff!

[Ryan Barwin]

I love that fretboard. A cool looking idea, and you did a really beautiful job of it. Is it going on the 7-string steel in the photo?

[Tom Pettingill]

I'm with Jason, love the pickup cover.
Sharing how you did it will help toward saving yourself from eternal damnation

[Mark Bracewell]

You're all very, very encouraging!

You really should know better.

Don: the fret slots were cut with a laser. The right hand one is filled with crushed black agate, the other one is filled with ground coffee (espresso roast, drip grind), the markers are curly walnut. Sure, I would love to make some for sale. Coming soon - Willow Glen Guitars.

Jason: I think you should use the idea, it's a nice mounting option for that swanky pickup. Just say nice things about me.

Alan: I want to see a pedal steel with a piano soundboard, I know you'll get on it right away!

Gary: my wiring diagram is penciled on some cardboard in the shop - but PM me and I'll try to help out.

Tom: the cover was cut from black acrylic with the laser - stacked up layers.

Thanks for the very kind words!

[Don McGregor]

Man! I'm going to have to have me some of them fretboards.
You couldn't help but smile while you're playing.
Also, we'd all like to see some more of your work, so feel free to post more pictures for us to drool over any time.
Thank you, Mark.

[John Allison]

The other day I helped a guy cut 3 b**jo rims on the CNC, I know this is unforgivable, I promise to flog myself later....

Oh, Mark....if I had a dollar for every time I've gone against my better and worked on a banjo, I could buy enough diesel fuel to ignite a whole dang pile of em'!

[Ron Whitfield]

...now let's hear about the hack-o-tone!
I've been considering similar available options for a new steel, tell us about yours.

[Mark Bracewell]

...now let's hear about the hack-o-tone!

OK - this isn't a new idea, just a different way of wiring it. The basic idea is a Varitone with 10 notch filters instead of 5, plus a regular tone control (treble roll off), plus a bypass.

A good description of a varitone, with a link to sound clips is here:

http://www.blueshawk.info/varitone.htm

My big beef with tone controls has always been that I want to get some particular sound, and the tone controls on guitars (one pickup guitars) give you only 2 or 3 distinct sounds (as usual I was wrong about that - other forum dwellers here showed me how Mssrs. Byrd and Rey use the knob like a pedal).

The varitone switch lets you change the frequency of the tone knob - and because it's a notch filter, it doesn't just roll off the highs, it can roll off the bass, or the middle, or a different middle, or 10 different middles. Because it's a passive control in the circuit with the pickup (which itself acts like a notch filter) it reacts a little bit differently with each pickup - hence the 10 positions - the odds are better you'll get a tone that works for the mood you're in. I don't use all the positions, frankly some of them sound yucky to me, but with a different person, or pickup, or song, or guitar, that setting might be perfect.

There's a kind of quirky shop near where I live that sells kits for 5 or 10 position varitones - pretty much what I am doing, only I use a 12 position switch.

http://www.torresengineering.com/famguitkit.html

[Ron Whitfield]

Is that a www.bigdguitars.com Vari-Tone item or one of the older Gibson types?
Havn't tried the Big D's yet, but have used the fat-o-caster by www.deaf-eddie.net on my Strat and hope to check out the tone styler by www.stellartone.com for uses on steels. All seem to be great items for guitar and hopefully steels will find them worthwhile. Sounds like you are nearing the holy grail of tone(s), Mark!

[Mark Bracewell]

A lot like the Big D circuit, a kit is about 1/3 the price.

[chris ivey]

oh... luthier............ bracewell....
i get it!

[Mark Bracewell]

ouch!

wait, hmm, that actually works quite well, thanks

Glad I changed my name, Smuts Pitprop doesn't have the same ring to it.

hmmm, anagrams of Chris Ivey...
Icy Shiver
C. is very hi

[chris ivey]

i like the second one!

[Mark Bracewell]

My goofy idea demanded something simple so...



I'm thinking blue metalflake and amber top, maybe some cream binding - too many choices!

But what's really got me hot and bothered at the moment is this...



Insane river red gum (eucalyptus) burl & a crazy cocobolo through body fretboard. Cocobolo dust makes me break out in itchy spots, but for this, I'm willing.

[Ron Whitfield]

That red gum is mean!

[Stan Schober]

Great work, Mark !


Please to send this one my way if you are unhappy with it in any way. I will see that it is disposed of properly. Thenk Yew.