Welcome to the Elevated Fingerboard Design bench in the Workshop. From here you can go back to see work in progress, or check into the soundboard treatment center. Along the way you can take a look out the window.

Elevated Fingerboard Design

Most of my guitars incorporate an elevated fingerboard design. In fact, although I am happy to build-to-order a guitar with traditional geometry, 100% of my clients have opted in favor of my elevated fingerboard (EF) design since 1993. The entire raison d'être of the design is to afford easier access to the higher frets. To accomplish this I curve the soundboard (or "top") in the upper bout down toward the back, thereby allowing the neck to run up over the top as far as the soundhole. There is a negligible effect on sound because the all-important lower bout maintains the traditional geometry.

Neck Billet

In order to make a seamless construction for the elevated fingerboard neck, it is necessary to plan ahead. The wood is typically mahogany (Swietenia spp.) or Spanish cedar (Cedrella spp.), though domestic substitutes are possible and should be considered as substitutes for these majestic tropical trees. It should have little or no "runout" to the grain and be quarter-sawn. Initial dimensions (in mm) are 70 x 30 x 592. The 30 mm dimension is necessary to accomodate the V-joint and the heel buildup.

Two pieces 45 mm long are cut from one end of this billet and marked to recall their original orientation. Then a long diagonal cut of about 5.5ä is made on the bandsaw to yield a third piece. These are glued together to form the heelblock. Their original orientation and sequence is maintained and because the wood is quarter-sawn, it is possible to align the grain lines quite successfully.

This block is trimmed and slotted to receive a spline when the neck is finally joined to the box. Later, the heelblock is glued back to the neck billet in its appropriate position. When the neck is finally carved to its final shape, the various parts will make a seamless whole and appear as if the whole assembly was carved from a single block of wood.

The traditional Spansh slipper-foot method of construction will not work here. Instead, it is necessary to build the box and neck separately and join them later. What follows is an illustrated outline of my method.

First, my workboard has the swooping curve of the soundboard built into it. It also has provision for the main neck component that will ride over the top. At the 12th fret, where the neck joins the box, the elevation from the soundboard to the bottom edge of the fingerboard is about 15 mm. Both soundboard and neck are indexed with pins to the workboard. The portion of the neck that is to mate with the soundboard is shaped to the contour of the workboard, largely with a spokeshave.The soundboard is then braced in place on the workboard, using a go-bar deck. At this point an outside mold is attached to the workboard and the sides are fitted and glued in place along with neck block and tailblock.

The neck block has a slot that will receive a spline when the heel of the neck is eventually mated to it. After final adjustment of the soundboard bracing, and a washcoat of shellac, the back is fitted and glued in place. The box is now ready for application of purfling and bindings around the edges.

 

 

 

Once the box is complete, the neck heelblock is fitted to the box. If all goes well this is a relatively minor adjustment made by removing material from the box with a scraper. I use a spline to key the two together. When the fit looks good the heelblock is glued to the neck assembly while the neck and box are in place on the workboard. This insures that the neck is aligned properly when it is ultimately glued to the box.

The fingerboard remains to be added to the neck but before this can be done the end of the neck that approaches the soundhole needs to be cut.

 

 

I use a circle cutter on my drillpress. When all is assembled, the end of the fingerboard will align with the end of the neck and both will fall short of the rounded edge of the soundhole by about 1.5 mm. Only the extended portion of the 20 fret fingerboard will pass over the soundhole. Though others are possible., this is a stylistic solution I find satisfying.

The ebony fingerboard is glued to the neck assembly while it is in position on the guitar. For this I use polyurethane glue. It will not warp the wood since it is not water-based, and it can make a very strong joint. Before the neck is glued to the box it is brought to its final shape and the finish process has already begun.

 

 

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