Here goes nothing..My first two guitars

[Nick Dingle]

Found you guys here a while ago, and have been reading as much as I can find before contributing. Last Christmas my wife, knowing my passion for guitars of all shapes and sizes and style, gifted me with a kit of timbers for an acoustic, and Kinkade's book. Several months later, that turned into the "Brunswick Rose" in this set of photos....

Bunya Pine top
Queensland Maple back/sides/neck
Rosewood binding, board and bridge and headplate
MOP purfling(hand cut by me--9 hours)
French Polish w/orange shellac

[Nick Dingle]

Second one the "Brunswick Beauty":

Redwood(I think) salvaged top
Acacia Melanoxyon(Blackwood) back sides and neck
Pink Gidgee board, bridge and headplates
Blackwood bindings
Herringbone rosette and purfling

[Nick Dingle]

Couple more:

Oh yeah, lacquer finish on this one...

Thanks for looking.
Nick

[Charlie Schultz]

Dang, very nice work Nick and welcome to the forum!

[Nick Dingle]

Thanks Charlie.

I was a bit hesitant to post these, as I know their flaws, and have seen the quality of the work done by your members. I've read a lot of the threads, and even though I don't understand the "science" parts, I appreciate the art/craft side of making guitars very much...it's a good healthy creative outlet for me...

I'm not much as a player, but I've always loved guitars, so.....

Several of my friends who ARE supurb players have played these two and approve, so I clearly did something right...

And. thanks for the welcome...

By the way, I'm in Australia, and am happy to see a few other members from down here

[Steve Senseney]

Nice work!

All of my guitars have flaws. It makes them special.

[Waddy Thomson]

Those look great. My guitars, too, have special features!

[Chuck Tweedy]

Awesome guitars for a first effort!!
I don't see any flaws.
Mine don't have any either.

[Nick Dingle]

Thanks for the kind words. These are very special guitars, by this definition, but...

A mate told me that you want a guitar to look good enough that people want to pick it up, but you want it to play well enough that they don't want to put it down.....

These two play very nicely, and a number of my friends who are very good players were reluctant to put them down, so that's a positive result

[Bryan Bear]

Bravo! Beautiful guitars. I'm amazed that you built your first two guitars since last Christmas. Very impressed!

[Nick Dingle]

Cheers Brian.

Well, I only get about an hour a day, and 3-4 on Sundays. I own a restaurant, and spend 70-80hrs a week there. I find the finishing takes the longest....so, while waiting for them to cure, I start another

My wife works days, so i'm pretty well uninterrupted.....it's a good release from the stresses of small business ownership

[Seth Ellis]

It sounds like you have found lutherie therapy. Those are lovely guitars and at web resolutions perfectly flawless. I struggle with the finishing of anything, so I'm impressed by your drive and the complexity of your design and details for first guitars. Thanks for the inspiration.

[Nick Dingle]

Thanks Seth,

Honestly, I don't find making the guitar that hard or intimidating. Mind, I have been woodworking for many years....Finishing is another issue. I'll keep working on that aspect. Fortunately, it can always be sanded back and re-done if needed.

It looks like my business will sell in the near future, and I'll have some time off. One thing I'd like to do is apply myself full time to building a guitar and see how long it takes.....

Reckon I could have one done in around three weeks, bar the finishing....we'll see....