bracing

[Jason Brown]

Is the transverse bar radiused like the top or is it flat?

[Waddy Thomson]

Depends on the type of guitar and the design you are using. In a Classical most, not all, but most are flat.

[Ryan Mazzocco]

Mine are flat. Steel string dreadnoughts. I find it to.be easier on my brain that way.

[Barry Daniels]

I radius mine at a 60' radius instead of the 25' radius the rest of the top gets. As you can see, there are more than one way to do it.

[Beth Mayer]

For steel string I radius all but the center 3"" to 50 degrees (center part where FB will be is flat) and my top is 30 degrees.

[Alan Carruth]

It's your choice. I radius all the braces on my tops, but that adds a little complication when it comes time to fit the fingerboard extension.

[Mark Swanson]

Happy to have you here at the MIMForum Beth.

[Arnt Rian]

I radius all the braces on my tops to a 25' (or so) radius, and slightly flatten the upper bout with a long sanding stick, extending from the bridge area, to accommodate the fingerboard extension. Seems to work out about right for a 12 mm string height over the soundboard at the bridge.

[john hale]

It's your choice. I radius all the braces on my tops, but that adds a little complication when it comes time to fit the fingerboard extension.

So how do you solve this Alan?

[Alan Carruth]

There are two solutions for when thew fingerboard doesn't lie in the same plane as the top: fit the bottom of the fingerboard to the to, or glue on a shim and fit that. Traditionally Classical makers have fit the fingerboard when necessary. In some cases the end can end up quite thin, since Classical fingerboards are often somewhat tapered. I prefer to set the neck higher, and fit a shim.

It has been pointed out elsewhere that the actual curvature is rather small, and some folks simply plane a flat spot on the top where the fingerboard is to glue down.

Again, much depends on the geometry of the way you build. What's important is to get the bridge height right, and that's a function of how the projection if the neck surface comes out at the bridge location. There are a lot of ways to get that right, which result in slightly different neck angles with relation to the side. The slight differences in the actual angle of the strings to the top, whether they're parallel (or tangent to the curve at the bridge) or pulling slightly up or down, are reputed to make a difference in the sound, but I doubt you could prove that.

[Patrick Hanna]

Interesting, informative and good advice from all. I didn't start the thread, but I appreciate the responses, too!
Patrick

[Bryan Bear]

I do pretty much as Barry does though I don't know if my measurements are exactly the same. I don't know for sure what my top radius works out to and I plane the curve in my UTB to something near 60. I made templates of both curves (using a spline curve to draw them) and no longer remember the actual measurements. I do know the top radius is basses on the spline curve measurements recommended for the steel string top in the C&N book.