I'm documenting this acoustic guitar build from scratch, so let’s get started!
Life too short for long YouTube videos? Please see the ‘Interesting bits and go-to sections’ information below.
Dan here, hello! I've been lusting after one of Jonny Kinkead’s acoustic guitars for nearly two decades… and in 2018 the order finally went in. Lucky for us, Jonny was kind enough to give me permission to document the entire process, giving us all the opportunity to watch a master craftsman build the instrument from scratch.
Jonny has been making guitars by hand for over 40 years, so please enjoy this rare glimpse into the world of a master guitar maker.
This is Part One of five.
Part Two: • Dan's Acoustic Guitar Build Part 2/5 ...
Part Three: • Dan's Acoustic Guitar Build Part 3/5 ...
Part Four: • Dan's Acoustic Guitar Build Part 4/5 ...
For more on Jonny and his instruments, visit https://www.kinkadeguitars.co.uk/
Q: Why are you spelling Jonny’s name ‘Kinkead’?
A: Because that’s his name! The guitars are ‘Kinkade’, Jonny is ‘Kinkead’. He chose ‘Kinkade’ for the guitars because nobody could spell ‘Kinkead’ correctly.
Interesting bits and go-to sections…
0:00 Meet Johnny Kinkead
1:00 Revisiting 2018 when the order went in
1:52 Details of the guitar Dan has ordered, a Kingsdown model
4:05 History of the Kingsdown model
5:52 It’s all about the wood
8:00 Why we like quarter-sawn
10:30 Different grades of timber
11:19 The body mould
11:49 The wood for my guitar
13:11 Book matched timber
14:10 Preparing the top
15:40 Joining the top
17:30 Caveman’s clamp
20:50 Preparing the timber for the neck
22:20 Bending the sides
26:40 Starting with the waist
27:30 Steaming the side
32:10 Making a smooth curve
33:18 Fitting the side into the mould
34:10 Jonny’s hi-tech waist expanders
35:10 The sides in the mould
36:00 A quick look at kerfing
36:45 Soundboard and back ready for cutting
40:30 Looking at the rosette
41:30 Choosing the ebony fingerboard
42:10 Sticking the kerfing to the sides
44:25 Stick it on proud, then trim it back
47:15 Why the sides aren’t parallel
49:00 Imperial or metric?
49:50 Soundboard with rosette
51:15 The prepared back
52:10 Feathering the edge of the soundboard
53:50 Cutting out the soundboard
55:20 Cutting out the back
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