Here you find an overview of materials I use for my standard guitars and some if the design features
Design
European Spruce Top
European spruce (Picea Abies) is used for the soundboard, it has a very light, creamy white colour. The texture of the wood is super fine and has very straight grain lines.
It produces nice sharp tones which are very clear and crispy and has the ability to produce an abundance of volume.
Unlike cedar tops the spruce needs to be played over time to come to it’s true tonal potential, it needs to mature over time by playing. However, when my guitars are finished I hang them up with the ToneRite system for 120 hours before sending it off. This system simply accelerates the maturing process by years. When you make your order you can add a note if you would like this to be done on your guitar.
Western Red Cedar Top
Western red cedar (Thuja Plicata) is also used for the soundboard and has a very intimate and warm tone. It has a nice red-tan colour, which can run from light brown to a kind of cinnamon.
Personally this is one of my favorite woods for a guitar top because of the beautiful warm tones, and basically it already sounds to it’s full potential after you string up the guitar for the first time.
Indian Rosewood Back
Indian rosewood (Dalbergia Latifolia) has been used for making classical and western guitars for many decades. The colour varies from very dark brown to chocolate with sometimes red flavours or a purple shine.
The density is very high which results in a very good projection of the vibrating soundboard.
I have beautiful old pieces in stock, and for every guitar I select the ones I think match best with the bindings and purflings.
Spanish Cypress Back
Ciprés (Cupressus Sempervirens) is a light coloured wood, sometimes pale yellowish or reddish brown. It has a characteristic aroma that you can easily recognise. Many flamenco players when picking up a flamenco guitar for the first time smell the inside of the guitar to know if it is made of real cypress.
Cypress is used only for flamenco guitars, it gives a real flamenco tone to the guitar.
The Rosette
This is one part of the design of a guitar where the guitar maker can express their creativity and add something personal to the instrument.
My signature rosette’s are build up from over 8000 individual pieces of wood and represent the first later of my name, Haven.
The colouring scheme is always matching the design of the guitar.
20th Fret
Normally a classical guitar is build with an nineteen fretted fingerboard.
On request I can add a 20th fret, It’s a nice extra and it looks great.
Bindings & Purflings
Bindings and purflings are strips of wood which are used to decorate the edges of the guitar. It also functions as a final connection (binding) of the back and the top to the sides of the guitar.
Because they are needed for extra strength in the build, it’s a perfect part where we can add something extra to the guitar by using coloured strips of wood, you can think of combinations with black, white, red, green, blue, brown for instance.
I find it aesthetically important to have matching colours which also come back in the rosette. The headstock is a part where you can use a center strip with the same combinations which look very nice.
Headstock
In the pictures you can see my two main head stock designs, the one on the left is for my classical series and the other for the flamenco’s.
I make all my head plates out of the back piece and glue it together to have a book matched plate, just like with the guitar back. Because it is from the left over pieces from the back there is a perfect match with the rest of the body.
Soundport
The soundport is an extra opening on the side of the guitar, usually located on the upper bout and sometimes on both sides.
It gives the player the ability to have a better idea of how he is playing because it is directed towards the player.
There are many designs possible, the one in the picture I use as my signature soundport. It is an optional feature.
Armrest
The armrest is simply a rounded piece of wood on the edge of the guitar where the arm sits when playing.
It is simply to have more comfort for your arm when playing for long periods.
It’s an optional feature.
Nut & Saddle
All my guitars are built with bone nuts and saddles.
As every guitar is handmade and therefor unique, I make all my nuts and saddles from raw pieces of bone.
The advantage of that is that I can adjust the string action and string spacing to the player’s needs, and do the final intonation adjustments when needed.
Before I string up the guitar I buff them to a nice polished gloss.
French Polish
There are many ways to finish a guitar, but for tonal qualities and looks, French polish is the absolute way to create a master piece.
Thousands of microscopic thin layers of shellac are rubbed onto the surface to form an amazing shiny finish, which will complement any guitar.
Because it is so thin it has minimum influence on the tone and allows the harmonic characteristics of the wood to flow freely. With lacquers it sometimes can feel and sound like the true potential is locked in underneath the coats.
All my guitars are French polished with super blond shellac flakes to keep the true beauty of the wood visible.
There are more colour variations of shellac possible like orange or more ruby colour, this is a personal preference and can be done on request.
