This little clamp I made for a specific job, it doesn't get a lot of use but when I need it it's the only thing that will do.
Its made from a small piece of Australian Blackwood that I had around the workshop and an old kluson style guitar tuner. I like using guitar parts to make tools - it feels right that old guitar bits can help fix damaged guitars. A bit like donating your organs.
This guitar is unusual - it was hand made in London by a small maker who only ever made a few instruments. It is made entirely from recycled wood. It has the most balanced, lively and sensitive sound i have ever heard from a guitar.
It was brought to the workshop by its very proud owner who is clearly deeply in love with his guitar http://morganmusic.co.nz/vff/.
It needed a re-fret, a repair on a minor split in the top and a hole in the side - which is where the little clamp comes in.
The back and sides of this guitar are made of solid walnut. Solid wood has a much better resonance than ply but isn't as strong and breaks much more easily.
One small piece of wood was still hanging on to the damaged area and I found the other pieces inside the instrument. I decided to strengthen the area by putting a patch on the inside. I made this patch from koa simply because its a strong hardwood and I happened to have a suitable piece in the workshop from an old ukulele top - another example of organ donation.
I removed the piece that was still attached with tweezers and glued it to the inside of the koa patch. This piece of the side covers about 2/3 of the hole. I drilled a 1mm hole in the koa just above the piece of side and passed an old guitar string through it (recycling again). This way I can align the splintered piece of side and keep it flush to the side of the body as well as attach the patch all in one process.
Its then a case of applying the glue and fitting the patch. The string passes through the hole in the post of the tuner and I can tighten it up.
Once the glue has dried the clamp is removed and the remaining splinters are glued in place like a jigsaw. The patch gives them something solid to be glued to. Then its a case of touching up the finish and the job's done.I was sorry to see this guitar go - I cannot remember playing a better sounding guitar. I got Bill in from next door to have a listen, he's an experienced sound engineer http://www.labstudio.co.nz/ and really knows guitars.
He didn't want to put it down either.
Glyn
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The wire is very fine - its about as thick as hair and more brittle as ist made of copper. It's not cheap - the thinner it is the more expensive. I have a few guages for different pickup sounds.
