Official Luthiers Forum!

I'm building a guitar for a guy now in the 'spirit' of his '34 martin. It will be BRW back/sides Torrified Red Spruce top. It's not a direct copy of it as he's letting me have my way with the top but he did measure his guitar and sent me the specs for purpose of reference. He used one of those Hacklinger thickness gauge measuring devices.

Spruce top: 3.2mm (.127in) thick
Brazilian rosewood back: 2.55 (.1in) mm thick
Brazilian sides: 1.6mm (.063in) thick

.06in for the sides? Does anyone have any experience using those gauges and can attest to their accuracy? Seems a bit on the thin side to me. That's 1/16th inch thick, not unheard of for a Flamenco guitar I suppose.

Did he measure in multiple locations? It may have gotten a lot of block sanding/scraping; the starting thickness was probably thicker.

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Bryan Bear PMoMC

Take care of your feet, and your feet will take care of you.

Thin sides not unusual in older Martins I believe.
Even had a 00-18 in for repair recently, very lightly built.

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The name catgut is confusing. There are two explanations for the mix up.

Catgut is an abbreviation of the word cattle gut. Gut strings are made from sheep or goat intestines, in the past even from horse, mule or donkey intestines.

Otherwise it could be from the word kitgut or kitstring. Kit meant fiddle, not kitten.

Top sounds too thick to me and the sides a little on the thin side.

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"I've been had again"
Tim Benware
Creedmoor, NC

Good question about measuring more then once, I'm not sure about that. He also said it was the lightest guitar he's ever held too.