Official Luthiers Forum!

As many of you know, this is my annual pilgrimage to Buffalo in conjunction with the Thanksgiving visit with my family in western PA.

This time, I spent three days helping Zootman Bob in the new shop as well as lusting over the most gorgeous woods in the world. In addition, I got to spend more time with Bob's family as well as with Anthony Z. and his lovely family who came for a visit. I always enjoy hearing AZ play guitar...very talented. But his wife and 2 daughters accompanied him this time and that was the real bonus.

Anyway, the shop is coming along just fine and will be a quantum leap over the formerly dis-jointed basemant, garage and shed operation. With 2 huge main rooms, Bob will have a much more efficient operation in the new shop. One room will contain the unfinished billets along with the Chop Saw, Planer, Laguna, Sander, etc. while the second room will house stickered material as well as the packaging and shipping area.

One room has been painted and 10 foot high billet racks installed along three walls. Hopefully there will be enough shelf space to accommodate his garage full of billets from all over the world. Each time we made the 5 minute trip from his home to the shop, we took a truck load of billets from the garage. It hardly made a dent in the garage!

We had fun making cardboard cutouts of the footprints of the various pieces of equipment and arranging them on the floor to maximize efficiency. What a luxury this will represent compared to the current situation! Next step is to make the new power runs to supply the machines and then actually move them in place.

The HVAC guys had just installed a state-of-the-art high efficiency furnace that included the largest system humidifier I've ever seen! We checked out the gauges and it kept a comfortable and consistent 45-47% for 2 days at various temperatures. The riggers had just lifted a huge AC unit onto the roof as I was departing yesterday. What impressed me the most is that Bob is doing everything right by using the best equipment and materials available...would we expect anything less!!!? I also got a chance to work shoulder to shoulder with Bob, Jr. who is a very dedicated son and most interested in helping out his Old Man in his post-retirement "hobby business" . A chip off the old block for sure!

...and all along, Rosie had that smile on her face with the knowledge that once the move is completed, she can eliminate the daily dusting chores around the house and maybe even get her garage back before the snow flies!

Thanks, Bob, Rosie and family for making me feel like part of "la familia"! I'm already looking forward to next year.   

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JJ
Napa, CA
http://www.DonohueGuitars.com

Sweet!

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now known around here as Pat Foster
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http://www.patfosterguitars.com

You are a good man, JJ for helping out. But to do this with no pics is a sin!

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"Building guitars looks hard, but it's actually much harder than it looks." Tom Buck

Sounds like a Thanksgiving to long for!  Way to go JJ.

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Waddy

Photobucket Build Album Library

Sound Clips of most of my guitars

JJ is picture impaired so I was not going to give him crap over it...... 

It sounds like you had a great time JJ and I heard a rumor that you guys engaged in some WAS?  Perhaps Anthony will chime in here and fill us in?

Steve...Bob is in charge of pics. I'm sure you'll see some one of these days.

Hesh...Oh...we had WAS alright!!! Every corner you look in there's something more tempting than the other. AZ will have to jump on and tout his latest!

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JJ
Napa, CA
http://www.DonohueGuitars.com

JJ... I'm really glad you were able to give Bob a hand with the new shop! You have a good heart. I'm sure Bob appreciated the help a lot!

btw. Is there room there for a stage? Wouldn't an annual "Zoot Music Festival" seem like a good idea?

long

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"No man ever steps in the same river twice, for it's not the same river and he's not the same man.” -Heraclitus of Ephesus

Awesome! I sure wish I could have been there as well... I miss you guys!!!

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I'd like to be able to prove, just for once, that money wouldn't make me happy...

I can’t add a lot to what JJ has already said other than to say it’s always a treat for my family and I to visit with Bob and Rosie. What Bob is to Zoot, Rosie is to great Italian food…loved those meatballs and pasta sauce…...hmmm…..hmmm.   Both are unrivaled in warmth. Seeing JJ made it all that much more fun.   

JJ forgot to mention that he brought a SJ along that he affectionately calls “Mario”, which I have unsuccessfully dubed J-Lo…(no accounting for taste and loyalties dude)! What a treat to play this mohagany, lutz topped, snakewood appointed beauty.

From the initial pictures Bob posted a week or so ago, JJ is right there has been a significant amount of work done and it is now easy to visualize how the new home of RC Tonewoods has the makings of being a world class processor and supplier of tonewood (the “Meca of Zoot”). Pretty exciting to see a successful business founded on values of service and quality now in the process of growing to the level it will.

As you can appreciate there is no visiting Bob and Rosie and limiting the experience to warm hospitality, fine food, guitar playing and fun banter. JJ and I dragged Bob into the zoot cave where as always we drooled over sets of all kinds of back/side sets and tops. We picked out a really nice stripey/stiff Adi top. Bob pulled out a gorgeous set of Peruvian Walnut which he strategically placed beside my wife.   Tricia examined it closely and said, “you have to get this gorgeous set”. Don’t ya just hate when that happens! Here are a couple of pictures.




Bob and Rosie thanks for taking time out of your busy schedule to host us.    

AZ bro I think that you have the inaugural set sold out of RC Tonewoods new global headquarters!!!!!

Beautiful zoot!

[QUOTE=Anthony Z] Bob pulled out a gorgeous set of Peruvian Walnut which he strategically placed beside my wife. [/QUOTE]

Anthony! You just used the words, "gorgeous" and "wife" in the same sentence. But, you used gorgeous to describe the Walnut... Dude... You gotta be more careful!!!

long

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"No man ever steps in the same river twice, for it's not the same river and he's not the same man.” -Heraclitus of Ephesus

Anthony Z wrote: "JJ and I dragged Bob into the zoot cave where as always we drooled over sets of all kinds of back/side sets and tops."

I'm sure glad the humidity control was working!!!!!!!!!

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Steve Walden
Aspiring Builder,
Bartlesville, OK

[QUOTE=Bob Long] [QUOTE=Anthony Z] Bob pulled out a gorgeous set of Peruvian Walnut which he strategically placed beside my wife. [/QUOTE]

Anthony! You just used the words, "gorgeous" and "wife" in the same sentence. But, you used gorgeous to describe the Walnut... Dude... You gotta be more careful!!!

long[/QUOTE]

Hey Bob...if you ever have the opportunity to meet AZ's wife, you'll understand why there's no need to state the word, "gorgeous". The word "Tricia" is an acceptable synonym in anyone's dictionary.

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JJ
Napa, CA
http://www.DonohueGuitars.com

JJ & Anthony it was my pleasure having the both of you in mine & Rosie's home. I miss you both. Just polished off that bottle of Baileys Irish Cream. Thanks AZ.

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Beautiful and unusual tone woods at a reasonable price.
http://www.rctonewoods.com/RCT_Store
The Zootman
1109 Military Rd.
Kenmore, NY 14217
(716) 874-1498

Stay away from the Saw, Bob!!! 

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Waddy

Photobucket Build Album Library

Sound Clips of most of my guitars

Thanks for the progress report JJ. It must have been hard to be around all that fabulous wood! Bob's new digs sound awesome too.

Z: Don't you just hate it when the wife insists you buy wood! I don't know how you tolerate it!

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Billy Dean Thomas
Covina, CA

"Multi famam, conscientiam, pauci verentur."
(Many fear their reputation, few their conscience)

I just put the zpoxy on some of bob's zoot.... WOW !!!

I'll have some pictures to post when the finish is all done... bob's da man!!

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Reguards,

Ken H

Ya'know, I was just thikin that maybe OLF should sponsor "Zootland" trips.  It would be like going to DisneyWorld for Guitar Builders.  This would, of course, be with the approval of the Zootman, himself.  If done right and soon, a 4 day trip could include round trip airfare, a room with a path, 1 day of work on the new RC Tonewoods facility, and 1 day of Zoot selection / drooling.  

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Waddy

Photobucket Build Album Library

Sound Clips of most of my guitars