Following the successful build of my first parlor guitar I decided to build a second one (P02) for myself with a few design tweaks based on lessons learned from the first one.
The main changes were to:
- Make the body 12mm shorter, 15mm wider at the waist, 5mm narrower at the bottom bout and 15mm wider at the upper bout
- Increase the head angle to 10degrees to give a greater string break at the nut
- Reduce the number of frets from 19 to 18
- Create a new neck dovetail template with lightly more acute angle
- Use unslotted bridge pins
Build process
Some of the key elements of the build process are captured here:
Dimensions:
| Scale length | 635mm |
| Total frets | 18 |
| Fret# at body | 12 |
| Body length | 497mm |
| Upper bout | 265mm |
| Waist | 215mm |
| Lower bout | 345mm |
| Total length | 997mm |
| Rib depth | 82-100mm |
| Sound hole dia | 98mm |
| Sound hole centre from heel | 153.7mm |
| Fingerboard width at nut | 46mm |
| Fingerboard width at 12th fret | 55.4mm |
| String width at bridge | 54mm |
| Fingerboard radius | 16″ |
| Neck thickness at nut | 21mm |
| Neck thickness at heel | 25mm |
| Top radius | 25 ‘ |
| Back radius | 15′ |
| Top thickness | 1.9-2.2mm |
| Back thickness | 2.5mm nominal |
| Sides thickness | 2.2mm |
| All-up weight | 1.93kg |
Woods:
| Top | Alpine spruce |
| Back and sides | Indian rosewood |
| Neck | Mahogany with centre maple splice |
| Fingerboard | Ebony |
| Linings | Mahogany (laminated) |
| End blocks | Mahogany |
| Top bracing (X style) | Spruce |
| Back bracing | Mahogany |
| Cross banding | Mahogany |
| Bridge | Ebony. Ebony pins with abalone dots |
Decorations:
| Sound hole | Abalone ring |
| Purfling | bw+Abalone+wb |
| Banding | Maple |
| Back centre strip | Maple bounded by abalone & purfling |
| Neck centre strip | Maple bounded by 0.6mm black |
| Fingerboard dots | Abalone |
| Headstock | Ebony facing with inlaid crossbow |
| Pick guard | Tortoise shell pattern |
Fittings:
| Tuners | Gotoh 510 18:1 |
| Nut & saddle | Bone |
| Pickup | Fishman thinline under-saddle PRO- AG1-125 |
| Strings | D’Addario XT 56-13 |
Drawings
Please find below pdfs of the key design drawings: