Guitar manufacturing
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Guitar manufacturing is the use of machines, tools, and labor in the production of electric and acoustic
A
History
Form and Materials
The guitar has been played for hundreds of years, since evolving from the Lute and the Vihuela. The earliest guitars were made almost entirely out of wood, with some using animal intestines for strings and frets. Materials have become easier to obtain over the past 200 years. As a result, guitars are currently made out of materials that better suit their intended use. Frets and strings, for example, are now almost exclusively made out of metal, which is much longer lasting and more ideal than organic material.
Tools and Process
The earliest guitars were not designed for mass production. Each guitar produced was a unique instrument artfully crafted by its luthier. This practice was common until the turn of the 18th century when the powers of the world experienced the Industrial Revolution.
While early mass production of guitars dramatically increased the number of guitars in circulation, each instrument was still handcrafted by a single or team of luthiers. For luthiers who still choose to handcraft their instruments, methods have changed very little over the past 500 years. As more advanced tooling options become available, however, less of the work in manufacturing a guitar is necessary to complete by hand. Handcrafting guitars is a time and labor-intensive method of production. Some common tools used by luthiers today are a Band saw, Drill Press, Table Saw, Stationary Sander, Jointer, C Clamps, Sanding Board, Column Sander, Power Planer, Dovetail Saw, Scraper blades, Hand Files, Router, and Sand Paper.[1]
Current Guitar Manufacturing
Materials
The majority of material comprising a modern guitar is wood. Typical woods used for the body and neck of a guitar today are
Other parts of the modern guitar such as tuners, frets, the bridge, and pickups are made out of metals and plastics. These materials offer increased performance and strength over wood or other organic material and are easy to obtain and machine.
With modern machining methods, luthiers and companies are no longer confined to working with woods. In addition, as tonal woods that offer the best sound quality become increasingly hard to come by, manufacturers are exploring different materials for the neck and body of guitars.[2]
Aluminum is a functional alternative for crafting guitar bodies. Its combination of high strength and low weight are attractive to guitarists around the world. Aircraft-grade aluminum (
Another popular alternative material for the body and neck of a guitar is carbon fibre. Advances in technology over the past century have allowed guitar manufacturers to use the excellent strength to weight ratio and cost-effectiveness of carbon fibre in their guitar designs. Manufacturers such as Rainsong have built their businesses around carbon fibre bodied guitars.[5] Rainsong in particular uses carbon fibre in the tops, backs, sides, necks, headstocks, and fretboards of their guitars, offering intricate patterns of the fibre on select models.
Modern Manufacturing Process
While handcrafting guitars is still a popular method of guitar manufacturing for luthiers and large manufacturer custom shops, the major players in the guitar industry are shifting to computer-controlled mass production of guitars. This approach maintains the quality of their instruments while increasing efficiency and productivity.
Most manufacturers use some form of geometric modelling and CNC machining software when designing a guitar. A common choice of a CAD (
A popular choice for a CAM (
CAD and CAM systems are not limited to cutting guitar bodies alone. They are utilized by several manufacturers in cut necks, fretboards, and other parts of the guitar quickly and efficiently. The advantage of CNC machining is the accuracy and precision of the cutting. These machines can make thousands of parts with tolerances of mere ten-thousandths of an inch.
CNC machining does not do all of the work, however. It is merely a tool to reduce variance between guitars, allowing the craftsman to do their jobs more efficiently and quickly.
"Buy or invent machines for dangerous or repetitive operations requiring great accuracy and employ a highly skilled worker when the human touch or the musician’s ear is required." [9]
References
- ^ Guitar Repair Tools a website describing and explaining many different tools used by Luthiers
- ^ Guitar maker tunes up with metal cutting.(2008). Manufacturing Engineering, 141(3), 49-50.
- ^ Manufacturing is a high note for aluminum guitar makers.(2008). Machine Design, 80(22), 22-23.
- ^ Korn, D., Danford, M., & Jordan, J. M. (2008). Start-up shop makes splash machining aluminum guitars. Modern Machine Shop, 80(8), 130-135.
- ^ Decker Jr., J. A. (1997). Production technology: Commercial composite-materials acoustic guitars. Part 1 (of 2), May 4, 1997 - May 8, 42(1) 582-592.
- ^ Bates, C. (2005). MACHINING beautiful music. American Machinist, 149(7), 26-31.
- ^ Anonymous. Manufacturing is a high note for Aluminum Guitar Maker. (2008, November). Machine Design, 80(22), 22-23. Retrieved March 1, 2010, from ABI/INFORM Global. (Document ID: 1603665201).
- ^ Guitar maker tunes up with metal cutting.(2008). Manufacturing Engineering, 141(3), 49-50.
- ^ How today's guitar legends are made.(2006). Wood & Wood Products, 111(1), 33-36.