Working With Wood Show 2007

This years Working with Wood show was a great success!





The Neck Shaping and How to Bend Sides Demo's were very popular.





We had Lindsay, Steve and Will help out this year. (past students) They all have a passion for guitars and timber! Thanks guys for your help :-)





We had one lucky guy from Perth, WA win the Enrolment to the course for next year.


The promotion of the NEW "How to make an Acoustic Guitar" DVD is hotting up! Lots of folk were excited to hear about the DVD and heaps of enquiries as to the content and Price range! Most just wanted to see the final product (so do I).



The idea of tinkering away on a guitar over the coming months in their own workshops seems to be a dream come true for them!




Thanks to all of you who dropped by to say hello and check out some of the students latest works!




Its great to be involved in such an exciting industry.

Tasmanian Paddock Blackwood!

As part of our "Special Feature Interviews"

on the New DVD..."A Master Class In Acoustic Guitar Making"

I decided to take the film crew to Tasmania!

First stop was to interview Chris Searle of Cockatoo Timbers, Stanley Tasmania.

Chris has been in the timber business for more than 30 years. He and his wife Frances know blackwood inside out... He deals mainly in Paddock Blackwood, Myrtles and Sassafrass!

Chris collects naturally felled paddock blackwood and some select timbers.

So what is Paddock Blackwood?

Blackwood that naturally grows in a paddock rather than a Forest. They tend to be wider in breadth as they do not struggle against forest canopy to reach the abundant light.

Forest Blackwood is skinner as it is pushing against the forest canopy to get to the light.

It takes 100-150 years for Blackwood to reach its Maturity.

Where as Plantation timbers can take up to 80 years to mature.

Old growth trees such as Myrtle, Huon & King Billy Can be found to be hundreds of years old if not thousands of yeas old (i.e. Huon pine). Mostly protected!

A great asset to the Instrument making industry is having people like Chris Searle around to be able to source the best timbers in the world!

The pictures above are mainly of Paddock Blackwood.

The one picture of me touching the tree is at "Dismal Swamp" NW Tassie. The only Blackwood sink hole in the world. It is a Forest Blackwood. (Tall and Skinny)

http://www.dismalswamp.com.au/ Check out the website for more SPECIFIC info.

The Swamp is a beautiful peaceful area. Sassafrass, Blackwood and Myrtle all naturally grow beside each other... Who could ever say that nature gets it wrong... Mother Nature must have been a Luthier!

Did you know Blackwood is a Wattle? It has long thin leaves, Sassafrass has jagged pointy leaves and Myrtle has tiny round leaves.

These timbers are all used in Guitar Making for the Back and Sides.

So the DVD Interview with Chris & Chris?

Chris Searle had a lot of great information on timbers, latest grafting technology that he is testing with some locals, more about quartersawn timber and lots lots more!....

Sorry can't tell you about it here - You are just going to have to wait for the DVD set to come out. :)

Stay tuned here comes Sassy and Myrtle.......

King Billy

I would like to thank you Chris for an inspirational two weeks at Montsalvat.

I have named my guitar "King Billy" because it sounds, feels and looks better than any other.

My guitar is a Dreadnaught with Blackwood back and sides, QLD Maple Neck, Gidgie Fret Board & King William (Billy ) Pine top, Rosewood for the binding- all Australian Timbers.

Once Chris had shown me how to use the various tools and machines, it was easy. I have been playing guitar for over 30 years and I have a collection of at least ten (the last time I counted!)

The sound is warm and resonant with a huge dynamic range.

My family and friends are astounded that I could have built such a beautiful thing - at all, let alone in two weeks.

I can see that building guitars is going to become a lifelong passion of mine.

I have already started looking around for tools.

See you in Italy!

Allan Lloyd - Student June 2007

An Australian First for Thomas Lloyd Guitars!

Very Exciting News!

We have embarked on a Project that is an "Australian First!"

In just under 3 weeks time I will be professionally filming an informational DVD on "How to Hand Craft An Acoustic Guitar Using Australian Timbers"

This is pioneering at its best, as the USA have attempted this in their own style, we are planning on giving it our all and revealing those inside secrets that others are too scared to reveal!

No one else has ever recorded information on Australian Timbers and Guitar Making before!

Our DVD project will be focused on the whole process of making a guitar from solid timbers (just as you do in the courses with me)... it will leave no stone unturned in what can go wrong, how to fix it, what, why and how to select timbers properly, tools and other accessories.

The Guitar will be a hand oiled acoustic guitar, dressed in Beautiful Exotic Australian Timbers.

There will be interviews with industry Luthier's, timber suppliers and students, all in relation to Guitar Making and Australian Timbers.

The DVD Set may be a 3-4 disc set (yet to be decided - due to editing etc) and will be available for sale in December 2007.... Just in time for Christmas!

Price point not yet determined.

We will keep you posted on the progress on the Project.