Here is an instrument tht can be made from scrap stock. "Rythm Bones" shown are a few that I have carved from hickory and flamed maple.

The set on the right shows the blanks that I start with. I make then on my 2 axis CNC to insure the correct curve.

Different woods make different sounds. Even carving them different will produce differnt sounds. I have enough scrap for about 12 pair.

I left three pair with my friend who owns Blue Fish Guitars for him to check out. If he likes them he may sell some for me. These could be my fist professional sales for instruments.

Bones are traditionally Ox or sheep rib bones. Most Rythm Bones players have natural bone and wooden bones for differnt sounds.

I left wood on my curve so that I could put a sort of handle on them to make them easier for a novice like me to play.

I have designed them in Pro E Wildfire so that if I get access to a 3 axis CNC I can produce Rythem Bones with an exact shape. They are about 3/8" thick 1 1/4" wide and 7" long with a 24" curve to them. Below is my Pro e design and a pic of how to hold them.

My next blog will be about the area Luthier meeting that I attended. Some of the hosers (canadian for guys) were from Canada "A". I didn't take any pictures but at least one of the guys has a web site where he sells his craft. Casper Guitars. I wll put his link on my links page. http://www.casperguitar.com/ . They are really cool and sound great. Blue Fish Guitars has one in their shop for sale. http://bluefishguitars.com/.

Paul Murphy, from Blue Fish Guitars in Plymouth Michigan  and I took the very cool Heritage Guitar factory tour. Its the old Gibson Plant in Kalamazoo Michigan. Several of Gibson’s luthiers who didn’t want to make the move to Nashville, when Gibson closed the Kalamazoo plant, started Heritage Guitars and kept the plant open. They have been in business for twenty five years as Heritage.

They haven’t updated anything. Its a blast from the past. The luthiers are making hollow and semi-hollow body electric guitars using the same techniques that made Gibson famous all those years ago.

There isn’t a computer (not counting employee cell phones) in the entire facility. Place an order and its processed by hand and you will get well crafted a hand made guitar from one of their artisan luthiers.

http://www.heritageguitar.com/indexa.html
http://www.bluefishguitars.com/

No plastic feel of the new water-base finishes, all of their guitars finished with hand buffed cellulose lacquer.

No laminates for the arch tops. No CNC routers. All are carved from solid using an over under pin router rotary duplicator. I’m not sure if the tool has an official name but that describes this, purpose built, machine well.

The sides are bent like they have been for one hundred years, on a gas fired iron, shaped for the job.

http://www.heritageguitar.com/indexa.html
http://www.bluefishguitars.com/

Our tour guide was Ren Wall. This is the same Ren Wall who worked in engineering for Gibson. He is the engineer behind the Heritage HRW pickups that so many artist covet today. Ren had plenty of stories about playing licks with BB King. Designing guitars with Les Paul. He even told us of once designing a guitar for Ted Nugent based Teds hand print.

My next luthier adventure will be a local luthiers meeting, in a few weeks, Paul invited me to it. I have seen some of the acoustic guitars that have come from this group and the workmanship is nothing less than perfect. I am pretty stoked to learn a few tricks of the trade. I’m hoping that I have something to offer this group with my years of tool making and manufacturing experience.

If these guys have anything for sale I’ll see if they will let me show off their skills with a few pictures here. I know that Paul has at least one of these hand crafted beauties in his store.

I am planning a tour of the Harmony Guitar factory in Kalamazoo MI next Wednesday 06-13-2012. My friend and luthier Paul Murphy from Blue Fish Guitars ( http://www.bluefishguitars.com/index.html ) in Plymouth MI is planning on going with me. The Harmony factory is in the historic Gibson factory. This is the factory where Gibson also made its banjo's and madolins. I am so looking forward to the tour and I am hoping to get to talk with some of the luthiers. I will post some pictures next week.
Bill Battle
bill.battle@hickorybanjo.com

Its been awhile since my last blog. I've been to see the Flecktones. Awsome... I talked with the Flecktone mangement before going to see if I could get a banjo head signed by Bela. They said just to hang around and Bela would come to the edge of the stage and talk with anyone who hung around after the show. I was a little too toung tied to hold a conversation but Bela was great and signed one of my 10 2/16" banjo heads for me. So here is the display that I made for it with a picture of Bela and the ticket stub to date his signature. Pretty cool.

The whole band is amazing. Bela Fleck / on banjo, Howard Levy / on hamonica and key boards, Victor Wooten /on Bass and Victor's brother Futureman on the drumitar and drums.
I knew about Bela and Victor who suprised me most was Howard. There was one time he make his hamonica sound just like bag pipes. How he did it I have no idea.

Bela did a very nice tribute to Earl Scruggs.

 will try to get back into a weekly habit of blogging.
Bill Battle
bill.battle@hickorybanjo.com

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