Articles
Substantive articles filled with insights and experiences, authored by luthier Christopher Cozad
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The First TurboTail Guitar
Highlights and insights from building the first steel string acoustic guitar to be reliant on the TurboTail fixture.
D-Tube by DragonPlate - Truss Rod Alternative
This hollow carbon fiber truss rod alternative has been specifically designed to stabilize instrument necks with its unique profile. The D-Tube Neck Beam™ significantly increases bending and torsional stiffness and weighs less than the wood it replaces.
Neck Blocks, Tail Blocks, and Linings
A comprehensive look at the critical components that, along with the bent sides, comprise the body shell of the acoustic guitar, namely, the neck block, the tail block, and the linings (or kerfing).
The Truss Rod
An in-depth look at the history of the truss rod and all of the related topics, including neck bow, string tension, action, relief, setups and more.
Tuning Machine Heads
Tuning a steel guitar string requires a small machine, a mechanical device that can generate the force necessary to bring the string to pitch, as well as maintain it.
Tonewoods
A listing of some of my favorite woods used in the construction of my own guitars, along with photos, descriptions and statistics.
Making Acoustic Guitar Body Molds
This is how I make my own custom acoustic guitar body molds, the wooden forms that determine the shape of the guitar body and hold it in place throughout construction.
The TurboTail
An externally-mounted fixture that counters the pull of the strings. How does it work? I conducted tests and recorded the measurements to find out for myself.
Body Flexion - Neck Block Shift and Soundboard Shear
There is a longstanding tradition of building guitar bodies that are simply too flexible. I explore the issues of neck block shift/rotation, upper bout flex, soundboard shear, bellying, and more.
The Four Casualties of Steel String Tension
A hard look at the significant force applied to four components of the acoustic guitar, the issues that arise as a result, and thoughts on what to do about it.
The Fretboard Hump
Is there really a raised hump in my fretboard directly above the neck-to-body joint (12th fret, 14th fret, etc), or is it an optical illusion? And what does any of this have to do with a swayback horse?
Handcrafted vs Mass Produced Guitars
If an item is made by hand, is it worth more? If electricity is involved (power tools, lighting, etc.) can an item be described as having been handcrafted? Is there any difference between one person making a product and a team of people making that same product? Does one approach produce a better guitar than the other?
Wood is Wood - Until it is More
The right wood, worked the right way by the right person becomes more than simply the sum of the parts.
How to Setup an Acoustic Guitar
When performed in proper sequence and completed accurately, these steps will result in a perfectly playable acoustic guitar.
Neck Resets
What is a neck reset? Is a neck reset really necessary? Why would I want one? How do I determine if my guitar actually needs a neck reset?
RainSong N1 Neck Reset
How I reset the N1 neck on my 1999 RainSong WS1000 carbon fiber guitar. The neck, which does not contain a truss rod, is bolted on, and the fretboard extension is bonded to the soundboard.
RainSong Refret
How I re-fretted my 1999 RainSong WS1000 carbon fiber guitar. Includes how to remove the old jumbo frets, re-radius the carbon fiber fretboard, and install new, thinner frets.
The Infamous Guild Neck Reset
A deep dive into the topic of Guild neck resets, using my own 1976 F-212 XL as an example. Dedicated to Guild owners everywhere ...
George Gruhn
Thanks to a Let’s Talk Guild meet-up in Nashville, Tennessee in April 2013, I was privileged to spend an unforgettable Saturday with George Gruhn.
John Greven
During Christmastime of 2012 I was able to spend some invaluable time with master luthier John Greven in his shop, at his home in my hometown of Portland, Oregon.
Kent Carlos Everett
Spending a week with master luthier Kent Carlos Everett was a career-altering event, as it took my guitar building to a whole new level.
Improving a Dark Years Martin
This article is being written and edited in real time, as I embark on a journey to not just fix and return to playability this 1972 Martin D-18, but to improve it. My goal is to coax as much sound from this guitar as I can. I wish to make use of the original components as much as possible, only replacing what I deem absolutely necessary.
Makeover - 1975 Guild F-212
Lengthy article documenting my re-building of this Guild. All that remains of the original are the Mahogany back and sides. I added wood binding, a soundport, an arm bevel, new bridge, new fretboard, and more.
Makeover - 1976 Guild F-512
My favorite 12-string needed a neck reset, new binding, frets, and tuners. Oh, and a new soundboard, too. And a complete refinish. Let's just call it a makeover.
Makeover - 1980 Guild F-412
This unplayable, dirty-brown Guild 12-string had a tinted lacquer finish which I chose to remove using a card scraper. I reset the neck and ended up with a lovely blonde Maple 12-string.
Makeover - 1994 Guild D4-12 NT
What should have been a simple bridge repair ended up being a complete remake of a Mahogany archback dreadnaught Guild 12-string ... and it sounded better than ever!
Makeover - 1994 Guild DV-52 NT
It started with a broken truss rod. Then there was the loose neck joint. Then the back plate seam separation. Then the bellying behind the bridge ...
Makeover - 1996 Guild D25-12 NT
A catastrophic neck block shift and soundboard shear on both sides of the fingerboard extension qualifies this guitar for a complete makeover ...
Makeover - 1999 Guild JF65-12
A fully-documented rebuild of a classic Guild 12-string including a new soundboard, tasteful inlay, a special finish and more. This is a lengthy article with more than 150 photos.
Baggs HiFi Duet
This combination of a high-fidelity soundboard transducer with a microphone mixing system has become my favorite Baggs pickup of all time.
Trance Amulet Ultra
The Amulet Ultra is a modular system that combines the Acoustic Lens pickups with the most flexible onboard preamp offerings available anywhere.
Trance Amulet M-VT Phantom
The Amulet M-VT Phantom is a phantom-powered, bridgeplate-mounted, multi-transducer, low impedance (low noise), feedback resistant pickup.
Ultra Tonic Pickup V4
The V4 pickup from James May Engineering, like the V3, is a passive, bridgeplate-mounted, soundboard transducer (SBT) pickup with on-board feedback suppression. Some new features have been added.
Ultra Tonic Pickup V3
This pickup from James May Engineering is a passive, bridgeplate-mounted, soundboard transducer (SBT) pickup with on-board feedback suppression.
DPA 4099 CORE Instrument Microphone
Lightweight, high-quality, phantom-powered mic on an adjustable gooseneck with an innovative clip-on adapter that can easily move from guitar to guitar.
Barbera Soloist
The Soloist from Barbera Transducer Systems is a passive saddle transducer, that is to say, the saddle is the pickup! Feedback is near non-existent ...
Sunrise Acoustic Guitar Pickup
This soundhole-mounted magnetic pickup and its matching preamp represents the ultimate in the uncompromising search for an amplified acoustic guitar sound capable of high sound pressure levels.
Mojotone Quiet Coil NC-2
What do you get when you combine an active magnetic soundhole pickup, already "voiced" after a condenser mic, with a condenser mic and an onboard preamp? A surprisingly effective, non-destructive, acoustic-sounding amplification solution, that's what!
NV Tone Swan NT
An affordable, phantom-powered, high-quality condenser mic that may be mounted in the soundhole or affixed internally (to the back or the neck block using 3M Dual Lock). Available in two versions: External (with a 16 ft/5 m cable) or Integrated (pre-soldered to a strap jack).
How to Retrofit a Baggs Onboard Element with a Stagepro Anthem
I removed an older L.R. Baggs Onboard Element, wanting to replace it with a smaller L.R. Baggs Stagepro Anthem. But the existing opening left in the guitar from the Element was too large. Now what?
Making a Luthier Tool Rack
This article documents my build of a 2 ft x 4 ft x 3-1/2 inch deep Pegboard wall-mounted rack, using Red Oak for the hand-cut dovetailed frame. Born of necessity, this rack is my daily "go-to" location for various tools.