1920's Martin: Bar Frets and Koa

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[@KZ-ko4vm]

42 minutes, already know it's gonna be good. Time to grab a beer and enjoy it.

[@stephenharrison7514]

Snap!

[@paulbateman81]

Just doing the same 🍺

[@jenniferwhitewolf3784]

A cafe mocha for me today... sip and watch!

[@SilasHumphreys]

A cup of tea for me, but very much with you on the enjoyment front!

[@KZ-ko4vm]

Just finished watching, 100% worth it, better than any of the marvel movies.

[@kevinmallow2826]

You’re exactly right regarding the bar fret roller. When I took the Martin tour I was able to talk to one of the “elder” repairmen. I was questioning about hide glue, but I watched as he worked on an 1800’s Martin with bar frets. The roller was not exceptionally big but it was heavy and very old. He used a feeler gauge to size each slot and rolled each fret to the thickness of each slots individual width.

[@SilasHumphreys]

That was absolutely fascinating, and quite the education as well. Lovely to see the inner workings of such an uncommon instrument.

[@boojbah1]

Growing up and spending my entire life in Hawaii, I must give you props for your historical recitation, (close enough) pronouncement of Kealakekua, and especially your use of "stink eye". I had to laugh; the enunciation was as though you spent your teen years in slippas (flip flops) here on Hawaii...Love it! Always enjoy your content. Thanks.... jimmy.

[@user-il2pm4zn3e]

It's so satisfying to listen to you describe an extremely complicated task in such an uncomplicated way. Your videos are fascinating and such a pleasure to watch. Your sense of humor is priceless, and your craftsmanship is excellent. Thank you for sharing your craft on the channel.

[@HailRider]

That neck came off beautifully. What a unigue guitar with that wood.

[@lawrenceburchett7411]

What an adventure, thanks for sharing, I am learning. I am a lifelong wooden boat restoration guy and sometimes a furniture maker. I have a 30-year-old Washburn acoustic (nothing special) that has some problems that I am going to try to fix. You have a nice quiet firm teaching style.

[@HC_GUITAR]

Love the long videos! I could listen to you talk about guitars all day 😎

[@pablobruning4508]

Loved your singing of "Little Grass Shack"... you ought to record! LOL

[@guiart4728]

Those marks look like cigarette burns….sounds amazing…koa rings like a bell!

[@WildwoodSon]

It was a joy to watch you work on this instrument. It reminded me how much I miss my 1926 0-18K; it was such a sweet instrument, and the original bridge plate and bracing were heavily enough to use extra-light Vinci steel strings. It had a pyramid bridge and the original bar frets. Marty Lanham set it up for me and it was a joy to play. It took practice to get my right hand to fret cleanly. I will never forget the tone- sublime.

[@RobMods]

FWIW, Koa is a very close relative of Australian Blackwood (Acacia Melanoxylon). The trees and the timber are almost indistinguishable. Here in Australia, there are now fairly well established plantations of the species, and old growth is tightly maintained. It has been used in luthiery for decades. Mostly as back and sides, but also occasionally as faces or necks. I believe there are also plantations in Asia these days. I've seen Chinese made budget instruments from Cort etc that feature the timber. Thanks as always for this great content!

[@markfischer5044]

I had a beloved teacher (4th-6th grade) whose mantra was "Craftsmanship-Scholarship." You absolutely embody this ethic. If "Philosophy of Craftsmanship" isn't a thing, it absolutely should be.

[@Lu_Woods]

Love the sound of a friction tight wood joint. Nice landing.

[@claudecat]

Amazing stuff as always, but as I'm watching the preamble/exposition, I realize that that's why I watch every single Ted video. It's not his repair technique or work habits, it's his interest in and willingness to share the information he gathers along the way. His summary of how Hawaiian music became a commodity early in the 20th century was spot on, and I love the comparison to grunge's rise in the 90's (though it seems to me that the Hawaiian thing had and will have had a much more significant impact ultimately - grunge was a blip, we all recognize a Hawaiian steel guitar sound). Back to the video...

[@claudecat]

After watching the whole thing, the guitar sounds good, but I would have loved to hear some bare fingers playing. For me, a no picks guy, the sound of a pick on an acoustic is like too much gain on an electric: it makes 'em all sound alike. Think about it; I'd bet that in double blind research, many people would find two totally different acoustics identical in sound when using a pick, especially arpeggios and such, whereas with fingers the sound of the guitar itself presents itself more readily.

[@HBSuccess]

Ted I lived in one of those 130 yr old houses for 25 yrs. Your cluster flies are right on time bur they’re probably not coming from where you think. Their larvae is a parasite of common earthworms and between mid July and mid-August they emerge from the ground as adult flies. They then find their way into every nook and crannie, even between stones of a stone foundation. They live a long time as adults relatively as insects go, so they will also “cluster” in warm places under siding or between cracks in old sheathing boards… and continue to annoy you. We got them completely under control with the help of one of the big name pest control companies but it took several years and a lot of dusting and spraying stuff you don’t want to consume . You have to break the lifecycle killing newly hatched adults before they can lay new eggs ,so that means treating siding, window exteriors, attics, and any other place they might land after emerging as adults in July.

[@Sammywhat]

I was really hoping that last chord would have been an E Major à la Roundabout. A proper ending for such phenomenal work as always! Thanks for the great adventure!! 🙏🙏🙏

[@johns6265]

Beautiful work on a job where things could have gone wrong so easily.

[@budddyknippers2005]

Thanks most complete I have ever seen great job !

[@sunnydalepro]

you are one of my favorite KZbinrs. Always educational, Always happy to see a new one show up.

[@ElenaChuckYT]

This guitar is a dream! Love Hawaii, ukuleles, Koa, Martins and Ted’s videos!

[@timooehling9258]

"that fret's a-rockin' so I'ma come a-knockin'" absolutely killed me.

[@dickranmarsupial4911]

One of your very best; A really interesting job, great camera work and entertaining and informative voice over. great!

[@robbiebell5453]

Love your work, dude!! Keep up the good work. Oh, and that money order is in its way to your Nigeria address!!

[@that_thing_I_do]

Worth waiting for the final sound. Flies? Yes, the lord of the flies is watching too.

[@RockStarOscarStern634]

4:14 Alot of Hawaiian Martin Guitars were converted to Spanish Guitars & this is one of them. They replaced the Flush Frets w/ Raised ones & also lowered the action.

[@leifwright1255]

Flies are the bane of my existence. Seems like one or two days every year, my house becomes the Amityville Horror house and I go on a fly-swatting rampage. This year it hasn’t happened yet, which I attribute to the extreme heat in Oklahoma so far this summer.

[@Tobilikethis]

Love the Sound 😁👌🏻 .... and good job as always💪🏻

[@martin-1965]

Yes it sounded like a well seasoned classical guitar even with steel strings - most surprised. A gorgeous tone and to think it is a century old - wow! I don't buy into the tonewood nonsense on electric solid body guitars, but with an acoustic - such as my 45 year old (had since a child from new) classical, I was told it's sound would mature with age and that has definitely been the case. And, as always, such beautiful work from Tim in restoring that guitar to it's former glory. I would never have the talent or the patience.

[@jthonn]

Ted, I can't believe how good that little guitar sounds. Great job on the repair.

[@dougstrong1750]

Your sensitivity for the individual instrument shines through in this video! No two are alike, so each must be treated as its own piece of art.

[@In_MT]

Really enjoyed watching this repair. Great skill and patience! And the guitar sounds amazing :-)

[@DavidBrown-it9ig]

Marvelous work! That guitar sounds beautiful!

[@aipsong]

Thanks!!! I have only built 1 guitar, a solid body electric, but I have learned a huge amount watching your videos!! Vive la guitare!!!!

[@tompaul2591]

From a kit? Did you shape everything? What about the neck etc? This may be something I'd like to do also.

[@aipsong]

@@tompaul2591 Hello. No, not a kit. I did a 6 day building course at Crimson Guitar in England. Aside from the hardware that I bought, I started with slabs of wood. The teaching and tools were excellent. The neck shaping was all hand done - no CNC in any of the build. An excellent experience. Here is a video of my guitar build: kzbin.info/www/bejne/r6i1cqlons11lcU

[@enchantederic3792]

41:45 "let's play this thing!" That when all of that skilled work pays off. Magnificent craft, and just reward.

[@noelgraham4607]

Change of strings was the ticket. Great sound

[@33flights59]

Fascinating as always! Great job!

[@davidshaw5979]

Top Marks really enjoyed that.

[@contrabandjoe7974]

Great work!!!!

[@GP-Music.]

Perfect timing!

[@jjcale2288]

The historical references in your videos are outstanding. Thank you for your dedication in teaching us secrets of your skills!

[@markbernier8434]

Beautiful work. Especially controlling the neck shape with fret thickness.

[@nathanmayo7101]

I AM IN AWE OF YOUR PATIENCE AND DETERMINATION TO DO A GOOD JOB.........a truly magnificent effort, and yes, the steel strings had a nice ring.............

[@NitroModelsAndComics]

With this quality of work it is understandable that you are busy indeed.

[@northmanlogging2769]

in the future, a piece of plate glass and some 400grit sand paper, run the bar fret in a circle/figure 8 pattern, very controllable and quick for taking off small amounts of metal.

[@dalleenpente]

Such a knowledge in just one guy!

[@gordon5004]

That was the most fun I had all day. Thank you.

[@roytofilovski9530]

Incredible work. And the sound coming out of that little guitar is unreal.

[@falcongunner33]

I'd watch you work in 2 hour increments Mr. Woodford. Your skills and problem solving are inspiring. Thank you!

[@paulhendershott667]

You made it sing again! Can't wait until I retire and start to learn the profession enough to just make myself happy!

[@Apostrophe65]

Great video as always! Thank you for the educational tour of this vintage beauty.

[@J.C...]

Imagine how great that guitar looked when it was brand new(or even just a few yrs old)! It's made it 100+ years and still looks and sounds outstanding! That's crazy!

[@MrTheErkish]

2:25 That is how you pronounce Knutsen, with the K. -Sincerely, a Norwegian

[@adobedoug2564]

Thanks for playing them for us Ted.

[@RicksPickin]

Oooh - a long video 🤗. Awesome stuff! Thanks for sharing your work, with all the history and interesting facts. Always look forward to your videos every week.

[@steveharris1974]

What a job, kudos.

[@richardlee6886]

I found your channel 4 or 5 months ago and have binged nearly all your videos when I had spare time, so now I’m waiting for them as they come out. Thanks again for all the content, Ive really learned a lot and it’s entertaining!!

[@ReiMonCoH]

That the Rush sound🤘🏻

[@milofh550]

beautiful, love you and your work

[@conanthedestroyer7123]

It sounds great!

[@picksalot1]

As much as I enjoy your repair skills, I enjoy learning from your problem solving skills. Weighing what can be done vs what should be done, and the likely outcomes of each procedure is easily worth every minute I spend watching your videos. Thanks

[@guitarfan21]

I'm a plus 1 on all the content you provide us. I can't tell you how much I and so many others appreciation. Your knowledge and capabilities are incredible and I say "thank you".

[@justinshultz120]

Nicely done!

[@PageMarker1]

The Gentle Bear comes thru again with yet another gem of a lesson in patience & near perfection!

[@grazioso58]

the headstock dimples undoubtedly once housed rhinestones...

[@martinsivertsen7485]

Really enjoying your videos!

[@christopherzatzke8589]

Love hearing you name drop my local music store, elderly instruments. 🤘🏻🤘🏻

[@jamesmcdonald6047]

The Doctor is In!! My weekly therapy visit to relax mind and soul, your voice and the skill of your labor soothes the rough edges. I Really should pay you More 😊

[@donaldfisher8556]

Ted in your last video - the one about the scamming - you said you thought we'd enjoy this one : you are spot on.

[@merjot123]

Awesome work!

[@angelgabriella7974]

Thank you for another awesome video and history lesson. Everything was so detailed and informative.

[@scottgray5155]

Thoroughly enjoyed the repair work footage and lutherie-lingo-filled tutorial (the junction being "proud" because the "cheeks" of the dove tail needed some filing), as well as the the up-close look at a classic. It sounds awesome too. Masterful craftsmanship and knowledge.

[@phil36135]

Great repair job, and a very nice guitar. It sounds great.

[@Jonathan_Doe_]

This is the clearest visual explanation you’ve done about the sanding/shimming part of the reset. Thanks!

[@matthewbartolone7036]

Well now, Bar Frets are certainly a different animal. I didn't realize the work involved if corrections are needed and I appriciate the time and narrative, thank you for taking the time.

[@f1s2hg3]

Ted your explanation for strings is best because all confusion over which kind is gone! Thanks

[@briandevitt6903]

Your level of craftsmanship and attention to detail never fails to amaze me.

[@ocmonman1]

It seems like you have an extra sense. Like Spider-Man senses or something for luthiery. You knew exactly where to drill. Thank you for such fascinating videos.

[@jamasters62]

I have enjoyed all of your videos, but I particularly enjoyed this one for some reason. The final tone and playability was amazing. New life for an old gem!

[@eddiejr540]

Mr. Ted…I have no idea how you do such painstakingly intricate work AND film at the same time…incredible Sir…well done!!!

[@jeremywilliams703]

Fantastic! What an education I just had. ✌️❤️🇦🇺

[@vince8081]

Really great work, it sounds beautiful.

[@davecooper5951]

Amazing patience and skill. I do model-making but I can see I'll have to up my game !

[@dalgguitars]

Just fantastic. thank you!

[@steverhenius6734]

The light steel strings really made the sound. Bloom ! Patience / skill rewarded.

[@jazzcritter]

The wealth of knowledge that you possess never ceases to amaze me!

[@jessegrant8666]

Thank you for the education brother 😊

[@jeffsquires6620]

A bucket list goal, to own a old KOA acoustic.

[@baneverything5580]

You can get a gorgeous Dean acoustic/electric Koa wood guitar for about 300. Click my name to see mine.

[@pascalgalipeau1796]

Thanks for sharing. It was nice to see the fret work process. I recently had a 1934 00-17H converted. Such a nice instrument.

[@mikemace9644]

I'm not sure what I like about this channel more, the humor or the awesome workmanship.

[@hcolguitars]

Educative and fun! Really great to see you taking care of such a cool guitar 💕

[@dustinshaver1715]

Very good video thank you.

[@jenniferwhitewolf3784]

Hey did you guys see Ted’s new contest? Just kidding.. Fellow viewers, Please be careful about online scams everywhere.. More and more we need to be so careful. What was really cool this week was Adam Savage doing a huge Ted shout-out. That was pretty neat to hear Adam say such nice things about Ted.

[@jb791505]

Thanks. I've llearned so much watching you work. Some of what I have learned is very specific to guitar, some just general woodworking skills.

[@Hannibalonthelamb]

I see you Adam Savage.

[@HBSuccess]

Oh yeah… great video too - I think one of your best. You made that look easy

[@sstace69]

Without exaggeration that was one of the most enjoyable and educational videos that I have ever watched from you. I heard of bar frets but I've never actually seen one or even touched one. And to watch you deal with such an antiquated fretting system was very educational. thank you.

[@jcrgtattoo333]

That was really good, I’ve never encountered or played on bar frets before, and learned quite a lot from this video, as I do all of your vids!, excellent work sir, and the guitar sounds sweet!

[@billallen1594]

Hey Ted, your friend nailed the intro. Thank you for the videos

[@jipes]

Beautiful job and great sounding guitar, love the new saddle

[@realjumper]

That was so interesting....right from the start to the end. Thanks for bring us along on the journey.

[@ubmastering]

Nice long episode. Thank you!