'Tis a pleasure to watch you do your magic! Thank you for the video. Enjoyed as always. I learn something from every one of your videos I think; even the bandsaw mill ones from a while back! Thank you again! BTW I am a retired telco "communication electrician"...lol.
Those step bits are a freakin modern day miracle! Hope you’re doing well, especially under the circumstances. Keep healthy, Jerry. We got 40 years of experience to learn still.
I have an early 1980's Alvarez classical, all laminate construction, but the sound is spectacular! I plan to replace the nut and saddle with bone. Can hardly wait to hear it then! Every Alvarez I've heard sounds great. My dream guitar is an Alvarez Yairi! Guess I dream big! Lol
I always enjoy seeing an Alvarez being worked on, Jerry. I have one circa 1973, and it is my second one. The old ones made in Japan are better, and the new ones made in Japan are the high end ones. I enjoyed this video a lot. You take care. Regards, Solomon
What I use is the tang of a quarter inch rat tail file,cut it off one inch longer than the square tang to put in the drill it works very good for me it is the same taper as the bridge pin.
I bought my daughter a new Alvarez for Chistmas. Plywood back and sides but the top is solid spruce. Very nicely made.Couldn't beat it for $360 Great job on the repair
Quite right as ever, Jerry! Joints don't get starved by squeeze out and overclamping. A starved joint is one in which the gljue line is non-continuous (e.g if there are areas where glue is mssing (either through bad glue up or inadequate surface matching). It IS theoretically possible to starve a joint through over clamping, but in most guitar situations you would a) never want that level of clamping because b) it would damage the guitar. The emphasis on starved joints is just snake oil, You want lots of glue in there to start with, so there is perfect coverage, then you want to squeeze it out so there is perfect surface matching. Matthias Wandel, who is normally a reliable source, has a clip on this in which none of his joints pass the test of amount of tension rquired by steel string guitars. this is because he is applying the test to 90 degee cross grain torsion, rather than tension as applied to bridges. Accordingly, his results can safely be ingored by the guitar maker (Sorry Matthias). The rules laid down by woodworkers over many years have held me in good stead - all the wood is wet with glue but the grain of the wood is still visible. The clamp till you get good squeeze out. I shoud mention I am an only an amateur guitar maker, but I spent my whole career weighing evidence (in health care)
Thanks Jerry for putting out a video today. Been working at home for the last 2 weeks because of the shelter in place here. This was a great break in the daily grind of life. Looking forward to another video either a song or a repair...
Just a comment on that plywood top. I believe that back in the day the quality Japanese makers such as the two Yairi’s thought that the plywood construction offered a more stable top than a solid timber. This didn’t mean that they bought in a sheet of plywood from a local DIY warehouse, they cut the plys themselves from a solid piece of wood and then made their own plywood. Is that better? I don’t know, but I owned a 12 string a few years ago made by a firm called Takeharu, which was a trademark of the Suzuki violin company. That definitely had a very thin plywood top and it sung out like a bell. Over the years I owned it I occasionally compared it against other much better known brands but I never found one to better its lovely tone. The crazy thing was that I bought it secondhand in about 1998 for £50. I’m sure that low price was simply because the shop selling it could see it had a ply top and automatically thought of it as an inferior instrument. After a little digging around online I found it had probably been made in 1975/8 so it was at least 20 years old when I bought it. I sold it on in 2017 to a guy who wanted to use it in a recording studio and his only criteria for purchasing it was it’s sound, he loved it. I hope my info. on this Japanese plywood is correct, perhaps someone else will be able to corroborate it. Stay safe Jerry, I love watching your videos.
My Yamaha BG 300 (Nippon Gakki red label) that I bought in Okinawa in 1970 is such a guitar. It is completely plywood, but beautifully done. In spite of the bad rep that plywood gets, it sounds great after all these years. Unfortunately, it has one of those adjustable saddles that Jerry dislikes, for good reason, and the neck seems to be close to impossible to straighten out. Oh, yes, and this model is notorious for the fancy pick guard falling off and falling apart. I had a new one made (expensive !), and it fell off after a few years. No matter what I do, I can't get it to stay on. I'm reluctant to try any kind of super duper bond because the body is unfinished under the pick guard.
@@nicholasjungheim2667 Plywood is generally stronger than wood, if the makers understood enough about both tone and plywood manufacture they probably could make a better guitar that way. Good luck marketing and selling it, though.
Thanks for this one, Jerry. I have a 1980 Kasuga BG 100 (SN 1149) guitar that is "faithful" copy of a pre-war Martin D28 down to the "original" finish. It has the label "The Kasuga" inlaid on the headstock. I had to lower the saddle quite a bit to to get it where I was satisfied. It cut into the saddle to some degree on each string, and I left it that way. Your solution is great, and I would like to try it on my guitar. It is already great sounding guitar.
Gerry - get a set of transfer punches or make some for marking hole positions perfectly. Only a suitable diameter rod with an end sharpened and centred like a punch, a minute or two job on the lathe. Hold pieces together, drop pointy end into hole onto piece you want marking and tap with hammer. Makes a nice center pop for the drill bit to bite into and perfectly aligned.
Apparently it's actually quite a rare guitar - this is a write i found on a forum of one. 1976 ALVAREZ 5039 Acoustic Dreadnought This is a High Quality Rare Bicentenial model..... 1 of just 800 ever made in Japan Exotic woods in near mint condition WoW...... IN STOCK IN STOCK : new arrival....Here we have the gorgeous hand made in Japan guitar this stylized RARE vintage beauty by Alvarez the Bicentenial model 5039 of which only 800 were made. This example is made with very high quality woods the top is a solid straight grained Sitka Spruce and the body is a a coral Brazilian Rosewood and the back is a statment with its 3 piece with its intricate perfling and detailed bindings truly a work of art to behold. The neck is uniquein that it is a V profile and perhaps a bit more "meaty" then some of our other vintage Alvarez guitars. Notice the beautiful headstock logo on its Brazilian rosewood headplateand isalso multi bound. Fit & finish workmanship is simply top notch. Not the unique inlays on its beautiful rosewood fingerboard again very unique... This guitar exibits excellent volume and has a deep rich complex tone of a true vintage quality instrument and is a true pleasure to play.
Jerry, plastic golf tees are perfect for not only lining up the bridge when gluing it on (wood glue doesn't stick to the plastic), but they're also great for holding the bridge in place to scribe around it through the finish because the tees are tapered and they wedge the bridge tightly in place.
I'm sure that would work on some bridges. But sometimes the bridges are thick and the holes are narrow. And the taper would not reach to the hole in the top and often the holes in the top are wallered out so that their larger than the holes in the new bridge. I see lots of things people don't run into on the average
Having subscribed for some time, I have learned a lot from you. Which is why you never fail satisfy. Once I make my first guitar, it will be your techniques that I'll be using. Keep up the good work Mr. Rosa.
Really like the use of a non-traditional wood (cherry) and dying it to match the original. That's an idea I've toyed with for awhile now, only I'll be replacing an easily cracked ebony bridge (2 times now) with not so easily split (but still very hard) elm. After seeing this, I'm more confident about it. Thanks, Jerry.
Make sure the saddle fits tight. That's usually what cracks the bridge. If the saddle fits loose it will pull forward acting like a lever. Good luck to you.
That's what you get with an inexpensive guitar plywood and gluing misshapen bridge glued to the finish............ skipped processes. Nice tone!!! You did the usual great job.
It's not, it's a rare japanese made guitar. 1976 ALVAREZ 5039 Acoustic Dreadnought This is a High Quality Rare Bicentenial model..... 1 of just 800 ever made in Japan Exotic woods in near mint condition WoW...... IN STOCK IN STOCK : new arrival....Here we have the gorgeous hand made in Japan guitar this stylized RARE vintage beauty by Alvarez the Bicentenial model 5039 of which only 800 were made. This example is made with very high quality woods the top is a solid straight grained Sitka Spruce and the body is a a coral Brazilian Rosewood and the back is a statment with its 3 piece with its intricate perfling and detailed bindings truly a work of art to behold. The neck is uniquein that it is a V profile and perhaps a bit more "meaty" then some of our other vintage Alvarez guitars. Notice the beautiful headstock logo on its Brazilian rosewood headplateand isalso multi bound. Fit & finish workmanship is simply top notch. Not the unique inlays on its beautiful rosewood fingerboard again very unique... This guitar exibits excellent volume and has a deep rich complex tone of a true vintage quality instrument and is a true pleasure to play. From a selling.
33 minutes or 33 hours to make a bridge...all relative to context. Let's say you decided to build your own shimisen (Japanese 3-string) and you have no money and you are using only the scraps in your tiny Hollywood apartment with cheap handtools (made better by love and care) and thankyouJesus a Dremel. My old Dremel Mini-Mite died 15 years ago and Dremel did not offer replacement batteries. This build would not have been impossible without one beautiful power tool, however it would have taken, easily, more than a year. Some caring human being gifted me with a new rotary tool. With the Dremel it took 91 days to build this gem. The instrument designed itself as I went along and every step defined the rest of the build. Then it came to the bridge/tailpiece. It's size was determined by the scale length - 24 and 7/8 inches because I wanted the length to match my Epiphone SG (electric) because on a fretless instrument (my first fretless) I needed to know the neck by feel. The scale length meant that the bridge/tailpiece would have one and five-eighths inch to fit in. I had exactly one piece of hardwood to work with - no mistakes allowed. I used an ukulele bridge as a basic structural model. I had the confidence of knowledge of bridges due entirely to Jerry's videos. It took me about 33 hours over the course of five days to sculpt the bridge/tailpiece. It works perfectly. Aligning the bridge/tailpiece with the nut (two popsicle sticks glued together and plasticised with marine wood-penetrating epoxy) is another story altogether. The alignment was done by eyeballing toward a light source and marking with a pencil. With an eighteen inch neck a bridge one millimeter out of alignment translates to a huge mess. So, 33 minutes or 33 hours - a bridge is a beautiful thing to behold and sorry, Jerry, I used two screws in addition to the Titebond. Brass, philips, roundhead and they integrate beautifully. If you build a shimisen you can pay thirty bucks apiece for silk strings from Japan or you can simply use nylon guitar strings which approximate the sound of the traditional Japanese instrument. There is always a way to do the impossible builds. Thank you Jerry Rosa. I would not have even considered sculpting a bridge/tailpiece without your guidance. Y'all be well.
By the sound of that guitar, I'm guessing it's a solid spruce top. But maybe not. I have a Yamaha with a wood HPL top that sounds really good, so... Nobody can make a guitar bridge better and faster than Jerry Rosa. Kind of amazing.
@@RosaStringWorks Well, it really sounded good. But like I said, so did my Yamaha. Except for the bridge business, it looked like a well-made guitar. Take care; be safe.
I've always loved the sound of Alvarez guitars. I'm shocked that they used plywood tops! They would be one of the last companies I would have expected that from. But, the ones I've played and heard were older ones. I guess like most places, they've cheapened up production over the last 20 years or so like most every place else. Good video Mr. Jerry!
I have an Alvarez MD60 which is extremely cheap for a solid back, sides and top guitar. I know this one was made in china but still pretty good quality in my opinion.
Jerry, Jerry, Jerry. every time i think i might get to sleep at a more reasonable time you drop a new video. Oh well time to settle in and enjoy. Stay Safe!
Nice to get an easy removal once in a while. The first bridge I replaced on a cheap Classical guitar, just peeled off with a little heat. I thought, what is the big deal? The next one on a slightly better old no-name (melody something?) steel string. Hide glue, tough as nails, burned the bridge to a crisp taking it off. So, I got to make my very first bridge from scratch. Quite the ordeal. This is why there are professional luthiers.
Great! My first guitar in the late 60's was an Alvarez acoustic, but it was wood, better quality back then, and it was bought in country by a transfer Cadet for me.
I really like watching your videos. You do amazing work. My Alvarez is fairly new. Solid mahogany sides, back, and neck with rosewood bridge and fretboard. No need for repairs; at least not yet.
You are the Best. You did a great job on this guitar. That is a nice looking guitar. I like the back. Awesome video thanks for sharing. Btw, I would prefer you hand make the new bridge any day. Even it was on a Ten Thousand Dollars guitar. You did a great job on the bridge.
Hi Gerry, very apprehensive about this comment (I dread telling you how to do anything) but, like you, I use pencils every day, now on a pencil,- it will (should) say something like `HB` on the end-this is soft lead which you will need to sharpen a lot but, it marks darkly & easily, 2H 3H & 4h (I`ve never seen 5)? are increasingingly harder leads which don`t wear or break so quickly but, are very difficult to sharpen & leave a mark on say a black kitchen worktop or anything wet! a 2H for your repair work, I`m certain would serve you well. those leads will be available for your mechanical pencil. in my line of work (home maintenance) even the harder but considerably thinner leads for mechanical pencils, just couldn`t cut it, the much thicker/stronger leads in regular pencils do it for me!
Lovely job Jerry as always there is always something for me to learn in videos, i too love my Powerfile a great tool and it gets in closer than most others may, I also have the reamer for drill guns but i did get a set of counter sink bits off Ebay which are just brilliant and do a better job than anything else i tried.
I own several Alvarez guitars for a good reason. They are pretty good.I have a DY90 and a DY54 which are very good guitars. I also have a Pd100, 5086, and a 5056. The '50 series sometimes have laminated tops or solid tops. He has 5 hours X $60. I would have rather picked up a Seagull S6 off ebay for less than that, but the project did turn out ok and if he likes it, that was the right choice for him. While I have more expensive guitars, the Seagull is my go to guitar that stands at attention at my bedside. Actually, sometimes I wake up with it on my bed with me.
Adheisives hold things together good but don't hold themselves together very good, so the less glue the stronger the joint. A thousandth of an inch is enough according to aerospace bonding specifications.
The glue was thick because they left finish even just a little ways inside the outline of the bridge. The laquer finish is quite thick and no matter how hard you clamp you still get a thick glue line. But that's why you always remove the finish from all of the area under the bridge.
I think that is older than 1999. Could be wrong. I think that one is from the late 70s. Also, that might have been an epoxy type glue on that bridge. Alvarez used epoxy starting in the 70s through today. Even in their high end models. Today I think the high end uses hide glue, but not entirely sure. I have an '82 5021 12 string that is awesome, despite the epoxy!
Hi Jerry, congratulations on your good repairs you could say how to make a heat heater like this one that you use to take off the guitar bridge sorry for my question
Linen on the glue and a small sealing iron to heat and wick into the cloth cut to the size of the bridge mount? I have a shoe on my filet iron that is about a quarter inch wide and three quarter's inch long, the smallest I have. All mine have teflon coating so glue does not stick.
Pleasurable viewing! A question. The strings you use to set intonation, do you use the same ones every time, or are they new ones, or are they part of the set that you will finally put on the instrument?
Hi, Jerry. Thanks for sharing videos. I have been wondering if you learn both imperial and metric in schools in the US. I was born and raised in a MM land, and am always impressed when you translate between the two different systems on the fly.
Hello Mr. Rosa! This was very interesting to me , I have recently found my childhood guitar that I have not seen in twenty-five years. It is an Alvarez, and the bridge is adjustable and pulling up in the same way. What can I do to fix it? Thank you for all of the wonderful videos! Ken Ruley
Hello Jerry, I remember your video about comparing Proxxon with Dremel and your first thoughts were a bit negative about Proxxon. How do you feel now about it?
Just a question; have you ever used persimmon wood for bridges? I know that they use it for golf clubs handles, and that it is also called American Ebony.
@@RosaStringWorks Thankyou I just wish I could visit sometime or another, maybe ?? Let me see if I can find some Persimmon wood that I can send you. It may take me a while though.
Rosa String Works I am building a medium size parlor guitar bottom is cherry top cedar. What is your opinion on cherry,cedar as a tone-wood? I put a few pieces of steal in the neck as none adjustable rods think the steal well help it? What is your opinion on Birch tone wood? I know allot of old guitar used it. Why do you think Birch is more difficult tone-wood to find now a days?
I don't think too much of the birch. I have really only seen one or two instruments with cherry back and sides. They were okay. I would think Cherry is probably better than Birch.
some things you do are impressing .and then i see your bridge removal and i cringe.... i have been doing this just about as long as you and have never taken a hot knife to the top of a guitar to take a bridge off. just asking for trouble .the worst thing you can do is return a guitar with more damage then it came with. you don't have to heat the knife just the bridge . it will work every time. just my option.other then that keep up the good work and howdy from denver
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Hi Jerry, Don here from Hamilton NZ, l been watching your videos for a while now, and l love your reasoning as you go, well done
'Tis a pleasure to watch you do your magic! Thank you for the video. Enjoyed as always. I learn something from every one of your videos I think; even the bandsaw mill ones from a while back! Thank you again! BTW I am a retired telco "communication electrician"...lol.
So enjoying your videos, especially in this crazy time, stay safe. All the best from Sweden
Nice job, once again! Nothing like a custom bridge!
This video was a real treat for us millimeter enthusiasts. :)
I enjoy watching you work. Edgar
Those step bits are a freakin modern day miracle! Hope you’re doing well, especially under the circumstances. Keep healthy, Jerry. We got 40 years of experience to learn still.
I have an early 1980's Alvarez classical, all laminate construction, but the sound is spectacular! I plan to replace the nut and saddle with bone. Can hardly wait to hear it then! Every Alvarez I've heard sounds great. My dream guitar is an Alvarez Yairi! Guess I dream big! Lol
"That worked just like I knew what I was doing!" - that's basically how all my builds go, I'm glad you're still saying it after 40 years!
I always enjoy seeing an Alvarez being worked on, Jerry. I have one circa 1973, and it is my second one. The old ones made in Japan are better, and the new ones made in Japan are the high end ones. I enjoyed this video a lot. You take care. Regards, Solomon
Sounds surprisingly good for plywood...a quality quick fix I'd say.
Good work Jerry! Thanks for posting.
A good informative video, this time we learned that a thicker stiffer bridge helps to keep the top flat.
Great work shaping that bridge.
What I use is the tang of a quarter inch rat tail file,cut it off one inch longer than the square tang to put in the drill it works very good for me it is the same taper as the bridge pin.
I bought my daughter a new Alvarez for Chistmas. Plywood back and sides but the top is solid spruce. Very nicely made.Couldn't beat it for $360
Great job on the repair
Beautiful work as always! Those old Alvarez guitars have worked for a lot of people for many years including me in leaner times. Well worth the work.
This guitar is about 45 years old. Great repair as always!
Quite right as ever, Jerry! Joints don't get starved by squeeze out and overclamping. A starved joint is one in which the gljue line is non-continuous (e.g if there are areas where glue is mssing (either through bad glue up or inadequate surface matching). It IS theoretically possible to starve a joint through over clamping, but in most guitar situations you would a) never want that level of clamping because b) it would damage the guitar. The emphasis on starved joints is just snake oil, You want lots of glue in there to start with, so there is perfect coverage, then you want to squeeze it out so there is perfect surface matching. Matthias Wandel, who is normally a reliable source, has a clip on this in which none of his joints pass the test of amount of tension rquired by steel string guitars. this is because he is applying the test to 90 degee cross grain torsion, rather than tension as applied to bridges. Accordingly, his results can safely be ingored by the guitar maker (Sorry Matthias). The rules laid down by woodworkers over many years have held me in good stead - all the wood is wet with glue but the grain of the wood is still visible. The clamp till you get good squeeze out. I shoud mention I am an only an amateur guitar maker, but I spent my whole
career weighing evidence (in health care)
Yes that was one of the few videos Matthias put out that I disagreed with.
Thanks Jerry for putting out a video today. Been working at home for the last 2 weeks because of the shelter in place here. This was a great break in the daily grind of life. Looking forward to another video either a song or a repair...
I haven't seen ya in a few days , Jerry and I MISSED YA , MAN !! You're ROCK SOLID DUDE and for that we THANK YOU !!
Thanks for the tapered string height gauge info!
I always used a wire cutter to pull the pegs. Never seen anyone else do this until now.
Just a comment on that plywood top. I believe that back in the day the quality Japanese makers such as the two Yairi’s thought that the plywood construction offered a more stable top than a solid timber. This didn’t mean that they bought in a sheet of plywood from a local DIY warehouse, they cut the plys themselves from a solid piece of wood and then made their own plywood. Is that better? I don’t know, but I owned a 12 string a few years ago made by a firm called Takeharu, which was a trademark of the Suzuki violin company. That definitely had a very thin plywood top and it sung out like a bell. Over the years I owned it I occasionally compared it against other much better known brands but I never found one to better its lovely tone. The crazy thing was that I bought it secondhand in about 1998 for £50. I’m sure that low price was simply because the shop selling it could see it had a ply top and automatically thought of it as an inferior instrument. After a little digging around online I found it had probably been made in 1975/8 so it was at least 20 years old when I bought it. I sold it on in 2017 to a guy who wanted to use it in a recording studio and his only criteria for purchasing it was it’s sound, he loved it. I hope my info. on this Japanese plywood is correct, perhaps someone else will be able to corroborate it. Stay safe Jerry, I love watching your videos.
My Yamaha BG 300 (Nippon Gakki red label) that I bought in Okinawa in 1970 is such a guitar. It is completely plywood, but beautifully done. In spite of the bad rep that plywood gets, it sounds great after all these years. Unfortunately, it has one of those adjustable saddles that Jerry dislikes, for good reason, and the neck seems to be close to impossible to straighten out. Oh, yes, and this model is notorious for the fancy pick guard falling off and falling apart. I had a new one made (expensive !), and it fell off after a few years. No matter what I do, I can't get it to stay on. I'm reluctant to try any kind of super duper bond because the body is unfinished under the pick guard.
@@nicholasjungheim2667 Plywood is generally stronger than wood, if the makers understood enough about both tone and plywood manufacture they probably could make a better guitar that way. Good luck marketing and selling it, though.
Slow down, don't turn left, dead end ahead!
Seems like I've heard that line in a song before... I wonder ...
Just heard it yesterday. Twice!
Thanks for this one, Jerry. I have a 1980 Kasuga BG 100 (SN 1149) guitar that is "faithful" copy of a pre-war Martin D28 down to the "original" finish. It has the label "The Kasuga" inlaid on the headstock. I had to lower the saddle quite a bit to to get it where I was satisfied. It cut into the saddle to some degree on each string, and I left it that way. Your solution is great, and I would like to try it on my guitar. It is already great sounding guitar.
I meant to say that the strings cut into the bridge....
Gerry - get a set of transfer punches or make some for marking hole positions perfectly. Only a suitable diameter rod with an end sharpened and centred like a punch, a minute or two job on the lathe. Hold pieces together, drop pointy end into hole onto piece you want marking and tap with hammer. Makes a nice center pop for the drill bit to bite into and perfectly aligned.
I have a set. And I do use them often.
I read some where that shipping across the ocean would mess with real wood guitars so they made them out of plywood! Great job Jerry 👍👏👏🤠
Apparently it's actually quite a rare guitar - this is a write i found on a forum of one.
1976 ALVAREZ 5039 Acoustic Dreadnought This is a High Quality Rare Bicentenial model..... 1 of just 800 ever made in Japan Exotic woods in near mint condition WoW...... IN STOCK
IN STOCK : new arrival....Here we have the gorgeous hand made in Japan guitar this stylized RARE vintage beauty by Alvarez the Bicentenial model 5039 of which only 800 were made. This example is made with very high quality woods the top is a solid straight grained Sitka Spruce and the body is a a coral Brazilian Rosewood and the back is a statment with its 3 piece with its intricate perfling and detailed bindings truly a work of art to behold. The neck is uniquein that it is a V profile and perhaps a bit more "meaty" then some of our other vintage Alvarez guitars. Notice the beautiful headstock logo on its Brazilian rosewood headplateand isalso multi bound. Fit & finish workmanship is simply top notch. Not the unique inlays on its beautiful rosewood fingerboard again very unique... This guitar exibits excellent volume and has a deep rich complex tone of a true vintage quality instrument and is a true pleasure to play.
i doubt that guitar has ever sounded or played that well.....another great job ......now i'll go for a listen cheers me hearty
Jerry, plastic golf tees are perfect for not only lining up the bridge when gluing it on (wood glue doesn't stick to the plastic), but they're also great for holding the bridge in place to scribe around it through the finish because the tees are tapered and they wedge the bridge tightly in place.
I'm sure that would work on some bridges. But sometimes the bridges are thick and the holes are narrow. And the taper would not reach to the hole in the top and often the holes in the top are wallered out so that their larger than the holes in the new bridge. I see lots of things people don't run into on the average
Enjoy your videos. Very entertaining!
wonderful work
Nicely done. Wow.
Having subscribed for some time, I have learned a lot from you. Which is why you never fail satisfy.
Once I make my first guitar, it will be your techniques that I'll be using. Keep up the good work Mr. Rosa.
Really like the use of a non-traditional wood (cherry) and dying it to match the original. That's an idea I've toyed with for awhile now, only I'll be replacing an easily cracked ebony bridge (2 times now) with not so easily split (but still very hard) elm. After seeing this, I'm more confident about it. Thanks, Jerry.
Make sure the saddle fits tight. That's usually what cracks the bridge. If the saddle fits loose it will pull forward acting like a lever. Good luck to you.
That's what you get with an inexpensive guitar plywood and gluing misshapen bridge glued to the finish............ skipped processes. Nice tone!!! You did the usual great job.
It's not, it's a rare japanese made guitar.
1976 ALVAREZ 5039 Acoustic Dreadnought This is a High Quality Rare Bicentenial model..... 1 of just 800 ever made in Japan Exotic woods in near mint condition WoW...... IN STOCK
IN STOCK : new arrival....Here we have the gorgeous hand made in Japan guitar this stylized RARE vintage beauty by Alvarez the Bicentenial model 5039 of which only 800 were made. This example is made with very high quality woods the top is a solid straight grained Sitka Spruce and the body is a a coral Brazilian Rosewood and the back is a statment with its 3 piece with its intricate perfling and detailed bindings truly a work of art to behold. The neck is uniquein that it is a V profile and perhaps a bit more "meaty" then some of our other vintage Alvarez guitars. Notice the beautiful headstock logo on its Brazilian rosewood headplateand isalso multi bound. Fit & finish workmanship is simply top notch. Not the unique inlays on its beautiful rosewood fingerboard again very unique... This guitar exibits excellent volume and has a deep rich complex tone of a true vintage quality instrument and is a true pleasure to play.
From a selling.
Another win!
Clever title, Jerry! And great job, as always.
33 minutes or 33 hours to make a bridge...all relative to context. Let's say you decided to build your own shimisen (Japanese 3-string) and you have no money and you are using only the scraps in your tiny Hollywood apartment with cheap handtools (made better by love and care) and thankyouJesus a Dremel. My old Dremel Mini-Mite died 15 years ago and Dremel did not offer replacement batteries. This build would not have been impossible without one beautiful power tool, however it would have taken, easily, more than a year. Some caring human being gifted me with a new rotary tool. With the Dremel it took 91 days to build this gem. The instrument designed itself as I went along and every step defined the rest of the build. Then it came to the bridge/tailpiece. It's size was determined by the scale length - 24 and 7/8 inches because I wanted the length to match my Epiphone SG (electric) because on a fretless instrument (my first fretless) I needed to know the neck by feel. The scale length meant that the bridge/tailpiece would have one and five-eighths inch to fit in. I had exactly one piece of hardwood to work with - no mistakes allowed. I used an ukulele bridge as a basic structural model. I had the confidence of knowledge of bridges due entirely to Jerry's videos. It took me about 33 hours over the course of five days to sculpt the bridge/tailpiece. It works perfectly. Aligning the bridge/tailpiece with the nut (two popsicle sticks glued together and plasticised with marine wood-penetrating epoxy) is another story altogether. The alignment was done by eyeballing toward a light source and marking with a pencil. With an eighteen inch neck a bridge one millimeter out of alignment translates to a huge mess. So, 33 minutes or 33 hours - a bridge is a beautiful thing to behold and sorry, Jerry, I used two screws in addition to the Titebond. Brass, philips, roundhead and they integrate beautifully. If you build a shimisen you can pay thirty bucks apiece for silk strings from Japan or you can simply use nylon guitar strings which approximate the sound of the traditional Japanese instrument. There is always a way to do the impossible builds. Thank you Jerry Rosa. I would not have even considered sculpting a bridge/tailpiece without your guidance. Y'all be well.
Another fine looking (and sounding) repair! 👍👍
i loved the lesson. just like every thing in life less is moor !
By the sound of that guitar, I'm guessing it's a solid spruce top. But maybe not.
I have a Yamaha with a wood HPL top that sounds really good, so...
Nobody can make a guitar bridge better and faster than Jerry Rosa. Kind of amazing.
That whole guitar is plywood including the top. It was coming off in layers in fact that was why it was so hard to clean the finish off.
@@RosaStringWorks Well, it really sounded good. But like I said, so did my Yamaha. Except for the bridge business, it looked like a well-made guitar. Take care; be safe.
Great work as always Jerry, it's probably better now than it ever was.
Good morning all
Great job
Great Video
I've always loved the sound of Alvarez guitars. I'm shocked that they used plywood tops! They would be one of the last companies I would have expected that from. But, the ones I've played and heard were older ones. I guess like most places, they've cheapened up production over the last 20 years or so like most every place else. Good video Mr. Jerry!
Alvarez and many manufacturers have different price tiers ranging from ply to solid exotics. Depends on how much money you're willing to spend.
I have an Alvarez MD60 which is extremely cheap for a solid back, sides and top guitar. I know this one was made in china but still pretty good quality in my opinion.
Jerry, Jerry, Jerry. every time i think i might get to sleep at a more reasonable time you drop a new video. Oh well time to settle in and enjoy. Stay Safe!
Nice to get an easy removal once in a while.
The first bridge I replaced on a cheap Classical guitar, just peeled off with a little heat. I thought, what is the big deal? The next one on a slightly better old no-name (melody something?) steel string. Hide glue, tough as nails, burned the bridge to a crisp taking it off. So, I got to make my very first bridge from scratch. Quite the ordeal. This is why there are professional luthiers.
Alvarez makes some nice guitars. After your new bridge, that one sounds like their good ones - well done :)
Great! My first guitar in the late 60's was an Alvarez acoustic, but it was wood, better quality back then, and it was bought in country by a transfer Cadet for me.
I really like watching your videos. You do amazing work. My Alvarez is fairly new. Solid mahogany sides, back, and neck with rosewood bridge and fretboard. No need for repairs; at least not yet.
You are the Best. You did a great job on this guitar. That is a nice looking guitar. I like the back. Awesome video thanks for sharing. Btw, I would prefer you hand make the new bridge any day. Even it was on a Ten Thousand Dollars guitar. You did a great job on the bridge.
Hi Gerry, very apprehensive about this comment (I dread telling you how to do anything) but, like you, I use pencils every day, now on a pencil,- it will (should) say something like `HB` on the end-this is soft lead which you will need to sharpen a lot but, it marks darkly & easily, 2H 3H & 4h (I`ve never seen 5)? are increasingingly harder leads which don`t wear or break so quickly but, are very difficult to sharpen & leave a mark on say a black kitchen worktop or anything wet! a 2H for your repair work, I`m certain would serve you well. those leads will be available for your mechanical pencil. in my line of work (home maintenance) even the harder but considerably thinner leads for mechanical pencils, just couldn`t cut it, the much thicker/stronger leads in regular pencils do it for me!
Hi Jerry thanks for another great video all the best
Great job Jerry! As always.
Lovely job Jerry as always there is always something for me to learn in videos, i too love my Powerfile a great tool and it gets in closer than most others may, I also have the reamer for drill guns but i did get a set of counter sink bits off Ebay which are just brilliant and do a better job than anything else i tried.
Always educational. Thanks!
I own several Alvarez guitars for a good reason. They are pretty good.I have a DY90 and a DY54 which are very good guitars. I also have a Pd100, 5086, and a 5056. The '50 series sometimes have laminated tops or solid tops. He has 5 hours X $60. I would have rather picked up a Seagull S6 off ebay for less than that, but the project did turn out ok and if he likes it, that was the right choice for him. While I have more expensive guitars, the Seagull is my go to guitar that stands at attention at my bedside. Actually, sometimes I wake up with it on my bed with me.
It was actually only a little over three hours.
@@RosaStringWorks In that case, it was probably worth it. Alvarez guitars are really good guitars.
thank you very much for sharing your knowledge!
It would be an interesting experiment to make 2 guitars to the same design but one out of ply and one out of solid and compare the results - Stay Safe
Great video thanks Jerry
Jerry, if you have wood that chatters up when countersinking put the drill in reverse, works at treat.
thanks for the video always enjoy
another fine job
That guitar sure sounds nice.
Jerry, I would love to see you use your dremel tool as a router and I suspect there are lots of people that feel the same.
All the best, Edgar
I'm not quite sure I understand. I use it as a router quite often and have done so in quite a few videos.
I don't mind at all. Nice job.
I was taught Flat Fret Forward
Nice job Jerry :)
had a heart attack when he brought out that sander saw it coming...
such care.....way to goooooooo!!!
Thumbs up to crush a troll.
Một việc thật tốt, Một nghệ nhân. Cảm ơn nhiều.
18:40-18:44 Mr. Jerry's inner Mel Tillis came out. 🤣
Adheisives hold things together good but don't hold themselves together very good, so the less glue the stronger the joint. A thousandth of an inch is enough according to aerospace bonding specifications.
The glue was thick because they left finish even just a little ways inside the outline of the bridge. The laquer finish is quite thick and no matter how hard you clamp you still get a thick glue line. But that's why you always remove the finish from all of the area under the bridge.
The Finish was completely under the bridge not just around the edges
The good old Ernie Ball manual string winder has a pin puller built in.
Most pin pullers won't fit all pens or pins that are embedded in the bridge. When you pull as many pens as I do you need one tool that'll do it all
I think that is older than 1999. Could be wrong. I think that one is from the late 70s. Also, that might have been an epoxy type glue on that bridge. Alvarez used epoxy starting in the 70s through today. Even in their high end models. Today I think the high end uses hide glue, but not entirely sure. I have an '82 5021 12 string that is awesome, despite the epoxy!
Hi Jerry, congratulations on your good repairs you could say how to make a heat heater like this one that you use to take off the guitar bridge sorry for my question
I have a video on how I built the side Bender. It is all exactly the same technology.
18:26 Ouch!
My luthier mate calls them string ramps and considers them vital.
😊
Linen on the glue and a small sealing iron to heat and wick into the cloth cut to the size of the bridge mount? I have a shoe on my filet iron that is about a quarter inch wide and three quarter's inch long, the smallest I have. All mine have teflon coating so glue does not stick.
👍🏼
Pleasurable viewing!
A question.
The strings you use to set intonation, do you use the same ones every time, or are they new ones, or are they part of the set that you will finally put on the instrument?
Part of the set I put on.
Buy a bridge pin lifter (or a cheaper option, a golf pitch mark repair tool)
Hi, Jerry. Thanks for sharing videos. I have been wondering if you learn both imperial and metric in schools in the US. I was born and raised in a MM land, and am always impressed when you translate between the two different systems on the fly.
Lol You had to see the metric light eventually!
Hello Mr. Rosa! This was very interesting to me , I have recently found my childhood guitar that I have not seen in twenty-five years.
It is an Alvarez, and the bridge is adjustable and pulling up in the same way. What can I do to fix it?
Thank you for all of the wonderful videos!
Ken Ruley
Hello Jerry, I remember your video about comparing Proxxon with Dremel and your first thoughts were a bit negative about Proxxon. How do you feel now about it?
Have used it a lot more since then and it is not nearly as robust as the Dremel.
Just a question; have you ever used persimmon wood for bridges? I know that they use it for golf clubs handles, and that it is also called American Ebony.
Yes I have. It is very good. I just don't have any persimmon at the moment.
@@RosaStringWorks Thankyou I just wish I could visit sometime or another, maybe ?? Let me see if I can find some Persimmon wood that I can send you. It may take me a while though.
Rosa String Works I am building a medium size parlor guitar bottom is cherry top cedar. What is your opinion on cherry,cedar as a tone-wood? I put a few pieces of steal in the neck as none adjustable rods think the steal well help it? What is your opinion on Birch tone wood? I know allot of old guitar used it. Why do you think Birch is more difficult tone-wood to find now a days?
I don't think too much of the birch. I have really only seen one or two instruments with cherry back and sides. They were okay. I would think Cherry is probably better than Birch.
Jerry! Millimeters,
some things you do are impressing .and then i see your bridge removal and i cringe.... i have been doing this just about as long as you and have never taken a hot knife to the top of a guitar to take a bridge off. just asking for trouble .the worst thing you can do is return a guitar with more damage then it came with. you don't have to heat the knife just the bridge . it will work every time. just my option.other then that keep up the good work and howdy from denver
Just wondering, do you think that thick glue is normal for Alvarez or do you think it's a mistake? Great video.
I don't know
Thanks for video! What camera are you use?
It's a DSLR Canon t7i
NeXT time try degluegoo
Can you get some of that infrastructure money to help repair that bridge?
Could do with a little LED on the Dremmell?
Their tops are normally solid spruce
That one was definitely absolutely one hundred percent plywood
That bridge iron your using the heat rise's it's not a lot going down into the wood