weird question: bowled back guitars

[mangold]

does anybody know where i can find a bowled back, like on an ovation/applause, for sale... but just the back?
ive been looking to build an acoustic for a whil but the side bending has singlehandedly detered me. thats the only part of the building process i cant do. i figure with a bowled back itl be easy to build one!

[filmdude100cms]

just buy the sides from som site. there are sites with the sides pre-bent.

[Beauford33]

there is SRV sig strat on ebay. Im just waiting for 5 hours then start bidding. its at 500$ right now

[filmdude100cms]

wrong thread son

[Beauford33]

wrong thread son

eh, it was answered and I had nothing to contribute....and Im too lazy to hit the back button or the index button.

[filmdude100cms]

man, bowled backs sound horrible.

[Beauford33]

man, bowled backs sound horrible.

I dont think he will mind

[DUS7IN]

come on- don't be scared by the side bending. Build the guitar you want but don't expect it to be perfect. plus if you aren't willing to bend the sides then you will be stuck doing your binding with plastic! Do you want that in a hand built guitar. I suggest learn everything you can on this first one. I would even suggest carving the neck by hand and use a dove tail that you set so the you can assure that the neck has a good angle on it (can be tricky) Take your time, be careful, build jigs to help out and you will have a great instrument that you can brag about and enjoy. Get in a rush and you will not even want to play it. Good luck....oh and read lots before you do any task.

[mangold]

come on- don't be scared by the side bending. Build the guitar you want but don't expect it to be perfect. plus if you aren't willing to bend the sides then you will be stuck doing your binding with plastic! Do you want that in a hand built guitar. I suggest learn everything you can on this first one. I would even suggest carving the neck by hand and use a dove tail that you set so the you can assure that the neck has a good angle on it (can be tricky) Take your time, be careful, build jigs to help out and you will have a great instrument that you can brag about and enjoy. Get in a rush and you will not even want to play it. Good luck....oh and read lots before you do any task.

i do plan to carve the neck by hand, i have read loads of stuff, i WILL not be afraid to play it. i dont have the tools to bend the sides in my shop though, i dont wanna trust anybody else (mainly cause i wanna say i built it all by hand) and i dont wanna buy some big side bending iron, i dont have room.

To filmdude: when you say bowled backs sound bad you are most likely only considering applause/ovation. i believe i can build a better instrument then them. and where can i get pre bent sides? that would be heaven!

[mangold]

man, bowled backs sound horrible.

I dont think he will mind

was that an indirect insult? from you? well i never expected that from such a sophisticated individual as yourself!

[Beauford33]

man, bowled backs sound horrible.

I dont think he will mind

was that an indirect insult? from you? well i never expected that from such a sophisticated individual as yourself!

Id like to say something now, but I think in the best interest of my reputation, Id better not

[Brock]

man, bowled backs sound horrible.

I dont think he will mind

was that an indirect insult? from you? well i never expected that from such a sophisticated individual as yourself!

No, it was pretty direct.

[DMBFan63]

come on- don't be scared by the side bending. Build the guitar you want but don't expect it to be perfect. plus if you aren't willing to bend the sides then you will be stuck doing your binding with plastic! Do you want that in a hand built guitar. I suggest learn everything you can on this first one. I would even suggest carving the neck by hand and use a dove tail that you set so the you can assure that the neck has a good angle on it (can be tricky) Take your time, be careful, build jigs to help out and you will have a great instrument that you can brag about and enjoy. Get in a rush and you will not even want to play it. Good luck....oh and read lots before you do any task.

i do plan to carve the neck by hand, i have read loads of stuff, i WILL not be afraid to play it. i dont have the tools to bend the sides in my shop though, i dont wanna trust anybody else (mainly cause i wanna say i built it all by hand) and i dont wanna buy some big side bending iron, i dont have room.

To filmdude: when you say bowled backs sound bad you are most likely only considering applause/ovation. i believe i can build a better instrument then them. and where can i get pre bent sides? that would be heaven!

You don't need to buy some huge "Bending Iron" Get extremely hot water and a peice of PVC pipe big enough to fit the side peices in and fill the PVC pipe with water(obviously closing off the other end first) then place the wood inside, stick a rag in one end and let sit for a couple of hours. That will make the wood plyable enough to bend. Build a jig in the shape of the guitar you want and clamp the wood to the jig

[mangold]

come on- don't be scared by the side bending. Build the guitar you want but don't expect it to be perfect. plus if you aren't willing to bend the sides then you will be stuck doing your binding with plastic! Do you want that in a hand built guitar. I suggest learn everything you can on this first one. I would even suggest carving the neck by hand and use a dove tail that you set so the you can assure that the neck has a good angle on it (can be tricky) Take your time, be careful, build jigs to help out and you will have a great instrument that you can brag about and enjoy. Get in a rush and you will not even want to play it. Good luck....oh and read lots before you do any task.

i do plan to carve the neck by hand, i have read loads of stuff, i WILL not be afraid to play it. i dont have the tools to bend the sides in my shop though, i dont wanna trust anybody else (mainly cause i wanna say i built it all by hand) and i dont wanna buy some big side bending iron, i dont have room.

To filmdude: when you say bowled backs sound bad you are most likely only considering applause/ovation. i believe i can build a better instrument then them. and where can i get pre bent sides? that would be heaven!

You don't need to buy some huge "Bending Iron" Get extremely hot water and a peice of PVC pipe big enough to fit the side peices in and fill the PVC pipe with water(obviously closing off the other end first) then place the wood inside, stick a rag in one end and let sit for a couple of hours. That will make the wood plyable enough to bend. Build a jig in the shape of the guitar you want and clamp the wood to the jig

have you done it before? cause everything ive read says that if you try to do it without using an iron you warp the sides. plus, ive also read that your not supposed to expose the wood to very dry or very wet climates.

[DUS7IN]

I suggest using a propane torch that heats a large thick aluminum pipe from the inside. Wet the sides first and bend them against the hot pipe. it needs to be thick so that there is even heat distribution. When it is close to the right shape clamp it to your mold and let it dry there. I suggest having a mold that keeps track of center lines. They will be your best friend in the building process. Oh an there is no shame in buying bent sides from stewmac. It is a little scary the first time. Maybe one day you will be balsy enough to try. But do not do bowl back. Do it right.