So, Paul Moody asked me if I'd like to rebuild a 1981 1113 Classic for him that he was buying off eBay. We decided to use torrefied Adirondack top and brace stock instead of the red cedar that was originally used.

1981 was the last year of the woven cloth bowls, so if it needed a bowl bend, I could have done one. Once I got the guitar I checked the neck angle and it looked pretty good, so no bowl bend was necessary. The frets and fingerboard are also in good shape, as is the condition of the finish on the neck and headstock.

So, this job will be limited strictly to re-topping. The top is in pretty bad shape with three major splits. The pics below don't really convey the condition of the top. The wood between the splits is severaly cupped. There is no way this top could be repaired.

The first order of business is to remove the binding and purfling.

Next, the top is separated from the lining using my trusty Xacto chisel. In so doing I discovered the reason for the notches in the lining I've seen on my 1619 and 1617. These are there to allow the brace stock to be 'tucked' into the lining. When braces are tucked normally, the lining is notched and the braces are tapered so they fit between the top wood and the lining. In this case, the copious amounts of epoxy secures the braces to the lining.

The only reason braces are tucked is to reduce the number of warranty work that needs to be done. When they aren't tucked, they are more prone to being popped off the top when the guitar is bumped. The problem with tucked braces is they reduce the response of the top. The braces on the new top will not be tucked.

Here's the underside of the top sans the braces which are still stuck to the bowl.

Paul and I talked about brace patterns and whether I should retain the original double-fan brace pattern or use the original X-brace like what I used on Jay's Balladeer. We decided to use the double-fan braces. But, since the torrefied spruce is stiffer the top and braces will be slightly thinner than the original. The standard thickness was tapered from .140" to .100". For this top, I'll taper it from .120" to .094". The braces will be thinned accordingly.

Today's task was to remove the remnants of the soundboard from under the fretboard extension and the glue from the plastic lining in preparation for fitting the top.

Whomever built this bowl didn't spare the glue. The glue joint holding the lining to the top was almost 1/32" thick on one whole side of the guitar. It was so thick that I had to take a hammer to the Xacto chisel to break it free. What couldn't be chiseld had to be ground off with the Dremel sanding drum.

Ditto for the glue joint between the underside of the top and the top of the neck block.

After pulling the top off and seeing the transverse braces that were tucked into the lining, I finally understand why the lining is notched as it is. If you compare the notches in the lining to the brace schematics on Ovation Tribute site, you can see that the notches can be used for the VT-8, VT-10, VT-11, Ovation Fan and Double Fan brace patterns.

Here's the massive amounts of glue used to glue the lining to the bowl. Talk about overkill.

The next job is to clean up the binding and purfling between the fretboard extension and the top of the neck block. Once that's done, I'll set the body aside and start jointing the top.

Dan,

Sweet! This is so fun to watch, not to mention a lesson in each rebuild.

Question...quite a few classicals use the long fan approach, with less cross bracing...some provide a V brace at the bottom.

Ovation seems to be the only company that used that double fan approach with the additional cross bracing...

Does the bowl prevent a long fan appraoch, with less cross bracing...or is this what they went with to accomdate the tucked cross bracing?

Or does it matter?

((of course i made up the terms of the bracing, so I hope you catch my drift))

By the long fan and bottom V, I assume you mean something like the Torres or Esteso seen below?

I really couldn't say why Ovation went with the double-fan brace pattern. It might have been something he discovered and like in how it responded during testing. I don't believe there's anything in the bowl that would prevent a Torres-style fan brace pattern.

The cedar top is quite a bit softer and more easily distorted (cross-grain bending) than the spruce tops, so I believe that's why the transverse braces were tucked into the lining. They're actually pretty large in cross-section and very stiff.

IMO, the best sounding tops are thin with minimal braces to impede the resonance. Naturally, there'a balance between strong enough to resist the tension of the strings, but flexible enough so it sounds good. That's what all those designers above tried to do.

Here's an interesting article on the evolution of Classical brace patterns. (See: Bracing Styles for Classical Guitars)

How come there's never a cop around when you need one...... 

Hang around the donut shop more often. I might even buy you a cup.

I got a bare hand-laid bowl in the 1619 deal, so I'm able to compare the two. The lining on yours adds a little stiffness, so it's not as flexible as the bare bowl. But, it's still more flexible than either Jay's which has the original molded flanged lining, or my 1617, which has the same lining as this 1113.

Next time you come over, I'll let you check out the bare bowl.

George makes a great point

And if it's laying around in the shop we're going to use it for something or other.

Take for example the 1651-7.

Additionally my 67 has a 2 piece neck...why...they needed a neck and probably didn't have the stock on hand. I can count on one hand, the # of 2 piece necks I have seen from the early days. 

"All guitars are hand made"

Well, what about necks and bridges?  There is something cool about having a guitar that craftsmen made happen (Including you Dan.). Maybe, back then, all guitar companies made guitars the same way...but it certainly doesnt diminish the cool factor.

Progress continues.

I got the top thickness sanded and the basic outline cut. Normal thickness for Ovation tops is tapered from .140" to .100". I ended up with a .120" to .094" taper.

Bridge index pin holes are drilled.

Sound hole is cut.

New rosette is fitted.

I laid out the locations of the braces on the underside of the top.

I'm not sure if the fan braces are supposed to be asymmetrical or not, but I followed the locations of the original top.

The braces have been kitted. The transverse braces are shorter than the original because the originals were tucked into the lining. I'm not a fan of tucking braces, so these will not be tucked, either.

All of the braces are about 10% thinner than the original braces. The original transverse braces were 1/2" x 3/16". The new transverse braces are 7/16" x 3/16", or about 10% shorter. I also thinned the fan braces by about the same amount. The originals were 1/4" x 1/8". The new ones are 7/32" x 1/8"



Next job is to start gluing down the braces.