What books would you recommend about building guitars?

Flip

I'm about halfway through my first kit build and enjoying most of it, even the lessons I'm learning the hard way. On the basis of a few YouTube videos I had a luthier level and dress the frets on the neck but next time I think I'd like to do that myself. Are there any books that can be specially recommended?

Jonathangus

@melvynhiscock ;

WezV

Yeah, melvyn hiscocks book was a great start for me.


Some don't like it because it doesn't tell you how to clone a specific style of guitar.... the clue is in the title.    It takes you through multiple styles of build and talks about the decisions to make.  Its an great read and gives a good foundation of knowledge to enable further reading.


A new edition is due soon

Gizmo

Hiscock was also a good start for me (i now build with a Desktop CNC unit) ...wow now selling 2nd hand for £45 on amazon & evilbay & i was about to list my copy for £10 ! 

Martin Koch - Building Electric Guitars is also a good read

PeteC

Those are the two books I used for my first build.    Also I would strongly recommend searching for various build threads here, I learnt an awful lot by seeing how others approach their builds.  There are some really great ones here.   Also a lot of build info on mylespaul forum and TDPRI forum too.    Also check out Mark Baileys YouTube stuff. 

Good luck. 

FelineGuitars

I would say that Dan Erlewine's Guitar player repair guide is as useful a book as you'll ever read, albeit as a supplementary text to Hiscock's book - it teaches specific things in greater depth 

Jez6345789

Again another plus one for Melvin hiscox

Got me started years ago. As said a good primer

All that said if you are not one for books then basic electric builds you can pickup most of the basics online with a bit of searching.

I have to say acoustic building is on the 2021 research list and after much searching I think I have the basic work in my head but why a certain brace or tone bar is placed where it is and sized to what it is seems to have plenty of people tapping tops videos then frantically sanding or shaving.braces but none ar really saying X does this lighten that to improve top end definition so in reality it would be nice to read an acoustic primer.

Springywheel

Gizmo said:

Hiscock was also a good start for me (i now build with a Desktop CNC unit) ...wow now selling 2nd hand for £45 on amazon & evilbay & i was about to list my copy for £10 ! 

Martin Koch - Building Electric Guitars is also a good read

These two compliment each other really well. I used them for my first build back in college. 

More recently I’ve signed up to mark bailey’s website membership which is another great resource.

Kalimna

I would echo the positive comments for Martin Koch and Melvyn Hiscock - both those have a 'style' about them and complement each other.

For acoustic building, there is none better than Cumpiano&Natelson. Some of their methods are a little old-fashioned, but their style of writing is a joy. They instruct on how to go about building as well as what and why - to the extent that I would recommend a copy should you have no interest in building acoustics.

Melvyn |Hiscock also has an acoustic book, but it isn't as good as Cumpiano.

Alongside Mark Bailey (whom I took both an electric and an acoustic course with years ago) is very down to earth and a good teacher.

Robbie O'Brien has a huge line of online luthiery teaching courses, and I would heartily recommend those too - though they aren't cheap.

Good luck!

AustrianJohn

FelineGuitars said:

I would say that Dan Erlewine's Guitar player repair guide is as useful a book as you'll ever read

Seconded, and his YouTube videos are also a great resource.

AustrianJohn

Kalimna said:

Alongside Mark Bailey (whom I took both an electric and an acoustic course with years ago) is very down to earth and a good teacher.

Robbie O'Brien has a huge line of online luthiery teaching courses, and I would heartily recommend those too - though they aren't cheap.

Good luck!

Another vote for Mark Bailey - both his in-person courses (when they happen again), and his online lessons - shows you all the detail you need to know.

PhilKing

If you want a book to help you set up and work on your own guitars, I like the Hideo Kamimoto Complete Guitar Repair book for a lot of detailed information on most set up and repair jobs.

TTony

It's difficult to recommend any single book really - it depends on what level of knowledge you have to begin with, and what style/approach you find works best for you.

When I started out, I bought the Hiscox book, but found it quite hard to understand.  Mainly because I was starting from a position of complete ignorance - not only about guitar building, but pretty much any sort of practical woodwork!

So, buy whichever ones you can afford, and read them all.  If you find ones that don't make much immediate sense, read some others and then go back to the ones that didn't make sense.

Kalimna said:

Alongside Mark Bailey (whom I took both an electric and an acoustic course with years ago) is very down to earth and a good teacher.

I'd recommend that ^^^ unreservedly.    Mark has now put a lot  of his knowledge into some online courses (you can buy access by the month to check out if they'll help you);
https://guitarmaking.co.uk/guitar-making-courses ;

He's also running live workshop sessions a couple of times a week, and has built up quite a lot of useful vids on YT on specific topics, all of which are free to watch.

Flip

Advice and comment much appreciated. FWIW my experience so far has made me wary of the YouTube videos. Most seem to be professional and promote expensive tools or ghastly amateurs with no production values and dubious advice. I'm very much a bookman so many thanks for your almost unanimous views. 

axisus

I didn't like the Hiscock book. Bought it many years ago and didn't bond with it. I find video way more useful personally, but I have always learned better by watching rather than reading.

I bought Mark Baileys Udemy course some years ago and that was very good info. You can probably get most of that advice for free elsewhere though.

WezV

axisus said:

You can probably get most of that advice for free elsewhere though.

you certainly can, but you need to know what to look for.    A structured source like a book or online course is as useful for helping your future google searches as it is for the actual build


I'm a big fan of the Hiscock book, but I don't follow it at all.   I read it cover to cover 4 times, and did lots of other online research before starting my first build

Jez6345789

I think the other thing is you can have all the books and videos in the world but there is no substitute for doing. I have been guilty of that you can accumulate a load of knowledge but just doing it failing miserably and learning has no substitute. My real problem has always been time and space but I have a bit more room in the garage in spain so I am knuckling down taking my failures on the chin

PeteC

@Flip - you'll probably find that there are very few good books out there after the few that have been mentioned ( unless your building acoustics in which case there is a lot more resource ) 

once you make a start you'll get plenty of help and advice here as well. I certainly did finding my way through my first build.
 

WezV

I like having a little library of reference materials.

These are the building and repair books currently on my bookshelf... I seem to have lost a few over the last couple of moves though... hopefully in a box in the loft


there was another acoustic book I had which I didn't really like for the most part, but it had a great chapter on carving necks using the facet method.... long before people started suggesting it as a way to copy neck shapes online.   

take a bit from each  source and figure out what works for you