use the syringe to fill the
gap only between the edge
of the honeycomb and the
redwood core. Allow to dry
overnight.
The next day, run the half
completed top through your
drum sander to plane and
level the core to your desired
thickness. The total thickness
of the finished top should be
the same as you prefer for a
solid top.
Once the desired thickness is
reached, carefully go over the
Nomex side with an orbital
sander to make sure there is
no fuzz left by the thickness
sanding belt. Be sure to blow
or vacuum all dust out of the
honeycomb.
In the vacuum press
Take your inside skin, and apply as you
did with the inner core, spreading a thin
film of glue on the inside surface using
your roller. Again, use only enough glue
so that the surface just appears to be wet
– approximately six grams of glue. Glue
can be drawn from areas
that appear to be wetter to
dryer areas using the roller.
You can use pieces of blue
masking tape to secure the
skin and the core together.
After another 90 minutes in
the vacuum press, you have
a finished top. Don’t try to
flex it just yet, but it can be
tapped for tone. Allow another hour for it to dry before
flexing. It will continue to
stiffen for another 24 hours.
other guitar, and the binding and perfling
can be applied just like on a solid top. John
does a satin French polish to keep the finish as light as possible, in keeping with the
ultra-light bracing.
stability, volume and sustain
that these tops give a guitar is
more than worth the effort. The
beauty of the finished product is
uncompromised and the tone is
dramatically improved. The steel
string makers who are adopting
the sandwich top have had even
more dramatic results. I played a
dreadnaught made by guitar maker
Curtis Paul for several days after
it was made and was stunned
by the clarity of the harmonics
through the spectrum and by the
additional tones it brought out. It
usually takes a top several months
to achieve maturity like that, but
for this guitar it was literally hours
– I am told that now after several
years it is even richer. To my ear,
the sound shimmered and soared
like no guitar I’d ever heard, and it
seemed remarkably stable through Iowa’s
wild weather changes, too – always a plus
for touring musicians.
It seems like a lot of extra work and trouble; however, the added strength,
Finishing Up
Since the Nomex adds so
much strength to the top, it
can be braced significantly
lighter for far freer vibration.
The sandwich top is joined
to the body just like any
John left one of his guitars at my house
for me to work with and get a feel for as I
wrote this article. Since I am used to a typ-
ical steel string neck, he brought along a
custom model with a narrower
and more familiar feeling neck.
Having it around has been a
remarkable experience, and has
made me even more fascinated
by John Dick’s innovations. I
constantly find myself playing
complex chords just to listen to
them ring; they sustain almost
as long as with my finest steel
string and are every bit as loud.
This guitar responds to the play-
er’s input much more intimately
than most steel string guitars,
especially to subtle vibrato. It’s
a powerful and beautiful addi-
tion to the rich palette of guitar
traditions.
The finished sandwich top
Head online to premierguitar.com to hear audio clips
of John Dick’s sandwich top in action!
