Thinline Acoustic/Electric Guitar made from an Old Piano

Рет қаралды 12,622

Күн бұрын

This is a multipart build as there's a lot to see. Subscribe for more!
Tip Cup: Venmo: @TimSway or www.paypal.me/timsway
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www.newperspectivesmusic.com
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be good,
Tim

Пікірлер: 79

@DetroitFettyghost Жыл бұрын

I salvaged two pianos around twenty years ago and made several guitars out of the wood, that was one of the most enjoyable experiences I had and lutherie. Taking on pianos part & saving the wood (Mahogany.... And it was beautiful mahogany on both) really showed me most things I needed we're on the side of the road and not in a stewart-macdonald catalog. Much love!

@timsway Жыл бұрын

word! I've done a couple over the years. The good pianos have real ebony black keys which are quite valuable to me. I even put them on a chain and sell them as necklaces.

@ScottysAnimals Жыл бұрын

That was really inspiring and fun. Not only is the piano wood going to be preserved and turned into something meaningful but it will continue to make music for generations!

@rocinblues Жыл бұрын

I've played guitar for 50 yrs, I could never understand why all the wood from old acoustic pianos was never re-used. Many were made from high quality woods. More importantly the wood was aged, so I am very happy to see your build. Cheers!

@RockStarOscarStern634 Жыл бұрын

You found a neat way to divert the old Pianos away from the Dump by converting them into Guitars.

@fleshtonegolem Жыл бұрын

I worked at a music store that had a piano with a SOLID rosewood soundboard and Ivory keys. It was so old it was pre modern action. The thing felt like driving a tank, but WOW was the tone rich. It was a HUGE heavy beast of a Grand that took 6 people to move. Someone wanted to buy it just to turn the soundboard into guitars, and the owner refused to let him cannibalize such an iconic instrustment.

@timsway Жыл бұрын

woah

@Rebar77_real Жыл бұрын

Nostalgiaballs every time they pick it up!

@jvin248 Жыл бұрын

I really like the moon shaped sound hole with the space for the neck pickup.

@peterrahill9263 Жыл бұрын

I used to want to own a Chet Atkins model nylon-string, thinline electric 'solid body' (like Lee Ritenour played, for example), but those things were so dang heavy. Anxious to hear how this one sounds.

@nickdryad Жыл бұрын

I really respect your approach to recycled timber and making musical instruments. I rescued a sound board from a smashed up piano I found on the street. I still have sections of it that I use for repairs. But there were also sections that were large enough to make a couple of ukulele tops.

@russiangoose7053 Жыл бұрын

Reclaimed wood is cool to begin with, but what makes it even cooler is it's sentimental and special to the client and not only that it'll still be making music, just in a different way.

@greylocke100 Жыл бұрын

That looks like it will be a breath taking guitar when you are finished. You will SEE the age of the wood in it's finish. And you will see all of the years and wear and tear.

@change0038 Жыл бұрын

its gonna be cool to hear how they sound. I really like how thin they are. they look like really comfortable players

@RockStarOscarStern634 Жыл бұрын

Now that's a cool way to make those old Pianos Playable again is to convert them into Guitars, I call them "Pianitar Conversions".

@RockStarOscarStern634 Жыл бұрын

The best thing is that the wood is already coated with laquer and varnish so you already have a finish.

@guitarzleo Жыл бұрын

Nice job Tim! I like the new design that has a dedicated hole for the magnetic pickup. Both the closet door and the piano wood bodies look great. I am looking forward for the rest of the build.

@sgsax Жыл бұрын

Now that's some serious recycling. Such a cool idea, and it's already looking great. Thanks for sharing!

@Dracoool Жыл бұрын

As Syruss from the movie The Warriors said..."Can You Dig it"!!!

@cmdrerniepaul Жыл бұрын

Reminds me of working in a print shop with a customer's special paper. I would run a couple test prints on scrap paper first to make sure the paper was oriented the right side up!

@timsway Жыл бұрын

exactly. It's worth the extra time to not mess it up

@negotiableaffections Жыл бұрын

"Many a good tune, played on an old piano," as they say. Watching this and it occurs to me that this is what Tim Sway was put upon this earth to do - nostalgia, recycling and improvisation all coming together, and the music it makes will be the sound of all that! Undeniably beautiful on so many levels, cheers for sharing Tim.

@timsway Жыл бұрын

This is my favorite way to work - with someone's special "useless" object that I can make useful again.

@peterrahill9263 Жыл бұрын

@@timsway Reminds me of The Liberty Tree guitar (documentary available) that Bob Taylor & Co. created to give longevity to some American history. That project was just that sort of work. Good onya for giving an old piano an extended life making music. Cheers!

@timsway 11 ай бұрын

Hey @negotiableaffections, this comment inspired part of the completion of the guitar. make sure you check out the next video, which will be published in a week or so :)

@negotiableaffections 11 ай бұрын

@@timsway see you there, Tim (btw I'm Keith)

@DeadKoby Жыл бұрын

I've saved a few healthy pianos from the grave by purchasing them for under 10$ at estate sales. One is at my home, and the other is at a family member's. Although nobody is a great pianist, they both get some use. All either of them needed was a tune-up.... the mechanics were all fine. Both of them were in very good condition. I always wondered what one would do with a piano that's very broken down... This is a good way to salvage it.

@coltknight3945 Жыл бұрын

I've made quite a few from old pianos, some of them have amazing wood, and the finish is always cool

@LukeTheJoker Жыл бұрын

Looking forward to the next video Tim!

@1337million Жыл бұрын

That is already looking really nice by keeping the wear and tear from the piano! I like the look of the half sound hole too

@lukegreenhatch7825 Жыл бұрын

Fantastic work!! I've made quite a few solid bodies from an old pianola. Great old timber.

@easy4do Жыл бұрын

beautiful color

@ConstrutorMusical Жыл бұрын

Nice ... I particularly don't like de scratched look of the old varnish... But thats just a matter of taste... By the other side, the project is very interesting for me! I'm waiting for the sequel of this video!

@chillyspoon Жыл бұрын

This looks like it's going to be really cool - great approach too.

@stevepethel6843 Жыл бұрын

Been looking for you glad to see you are still thriving planning thinking working more guitars. Go ahead ...so far great!

@sapelesteve Жыл бұрын

Very nice work on that guitar Tim! It will be interesting to hear how it plays when you are done. 👍👍🎸🎸

@thewindsorproject796 Жыл бұрын

Looks like a WIN so far Tim! (as usual) Can't wait to see it completed!!

@andrewmize823 Жыл бұрын

I hate that the guy's piano was no longer playable, but I like the fact that you're keeping its spirit alive in a sense by turning it into another musical instrument. I don't really go for much of the mystical stuff, but if there is such a thing as mojo/chi/whatever-you-call-it, this guitar will certainly have plenty of it.

@curtismoff Жыл бұрын

aa😊zsa😊❤sa😊ss a❤hf😊😊😊😊😊zso 😊Sc😂wild i😂g😊h😊dxsa

@timsway Жыл бұрын

The "mystical" stuff is in our hearts and imaginations. To the client, this guitar will sound like his childhood memories :)

@andrewmize823 Жыл бұрын

@@timsway Yeah, I think I can rock with that. Well said!

@evanwilliams8908 Жыл бұрын

Love the idea. So creative.

@johnlemus7921 Жыл бұрын

The final look has a lot of character & is really pretty, I think it would have been interesting to see how it would look if you had a piece of one of the veneers in between the other. I've seen it done with a contrast of light and dark woods, never really with two dark woods.

@EvanJr 11 ай бұрын

So nice to watch this processes. High level!

@MrKevincryan Жыл бұрын

Such a fantastic project Tim, love it! Reusing the piano wood, Awesome!

@MikMech Жыл бұрын

Love how thin that guitar is. Might be acoustically harsh, but plugged, should be Sweeeeeet.

@timsway Жыл бұрын

yea, not a lot of great tone unplugged, but that's not what it is for.

@williamkerr3350 11 ай бұрын

Looks great Tim.

@Furtheronmusic Жыл бұрын

Brilliant job Tim

@MangledGuitars Жыл бұрын

Too cool man! I really dig that idea of the piano timber and the body design is cool as well

@moogoomoogoo5990 Жыл бұрын

I see so many free pianos available in various classifieds. Always wondered about using them as a wood source.

@timsway Жыл бұрын

Just remember they're not free delivery. The effort to get the piano out of the home is where the "cost" is. I've grabbed many a "free pianos" over the years - some that were not worth it.

@mccypr 11 ай бұрын

Looks good! Thanks! 😎

@markgordon4368 Жыл бұрын

You was either up late or up early posting this one! I have used pianos before, I like the moulding and the veneers however in my experience the wooden substrate is usually both suspect in quality and "treated" in Great great great grandpa's weevil remedy made with god only knows, probably lead, creosote, arsenic and cyanide with "a sprinkin of dynamite" still loving that overall design especially neck pocket 😀

@timsway Жыл бұрын

interesting. I've dismantled a few (and a lot of pump organs) and not found anything real chemically scary in there. Well the air bags on the organs seemed kind of gross...

@markgordon4368 Жыл бұрын

@timsway the ones I stripped in the UK were "chemically" green (in the middle of the wood 😕) there wasn't any water damage just some glowing eerieness, I imagined it was some kind of wood worm suppression 🐛🪳🪲🐛🪳🪲🪳🐛🪳🪲🐛🙂

@henrymetzger9951 Жыл бұрын

This is super cool!!!

@peterrahill9263 Жыл бұрын

Some abalone (or mother of toilet seat) would look stunning against that piano black, if you wanted to add some 'bling'.

@gothridercreations Жыл бұрын

Loving this project, the whole idea is awesome. Will the sides be the same 0.1 inch thickness?

@timsway Жыл бұрын

yes. The closet door guitar is a little thicker, more like .115

@davebauerart Жыл бұрын

Love the story! Always cool to see the decisions and problem solving working with unique materials.

@huntliba Жыл бұрын

4:52 Is this intentional or I have to get new glasses, but why are splitting those piano plates under an angle?

@timsway Жыл бұрын

that's just an error from that edge of the board not being jointed, but well within the margin of error as I'm still planing away quite a bit of wood.

@peterrahill9263 Жыл бұрын

24th subscriber LIKE; 152nd desktop looky-loo view. Is it gonna be a "Steinsway" guitar? hee hee hee... or, perhaps a "TIMAHA"? A HA!! that's it!!

@timsway Жыл бұрын

I like steinsway :)

@gregsherman674 11 ай бұрын

@@timswayomg! That’s brilliant!

@migrantfamily Жыл бұрын

You obviously have to work with what the client sent you, but it’s a shame you didn’t get the actual soundboard from the piano. That would probably be spruce and give you a better tone.

@gregsherman674 Жыл бұрын

Client here! That was my hope originally. When I demolished the piano, the soundboard was thin, filled with screw-holes, and brittle. The piano was cheap to begin with…and smaller than a spinet. A Steinway it was not. It was the “Tom Thumb” model from Koehler and Campbell. I don’t think it was ever constructed to be an instrument with great tone or longevity. I appreciate the comment, though.

@migrantfamily 11 ай бұрын

@@gregsherman674 the idea to give your heirloom piano a new lease of life in the form of a guitar is still genius.

@gregsherman674 11 ай бұрын

@@migrantfamilyThank you! I’m overwhelmed by the enthusiasm of the community around Tim and this project!

@SSRT_JubyDuby8742 Жыл бұрын

Like deployed 👍

@ZOOTSUITBEATNICK1 10 ай бұрын

🤓

@arthurkayden255 11 ай бұрын

Promo-SM 😎

@LilSirAxolotl Жыл бұрын

I always wonder how luthiers make money 😅 must be a pricey guitar after all the time and work put in! I know you love what you do but at the end of the day you still gotta pay your bills somehow

@DetroitFettyghost Жыл бұрын

Compared to a fender or Gibson American instrument you're still getting a bargain at 1000-1500$ for beautiful custom handmade instrument with impeccable attention to detail on all the things that matter ❤️

@LilSirAxolotl Жыл бұрын

@@DetroitFettyghost see what I mean though? 😅 I wonder how there's any profit at that price

@timsway Жыл бұрын

Making money is a necessity, of course. I am not "money driven" like many people. I am interested in making experiences, not cash. If I were trying to be rich, I would certainly do something else, but I want to spend my time pursuing things I am interested in and making myself and those around me happy, so here I am! A lesson I learned as a young artist/musician is to change that relationship with money and the definition of "success" as viewed by the western world. It is very liberating. If one's success goal is to make more money, by definition they will never have enough. If one's goal is to enjoy their day and make people smile, well, I can be successful almost every day of my life and all those things money buys seem less important.

@LilSirAxolotl Жыл бұрын

@@timsway thanks for the reply 😊 yeah I agree. Wasn't claiming you were trying to enrich yourself though. But seriously wondering how a luthier (especially at such low prices) can make ends meet at all in the first place. Especially with this inflation life is so expensive. But I guess you also have other sources of income? I know you also have a son so your partner probably also brings in revenue. I definitely agree that it must be very fulfilling already that you can have such an awesome workshop, do what you love and be able to pay your bills. Beats flipping burgers for minimum wage for sure! You're very blessed

@DetroitFettyghost Жыл бұрын

@@LilSirAxolotl Yea.... With rising cost of everything it's heartbreaking to think of one small businesses go through. The inflation is getting so out of hand it's really starting to get quite painful. Bless you my friend. And yes, it is quite a bargain he gives I agree.