Bailey custom acoustic guitar- Ziricote and Bearclaw Bootlegger-P1

…Decisions, decisions…

Read part 1, part 2, part 3, part 4, part 5, part 6

Euan chose Ziricote for the back and sides of his custom Bootlegger and Bearclaw Sitka Spruce for the soundboard. The bootlegger is quite large (16″ across), so I had to search for a piece big enough which took some time. This was the only one I could find which fitted the bill and fortunately it is a stunner! The figure (grain pattern) in Ziricote is called a ‘panarama’- you can see why, It looks like some far off exotic landscape…

There is a choice of two Bearclaw soundboards for Euan to choose from, both look great. Whichever one Euan doesn’t want I have plans for!

For the neck I found a piece of mahogany from the same batch as found on this Bailey Companion Euan liked. Of course every piece is individual and they look different under different lighting conditions but this is as close as we are ever going to get. This neck blank was originally put aside for Preston’s Baritone but we chose instead to use some reclaimed mahogany for that.

The fretboard and bridge are both to be ebony, the black will match well with the dark lines on the Ziricote.

I have already joined and thicknessed the wood for the back and sides, so next week I will be able to get started on it properly while the lacquer dries on the Ancient Kauri guitar…