Sicilian gypsy folk guitar

AndyW

it’s NGD - new guitar day !

’new’ Stefano Caponnetto is in reasonably good condition, one-piece neck is un-bowed but maybe has a slight axial twist. Action is around 3mm at the 12th fret, surprisingly usable, fingerboard &frets look fit for service.

Reckon if I stabilise some loose (plastic?) inlays, fix some fret sprout, change the tailpiece and fit some suitable tuners, it should be playable, then we can assess what to do from there. Not bad for a 80 or 90 year-old. lightweight Argentines should tension-up ok on the long (680mm) scale-length.

Seen here with a Sicilian sister (Musicalia) and a French cousin (Rene Gerome)

billyshakes

That's a nice lineup!

ChrisMartin

Gets my vote! Nice find.

AndyW

While others party, a casa mia, Friday night is SVG template making night. - The rosette, redesigned from scanned old photos, is a little tight as drawn, I will print at 98%, whilst the rest is drawn from scanned & traced original parts.

These Sicilian luthiers didn't hold much for finesse or symmetry, the original (now warped) guards are quite roughly cut.

ChrisMartin

SVG ? Please explain ? Is that some CAD program you are using to run 3D modelling ? Are you planning a Glaswegian/Catanian hybrid ?

ChrisMartin

But if I may divert a little north and then east from Sicily we arrive at Bulgaria again and here is my slightly less bling Kremona. I off-loaded the other one as even I decided there was a limit to bad taste; it may be fun at home but would you want to be seen playing something like that? Probably not eh?

While they are structurally sound they were not so well made if you look closely at the detail, I guess they did the best they could during the Soviet era. This one curiously has a wide neck - 52mm at the nut - but now I have found that is actually quite comfortable for me to play, especially for chords (fat finger syndrome?). So, I now have a set of Argies on it and yes, it does have the 'right' tone. Next, to try it with the Stimer.....

Ok, apologies for the diversion, back to Sicily..........

AndyW

Hi Chris et. al. , - I'm using a free Scalable Vector Graphics (SVG) drawing program called "inkscape" which seems to do all I need in terms of tracing bezier curves over scans and photographs. Just simple 2 dimensional templates to print onto sticky label paper then use to hand cut the 3mm sheet plastic replacement guards & rosette. (I could work-up the SVG files to get the plastic sheet laser-cut, but that really would be overkill). I've no plans to do any 3D guitar design & building, I don't have the time, tools, patience or the skills.

Interesting what you say about the Kremona being "not so well made" - I'd have to say the same about the big Caponnetto: no kerfing, just strip lining on the thin plywood sides: stained olive-wood fretboard: some roughly finished areas: rough cut plastic guards & inlays: lightweight screws & hardware - all in all a slightly eyebrow-raising "looks great but quickly produced on a budget " feel to it, let's say in the showy & ornate Sicilian Baroque style. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sicilian_Baroque

A luthier's laboriously made one-off it ain't...but it sounded ok, with three blackened antique strings on it, so we'll see soon enough.

-A-

AndyW

An attractive gypsy style guitar with lyre-bird / peacock inlay, by Agatino Patané, of Catania, Sicily.

[pics shamelessly borrowed from facebook]

pdg

Can't miss the fretboard dots!

AndyW

I've just made a couple of offers on *another* old Stefano Caponnetto, 25 minutes drive away. 😀

I'm not a Sicilian guitar Junkie, no sir-ee. 🤡

Stay tuned.