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@rabbitweir
Do you have a recording of the sicilian folk lap steel guitar? I really would like to hear it!
Sorry no. It would be fun though. Will see what i can do. Im ok at slide guitar, lap steel i find confusing but i can certainly make some noises
Not quite Sicily, but a great shot of part of the shop / workshop of Antonio Monzino IV & Sons, in Milan, northern Italy, from 1914- it shows the types of guitars and their decoration that were being sold - it might suggest some of these Sicilian guitars could be a little older than we think (although I agree the bar frets vs original tanged frets is a good data point). Most of the guitars seem to have fixed bridges.
Thats a great photo. Facinating. The Giuseppe Indelicato and the Sapienza of mine had bar frets. The Albertini had T. Not sure how accurately that can date other than a rough 20s-30s line.
Also just noticed all guitars are pin bridges. Not one floating. Almost the opposite in the 30's?
All fascinating stuff indeed.
And it certainly does belong on this forum as most of the so-called 'Gypsy Jazz' guitars made in Paris from the 1930s until the '60s were made by Italian luthiers; many, but not all from Sicily so these ancestors and cousins are more than relevant to their pedigree.
Keep 'em coming !
Meanwhile, on the big 1930's Antonino Napoli, the make-your-own jigsaw fun continues.
Any progress on the Napoli? Interested to see how this goes together, maybe you can pass on some tips as to how these inlays are made (or repaired)? Are they just a matter of carefully cutting each piece from some thin celluloid and practice making perfect? Do you cut templates first, or maybe stick on paper patterns? Interested to work it out as I often pick up the odd broken orphan guitar that could use some new inlays, the Luigi Genovesi being the latest.
The tuners were in a bad way, a couple of buttons missing and generally past their best but they had that odd spacing; 33mm between the shaft centres instead of the usual 35mm. I initially thought it might be nice to fix them up but when I removed them some old screw holes underneath showed they were not the originals anyway so I just fitted some correct looking but separate (not three on a plate) tuners. I had already cleaned all the gunky old finish off and redid it with shellac, repaired a couple of cracks, polished the frets and it plays quite nicely now but as the scratchplate was missing for now I have just cut a plain black plastic one to fit with a Sicilian flag decal as its only decoration.
Maybe I'll leave it that way..........it was only a cheapie.
on the Antonino Napoli, the new frets are in, needing trimmed & levelled, and the repair work to the top & inlay is complete- still a few raised edges on the old inlay to reglue and one of the bird's legs to remake.. I'll use acrylic or oil paints as a caulk between the cracks and as a detail touch-up and a final polish. ( Catanian luthiers used, I think, a black volcanic ash mix as caulk.)
Regarding the inlay work, I've posted a few pics of the screen grabs of redesigning the inlay in the Mac on top of scanned-in paper tracings already - I printed 5 or 6 copies of the final design onto one sheet of 1-per-sheet sticky label paper. Affix to 1mm sheet plastics & cut with jeweler's saw. A sharp craft knife would do as well, to be honest. File & sand to fit.
( Some of the detail work on other inlays is done with ink or paint -here the peacock's face & crest are painted.)
I'm fairly happy with my first-timer efforts, but it just makes me appreciate the skill & experience of other artisans and luthiers even more.
an Antonino Napoli 'Pavone' guitar, found on t'internet: The label looks a little more modern than mine, post-WW2 certainly.
Some distinct differences in the edge binding & inlay design, too.
.
Should I go chasing after it ?
... Do I need another one ??
...... Would I be plucked & stuffed like a peacock at a banquet for bringing another guitar into the house ??? ;-)
...
...
[EDIT}
my research suggests this instrument was sold / for sale in CANADA on Craigslist or 'Kijiji' in late 2020 - Anybody know anything more ??
Great, thanks for the info. I suspected there was no easier way than just cutting pieces to fit; gee they had some fine hand skills and a lot of patience down in Catania!
Meanwhile, this one is on ebay for a few more hours, not that I suggest you may want it but looking closely it seems to share the same profile as our previous Bucolo/Napoli/Genovesi finds. Any thoughts? And who is Francesco Catania, another luthier or just another wholesaler?