Heritage archtop bracing

[Guest mgoetting]

Do all of the arches with a floating pup have cross bracing? Is the bracing different in a Sweet 16, spruce 575 with floater, Eagle and Golden Eagle? Some Eagle Classics also have floaters. Are they parallel or crossed braced?

 

Is there a written source on this stuff?

 

Thanks.

[DC Ron]

My experience is that Heritage carved archtops have x-bracing where they have either a floating pickup or a single (neck) pickup, and parallel bracing where they have two pickups. Issue as you probably know is that the bridge pickup won't clear the cross of the two braces in an x-braced pattern. Guess you COULD have parallel bracing and a floater or a single pickup, but haven't seen one.

[tulk1]

Is there a written source on this stuff?

What would be your guess, Mark? .........

[Patrick]

I've been dealing with Heritage now since 1994. Invariably, (or, unless the order specifies otherwise) a carved spruce archtop with a floating pup will have X bracing and models with mounted pups had parallel bracing. That changed when Ren came up with his 4 point mounting concept. Then they started using X bracing on those models with a single mounted neck pup. The 2 pup models will always have parallel bracing.

 

Mark: you've once again opened up a topic which I imagine will generate an awful lot of good comments, feed back and productive, useful discourse within a thread. I would suggest to those who may be interested . . . do some research on this topic (if you lack such knowledge) prior to posting your replies. You'll find out that info on this topic is as subjective as the question; "which PAF clones are the best?"

 

Opinions differed from such greats as John D'Angelico, Elmer Stromberg . . . and continue to differ today with such great builders as Bill Hollenbeck, Bob Benedetto, John Monteleone, etc. I know that the question was not, "which is better?" . . . . but one will probably go there when assessing Marks initial question. Opinions on the tone aspect are the ones that are usually all over the board. But the one thing that most people/builders with a greater unbderstanding of physics usually agree upon, is that parallel bracing offers greater strength and stability to the top. Now, the only thing that I know about physics of which I am certain, is that I always avoided tham like the plague when I was a child. Then as I aged past 50 years old, there was the need for the colonoscopy. Couldn't avoid it any longer. At least it was self administered . . . . but I digress.

 

I believe that there could be some occassions where a top is carved and sanded a little more than expected and there might be a decission made to switch from an X bracing to the parallel type. I have to arch tops that are from the early 1990s. A 1994 Golden Eagle and a 1992 Super Eagle. Both have a single mounted neck humbucker pup. Both have parallel bracing. Both sound great acoustically and through an amp. I am picking up my brand new Golden Eagle next week at the plant. I don't know for certain why . . . but I ordered it with a neck mounted SD Seth Lover, and with the X bracing and 4 point mounting. I guess more curiousity than anything else. I do believe that Ren Wall has hit on something good with that concept and that the guitar will sound better, both acoustically and electronically. I guess I'll know next week if I did a good thing . . . or a bone headed thing. But for now, I gotta run down stairs . . . get another cup of "Joe" and try to figure why I'm rambling so much.

[Guest mgoetting]

But for now, I gotta run down stairs . . . get another cup of "Joe" and try to figure why I'm rambling so much.

 

 

Why are you rambling? Could it be the previous 10 cups of Joe?

[Patrick]

Why are you rambling? Could it be the previous 10 cups of Joe?

 

 

YA THINK??? Just got a fresh cup!! Waddaya wanna talk about now????

 

Actually, I think it's the coffee too . . . but my wife, who know me like a book after 41 years, says she's sure it's the anxiety over getting the 2 new guitars next week. She has predicted no less than 2 speeding tickets next week on my way from NJ to MI. She keeps reminding me that it will do me no good to get in to Kzoo earlier than I need to on Wed., as I won't see the guitars until Thursday anyway.

[tulk1]

YA THINK??? Just got a fresh cup!! Waddaya wanna talk about now????

 

Actually, I think it's the coffee too . . . but my wife, who know me like a book after 41 years, says she's sure it's the anxiety over getting the 2 new guitars next week. She has predicted no less than 2 speeding tickets next week on my way from NJ to MI. She keeps reminding me that it will do me no good to get in to Kzoo earlier than I need to on Wed., as I won't see the guitars until Thursday anyway.

Typical, logical wifely reply that is probably sooth and sage advice. Sometimes, they just don't get it. .............