Bending a Venetian Cutaway

Rounded Guitar

Introduced in 1939, as part of the design of the Super 400P acoustic archtop guitar, the Venetian cutaway is a curved indentation in the upper part of the guitar near the neck. It is rounder and smoother than the traditional pointed Florentine cutaway. The actual cutaway is a piece of wood that is bent to a specific curve and attached to the sides of the guitar.

Things You'll Need

• Doolin style bender with venetian cutaway mold
• Piece of wood, preferably mahogany
• Screwdriver
• Welding gloves
• Metal-working glove
• Cold clamp
• Cutaway crank
• Hammer
• Bottle with spray top timer

Instructions

1. Heat the bender to 300 degrees.

2. Pull the outside cover back from the bender.

3. Add a small amount of water to the inside of the wood and slide the wood in the back side of the bender against the index point.

4. Use a screwdriver to tighten the clamps on either side of the outside cover.

5. Put on one welding glove to prevent burning your hand and one metal-working glove to prevent cutting your hand.

6. Pull the outside cover over the wood and start bending by hand by pushing the cover and wood forward over the frame with slight pressure.

7. Smooth down and snap the wood and cover onto the springs at the top of the bender. The wood should be on a slant.

8. Tighten the cold clamp in the middle or waist of the bender and crank down. Tap a few times with the hammer to get everything in line.

9. Put the cutaway crank in position just below the cold clamp and turn the nut on the side to tighten. Turn the crank to lock tension on the cover over the wood so snapping will not occur near the cold clamp. Continue to turn the crank, adding a little pressure so the clamp moves down.

10. Pull the wood position at the top of the bender to the bottom notch of the springs, then turn the crank down a little more. Elevate the wood back up a notch on the springs to pull the wood straight across versus being on a slant.

11. Crank the clamp down to make sure the bottom piece of the crank is sitting flat on the cutaway section. Tap several times with a hammer. Turn the crank again.

12. Set a timer for 10 minutes and cook the wood on the bender at 300 degrees. After 10 minutes, turn the timer off and let the bender cool down completely. Repeat the heating process at full temperature for 10 additional minutes and let the bender cool down completely again.

13. Remove the wood from the spring tension at the top of the bender. Remove the cutaway crank and loosen the butt clamps and the bottom of the bender. Remove the waist crank and pull back the top layer. The wood will be bent to a Venetian cutaway design.

Tips & Warnings

• According to John Calkin of the Guild of American Luthiers, mahogany is the best type of wood to use when making cutaways. You can bend straight-grained mahogany easily into a tight cutaway without breaking it, and scratches and marks made from tools and/or sanding are not hard to remove.

• Trying to bend highly figured wood such as bubinga, Indian, or Brazilian rosewood can prove to be a challenging experience if you are a beginner.

References

• Acoustic Guitar; Q and A Cutaway Terms; Ian Watchorn; October 2002
• Taylor Guitars; Glossary
• Guild of American Luthiers; The Heretic's Guide to Alternative Lutherie Woods; John Calkin
• Ed Roman Guitars; Bubinga; Ed Roman 2010