Guest Luthier Series - Peter Crossley (Crossley Guitars)

[Peter Crossley]

Just noticed you already answered the question about the body style. Thanks that was a good read.

Anyways, i guess ill replace it with another one.

-If heard many different opinions on whats the most important thing for tone in an electric guitar. Ive heard from someone that i have great respect for that the majority of the tone (read >50%) is determined by the pickups and hence it is better to know what pup you want and tailor the build materials around the pickups.

Whats your take on this and how did you do it? I know you use custom wound pups so did you go through a bunch until you found the set that was "right" for your guitars?

Yeah I tend to agree with the pickups, it does help of course to have a nice resonant body to put the pups into.
I actually reckon a lot of tone is generated by the choice of fretboard....
I asked my pickup winder to make a 7.5K alnico 2 neck pup and a 12k alnico 5 bridge pup. I just really like that combo. It seemed to work pretty much straight away.
I think it helps if you have an idea of what you want first.
I must admit I have tried many pups, and I always liked the Alnico 2/5 combo.

[Peter Crossley]

do you have a signature sound you strive to achieve acoustically with your guitars before considering electronics or do you build different guitars with different tones in mind?

and what pray tell is silly oak?

Hi Jeremy

Ooopps !!! I think it should read Silky Oak !!

I just try to make the guitar as resonant as possible. This has a big relationship with weight. The lighter the guitar the more resonant. I learnt this from Acoustic luthiers, who go all out for lightness.
I have built guitars to explores different tones, and they do get close to the expectation. They do however always surprise you with something "else" that you never would have expected. good but different.

[ganzosrevenge]

Having seen some of the work you have done, are there ever times where a wood combination, or a guitar / pickup combination just makes you ask yourself "what is this customer on?!".

Also, have there ever been guitars where for one reason or another you have just been like "how am I going to make this wood do this shape / design?"

What's the hardest wood to work with (in a crack-prone / hardness / doesn't want to do anything you want it to sense)

What was your favorite guitar to work on, and why (more than one answer = fine)

[Peter Crossley]

If you could make a signature guitar for any artist...who would it be and why?



What is your favorite non-Crossley guitar?



Who are some of your other favorite "Aussie" music companies?



What Crossley guitar do you consider your "Crown Jewel"...as in your favorite build to date? (Pics of course!!!)



thanks,
mike

Hi Mike,
Great questions..


signature guitar.. probably Satch, I love the way he pulls melodies from the air. It would be very cool to meet a player like that also !!!

Favorite non-Crossley now dont shoot me here, but its a Parker Fly. I just think that they are very innovative.

Other Aussie Music companies. Most of these guys I am proud to call my friends, we are a small country population wise (22 mil) in a large pretty empty arid country. So we travel a bit between our cities, and I stay with and party with these guys when i visit!!

MI Audio - Michael Ibrahim owner. This guy is like Albert Einstein when it comes to Amplifier innovation, check out the MI Audio Revelation.. Brilliant.

Ulbrick Sound - Dave Ulbrick owner, Dave does the most beautiful point to point wired amps. Loud hard rock mofo's

Reynolds - Pete Reynolds owner Pete is an Aussie institution, his amps are just beautiful works of art, that sound like they were made by angels.

Craig O'Donnell - beautiful guitars, truly works of art.

just a few....

Guitars..
My own personal Rybeena, I love this guitar, it just screams "play me" all the time

And one that I wish I still had, the first charcoal burst I did..

[super rad stuff]

who is that woman in your avatar?

[Peter Crossley]

How does Australian maple differ from North American maple? What other uniquely Aussie woods do you use? And why?

The Queensland maple is termed maple more for its workability rather than its appearance or weight or tone.
Its more akin in tone to mahogany, but not as dark. I really like this timber. Maton guitars have used it for many many years. I also believe PRS are using a bit of it also for some of their private stock guitars...
The appearance of it is a little lighter in colour than mahogany, even grained, sometimes exhibits a shimmer which is very attractive.

The most obvious one I use is Cooktown Ironwood, this is a killer fretboard timber. The grain is extremely interlocked, but it is not brittle, like roswood or ebony. It takes a polish like glass. It also imparts a really mellow tone to the guitar, great for jazz/fusion styles. Frets also press into it extremly well and seat beautifully.

Other ones are Silky Oak, very pretty timber, mainly just used to decorate up a neck as a laminate insert.
Tasmanian Myrtle - hard to get, but a beatiful timber, can be flamed/fiddleback a reddish colour similar to cherry. great to work with, can splinter a little, fantastic tone, very similar to American maple, weight per tonne is almost the same as maple.

Blackwood - Australian relative of Koa. Some good/some bad it can be a bit unstable, but it makes for some nice tops, gets a good flame sometimes
Blackwood Guitar

[Evan Skopp]

Thanks for that answer, Pete. That Blackwood is a beauty. And thanks for staying up with us.

[Mr Wolf]

Hmm, a minor curiosity... what are those bridges? I've only ever seen them on your guitars

[Iron Horse]

Hi Peter, I really appreciate you pros doing this kind of thing. Of course we can and should get books on the subject etc, but this is a great way to learn about guitar building.
Anyway, what are your favorite neck/fretboard woods to use with certain desgins/body woods ?
Also, how come you use the bridges you have in the guitars (no trems, no TOMs, not exactly like Fender HT's)?

[Peter Crossley]

from the other thread:
Originally Posted by Luís
Having thought about building some instruments for more years than I care to admit I have to ask:

1 How did you do the jump? I mean, from thinking "I could probably build a guitar" to actually picking up the tools, gathering the materials and getting it done. Was it as simple as deciding or did you have any hoops to jump through, doubts, etc.

2 How did your first few instruments came out?

3 Were they copies of something else, you present design even if only related to it or something out of your head that you wouldn't dream of doing today.

4 What would you like to try? I know you build them the way you want but there has to be something you would love to have but for some reason can't do at this point (due to price, technological limitations, or simply haven't worked out yet in your head how it would be).

1. This is a good question, for many years I dreamed of doing something a little "out there"
I always loved guitars, and I was realatively good with my hands, I built a house from scratch when I was 28.
The easiest thing to do is to say "i will fail if I try to do that"
The hardest part of doing something that is life changing but loved, is the first step. Everything after that step falls into place. Truly.
as the slogan says "Just do it"

2. hahaha, not that good!! I reckon I got it 1/4 right after the first 10 guitars.
all of which went to bandsaw heaven.

3. yes the first 3 were copies, after that i started to experiment, finally ending up with the P series.

4. an archtop. I have a great deal of respect, and would love to one day meet Robert Benedetto. Robert is lucky in that he comes from a family of Cremona Luthiers (Stradivarius came from Cremona).
I have the timber, I just have to get my mind right....

[Peter Crossley]

Morning Peter! (Or is it good evening?)

1. How much consideration do you give to the pups that go in your guitars? do you really try to match pups/sets to the particular guitar or style, or do you have a go to set that works for most of your guitars?

2. How much do you think the pup contributes to the guitar?

3. Talk to me a little about that purple wood you put in the neck sometimes. Aesthetic or strength or both?

4. What's YOUR number one guitar? Is it a Crossley or something else?

5. What or where, in general, do you think most big manufacturers miss the point? No names please....

6. What does the semi hollow / sound cavity generally do to your guitars tonally?

7. What guitar construction would you recommend for a set of P-Rails? Have you considered building a guitar for that very special pup?

8. What's your favorite Duncan pup?

9. Tell us a little about your philosophy to headstock angle/string to tuner angle/tuner post height.

10. I don't see a lot of Crossleys with trems - no love for the bar?

11. How is my Crossley Ace Frehley model with smoke generator coming?

Hi Ace,
its 12.35AM Tomorrow (Wednesday 2nd September)
So I guess I'm time travelling...

1. Yes I pretty much have the 7.5k a2 12k a5 combo that seems to do the trick for a lot of styles across the board.
The thing is, when you build for other people, you have to set the pups to an acceptable middle ground. Not too heavy or too jazzy. but a good working set of pups. Of course the customer can (and does) select their own brand/style of pups for the guitar.

2. I reckon the pups contribute the larger part of the tone to the guitar.
This question usually elicits a lot of heated response. Wood V Pups.
Both is the correct answer.................

3. the wood is Purple Heart. a Native of North and South America. Its quite a dense heavy timber, and I have used it as fretboard material. it polishes up to a nice sheen.
Its very strong, so its a welcome and colourful addition to a neck lamination.

4. My number one guitar is my Rybeena burst. yep its a Crossley !!!
Although I do have a signature series G&L Asat tucked away that is a very nice guitar. I bought it new in 1988. It forms part of my kids inheritance!!

5. I think the problem with large manufaturers is that they are run by talented business people who are neither musicians or luthiers.
They are very good at marketing, profit margins, expansion, buying competitors, etc etc.
But the bottom line is they dont really CARE about the product, in fact that is what guitars are called within these corporate structures, "product".
They would be just as proficient selling beds or refrgerators.
Not a lot of LOVE there........................................

6. it adds Mellow. I really like the hollows, they are sort of like a grown up guitar. The P series are all Rawk, but the H has this split personality where they can still rock it out, but also be very gentle and persuasive..

7. To be honest I havent given it much thought, but I would go the solid body route.

8. Pearly Gates in the neck SH5 in the bridge. Lovely combination.. Brilliant pickups.

9. When I was younger (long time ago) I played a LP, I loved that guitar.. then one day the headstock broke off !!!
I repaired it, very well, but it never sounded the same. I then looked into why this happened.
1st reason -12 degree headstock angle
2nd reason- mahogany neck
Mahogany makes a good neck timber, but it is not a "structural" timber. Maple is a structural timber.
Increase this natural instability by putting a large headstock angle there, and really its just a matter of time......

I use a 10 degree headstock angle. this allows the strings to have a nice but not severe break angle to the machine heads.
I use Sperzel locking heads, they have a fairly low profile above the headstock. again helping with string break angle

10. Ahh yes, the tremolo........ I do build guitars with trems, I try to recommend to my clients that they use a Wilkinson contemporary unit 5+1
These are probably the best trem I have come across.
A tremolo though is a flawed design on first principles, and has not really changed over the years.
Having the strings in counterpoint to a set of springs is really not a good design. But they are loved by a lot of people, and as such I will put them on my guitars if pushed hard enough !!!

11. The smoke has escaped from the machine mate, I just need to get some more....................

[pzaxtl]

Hey Peter,

This is outstanding, especially since you're staying up all night to do this (please stay away from the machinery tomorrow LOL.)

1. Where/how did you begin to acquire the requisite knowledge to build your own unique designs? Books? Internet? Trial and error?

2. How do you do your top carves? By hand? Machine? Mix of hand tools and machine?

3. How greatly do templates and story sticks feature in your build process? Do you have a template for the entire guitar, or just the significant features? (body contour, pickup routes, bridge location, fret slots, etc.)

4. Given the choice of being machine only or hand tool only, which of the two would you choose? Why?

[crusty philtrum]

Hi Pete

Are they Schaller roller bridges that you use?

Are you in Melbourne?

If so, want me to come round and make the coffee? (I just got up, at 1 a.m., hehe)

[Peter Crossley]

Having seen some of the work you have done, are there ever times where a wood combination, or a guitar / pickup combination just makes you ask yourself "what is this customer on?!".

Also, have there ever been guitars where for one reason or another you have just been like "how am I going to make this wood do this shape / design?"

What's the hardest wood to work with (in a crack-prone / hardness / doesn't want to do anything you want it to sense)

What was your favorite guitar to work on, and why (more than one answer = fine)

yes there are customers that do ask for strange things.....
I find gentle guidance is the best resort. sometimes however you just gotta say NO!!!!!
The nice things about so called "tone timbers" is that they are primarily selected for their resonance, but also their workability.
The worst timber I have worked with in regard of splitting etc is Tasmanian Blackwood. It really is brittle. But if you take your time, it all works out in the end.

I think the favorite guitars, have been the protypes of the P and H series and the hollow P series. Its always a buzz to design something and then bring it to fruition.

[scottish]

There a couple of amateur luthiers on here. Some like myself, just build the bodies, do the finish work and buy the necks and others do the whole thing. You are obviously in a different category to most with the skill level of your work.

If you had to impart one or two things on us to improve our skills, what would they be? Either strictly guitar related or wood working in general.

[Peter Crossley]

who is that woman in your avatar?

thats a secret agent girl.......................

[Peter Crossley]

Hmm, a minor curiosity... what are those bridges? I've only ever seen them on your guitars

The bridges are Schaller 3DS roller bridges.
German made, really good quality.

[beandip]

Are you strictly a builder, or do you repair as well?

Do you offer your guitars through stores (possibly on cosignment?), or is everything built to order?

You'd answered a question about SS fretwire and tone, but how do you like it's workability?

What is your prefered method of crowinging frets? A fret file, or do you use the traditional 3 corner file and round?

Do you build completely custom guitars as well (customer's body style, neck profile, nut width, etc)?

You wouldn't happen to have any pictures of the first three builds, would you?

What type of heel do you use to mount your necks?

Do you use a negative neck pitch like the Les Paul, or is it more of a flat surface such as a Strat or Tele?

You've mentioned breaking out and doing an archtop, have you given thought to a traditonal acoustic? I'm sure with the amount of tools you have, you'd only need a side bender, and possibly a good set of chisels.

Thos Japanese pull cut saws are wonderful aren't they? I talk about them with my grandfather every chance I get (long, but funny story)

Have you thought about expanding your opperation to allow other's to work with you as well? All building on the Crossley platform? Or possibly branching out to include other models?

Are your instruments serialized? So that you can keep track of what guitar had what, who it went to and when?

I don't care to know who the woman in your avatar is, but I would like to know where I might find a larger photo.

[Peter Crossley]

Hi Peter, I really appreciate you pros doing this kind of thing. Of course we can and should get books on the subject etc, but this is a great way to learn about guitar building.
Anyway, what are your favorite neck/fretboard woods to use with certain desgins/body woods ?
Also, how come you use the bridges you have in the guitars (no trems, no TOMs, not exactly like Fender HT's)?

Again my fave neck timbers are the Queensland maple/ebony or cooktown ironwood combo's
Although I have used a fair few American maple necks, which I also really like.
They are different in tone, the American maple tends to be that little bit brighter. its good to mix up with a heavier body timber like ash or alder.
The bridges I use are based on efficieny of design. I just love things that are designed well. Schaller make some great bridges. I do use TOM's, but they are a Schaller roller saddle TOM called a STM bridge, I like the Schaller Hannes bridges, like on the Rybeena burst guitar in the above pix.
I do tremolos occasionally... Mainly Wilkinson Contemporary 5+1
I have tried a few others in the past, which I disliked. mainly the two post types. These trems tend to be very unstable.
I like a bridge to be stable and precise. If its not I feel it somehow compromises the instrument.

[BTMN]

What a great idea Evan. THANKS!!!

Thanks to you too Pete for the Q&A session.

Recently I saw online an interview with Paul Hamer telling how his trip to Woodstock in 1969 eventually lead to his company Hamer Guitars. Was there an artist or musical event that made you pick up the guitar and eventually build them?