francis jerome

This guitar was first commissioned as a travel guitar for a classically trained pianist friend of Francis' who wanted a more portable instrument than a piano. It is a fanned fret (multiscale) instrument 660mm on the bass side and 634 on the treble side. This method optimizes string tension and is more ergonomic for the fret hand.

The design brief was very open - apart from it being a small sized body. This allowed experimentation with some ideas of Francis', the most obvious being the soundhole. To increase the vibrating area of the face plate of the small instrument, the hole has been relocated. Its new position also allows greater access to the upper frets for the player as well as increasing the bass response.
This element is a fine example of Francis' elegant yet practical design sense.

Francis' Guitars use a veneer on the headstock that comes from his family's property where his studio is based. This is a unique piece of banksia from the garden on top of a strip of Tasmanian Myrtle. This image also shows the indian rosewood tapered inlay strips from the back of the neck coming up the tip of the head and the copper string-nut for the zero fret.

The back, sides and inlay on the neck on this guitar are all indian rosewood, the neck is made from Queensland Silver Ash, the face from Sitka Spruce and the bindings are Tasmanian myrtle.

The tuners on this instrument are Gotoh stealth featherweight tuners - the lightest on the market. It makes a surprising difference to the overall weight of the guitar.

Low profile neck-heel for unhindered fingerboard access in the upper register.

The design brief was very open - apart from it being a small sized body. This allowed me to experiment and try ideas, the most obvious being the soundhole. To increase the area of the face plate (which produces the main vibration) of the small instrument the hole has been relocated to allow greater access to the upper frets. This location of the soundhole also increases bass response.
As far as I am aware the soundhole being the cutaway (access to upper frets) is an original idea.

This was an experimental bracing system drawing on ideas from the 'A frame' method and fan bracing method. The guitar is very loud for its small size and when you give it some grunt the sound opens up to an almost gypsy-jazz jangle that is strong and projecting. It is also quite responsive when played gently, leaving plenty of headroom for dynamic playing.