A Further Beginners Question About Bindings

[Doug Collins]

My plans have arrived and I am about to begin building my first guitar. The one thing that puzzles and frightens me is the routing of the top, sides and back to accommodate the bindings strips. With the material being so thin, isn't there great danger of routing right through into the kerfing? Or is that what is supposed to happen? If so, doesn't that weaken the integrity of the structure?

Thanks in advance,

Doug Collins

[Frank Ford]

Quite so - it's very common for the binding channel to go into the linings, but it's mighty rare to have binding so huge or lining so small as to weaken that area enough to be a problem.

[Doug Collins]

Thanks Frank.

So I guess I won't panic if I go too deep.

Thanks,

Doug Collins

[Richard Smith]

Yes you must be sure that your linings are wide enough. Usually the purfling is narrower and much shallower than the linings and the bindings are usually not thicker than your sides in which case there should not be a problem. Once the purflings and bindings are installed the structural integrity will be restored.