Banjo Killer? The scoop on forward X bracing for greater guitar volume.
How I make a Banjo Killer with forward X bracing
![Banjo Cat](/globalassets/video-and-ideas/online-resources/building-instruments/banjo-killer-the-scoop-on-forward-x-bracing-for-greater-guitar-volume/51-banjo-killer-banjo-cat.jpg?hash=637613108830000000&quality=80)
The Banjo Cat was really loud. The Bassist said, "My word!" But thanks to forward bracing, my dreadnought could be heard!
Banjos are loud!
I build them, and I love to play them, but in a bluegrass band their volume is tough for a guitar to compete with. That's why I build my Sams Guitars to be Banjo Killers: using forward X bracing to make them louder.
Here's the story:
In mid-1938 Martin relocated their X braces, moving them back away from the soundhole by about half an inch. This reduced problems with warping behind the bridge, because it stiffened the top — but it lowered the volume of the guitars.
Many builders today, myself included, prefer the original “forward” X bracing. I recommend it for players who will be playing in a group. Here’s how to lay out forward X bracing on our Dreadnought Guitar Kit.
The gray areas show typical modern bracing, and the white shows the forward X bracing. The center of the X joint moves closer to the soundhole, but you can see that it’s not as simple as just sliding everything forward 1/2".
The “popsicle stick” brace wasn’t used in the early 1930s, and isn’t used here.
![Illustration: forward X bracing](/globalassets/video-and-ideas/online-resources/building-instruments/banjo-killer-the-scoop-on-forward-x-bracing-for-greater-guitar-volume/51-banjo-killer-forward-x-bracing.jpg?hash=637613108830000000&quality=80)
The X braces are at a slightly different angle, changing from 98° to 100°.
![Illustration: forward X bracing](/globalassets/video-and-ideas/online-resources/building-instruments/banjo-killer-the-scoop-on-forward-x-bracing-for-greater-guitar-volume/51-banjo-killer-forward-x-bracing-2.jpg?hash=637613108830000000&quality=80)
The gap between the soundhole to the front edge of the X joint, (not the centerpoint of the joint) becomes 1".
![Illustration: forward X bracing](/globalassets/video-and-ideas/online-resources/building-instruments/banjo-killer-the-scoop-on-forward-x-bracing-for-greater-guitar-volume/51-banjo-killer-forward-x-bracing-3.jpg?hash=637613108830000000&quality=80)
![Illustration: luthier cartoon](/globalassets/video-and-ideas/online-resources/building-instruments/banjo-killer-the-scoop-on-forward-x-bracing-for-greater-guitar-volume/51-banjo-killer-luthier-cartoon.jpg?hash=637613108840000000&quality=80)
How to do it:
- Make a mark on the centerline 1" below the soundhole.
- From this mark, draw lines at a 50° angle into the lower body bout areas. With a straightedge, extend these lines onto the upper body. (The two lines at 50° angles to the left and right of center create the 100° X angle.
- Add a parallel line 5/16" below each line. Your X braces are glued in the 5/16" space between these parallel lines.
- The four small “finger” braces will keep their relationship to the X braces, just moving forward along with them by 1/2".
- The two long tone bars still tuck into the X brace at the same location as before, but now they run toward the bass side at a 120° angle.
![Illustration: forward X bracing](/globalassets/video-and-ideas/online-resources/building-instruments/banjo-killer-the-scoop-on-forward-x-bracing-for-greater-guitar-volume/51-banjo-killer-forward-x-bracing-4.jpg?hash=637613108830000000&quality=80)
The shoulder brace above the soundhole stays in the same location.
The bridge plate stays in the same place, but it becomes a little longer to meet the wider X brace angle. The flat “popsicle” brace is not used on the forward X braced guitars.
Here, the X braces and bridge plate are glued up and braced on my go-bar deck. For this photo, I marked the typical brace positions in black, and my forward positioning in red.
![Photo: gluing with a go-bar deck](/globalassets/video-and-ideas/online-resources/building-instruments/banjo-killer-the-scoop-on-forward-x-bracing-for-greater-guitar-volume/51-banjo-killer-gluing-a-go-bar-deck.jpg?hash=637613108840000000&quality=80)
We manufacture our Guitar Kits right here in our own shop, so the parts are top quality and everything fits.
Dan Erlewine and I made a how-to-build DVD that comes with the kit.