Acoustic Guitar Central: True North Guitars

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True North Guitars

By Simone Solondz

Dennis Scannell of True North Guitars is only half joking when he compares his instruments to top-of-the-line sports cars. “When I think of the level of design sophistication that Porsche has to offer the world, if they were going to make guitars, I’d like them to look like mine,” he quips. In truth, the comparison is rather apt, considering the similar curves that grace the famous racing cars and Scannell’s instruments. The typical True North guitar has a significantly radiused back, a fully radiused top, a compound side taper that accentuates the curves, and a contoured Venetian cutaway that flows into the neck.

Scannell got his start in guitar building by attending Charles Fox’s American School of Lutherie when it was located in Healdsburg, California, in the mid-’90s. He studied inlay with Larry Robinson, finishing with Eugene Clark, and voicing with Michael Hornick and is quick to credit other luthiers who inspired his design ideas. An example of this is Harry Fleishman, who turned Scannell on to shaping semi-hemispherical frets, which have their ends completely shaped before installation, resulting in superior fit and ultraclean looks.

Such attention to detail takes time, which is why Scannell only builds nine or ten guitars a year. He says that once he discovers an element that improves his instruments, he won’t go back to using the previous method just because it’s easier. Other unique, time-consuming features on True North guitars include graphite neck reinforcements, side-tapered bodies that facilitate picking closer to the lower bout, and multiradius fingerboards. “Most builders use a single fingerboard radius—typically a 15- to 16-inch radius,” Scannell explains. “That dramatically simplifies the building process, but it’s a compromise. Because the fingerboard is tapering at the nut, what you’d like to see there is a conical surface and not a cylindrical surface. A conical fingerboard creates a more accurate relationship between the string and the fingerboard, so it’s a little easier to play and you can set it up with the strings closer to the board. I use a 12-inch radius at the nut and a 20-inch radius at the end of the board.”

Scannell’s original designs are based on the first instrument he devised, the Model 1 Grand Auditorium, distinguished by its tight-waisted body (which is 16-inches wide at the lower bout) and rounded bouts. “It’s a challenge to build,” says Scannell, “because there are virtually no flat surfaces to join together, except maybe the headstock.” Scannell’s other models are variations of his original design. Being a custom builder, Scannell offers a variety of tonewoods, and often uses exotic species such as Madagascar rosewood and ziricote for back and sides. Most kinds of spruce and cedar can be used for tops, but Scannell is particularly fond of a special stash of redwood he’s been using for this crucial part of his instruments, saying that it offers a warm, clear, and articulate tone.

Base prices range from $5,400 to $6,800, and Scannell currently has a two-and-a-half-year waiting list. He’s finally satisfied with all his designs and procedures and says that his plan for the future is simply to build more guitars each year, perhaps by eventually expanding the business and hiring a few employees to help with the less critical tasks, such as making batches of bridges and roughing out necks. But Scannell stresses how important it is to him that every True North guitar be of the highest quality: “I try to throw myself into each guitar like it’s the last instrument I’m ever going to build.”

True North Models

Model 1 Grand Auditorium: 16-inch lower bout, good for alternate tunings (pictured above)

Model 2 Grand Concert: 15 1⁄2-inch lower bout, more focused sound

Model 3 Super Parlor: 16-inch lower bout, smaller than an OM, larger than a parlor

Model 4 Compact Jumbo: 16 1⁄2-inch lower bout, increased bass response

B1 and B4 Baritones: Based on either the Model 1 or Model 4, with custom scale lengths

Model 7 Seven-String: Designed for jazz players True North Guitars
175 Perry Lea Side Rd.
Waterbury, VT 05676
(802) 244-6488
www.truenorthguitars.com

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This article also appears in Acoustic Guitar, Issue #152

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