Lattice bracing

Until recently I have not been that impressed with lattice braced guitars. The Australian versions just seemed to shout, and didn't really sound like guitars. The principle that the back shouldn't vibrate and be quite heavy were concepts that I disagree with and I don't like heavy guitars. I see that they fit some players well though, but it wasn't for me as a design concept. 

Recently though, I played a Humphrey owned by one of my friends that is lattice braced - all the way to the top of the box - as Tom did in his last years. I really like that guitar and it inspired me to try an all-wood lattice version of my own. After completing 5 I feel that I've made some of my best guitars to date and will continue to use this system instead of the radial bracing pattern I've used for the past 8 years. While the interconnecting braces take longer to make I do not miss using the graphite that made the radial pattern work for me. These guitars are loud, in fact, some of the loudest I have made, but they still have a nice organic sound that I find missing in some of the lattice and double top guitars by some contemporary makers. I'll have a couple at GFA in Denver this year, and I hope to have one left to take to the guitar workshop at East Carolina University this summer too. If you are planning to attend either of these great programs please come check them out!