How does this tenor bracing profile look?

First build,

so I have no idea when to stop. I like to build mandos as light and strong as possible, so with that in mind, while tapping and scraping, this is my rough carved profile. Its a tenor top, douglas fir at .080", and typical fan braced. Spruce bridge patch. Braces are about 3/8" tall at peaks and just a hair under 1/4" thick.

So too much meat or not enough?

To my way of building, seeing as your braces are 1/4" wide you are significantly over braced. Also you might want to end your braces a little short of the traverse brace.

Being a little more specific, my braces are at .200" or just a hair under. So not quite 1/4".

Glad you mentioned the brace ends near the transverse brace. I was wondering if I should feather those to nothing or leave them a tad less thick than shown. I've see it both ways.

Michael Smith said:

To my way of building, seeing as your braces are 1/4" wide you are significantly over braced. Also you might want to end your braces a little short of the traverse brace.

Click to expand...

Nice work, but I would not tie off the fans to to transverse brace. Structurally strong, but acoustically weak.

I am feeling my way through ukuleles as well, and I reckon for a tenor a 2mm/ 0.080" soundboard thickness with an offcut for the bridge patch, the transverse braces 3/16" x 3/8" and the three fans 3/16" x 3/16" tapering away to very little at each end. Think about the string tension, which is nowhere near that of a mandolin, and work on the idea of "less is more"

Cheers