Rickresource Rickenbacker Forum

I understood that the "broomstick" was a Fender innovation designed to prevent the top from distorting and changing the action, by tying the guitar's neck to its tail-block. But whether the tube was Roger's idea (and to me, it smacks thoroughly of Leo Fender's "seat of the pants" emipirical method of engineering problem-solving) or whether the entire design was a Rossmeisl work, I'd like to see a reliable reference. They are just too "American" in conception.

you can find that "tube" or "broomstick" in some late 19 th /early 20 th century european guitars. later on some italian guitars had similar contraption in 60's. i used to own two 1920's german guitars: broyer classical and some unknown make archtop and they both had
"resonating tube", carlo gugino made neck through the body archtops and flattops here in buffalo in mid 20's - to late 50's. i woudn't be shocked if the broomstick was rossmeisel's after all.

That would certainly make sense--a radical European concept would not have made it onto Leo Fender's stay-at-home radar. So if he didn't dream it up, he is also unlikely to have borrowed it from European practice.

The particular areas of weakness addressed by the "broomstick" are the areas of the top in front of the bridge and under the fretboard extension. Because of the loss of tension incurred by the soundhole placement on a traditional flat-top, the area between the bridge and neck heel is the weakest link in the structural chain. Al sorts of approaches toward compensation for this, have been tried. The broomstick is perhaps the most direct, though not what I would consider elegant from either a design or a problem-solving perspective.

yeah it is not most elegant but it is low cost budget design, i remember seeing much more radical approach to this problem made by some german shop in early 80s : the neck bolted to rigid aluminum frame around the back of the body so you got strings anchored on the butt end of the frame and body was not holding any tension of the strings beside bridge down pressure and so was lightly braced bit like ovation modified older A bracing but much lighter. it was one cool contraption. you could change the pitch of the neck similar way like some of the old kay oval archtops. the big drawback was that it was heavy solid aluminum frame. the weight could have been probably greatly improved today with precision cnc work on aluminum, i hope i have b/w negative with pictures somewhere but i sure wish i knew where.... i am not sure about even the country...

I have one of those old KayKraft parlour archtops, and the neck on it adjusts with a big wingnut inside the soundhole. The strings need to be loosened first. The neck slides on a curved tenon. Brilliant though a bit fiddly, especially on a tenon that's 70+ years old.

A very cool guitar Bill..........welcome!

I'd love to learn more about that Australian acoustic. For some reason which I can put my finger on......it just doesn't look right........ or that old? Just me I think though.

There's always this one?

Taken on the beach at Sidcup, perhaps?

Quite possibly!

8mileshigh wrote:There's always this one?

What the @#$%??!?

kennyhowes wrote: What the @#$%??!?

Exactly!!!

Aaah...a "000" sized Rickenbacker acoustic....it looks like a Martin 000-21 with a Rickenbacker peghead...

I love it....

8mileshigh wrote:A very cool guitar Bill..........welcome!

I'd love to learn more about that Australian acoustic. For some reason which I can put my finger on......it just doesn't look right........ or that old? Just me I think though.

I'm with you, Graham. I'll let you know the details once I've bought it! Lol!

(Small problem, gotta find it first!)

I think Glenn knows where it is?