18-string guitars

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YeshuasFan

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Looking for pics of an 18-string guitar. They were made back in the late 1960s -early 1970s by a man named Ralph Smith. He was a machinist for Cessna in Wichita, Kansas, who built guitars for a hobby in his woodworking shop. The 18-string was his innovation--basically a variation/extension of the 12-string, except the strings were in courses of 3 instead of 2. He lessened the tension on the neck by using extra-light guage silk and steel strings.
I saw one of these when I was in high school and the owner actually allowed me the privilege of playing it briefly. I was surprised to find that it did not require much more effort to chord than a 12-string.

Any info would be appreciated.
 
Gibson built one for John Denver in the early '70s
 

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Interesting picture of Denver.... Especially since he was almost exclusively using Guild guitars at the time....
The Ralph Smith guitars also used an extended neck joint cutaway that allowed access up to the 18th fret which he patented. Washburn got in trouble about 25 years ago when they tried to incorporate the same concept in some of their acoustic-electrics and wound up losing a patent infringement lawsuit filed by Smith after an article in Guitar Player showed one of the Smith guitars from the early 1970s which had the same neck joint--made over 10 years prior to the Washburn patent application. Washburn's patent lawyers apparently did not do a very good job of researching the application.
 
It's a semi trad instrument in South America - rare now though.
Didn't Matthew Sweet play a 12 string bass on Altered Beast - that was 4 sets of three?
That was/is such a cool album.
 
YeshuasFan said:
Looking for pics of an 18-string guitar. They were made back in the late 1960s -early 1970s by a man named Ralph Smith. He was a machinist for Cessna in Wichita, Kansas, who built guitars for a hobby in his woodworking shop. The 18-string was his innovation--basically a variation/extension of the 12-string, except the strings were in courses of 3 instead of 2. He lessened the tension on the neck by using extra-light guage silk and steel strings.

I saw one of these when I was in high school and the owner actually allowed me the privilege of playing it briefly. I was surprised to find that it did not require much more effort to chord than a 12-string.

Any info would be appreciated.
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That was not his innovation. There are many examples of theoboes, lutes, gitterns, mandrirola, and more that have employed triple course stringing. The Ukelele still does to this day on some examples as does the Charango. The direct descendant of the guitar, the vihuela has also been strung in many ways over the last 500 years including triple courses. Just saying.;)
 
muttley600 said:
That was not his innovation. There are many examples of theoboes, lutes, gitterns, mandrirola, and more that have employed triple course stringing. The Ukelele still does to this day on some examples as does the Charango. The direct descendant of the guitar, the vihuela has also been strung in many ways over the last 500 years including triple courses. Just saying.;)
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Muttley,
I stand corrected about referring to Ralph Smith as an innovator in reference to the concept of an 18-string guitar. You are absolutely correct on that point and I advertised my ignorance in how I constructed the thought.
Conceding that point, however, I would still maintain that the late Ralph Smith was deserving of the title of innovator because of his design and usage of an extended-neck cutaway, allowing access to more frets without the heel getting in the way, and he had the patent for it over 15 years before Washburn came up with their "Stephens extended neck cutaway."
Now arguably, someone may come up with examples of an extended-neck cutaway which preceded Smith's, but since he patented the concept, he gets the credit for it, and that alone, IMHO at least, merits him the label of being an innovator.
Washburn had to pay dearly when they started marketing their guitars with the Stephens extended cutaway and Smith filed a lawsuit for patent infringement.
 
muttley600 said:
That was not his innovation. There are many examples of theoboes, lutes, gitterns, mandrirola, and more that have employed triple course stringing. The Ukelele still does to this day on some examples as does the Charango. The direct descendant of the guitar, the vihuela has also been strung in many ways over the last 500 years including triple courses. Just saying.;)
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Muttley,
Allow me some clarification. When I referred to Ralph Smith as an innovator, I was not referring to his concept of 18-strings in courses. Of course there was nothing new in that apart from the fact that in the early 70s the only guitars he was building were the 18-string jumbo models. His innovation was the extended-neck cutaway, allowing access to more frets without the heel getting in the way, and he had the patent for it over 15 years before
Washburn came up with their "Stephens extended neck cutaway."
Now arguably, someone may come up with examples of an extended-neck cutaway which preceded Smith's, but since he patented the concept, he gets the credit for it, and that alone IMHO at least, merits him the label of being an innovator.
Washburn had to pay dearly when they started marketing their guitars with the Stephens extended cutaway and Smith filed a lawsuit for patent infringement.
 
I was trying to remember who made the 12-string basses but I see the caption identified it as a Dean. Didn't Schecter make a 12-string bass too?
 
Matthew Sweet was quite open that he wanted it for the mud it made of the mids - he likes his songs saturated with sound.
 
Ralph G. Smith 18 String guitar

I was surfing the web and found this subject. I have tried for years to find more info on the Ralph G. Smith 18 String guitar, but only found a few Articles. Ralph Smith is actually my late grandfather. His patent was filed in December of 1970 and finalized in July of 1972. His guitar was also posted in Guitar Magazine (finding out the year of the issue now) and I have an article about him from the local newpaper. As a tool maker and guitar builder he was meticulous in his work. His guitars are truly one of a kind. I will find out more info and post here, or if anyone else has info please feel free to email me at Kocontender@hotmail.com. Thank You :)

http://guitar-collector.org/viewtopic.php?f=14&t=191&p=1677#p1677
 
BigWillyStyles said:
I was surfing the web and found this subject. I have tried for years to find more info on the Ralph G. Smith 18 String guitar, but only found a few Articles. Ralph Smith is actually my late grandfather. His patent was filed in December of 1970 and finalized in July of 1972. His guitar was also posted in Guitar Magazine (finding out the year of the issue now) and I have an article about him from the local newpaper. As a tool maker and guitar builder he was meticulous in his work. His guitars are truly one of a kind. I will find out more info and post here, or if anyone else has info please feel free to email me at Kocontender@hotmail.com. Thank You :)

http://guitar-collector.org/viewtopic.php?f=14&t=191&p=1677#p1677
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I remember Guitar Player had a little one-page feature on your grandfather's guitars in the early 1980s. I had the opportunity to play one at a city-wide youth revival in Pratt, KS in 1972. One of the musical guests had one and allowed me to play it. From other inquiries it turns out that the owner of Mass Street Music in Lawrence, KS, went to college with that guy. You might try getting in touch with him.
 
Supercreep said:
I want a 24 string guitar. The 18 string guitars simply don't take long enough to tune.
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here ya go:

phalanx_14string.jpg
 
Smith 18 string

I worked with Ralph at Cessna. I bought mine from him in 1975. I still have it but have not strung it in many years. The boxes were prone to cracking and mine cracked in about 1981. Been thinking about having it restored. I will try to get you a picture of it later if you want.
 
you have to be a guy like John Denver with real roadies to tune something like that. I would also imagine the bracing and thickness of the wood to support that much tension would have to be outrageous. Maybe that's why the bodies were prone to cracking.
 
The tuning was fairly easy. Tune the mains like regular and then the octaves and unisons. E and A are two octaves. D and G are a main and two octave unisons. B and E are 3 unisons. Even Ralph's 6 and 12 strings seemed to crack. So I don't think it was the pressure of the 18. It was pretty well braced.
 
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