The Luthier Shop is a resource for people who build stringed musical instruments — tonewoods, tools, video tutorials, and ebooks produced by Nigel Forster, a professional luthier with over 35 years of bench experience.

The focus is on practical reference material: working knowledge from a real workshop, not theory assembled from a distance.

Nigel makes the tutorials and ebooks. They come directly from his workshop — the tools he uses, the methods he’s developed, the mistakes he’s made and corrected. The tools are made by small machine shops to Nigel’s specifications.

The Luthier Shop is a separate channel from nkforsterguitars.com, which focuses on Nigel’s bespoke instrument commissions. The shop is aimed at builders — hobbyists, students, and working luthiers who want access to practical craft knowledge.

Currently available:

Ebooks

• Making a Living in Lutherie: From Amateur to Professional
• Making a Living in Lutherie: Money and Marketing
• The Luthier Blog Ebook

Tutorials

• How to Make a Backstrap
• How to Make Dyed Burl Purflings

Tools

• Semi-hemispherical fret end grinding tool — available in standard duty, heavy duty, and dual groove

Tonewoods

• Queensland maple back and sides sets
• New Guinea rosewood for necks and fretboards

More items will follow. The focus is always on educational material that would take years to accumulate through trial and error — condensed into something immediately usable at the bench.

Some prior building experience is helpful. The tutorial covers backstrap design, construction, and fitting for stringed instruments. It is detailed enough to be useful to an experienced maker refining their approach and clear enough for a capable hobbyist to follow.

It’s a workshop tool for finishing fret ends — grinding them to a smooth, consistent semi-hemispherical profile. Made to Nigel’s specifications by a small machine shop.

Available in three versions: standard duty, heavy duty, and dual groove, to suit different working preferences and instrument types.

Currently: Queensland maple back and sides sets, and New Guinea rosewood for necks and fretboards. More species and cuts will be added. If you’re after something specific, it’s worth getting in touch.

Yes. Future releases will include additional build tutorials and reference material. The email list gets first access and occasional free content not available elsewhere.

All ebooks and tutorials are delivered immediately after purchase — no waiting, no shipping. You’ll receive a download link by email.

PDF, readable on any device. No proprietary software required.

Tools and wood sets are physical goods and will be dispatched by post or courier. Shipping costs and timeframes will be shown at checkout.

Digital products are licensed for personal use. Please don’t distribute them. If someone in your making community would find them useful, point them here.

Contact the shop directly. If a file is corrupted, incomplete, or fails to arrive, it will be resent promptly.

Because these are digital products, refunds are not offered as standard. If something is genuinely not as described, get in touch and it will be sorted out.

If a tool arrives damaged or a wood set is significantly different from what was described, get in touch. Physical goods will be dealt with fairly.

Reach out. The material is written to be thorough, but no tutorial covers every situation. A reasonable question will get a reasonable answer.

Some of it. The ebooks are accessible to someone early in their building journey. The tutorials assume you have at least started building. If you’re unsure whether something is right for your level, ask before purchasing.

The tools and most of the educational material are relevant across instrument types. Build tutorials specify which instruments they apply to. The methods come from a background in acoustic guitars, bouzoukis, mandolins, and tenor guitars.

Most free content is general. This is specific — to the tools Nigel actually uses, the decisions he actually makes, and the problems he’s actually solved. It comes from a particular place and a particular practice. That’s either useful to you or it isn’t.

First access to new products, occasional free material, and updates on what’s being made. No frequency for the sake of it. An email goes out when there’s something worth saying.

When there’s something worth sending. Not on a fixed schedule.

Yes, at any time, from any email.