I found this pic on an old thumb-drive showing some of my early instruments. The piano is not my work but belonged to my late Mother. The Dulcimer is the finished instrument, my first acoustic instrument. The two guitars are also my work but not the ukulele. They look pretty good, from a distance anyway.
Updated: Jul 14, 2020
Last time I talked about when the head-stock of my first guitar snapped off when it fell over. I didn't know how to repair the head-stock so thought that the only solution was to make a new neck. I found a piece of scrap Jarrah and set about carving a new neck with my spokeshave and a rasp and files. I cut the fret slots in an Ebony fingerboard blank that I had purchased from Gerard Gilet. I used a mini hacksaw that I had purchased. I was careful and got the fret slots straight and at the correct spacing, using measurements from Irving Sloane's book. I cut off the old neck where it met the body with a handsaw and re-cut the neck mortise with a chisel. I attached the neck using Sloane's pinned mortise-and-tenon method which removed the need to cut a dovetail which would have been way beyond my capabilities at that stage. I made a bridge from a piece of scrap Sandalwood and glued it on using crudely-made cam clamps. I then began to think about how I was going to finish the instrument. I didn't have a spray gun and compressor and I'd read that French Polish was a great finish for a guitar. I was attracted to the idea of this finish and it's association with fine old furniture and old-world craftsmanship. I had no idea how challenging it would be. I read a couple of books on the subject and purchased some Shellac and alcohol. As I have sometimes done, I had bitten off more than I could chew. I tried to apply the finish according to the instructions and ended up with a mess. I had bare patches and I couldn't get a decent gloss. Nonetheless I pressed on with completing the guitar. I set about fitting the frets with a hammer and filing them with a file I had purchased. I made a nut and fitted the strings. I played the guitar and it sounded great, much better than the Yamaha acoustic I had bought from a store when I was young. It was louder, fuller and more responsive. I was pretty proud of what I had created and began to wonder how I could make money from this engrossing and challenging past. All these years later I still haven't figured out how to make a living from my passion and I'm wondering if I ever will as I'm not getting any younger. I have sold a few of my later instruments but not for prices that would pay me anything close to a decent wage. I would later get commissions to make instruments but found the process stressful. I had to meet someone else's expectations as well as live up to my own perfectionism. Anyway, back to the story. I began to purchase lutherie tools from Gerard Gilet and even made a curved-bottom plane according to Sloane's plan in his book. I still have this tool and still use it. I remember buying a purfling cutter and trying to work out how to use it. It had two blades and didn't realize until later that this was for cutting violin purfling slots. Nonetheless I worked out how to use it to cut binding ledges and still use it to start binding ledges to eliminate tear-out. I kept making guitars and I slowly improved. By now I had access to the World Wide Web and discovered the intimidating world of web forums. The Web was a major step forward for me as it I'm sure it has been for many other luthier both professional and amateur. Suddenly I had access to opinions and advice from those much more advanced in the field than myself. By far the biggest plus was Kathy Matsushita's website. She was an amateur only in the sense that she didn't do it for a living but the quality of her work and of her descriptions of her processes was world-class. I've never met Kathy in person but if I would I would thank her profusely for the information she provided, all for free. I would occasionally email her telling of my achievements and I always got a prompt reply with lots of encouraging advice. I am eternally indebted to her and I'm sure this is true of many others around the world who pored over her website. I bought a copy of Robert Benedetto's Making an Archtop Guitar and hankered after making one. I didn't want to ruin an expensive set of inch-thick Maple and Spruce boards so set about making one from Radiata Pine. I had a lot of fun carving and graduating the plates according to Bennedetto's instructions and began to get a sense of how the black art of tap tuning worked. I'm still even now trying to get the hang of tap tuning. The subject always perplexed me as every luthier who did it had their own way. I began to realize that this was because each luthier had their own idea of what sounded great or, at least how to achieve their trademark sound. I completed the Pine arch-top guitar and had another go at French Polishing. This time it worked and I ended up with a nice satin glow. I was starting to get the hang of it all. I didn't like the sound of the finished guitar. It sounded dead and metallic. But the guitar played well and I still have it all these years later in much-modified form. I have frequently gone back and pulled apart old instruments of mine that I wasn't happy with and reused components and sometimes the wood too. The Tasmanian Blackwood that I used for my first guitar i reused for a Kabosy that I am currently working on. More to come...
Updated: Jun 29, 2020
I thought I would talk about some of my tools and their origin. If you catch the lutherie bug you will find yourself buying lots of tools and lusting after tools you can't afford. Above is a pic of some of my hand planes some of which I have made myself. The blue plane on the left is a Supercraft plane that I bought from a hardware store and was one of the first tools I bought. It's far from perfect, the adjusting wheels are fiddly and it's only made from pressed steel but it's handy when precision isn't required. The black plane next to it is a no-name Taiwanese Block Plane that I also bought fairly cheaply from a store many years ago. It works ok and I use it quite a lot. The rustic looking thing next to the block plane is a Jack Plane I made from plans in a book aimed at woodworkers in developing nations that I found in a library. Unfortunately I can't remember the book's name or it's author. It describes a whole range of tools that could be made using basic tools such as a handsaw and chisel. The iron I bought off eBay from China and it seems to be good quality. It works well. The iron is adjusted with a small hammer. Next are two Krenov-style planes I made many years ago. I like making tools. It's uniquely satisfying when you put effort into the project and find that the tool you have made works as well as a store-bought one. I made these two according to instructions in David Finck's book Making and Mastering Wood Planes. This book is simply one of the best books I have ever read on the subject of woodworking. It's a must-read. These planes work as well as any store-bought plane, a tribute to Finck's exemplary way of explaining the process. The small plane is made from a piece of hardwood i had lying around and the iron I cut from and old handsaw blade. It's excellent for detail work. The other is a Smoothing Plane. As you can see I'm not concerned whether my hand-made tools look great, as long as they work. Next are my two Stanley-style planes, a Stanley/Bailey no. 6 and a Falcon-Pope Smoothing Plane that was made in Australia. I bought these from a garage sale. They are both excellent to use and adjusting them is easy. I'll be showing off more of my tools soon...