M_A_T_T

It's been mentioned before, if you can only afford cheap tools, at least buy high quality cutters. Cheap tools & cheap cutters are a bad combo.

Looks slick. A local shop carries Allparts, maybe I'll see a few in the future.

One week, eh? I'll see if I can squeeze it in between violin #2.

Any shape or size? I saved the shell halves of a coconut I had for the perpose of one day making a funny little stringed instrument out of them. Is that okay?

If they are not actually patent pending and just say they are to keep ahead, is that a chargable offence?

How's it going?

I do 1/8" for plunging. You can shatter bits if you over work them, I've done it.

SOLD!

I think even the smallest bandsaw would be an improvement over a scrollsaw.

What's an 11A grade top? Not to mention that isn't even a 5A top......

Very good condition, not used terribly often, original cases, too. Sizes 0.105"/0.120", 0.075"/0.090" & 0.036"/0.042". I marked the respective sizes near each edge so I would never use the wrong cutting edge, quite handy. I think $15 each is a fair price. I can take money orders (bank/western union). Not sure what shipping would be yet. They can probably be shipped in some kind of an envelope so it shouldn't be too much.

Jeremy, if you are interested in consigning one of the guitars I would visit http://www.act1music.com/ in Langley. Their guitar tech Steve also sells gear on ebay (He's sold a few guitars and things for me) and only charges about a 5% fee, 20% cheaper than the store consignment fee. Steve is in shop Wednesdays thru Saturdays, I believe. Just a thought.

It took me 8 months to the day, but I finally finished it!

Here is my gigantor, 800+ photo pictorial of it being built, showing EVERY detail, even my screw-ups!

http://s11.invisionfree.com/Stringed_Instr...owtopic=16&st=0

Here is a link to the finished photos:

http://www.hobbyluthier2.8m.com/violin1.html

Here are direct links to each picture:

http://files.photojerk.com/mmaatt/violin/v784.jpg

http://files.photojerk.com/mmaatt/violin/v785.jpg

http://files.photojerk.com/mmaatt/violin/v786.jpg

http://files.photojerk.com/mmaatt/violin/v787.jpg

http://files.photojerk.com/mmaatt/violin/v788.jpg

http://files.photojerk.com/mmaatt/violin/v789.jpg

http://files.photojerk.com/mmaatt/violin/v790.jpg

http://files.photojerk.com/mmaatt/violin/v791.jpg

http://files.photojerk.com/mmaatt/violin/v792.jpg

http://files.photojerk.com/mmaatt/violin/v793.jpg

http://files.photojerk.com/mmaatt/violin/v794.jpg

http://files.photojerk.com/mmaatt/violin/v795.jpg

http://files.photojerk.com/mmaatt/violin/v796.jpg

http://files.photojerk.com/mmaatt/violin/v797.jpg

I turned my kitchen table into a photo studio and got some GREAT shots:

http://s11.invisionfree.com/Stringed_Instr...ndpost&p=934986

I vote Merbau as well. It looks just like older, oxizdized pieces I have.

Thanks for the nice comments. I'm not sure what my next instrument will be, or when exactly I will start it. I may just do another violin so I don't have to make new molds & templates. I don't have the equiptment to get sound samples. I was playing it last night, though. I don't know how to play very well and don't really have an 'ear' for stuff like this, but compared to two other violins I have, it has better low-end, but not as sweet a high-end as one of the others. When I get better pics I'll be entering it in GOTM.

FINISHED!!!!

http://s11.invisionfree.com/Stringed_Instr...ndpost&p=934986

(Edited with better pics link)

Is it giving a thumbs up?

If this helps this is how I change a blade on a Delta 14":

-Unplug saw and remove other blade (usually I have to clean gunk off the tires before fitting the other blade)

-Insert different blade and tention (my saw tentions automatically, just a lever & a gauge)

-Loosen upper and lower guides so they do not touch blade

-Rotate upper wheel to run blade through

-At the same time adjust pitch/angle of (in my case) top wheel until blade runs in about the middle of both wheels smoothly, then tighten

-Adjust rear upper & lower bearings so they just DON'T touch the back of the blade

-Adjust side blade guides so they touch the blade lightly behind teeth (I use phenolic guides that are allowed to touch the blade)

-Replace table insert & table 'splice bolt?', then plug in saw and run for just a few seconds to make sure the blade doesn't fly off

I think that's it, just off the top of my head.

That's a DEADLY top!

Yes i mean c clamps, C ans G look nearly the same.

Would beach wood work for a violin top MATT?

←

Beach is way too hard, generally softwoods are used, cedar, pine, fir, spruce, the most common being spruce. Why?

I'll either buy some small G clamps or make some like the ones you made:

http://files.photojerk.com/mmaatt/misc/clamp2.jpg

Do you mean C-clamps? Those can easily apply too much pressure and crack the ribs, as I discovered when I tried to use those, not to mention you'd have to buy a crap load. The ones I made were very easy to make, but only cost about $30.

Some scientists have been researching his violins for quite a while and they're beginning to speculate that their unique sound quality stems from the fact that the wood they're made from grew during a mini-ice age in europe about half a milenium ago.

Or that he soaked his wood before using it, or it was the varnish he used, or the fact that most surviving instruments have been re-graduated, had new bass-bars fitted and new necks for a modern playing conversion. Lots of people have tried coming up with ideas about what made his instruments sound the way they did. I think alot of it is simply the age of the instrument and good craftsmanship.

One thing about that ice-age-wood idea is if a tree was to grow in a mini ice age, that part of the tree would still exit today, just deeper in the tree, so wood like Strad used could technically still be available today.....

How are you clamping the top on, ~john~?

Dude that's DOPE! I had fun making my Stewmac kit a few years ago, hope you have fun too. Check my sig for the link to my violin making pictorial where I'm making one from scratch.

Are you using the chalk fitting method to fit the bar? I don't recall that from the Stewmac instructions. It involves soft black-top chalk rubbed on the top, then you put the bar in place and rub it slightly to mark the high spots, then you shave those off and repeat, until the entire surface of the bar gets covered with chalk, then you will have a perfect fit op the top. You can see me do it in my pictorial somewhere.

A bass, an acoustic, a semi-hollow, a cigar box, a solid body, and a mondolin - one of the most diverse months ever, you guys ROCK! It was a toss up between the mandolin and the acoustic, but I had to give my vote to the mandolin.