Here we are again, and I managed to do some work whilst listening to the cricket.

First job was to finish thicknessing the headstock with sandpaper and a block.



And then I decided to remove the veneer on the back of my fretboard. It had some chips along what would be the final edge and I decided it would be quicker to replace it now than spend a lot longer trying to tidy it up later.





I'll replace it at the same time as I glue the fretboard to the neck. And tomorrow I'll start looking at trimming the fretboards to length, ready for glueing.

Andy

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When the going gets weird, the Weird turn Pro.

Not only did I look at trimming the fretboards to length, I made a start.



Cut slightly oversized, and then used the belt and disc sander to sand back to the line. It worked so well that I did the other one too



So, with plenty of time left in the afternoon, what next? I know, I'll attack the 1st headstock with a router. So I assembled the weapon of choice and used some double sided tape to attach the template to the headstock.



I know, double sided tape doesn't sound much compared to the power of a router. But it is deceptive stuff, grips really tight without slipping. Especially if you help it out with a couple of clamps to make sure it sticks tight.

Time for the first cut..



And here it is all finished. I left the nut end to finish by hand later, the router is very aggressive, didn't want to risk running past the end of the template and removing something that shouldn't have been removed.



I won't be in the workshop tomorrow, I'm on an expedition to find silicone sealant in a small tube. The truss rods are designed to be free floating in the neck channels, but need 3 small blobs of silicone to stop them rattling. Of course, you can buy massive tubes for kitchens and bathrooms, but I only need a little. I've discovered that aquarium suppliers offer it in smaller tubes, so I'm searching those tomorrow. And if I can't find any, I'll pay the cash into the bank account to order online.

And hidden there is a good tip. Luthiers often need small amounts of something specialist. There is always someone prepared to sell you those things at a premium, but a little creative thinking can often lead you too another discipline where what you need is sold much cheaper.

Andy

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When the going gets weird, the Weird turn Pro.

Coming along nicely

Where I work: Blu Tac for temporary fix. Double sided tape for permanent!

R.S also do smallish tubes of silicon (semi transparent). We use it a lot for sealing and extra strain relief on plugs and sockets going in crap environments - operators yank them out by the cables

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It wasn't me!
(Well, actually, it probably was)

toolstation do silicone in larger tubes so cheap it's daft not to use em....

besides, surely there's some bathroom or kitchen bits in need of a refresh at home???


there ALWAYS is..... somewhere ......

Two good suggestions. I've even got a Toolstation catalogue lying around

And I'll try the RS website too, I might be tempted to buy an inductor and build a varitone circuit

Andy

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When the going gets weird, the Weird turn Pro.

Sorry I didn't post last night, but here's yesterday's update.

I've ordered a small tube of silicone online and waiting for it to arrive. So I spent some time considering headstock inlay designs. And then prepared some mother of pearl blanks ready to turn into dots for fret markers.



I tried that a while ago without much luck. The technique is to stick the pearl to the blunt end of a drill bit the same size as the dot you want. I've done that successfully in the past, but last time the pearl refused to stick. So, I got a couple of drill bits, put them in the pillar drill upside down, and used some wet & dry to make the ends flat and square.

This afternoon I'll try to turn a few dots. Last time I was using a hand power drill in a stand, this time I'll use the pillar drill and run it as slow as possible. So, fingers crossed.

Andy

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When the going gets weird, the Weird turn Pro.

For those of you wondering what I was up to making the pearl dots, that's how it's done. Apply a drop of superglue to the pearl and then press the wrong end of the drill on it like this.



The hammer was a suitable weight to hang on the handle to keep it pressed down for a minute or so.

Once the glue took, it was straightforward to use sandpaper and a diamond file to turn it round and to the same diameter as the drill bit.



And here's one finished, it's 2.5mm diameter.



In the interests of my sanity, I decided to do the smaller ones first. I made 5 this afternoon, plus another 2 slightly oversized because they dropped off before I got them down to the right size.

Things started well, but I did have some problems later. I'm using the thinnest superglue because that's what I have to hand. The technique is to apply a drop of glue to the pearl and then attach it to the drill bit. But because the glue is so watery I was having problems with it flowing too freely. Not enough surface tension to keep the glue neatly on the top of the pearl, it kept on flowing off and glueing the pearl to the bench, the scalpel I was using to transfer it to the pillar drill, or the table of the drill. So, perhaps I should treat myself to a bottle of medium, or even thick, superglue.

No work tomorrow, I've got all weekend off. I'll think about the thicker superglue, maybe buy some, and give some time to some other projects while I can

Andy

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When the going gets weird, the Weird turn Pro.

No new pics today, another afternoon spent turning MOP dots. If you really miss the pics, you can always look at the previous post

Still waiting for the silicone I ordered to arrive really, so just making use of the time to get those pesky pearl dots done.

I've spent a large chunk of the weekend refreshing myself on pick-ups and some of the more esoteric electric guitar circuits. I'm about to replace the pick-ups on my Manson Flying V again, and I'm thinking about the 2 12 string electrics I need to finish.

More of the same tomorrow methinks...

Andy

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When the going gets weird, the Weird turn Pro.

Quote zenguitar:

---

So, perhaps I should treat myself to a bottle of medium, or even thick, superglue.

---

No zenguitar. That is not the way. It might interfere with your correspondence.

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.. is this thing on?

I agree. Use cider Andy. It's far better...

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Strictly project and just for fun

General advice...

When using superglues with an applicator nozzle, take great care when attempting to blow the excess glue out of the nozzle.

Andy

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When the going gets weird, the Weird turn Pro.

tell me you didn't glue the beard to the workbench !!!

Tell me there was no cider involved in arriving at that epiphany. I too had an immediate image of a beard and a workbench... We know you never mix alcohol with power tools Andy but not sure what your policy is with strong glues. I for one am content to accept this advice without requesting any photographs or further specific details. I just hope there were some scissors or the like within reach and/or there was no physical pain involved!

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Strictly project and just for fun

The beard is unharmed, and no alcohol was involved. Just issuing a general warning about the potential dangers. The secret is to hold the nozzle with your fingertips and press your lips to your fingers and not the nozzle.

More later...

Andy

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When the going gets weird, the Weird turn Pro.

So, after the distraction of the superglue (and it really isn't as scary as people will have you believe, like the obnoxious kid in the pub you just have to take a little time to get to know it and it's pretty harmless), some more pics.

Now I'm working on the 4mm pearl dots things are a lot easier. I've worked out a decent sequence and process. Apply a drop of superglue to the blunt end of the drill, carefully put the sharp end into the chuck of the pillar drill and tighten. Then line up the pearl blank directly below the drill bit and pull the handle down to press the bit against the pearl. Leave for a few minutes with a weight on the handle so the glue can set, then remove the weight. The edge of a sheet of kitchen roll is enough to mop up any excess glue if required.

Then turn on the drill and apply the flat diamond needle file and/or sandpaper to the turning blank. I work for a few minutes and then turn it off to clean up and let it cool, and then start again. It does take about 20 minutes to make each dot, but that's largely because I am being careful and keeping the drill speed low. It's also important to avoid rushing, you need to patiently take off the high spots first, and then remove the bulk, or else you end up with oval dots. If I was using medium viscosity superglue I could probably work a lot faster, but I have time to spare waiting for the silicone I ordered, so I might as well make good use of it. Of course, I could just buy some pre-made pearl dots, but that does add to the cost (and Luthier's Mercantile don't ship outside the USA so I can't add them to an order there, I could buy from David Dyke or others in the UK but that would be another postage cost too) but I have plenty of offcuts of pearl and it's always better to use them than to let them go to waste.



So that's a 4mm dot finished and ready to remove from the drill bit. A few moments with a scalpel blade is all it takes to break the glue joint.



And here's a nice selection of finished dots. Some 2.5mm, some 4mm, and you can spot a selection of oversized dots on the right. They're the ones that dropped off before they were finished. I'll keep them for future use, either for repairs or new projects.

You can also see the superglue bottle holding the applicator tip to drain neatly so I don't need to blow any more glue out of it

Andy

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When the going gets weird, the Weird turn Pro.

You'll never guess...

Made some more dots today, mostly the right sizes too. Yes, I know it's boring, but at least I can listen to the cricket on the radio while I work

Andy

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When the going gets weird, the Weird turn Pro.

Quote zenguitar:

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I know it's boring, Andy

---

Not at all - it's quite beautiful really. Is your daughter still doing the photos? Not to take away form the craftiness- the photos are really good. I'm, as always glued - no pun

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.. is this thing on?

Edited by Stan (11/08/11 02:29 AM)

I'm just trying to imagine what it would be like to play a carefully crafted, intrinsic archipelago that I'd written myself on a fretboard that I had made myself, inlayed with dots that I had also actually made myself. A feeling I will never know but I can't really envisage a better antipathies of instant gratification. Hardly boring.

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Strictly project and just for fun

Somewhere i have a photo series of me making replacement dot markers out of phillips/posidrive screw heads....





i liked the idea on my JEM7BSB, but wanted real ones, the Ibanez ones were just printed images under clear plastic dots.

so when i made myself another guitar, i made proper screw head dot markers....

Quote Off duty BBQ lighter AKA Idris:

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Somewhere i have a photo series of me making replacement dot markers out of phillips/posidrive screw heads....





i liked the idea on my JEM7BSB, but wanted real ones, the Ibanez ones were just printed images under clear plastic dots.

so when i made myself another guitar, i made proper screw head dot markers....

---

I remember you telling me that before Max, would be fun to see the pics if you stumble across them in your travels. I've already worked out a couple of approaches

And don't worry Frisonic, the work isn't boring (especially as I can listen to Test Match Special) I enjoyed making some more today. You imagine right, it is a rare pleasure to play your own music on an instrument you built from scratch yourself. I recommend it to anyone.

And Stan, one of the Ukes is for my friend's daughter but I take all the pics myself. It's only an old Sony 3.1 megapixel digi cam, but I do have a City & Guilds in photography

Andy

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When the going gets weird, the Weird turn Pro.

I was all ready to post another boring post about turning pearl dots last night, but there was a problem with the broadband connection here. And later on a power cut which might have been related.

But today, I got on with some real work, as well as making a few more dots

The silicone sealant has arrived, so I made a start on preparing to glue the first fretboard. One thing I needed to do was to open out the truss rod access so that there will be enough room to pop in an allen key when required. So time for a little freehand routing with the Dremel.



258 pics, and the first where I got my finger in front of the lens!!!!!!

And here it is with the truss rod and allen key in place.



I'll be glueing the fretboard on Monday. Between now and then I have to decide whether I should drill the fretboard for the fret markers first, or wait until I've attached it to the neck. To be honest, it doesn't make a great deal of difference but on balance it might be easier to manoeuvre the fretboard under the drill before it's glued.

I'll probably get both fretboards glued on monday. I've got plenty of clamps so I could drill both for fret markers, glue the first, rout the 2nd headstock and glue it too.

Progress at last

Andy

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When the going gets weird, the Weird turn Pro.

It looks like you're on the home stretch now. Well done.

Dan

Quote Dan LB:

---

It looks like you're on the home stretch now. Well done.

Dan

---

Ack!
Don't say that, Murphy could be listening

Nice to see though

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It wasn't me!
(Well, actually, it probably was)

cheers guys,

Murphy was in the pub tonight, and thoroughly pissed. So he's in no state to intervene in anything

Andy

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When the going gets weird, the Weird turn Pro.

I actually got stuff done today.

1st job was to rout the truss rod adjustment cavity in the second neck, no need for more pics it looks just like the 1st one.

I went on to decide the dots for the 1st fretboard.



Here they all are, nice and neat. So then I got out the ruler and scalpel and marked the centres ready for drilling.



And here I am drilling



And that's all the holes drilled ready. But I'm not fitting the dots yet, I need to attach the fretboard first, finish shaping the neck, and then radius the fretboard.



And here you can see just how little silicone is needed for the truss rod. Three little blobs, nothing more. Even with this small tube I'll be wasting loads more drying out in the nozzle than I actually use. But it's there to stop the truss rod vibrating in the channel. So important enough to do right.

And then it was a matter of applying glue to the neck, applying the fretboard using the panel pins still in place to locate it accurately, and then slipping in a big fistful of clamps to get the pressure on.





Tomorrow is much the same with the second neck. But I'll show you how the first came out.

Andy

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When the going gets weird, the Weird turn Pro.

Again, apologies for not posting last night. Broadband was non-existant again, I presume it is being taken down late at night for maintenance.

Anyway, I did manage to get work done yesterday. First job was to remove the clamps and the locating pins and have a look.



I then took the opportunity to trim most of the excess off the sides.



Next I switched to the second fretboard and drilled for the position dots. And then I glued the replacement bloodwood veneer to the bottom of the fretboard. I was considering glueing that at the same time as I glued the fretboard to the neck. But I came to my senses, two glueing steps at the same time is a recipe for disaster.



With that put to one side to dry overnight, I still had plenty of time. So I got out the chisel and carved away a lot more excess from the first neck. Trimmed very close to the fretboard edge, and approaching final shaping.



That Peruvian Walnut is a real pleasure to work. Cuts like butter

I'll be off soon to start work this afternoon.

Andy

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When the going gets weird, the Weird turn Pro.

slightly off topic....

how do you feel about making a Kazookeylele??


http://www.videobash.com/video_show/final-countdown-nerd-cover-4459

Well, it only played the 1st 24 seconds Max!, but what I heard sounded cool.

Sounds like a fun project, all that's needed is a donor toy piano and uke for the neck and hardware. But what scares me is that I've just fixed some sticking keys on my indian harmonium and seen how the keyboard works...

Now, imagine replacing the toy piano with a harmonium powered bagpipe stylee

Andy

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When the going gets weird, the Weird turn Pro.

And after that diversion, back to Project Ukulele...

First job was to replace the locating pins on the 2nd fretboard and glue it to the neck.







Process was the same as the 1st. Some 3-in-1 oil on the truss rod, a strip of masking tape along the top of the truss rod while I lathered the white glue on the neck, 3 blobs of silicone on the truss rod, then pull off the masking tape and apply the fretboard.

Then it was time to dig out my spokeshave, sharpen it nicely, and work on the 1st neck.



Then I switched to course sandpaper and a sanding block so I could get in tight to the heel. Here it is close to straight and flat and approaching final thickness at the heel and headstock.



And after all that, time for a nice ego boost. Place the body and neck together and finally get a good idea of how it's going to look.





Very satisfying

And the more observant among you might have noticed that I avoided shaping the headstock neatly where it meets the neck. Time to do something about that. I could have got out the rasp and files, but I have some nice drum sanders for the Dremel that would do the job a lot quicker with a steady hand. So I clamped the template in place, put the headstock in the bench vice, and fired up the Dremel on low speed.



Very close to the final shape now, job well done.

Andy

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When the going gets weird, the Weird turn Pro.

Quote zenguitar:

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Very satisfying

Andy

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I can see how and why you would and should be so pleased, luthier supreme zenguitar. Very pretty - and that photo was blurred. Dont mind me!

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.. is this thing on?

Edited by Stan (18/08/11 01:53 AM)

Quote zenguitar:

---

Well, it only played the 1st 24 seconds Max!, but what I heard sounded cool.

Sounds like a fun project, all that's needed is a donor toy piano and uke for the neck and hardware. But what scares me is that I've just fixed some sticking keys on my indian harmonium and seen how the keyboard works...

Now, imagine replacing the toy piano with a harmonium powered bagpipe stylee

Andy

---

Why am I not surprised to learn that Andy has an Indian harmonium? A wonderful instrument for a guitarist to have kicking about as an acoustic keyboard. I saw the Peter Bruntnell Band use one live on stage a few years ago in an acoustic guitar/double bass/electric guitar/electric sitar line up, with one musician playing the two electric instruments and the harmonium. The rig was so simple it was beautiful. He had a little, small scale hand pumped harmonium on a waist high stand and just held an SM57 over the bellows as he pumped away while playing the keys with his other hand. A very organic if churchy sound and, being used sparingly as it was, a highly evocative voicing to bring to the performance. I have been lusting after one ever since I tracked down this store which seems to have a sound ethical mission to keep traditional Indian music alive for the Indian kids that are born/brought up over here, with inexpensive instruments built in India by craftsmen who are earning enough from the work to keep at it. As they also sell cheap sitars this shop might be of interest to other forum members.

But getting back on topic they do not sell ukuleles! Really great to see the necks and the bodies united. Go Zen.

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Strictly project and just for fun

That's interesting Frisonic, I've known about their Southall shop for a while but the Marylebone store is new to me. I bought the harmonium from Rikhi Ram in Delhi, and bought a set of Tabla for my brother at the same time

Meanwhile, I have been a good boy and spent another afternoon on the ukes.

Here's the 2nd fretboard fitted. When I pulled out the locating pins a piece of the fret board lifted. Nothing unusual about that, and better to fix it sooner rather than later. And there was a split developing in the veneer band too, so I took the chance to glue that as well.



Then it was back to work shaping the 1st neck. Having got it to near thickness it was time to give it a proper shape and lose the squareness. The sandpaper was working OK, but didn't feel right. So, I grabbed the Dremel again but this time used the flex shaft as it was easier to handle. That let me tidy up the headstock end quickly.

Then I grabbed the cabinet scraper and started removing the sides as symmetrically as possible.



And after another hour or so, this is where I ended.



It's now getting close to the final shape. At the moment it has the beginnings of a nice V profile, but I'll get Ruth to try it and see how she likes it before final shaping. I still need to do a little tidying up around the heel and headstock, but that needs to wait until the neck profile is settled.

Tomorrow I'll be working on that, but I also need to trim the new veneer on the 2nd neck. The difficult area is where the fretboard extends past the neck, I am very tempted to glue another veneer at 90 degrees to support it but might instead laminate a layer of paper with hide glue instead. The bloodwood looks great but is very inclined to chip and split along the grain when trimming. And the exposed end of the fretboard needs to be trimmed accurately. I am increasingly drawn to laminating it with paper and hide glue to bond it together neatly. That should make trimming a lot easier. And once it's trimmed I can then decide whether to leave the paper laminate or scrape it away.

Andy

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When the going gets weird, the Weird turn Pro.

Does Ruth know she's born? I only mention this because having a neck profiled to one's hand... well it doesn't happen every day!

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Strictly project and just for fun

Advice will be given

Andy

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When the going gets weird, the Weird turn Pro.

Looking really good now

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It wasn't me!
(Well, actually, it probably was)

After thinking about reinforcing the bloodwood veneer on the 2nd neck I decided it was better to be careful. So I made a small batch of hide glue and glued a layer of paper to the veneer to help maintain it's integrity. In the long term my options are still open. All it will take is some hot water to remove the paper layer if required. But in the meantime it will help keep it all in one piece while I trim it to the fretboard and work on the neck.





Then I spent some time working on the neck and heel of the first neck, getting ready for final shaping. Then Ruth tried it for feel and liked the vintage V profile in the hand, so it was back to work with the scraper and the sandpaper.

Getting very close now.





The only minor problem is that the neck 'leapt' out of my hands while I was working with the sandpaper and flew across the garage. Net result is that the fretboard has separated from the neck a little at the nut end and there is a nasty chip from the fretboard at the other end.

Frustrating, but there'll be no problem glueing the fretboard again. And I can easily cut in a piece of ebony to clean up the chip, and most of the repair will be lost anyway when I radius the fretboard. So no panic.

Andy

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When the going gets weird, the Weird turn Pro.

Ouch! Another close call

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It wasn't me!
(Well, actually, it probably was)

Don't worry Will, most guitars have the odd 'hidden' sin somewhere

I've already glued the fretboard. Just needed some white glue slightly thinned with water to help it run into the break.



The chip isn't big...



I helps that the fret slots are already cut, all I need to do is put a neat bevel on that edge and the fret slots will make it neat. Then glue a small piece of ebony from the off cuts neatly in the bevel using black stained epoxy, just the same way as I did the twelfth fret inlay. Then when it's set, neatly trim it flush on the top and side. Should be totally invisible. And then when I radius the fretboard most of the repair will be removed anyway. I'll wait until I put in the fret dots to do the repair, because I'll need to mix the black epoxy then anyway.

Next I carefully trimmed the veneer around the fretboard tongue with a scalpel, and tidied it up with fine sandpaper and a small sanding block. You can see it on the next pic where I have also grabbed the router and trimmed the headstock to the template.



Then with the router in action it was time to trim the sides of the neck flush to the fretboard. I carefully worked close to the bloodwood veneer and then made sure that the router was trimming the veneer neatly without chips. Once I was sure it was making a neat cut I trimmed all the way back to the fretboard edge.





As you can see, the router bit wasn't quite long enough to remove all the waste and left a 2mm thick strip at the bottom of the cut. Easily removed with a chisel. Then I was left with some extra width on the heel block to remove with a saw to leave a blank ready for carving.



Lots of progress. Sunday is a day off, and Monday afternoon is put aside for housekeeping work here on the forums. So back to work on Tuesday.

Andy

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When the going gets weird, the Weird turn Pro.

What is this 'day off' you speak of?

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It wasn't me!
(Well, actually, it probably was)

Quote Folderol:

---

What is this 'day off' you speak of?

---

Delightful.

A chance to watch the cricket, read SOS, have a relaxing bath (while listening to the cricket), cook a nice roast, and generally recharge the batteries.

And a chance to Mark to have a day off from playing 'mine host' while I'm in his garage working.

Andy

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When the going gets weird, the Weird turn Pro.