MIMF

by **Patrick DeGreve** » Tue Apr 03, 2012 11:23 pm

I put my challenge listing in the wrong place, so I am moving it here where it belongs. I plan to make two instruments for this challenge. This one is going to be an OM with a California redwood soundboard, and walnut back and sides. The neck will be a laminate of walnut, and oak. I am using walnut for the fretboard, and bridge as well. Here is a shot of some of my materials.

by **Patrick DeGreve** » Tue Apr 03, 2012 11:30 pm

I started with the bridge. I read with interest the thread on using walnut for a bridge in the flat top guitar section of this forum and made my bridge deeper for a better footprint. I think this is a good idea because of the redwood soundboard as well. I think I will dowel the bridge as well. Here I set up a stop to route the saddle slot.

by **Patrick DeGreve** » Tue Apr 03, 2012 11:32 pm

Here is a shot of the bridge after drilling the pin holes and shaping the bridge.

by **Patrick DeGreve** » Sat Apr 07, 2012 10:58 pm

I had a chance to get back to the challenge instruments yesterday. I re-sawed the walnut for the back and sides. I cut the sides about 1/8", and then planed them to .090". I cut the backs a little thicker, so I could plane them down to 1/8".

by **Patrick DeGreve** » Sat Apr 07, 2012 11:01 pm

After trimming the sides to their profile shape, I bent them in my fox style bender.

by **Patrick DeGreve** » Sat Apr 07, 2012 11:31 pm

Next I made the neck and heel blocks. I made these out of some mahogany, (not a local wood),but I was not sure if walnut was suitable for the neck block. I had some mahogany that I have used for neck blocks before, and was afraid that walnut might be more prone to spliting. Here I am gluing them in place.

by **Patrick DeGreve** » Sat Apr 07, 2012 11:46 pm

I made some kerfing from a piece of hard pine I pulled out of the trash at work. I work in TV a production shop in Hollywood, and the carpenters throw out pine cut offs all the time. I ripped it down to 1/4" X 3/4 ", routed one side with a round over bit, and cut the kerfing with a stop on my band saw.

by **Patrick DeGreve** » Sat Apr 07, 2012 11:51 pm

Here I glued on the kerfing. I bought some small spring clamps for this purpose, clothes pins alone just don't have strength.

by **Patrick DeGreve** » Sun Apr 08, 2012 9:44 pm

Here I am thicknessing the soundboard. I double faced taped the soundboard to a plywood sled, ran it through the thickness planner. I thicknessed the soundboard to .130". This is just a bit more than spruce would be, because of the redwood.

by **Patrick DeGreve** » Sun Apr 08, 2012 10:02 pm

Gluing the soundboard pieces together.

by **Patrick DeGreve** » Sun Apr 08, 2012 10:15 pm

Using Stew-mac's precision routing base, I routed four rings for the purfling strips. I also routed the same rings in pine, walnut, and redwood. I will use the ridges between the rings for inlay material.

by **Patrick DeGreve** » Sun Apr 08, 2012 10:18 pm

Here is the finished rosette.

by **Patrick DeGreve** » Sun Apr 08, 2012 10:25 pm

I cut out the soundboard, leaving about 1/2" outside the line.

by **Patrick DeGreve** » Sun Apr 08, 2012 10:36 pm

After finishing the rosette, I glued up the back the same way as the soundboard. Here is a shot of the back after sanding.

by **Eddie McRae** » Mon Apr 09, 2012 8:33 am

Very nice! I'm crazy about black walnut and use it quite a bit. Nice to see someone else using it too! Nice job on the rosette also. Looking good!

by **Chuck Tweedy** » Wed Apr 11, 2012 1:45 am

That back is outstanding!! Can't wait to see the whole thing.
Rosette is cool as well. :-)

by **Thomas Dooher** » Wed Apr 11, 2012 11:04 am

Yeah, another one that make me ill...wish I had as much talent! :mrgreen:

with envy...

by **Patrick DeGreve** » Thu Apr 12, 2012 10:51 pm

Back to work on my projects, I cut the walnut and oak into strips, which I glued up into a neckblock.

by **Patrick DeGreve** » Thu Apr 12, 2012 10:58 pm

Here is a shot of the neck block. The center piece is 1/2" X 1" X 32", the two oak strips are 1/4" X 1" X32", and the outer strips are 3/4" X 1" X 32".

by **Patrick DeGreve** » Sat Apr 14, 2012 11:19 pm

I decided to use the spruce bracing wood that I had, instead of the pine that I was going to use. I just thought that the pine was not stiff enough for the redwood soundboard. I pre-shaped the braces to a 15' radius with a plane, and scraper, and sanded them smooth. Then glued them in place on a radius disk.