Christmas vacation.

Took a couple days off from work, have the whole week off, wiring in real outlets and lights in the shop, hope to insulate the walls over vacation, make this a four season shop.

I love Pam

She cleaned out a closet today and found my peg shaver and peg reamer. Time to start building banjos again and very traditional dulcimers!

New toy!

Played with my new scroll saw today, cut out a set of figurines for the church. I bought a Craftsman 16" scroll saw, an entry level model, but to cut soundholes out, should be good to go. It made quick work of 4/4 silver maple, so 1/8 inch tops should be a piece of cake. #154 has the scroll glued on today, it is looking really good, next up is a piece of crotch walnut, going with either a butternut top or more chestnut..... Still thinking.

Chestnut

Joined a wormy chestnut top today, not real fond of how the butternut top soundholes turned out. The line is drawn whether to scrap the top or fix them, guess I'll try the latter first, hopefully it will work. The chestnut will have hearts, very traditional!

Things are progressing

The back is on #154, #155 has its sides bent and its back joined. Tomorrow I'll cut the soundholes in 154 then do end blocks and lining on the next, followed by gluing on the top of 154. Need more clamps, etc.!

Why do I always print work schedules on this? Needless to say those things did not get done yesterday, or today (watching my 2 year old grandson today :-)) 

WG-153 is finished

Quilted Cherry sure looks nice.

Notice the repair on the lower corner. This was the dulcimer I started for the Church auction early last winter. It fell, the piece broke off, but I could not throw it away, so here it is. This will be selling for $200.

#154 is coming together, end blocks and lining glued in and the back is jointed. This will be curly walnut with a butternut top.

Back to old rules

Years back, when I sanded out a dulcimer, I would never finish it the day I sanded. Seems after hours of sanding, maybe its sawdust in the eyes, that a scratch or rough spot would be missed. This has happened, tomorrow morning, I must sand out the back of 153, seems I missed a spot....sanding out finish ruins a few sheets of paper, not too mention wastes a lot of time. Lesson learned.

Wood

As I look at my chestnut boards and mourn the fact that I'll only get two sets, maybe three if I go to a four piece top, I ponder the question why? Why do I spend premium dollars on boards that are 100 years old and this is the major risk? What is the draw to American Chestnut? Historically, American Chestnut was the dominant tree in the Appalachian forest, stories were told about an entire cabin built from one tree, wagon loads of nuts scooped below one of the giants. Surely a tree so important to the early settlers with such beautiful wood was used by the earliest dulcimer makers. But alas, the Chestnut Blight hit, for all practical measures, the American Chestnut is extinct. But it was rot resistant, old barns are being recycled into lumber. I seek this lumber to carry on the tradition! Watch for it, it is lovely wood.

Chestnut Resawn

Years back, I acquired a 2X4 of American Chestnut. The board was wormy, had nail holes in it, and two 1/2 inch checks on one face. Re sawed it today, two boards in a new check showed, disappointed, might only get two dulcimer tops out of this board. But they will look very nice!

Sneak preview

Sealer coat of finish applied. The wood looks great, was looking at pics of old dulcimers, and a lot of them had the heart soundholes orientated this way, not sure I'll do it like this again, but you never know till you try....

#154 is on deck!

Will be curly walnut with a butternut top, nice teardrop shape, unsure on soundholes yet. This one will be nice!

Due to problems with the band saw, a new scroll is made, what do you think?

Curly Sassafras with Walnut trim

This dulcimer is up for sale on the website for $250!

Putting in time......

Getting a chance to work in the shop finally. Should have the sassafras dulcimer finished minus the tuners (need to order those). Not 100% pleased with the soundholes, the grain of the wood pulled the saw, but otherwise.......
Also have the top glued on the quilted cherry dulcimer. Did a repair where the side chipped out, its noticeable but the quilted cherry is just too pretty to pitch. Someone will get very nice instruments at very good prices.

The shop, ready to go.

Everything in its place....

Sorting out wood, placing it in the loft. Found some fantastic quilted cherry, some crotch walnut with at 28 inch feather, tons of curly cherry, curly maple, some fantastic birds-eye maple, spalted silver maple, a very wide osage orange. also up there are a couple of dulcimers awaiting finishing. Very exciting times!

Finally

The shop is due to be delivered tomorrow. Looking forward to getting all my wood in one place, where I can not only see it but do a complete inventory! Photos will be out tomorrow!

CONCERT ALERT

Steve Eulberg from Fort Collins, CO will be performing at Emmanuel Episcopal Church on Sunday, june 16th from 7:30 to 9:30. Admission is free with a free will offering collected for the performer. Come enjoy so toe tapping folkgrass, "Like Jimmy Buffet in Appalachia!"

Shop News!!!!

The shed will be arriving next week!!!! Soon the shop will be a bustling center of activity!

Pouring the pad!!!!

I really did do a lot of work.....

The making of the shop.

The foundation is ready for the cement!

The new shop is on the way!

Financing approved, building permit ok'ed, will order the shed on Monday!

Working in the "shop"

Blessed with a warm dry morning so to the patio I went. Achieved a lot this morning. End blocks and lining glued in, the back sanded out and the top joined. This piece of sassafrass has some nice curl to it, will be very pretty when finished.

Looking forward to getting the real shop built, waiting for the freeze thaw cycle to end so I can pour a foundation.

Even with a "major" snowfall, things are still progressing.


You can almost see the curl in the lumber!

So you want your own?

For those wanting their very own Wild Meadow Dulcimer, you can email luthier@wildmeadowdulcimers.com to discuss wood varieties, shape (teardrop or hourglass), soundhole design and pricing.

Exciting news

The website is up, sort of...being constructed. www.wildmeadowdulcimer.com
It will be here that you can order one, either pre-built or a custom job. Exciting!

The next one up!

This will have a sassafrass back and sides. A favorite wood to work with, aroma of rootbeer whenever a plane or sandpaper touches it. Has been sold under the name "Golden Oak", a pretty wood.

Crunch time! The quilted cherry has met disaster, I have less than three weeks to build a new one. Think curly maple (bigleaf) trimmed in black walnut.
 Looking good right now, today is the 15th. Sides are bent, the back will be joined and the back linings glued in tonight. Hopefully will get the back installed tomorrow, if not by Friday.

The top is glued together, scroll rough cut, everything is going good today!
The top is glued on with traditional heart soundholes. Tomorrow, trim the top and start carving the scroll. Getting excited as its almost done!(1-21)

Coming together nicely. Should have the scroll finished by Friday, Fretboard on Saturday, Sunday start sanding out. Wish the curl showed up better in the photo.
Scroll is glued on, Saturday at 9 a.m. Quick run for dogfood, fret the fretboard, a quick hunt at Busch Wildlife with the beagles, home to glue on the fretboard, then Sunday afternoon to sand. Hopefully get the first coat of finish on Sunday night! Decided the fretboard needed some pearl dots, it has them now, backed me up a day.
The fretboard....
 It is now glued on, time for serious sanding! And now a coat of finish.

I am building again. A highly figured wild cherry teardrop dulcimer. It is number 151!








Great progress,, 1-7, the back is glued on. Fretwire and planetary tuners have been ordered. It is coming together.
 The back is trimmed, sweet looking piece of wood!











Disaster has struck! A big chunk of the side has broken off. Scrapping this one, starting a new one.