Mowry Stringed Instruments

Workshop Page 1

Below are some photos from the new shop!  I have learned many of the techniques shown here from other builders, and I owe them my gratitude.   Enjoy!

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Please click for larger images.

	I begin by thickness-sanding the stock that I will use for the ribs (sides) of the mandolins.
	I cut maple strips for the ribs, and sand them to the correct thickness. I then bend them using a variety of methods. This jig bends the long rib on the scroll side of F5 mandolins. I pre-bend the scroll portion on a hot pipe, then clamp it in the jig. An electric silicon heating blanket supplies the heat.
	I carefully cut the ribs to length, and then glue up the rib/block assembly in an exterior mold.
	Here I am cutting kerfed basswood lining on the bandsaw. I now use reversed-kerfed lining, meaning that the saw kerfs are on the inside of the lining strips when they are glued to the ribs. This adds a tremendous amount of stiffness to the completed rim assembly.
	Spring clamps hold the kerfed lining in place while the glue dries.
	Several completed F5 rib sets, after leveling the ribs, blocks, and lining with a long sanding board. These have the older lining with the saw kerfs away from the ribs.
	I believe that clean construction contributes to the final quality of the instrument, even in places that no one will ever see!
	The ribset in front is for a cutaway guitar-bodied octave mandolin.
	On to the top and back... I joint the edges of two-piece tops and backs with a wooden plane, and use hot hide glue to join them.
	The shape of the ribset is traced onto the plates...
	...and I cut them out on the bandsaw.
	Most builders seem to use a pantograph carver to rough-carve plates, but I have had good luck using a topographic-step method with a Safe-T-Planer in the drill press. There's still plenty of carving left at this point, but the bulk of the wood is removed. When I'm carving several plates at once, this method is quite fast. I prefer it to duplicarvers because I don't have to hold onto a vibrating router for hours on end, and I can make subtle adjustments to the arching just by altering my contour lines, rather than having to carve new patterns. My downloads page shows the topographic map that I typically use for mandolins.
	A gouge quickly smoothes out the steps left by the Safe-T-Planer, and violinmakers' planes and scrapers finish the carving.
	I drill a number of holes in the inside to remove the majority of the wood, and then it's back to the gouge.

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