Learning Ukulele 50 Sites Top 50 Ukulele Sites Argapa Ukuleles - one size louder: Progress on piccolo and soprano

Saturday, February 13, 2016

Progress on piccolo and soprano

I'm building a soprano of walnut and cedar. My customer has asked for cedar since he likes the sound of the one I built for BaronK, my friend Robin that is. I planed the soundboard to thickness instead of sanding it, and chose braces and bridge patch from reclaimed wood. The pieces come from an old piano and a hundred year old loom (that I cut up).

But on Robin's uke I put a single tone bar as well, so in order to replicate that I'll put one on this one as well. 


With a lamp behind it I can clearly see how to shape the brace. It needs to fit the dome I introduced when I glued in the bridge patch. 


And once it's curved I glue it in. 


Here's where we're at. Bridge blanks are planed and ready for carving. The soprano neck has an ebony reinforcement stripe and a headplate to match the back and sides. 

Closest to the camera is a bunch of fretboards I prepared. Laburnum, rosewood, mystery wood and lilac. 


No, wait - here's where we're really at. I glued the sides to the soundboard. And I glued the cross grain strip to the seam of the back as well. 


The rest of this month will suffer heavily from my day job. I'll visit Hanoi and just after that Lima so plenty of valuable building time will be lost. But I'm rather pleased so far, up to here I've been fast. 


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