Vacation is here

I'm around 18 hours in so far and vacation is goooood (said in Darth Sidious voice). First a couple of pics showing where I left the body of the koa soprano, backside is contoured and fitted with kerfed lining strips.

It's gonna be a beauty. Look at the figure. 

Then we went out to the cottage, I brought tools to work on a cedar neck. (Remember the last time I worked on necks at a cottage..? http://argapa.blogspot.se/2016/07/dead-in-water.html?m=0 )

At the cottage is my larger workshop, with a big ass vise, chilly temperature and zero sea view. So I thought I'd upgrade the banjo porch with a vise to work in style. 

To attach the vise securely I put four threaded insert nuts in the deck. Three are of brass, one steel but all have the same thread. 

It's easy to think the slot at one end is for a screwdriver, but don't make that mistake - it will maul the insert and make parts snap off. Instead you should use a screw with a nut halfway up, as in the pic. 

The slot actually cuts into the wood, making the insert go down into a tight fitting hole. 

And then we use the specially enhanced hex key to screw the vise in place. What, you don't own one?

At the cottage I found some alder neck blanks as well so I'll start by planing them flat and square. Dad's no.7 will do. Or will it, he must have used it himself. Probably on some epoxy residue because the blade is shot. My Japanese whetstone is soaking as I write this.