Almost done!

Tonight I'm gonna drill holes through the bridges, and string 'em up!

Robban and Ronald might want to bring empty cases on sunday.

Finish 4

Three coats with sanding and a couple of attempts at pore filling in
between. This is boring, and my limited space doesn't allow me to
continue with Jukkas tenor right now.

So I've gone over the wood pile a few times making plans for future
projects.

And now I'm posting pics of oil drying. Sorry for being this boring.

Edit: Can you believe it? I'm still waiting for the last coat to cure. I know it will happen eventually but this is wearing me down. Should be dry enough though so I can probably go on planing the back for Jukkas tenor.

Finish 3

With the ubiquitous number 1 looming in the background, numbers 2 and
3 relax after the rub-down.

This feels so good, and I have a feeling the ukes are gonna turn out
really nice. Like nice in a good sounding, loud, and folk-arty way.

Finish 2

Look at the difference, the wood really transforms with the oil.

Finish 1

First uke, first coat...

Bone parts roughly shaped

This is a post I promised Robban. Saddles are cut and sanded, still
too tall / high, but good enough to place the bridges with. The furry rainbow fabric might make a nice case.

Bridges, cont.

They're cut to length, and await the bone saddles. Of course no glue
yet.

Bridges

Ok, this isn't a great picture. But I wanted to show the shavings from
my low angle block plane...

Family photo

Here's number 1, my uke, next to numbers 2 and 3.

Fretboards turned out a wee bit thicker than I aimed for - they were
next to impossible to run through the thickness sander as the paper
got totally clogged with resin and dust by the first pass. So next
time I'll do more planing before final sanding.

Don't tell Ronald and Robert by the way...

Next? Headstock veneer (easy), making bridge (easy), bone nut and
saddle (hard and smelly! (watch your associations)).

Fretboards

Frets are cut to length. I'm gonna mess up their undersides a bit so
they get a good grip in the wood - tapping them lightly with a hammer
worked last time. I might glue them as well, I don't know yet.

And markers are there too.

Backs / necks

Here is how they look from behind today. Progress is somewhat erratic,
but there is progress.

And I started on Jukkas tenor as well. But so far no Kodak moment.

Fingerboards

I decided to cover some really nasty mistakes with thin boards of dark
wood. They look quite cool with some slots set totally at random...

Sanding bodies

With the ukes on top of the Dust-E-Whacker, the dust doesn't swirl
around and even stays out of my nose! I could use a mask, but my
experience is that masks trap dust around the edges, leaving an
irritated and less than beautiful red circle around my gob.

Sanding is the worst part of appartment style lutherie.

Back glued

Necks are shaped, sort of. And the backs are roughly cut to shape. So
I stood and stared for a while thinking about what to do, then
realised that it was time to glue the first back.

Back braces

Well I'm back after more than a few days. Had to work hard at home
with building a new wall with wardrobes and cupboards, and my day job
is sadly enough evolving into a day and night job... To many houses to
draw at the same time.

And my sweet kids. Every time they exhale they call "DAD!"

So when is a poor man gonna build his commissioned ukuleles? I don't
know. But tonight the back braces / ribs finally got in place. They're
a bit thicker than the soundboard braces, and they're notched into the
linings. Something ought to provide some structural integrity on these
ladies, and sides and back are really thin. So the braces should make
sure the domed back doesn't cave in, and also make sure the sides are
connected across the body.

I really want a scrub plane. Anyone wants to lose one?

And note the nice shavings on the pic. I love those. That makes me a
nut, I know.

Necks are on!

Necks are glued, bolted and awaiting final shaping together with the
sides. The heel will be flush with the heel block, and the back will
extend over it.

Maybe I'll bring one to show Robban and Ronald this afternoon.

Edit: sort of a Freudian slip to put them next to my three-year-olds Pippi umbrella. How will the ukulele ever gain respect if the connection with kids and toys never ends?!

Last linings installed

This morning I glued the last of the eight strips. I will continue
with shaping the back radius, and then the neck will be put on. I made
the back radius on the other one last night, maybe it shows in my next
post.

Necks, and thoughts on building a pair

There are advantages. I know there are advantages. There has to be at
least some advantages...

But next time I won't build two ukuleles that are similar, not at the
same time. Without jigs and dedicated routers it sometimes feels very
strange to repeat the exact same tasks when you've finished them on
one uke.

Oh well, I'll stick with the plan. It will be great to string them up
at the same time!

On the pic the necks lie on the Dust-E-Whacker. Roughly shaped. Now
it's too late to thickness-sand the back of the headstocks. Tomorrow...

Sides glued

Both soundboards have their sides on. If I do things like last time
the necks are next, after some arching of the bottom of the sides.
Back braces will be put in place before the backs.

Glueing the other one

And the other one as well. Everyone knows you can't have to many
clamps, but doing it this way works really well with just seven.
Surfaces are flat, the lined sides really steady, and the plywood
solera sticking out from the bench is super. Thanks Pete Howlett for
the video.

Forgot to mention, braces are spruce, patch mahogany.

Leaving for Vienna on sunday. Maybe I'll get something done before then.

Big thanks for reading!